General advice appreciated

[El Pichichi]

First off can I say what a wonderful site this is. Everyone seems very friendly and helpful and all being well I would hope to be able to contribute as well in the not too distant future.

I'm 26 years old from Liverpool and have always dreamed of living in Spain. The country is in my blood practically from the years I spent in Mallorca as a child. I'm talking months on end with family, not beach holidays. I've seen the real Spain and I love it.

I speak GCSE level Spanish and a bit more but I never got around to finishing my A-Level (health reasons), however I believe a few months in the country and I would pick it up quite easily as I have the basic grounding and am very willing to learn.

The only reason I'm not in Spain now probably is family problems and health issues, both of which I am glad to say have finally been resolved.

I recently lost my job and have nothing really keeping me in England and that is why I'm looking at a realistic way of getting to Spain with a view to staying there.

I am a qualified Nursing Assitant/Health Care Assistant and have worked in the NHS for 2 years (a job I fell into when no one else would employ my due to the health problems) gaining various medical qualifications along the way.

The only real tie I have that I would be loathed to leave behind is my "Kuk Sool Won" martial arts classes, so I would like to find somewhere I could practice abroad if that were possible.

I have timeshare weeks banked which I can use for Spain but really I suppose what I need to know is, where is suitable for me to use them that is not too touristy but not empty either. Somewhere I can test the water for two weeks and look for possible employment even if it is only for a few months.

I'm looking to start afresh in so many ways, I figure that now is a good time to at least look at the possibility of making my dream come true or I'll forever wonder what might have been.

Thanks for any help.

Rich.

[SunnySpain]

Originally Posted by El Pichichi

I
I am a qualified Nursing Assitant/Health Care Assistant and have worked in the NHS for 2 years (a job I fell into when no one else would employ my due to the health problems) gaining various medical qualifications along the way.

Rich.

My advice to you is as follows:

1) Live in a city where jobs are easier to come by
2) Mix with the locals
3) Register with job agencies immediately - on arrival
4) Focus on speaking Spanish 99% of the time

Good luck, Dave

[El Pichichi]

Originally Posted by SunnySpain

My advice to you is as follows:

1) Live in a city where jobs are easier to come by
2) Mix with the locals
3) Register with job agencies immediately - on arrival
4) Focus on speaking Spanish 99% of the time

Good luck, Dave

Thanks, all very helpful suggestions.

Just to expand on them though.

1) I am looking for employment obviously but I don't want to live in an 18-30's playground. Any ideas?
2) Always. Spanish culture is everything to me. I love the food, the language, the football, the music but most of all I love the people and their attitude towards family life.
3) Great tip, I probably would have done but sometimes the most obvious things are the ones you miss.
4) Even as a young child I always spoke the language when I could as it is about bettering yourself but even more so, respect.

[SunnySpain]

Originally Posted by El Pichichi

Thanks, all very helpful suggestions.

Just to expand on them though.

1) I am looking for employment obviously but I don't want to live in an 18-30's playground. Any ideas?

Don't live on the coast


2) Always. Spanish culture is everything to me. I love the food, the language, the football, the music but most of all I love the people and their attitude towards family life.

Don't see a problem with that at all.


3) Great tip, I probably would have done but sometimes the most obvious things are the ones you miss.

ok

4) Even as a young child I always spoke the language when I could as it is about bettering yourself but even more so, respect.

excellent

5) Your CV must be in Spanish with a passport sized photo on it, a good one.
And you MUST highlight your qualifications as Spain wants qualified people who speak the language

Good luck

[mayotom]

Well the better job prospects seem to be with multinationals in the likes of Madrid, I have Friends in a few companies, mostly Spanish, and they seem to be doing OK, the only others are english with University level Spanish and time with native speakers.

that said I'm sure your level of Spanish is quiet good given your experience but something some time immersed in the language would do wonders for.

so if you can afford it I would recommend getting yourself into one of the most Spanish locations and immerse yourself in the language and culture again, then prepare yourself for interviews in Spanish, in cities like Madrid.

what ever you do good luck with it

[jojo]

Originally Posted by El Pichichi

First off can I say what a wonderful site this is. Everyone seems very friendly and helpful and all being well I would hope to be able to contribute as well in the not too distant future.

I'm 26 years old from Liverpool and have always dreamed of living in Spain. The country is in my blood practically from the years I spent in Mallorca as a child. I'm talking months on end with family, not beach holidays. I've seen the real Spain and I love it.

I speak GCSE level Spanish and a bit more but I never got around to finishing my A-Level (health reasons), however I believe a few months in the country and I would pick it up quite easily as I have the basic grounding and am very willing to learn.

The only reason I'm not in Spain now probably is family problems and health issues, both of which I am glad to say have finally been resolved.

I recently lost my job and have nothing really keeping me in England and that is why I'm looking at a realistic way of getting to Spain with a view to staying there.

I am a qualified Nursing Assitant/Health Care Assistant and have worked in the NHS for 2 years (a job I fell into when no one else would employ my due to the health problems) gaining various medical qualifications along the way.

The only real tie I have that I would be loathed to leave behind is my "Kuk Sool Won" martial arts classes, so I would like to find somewhere I could practice abroad if that were possible.

I have timeshare weeks banked which I can use for Spain but really I suppose what I need to know is, where is suitable for me to use them that is not too touristy but not empty either. Somewhere I can test the water for two weeks and look for possible employment even if it is only for a few months.

I'm looking to start afresh in so many ways, I figure that now is a good time to at least look at the possibility of making my dream come true or I'll forever wonder what might have been.

Thanks for any help.

Rich.

Hello and welcome to the forum. I used to do nursing for the NHS, I was a nurse prescriber, altho I eventually settled in caring for the terminally ill and elderly, cos I felt it less stressful and more worthwhile!

When I first thought about spain, I googled nursing homes in Spain and then e-mailed them with my qualifications etc... The response wasnt brilliant, but I did get an interview, so when I aqrrived I went to see them and gotta bank staff job. The pay wasnt good 5€ an hour and the hours were long, in fact too long for me to take on a full time post with them cos I have children. Anyway thats one way of going about things.

As for area??? well we all think ours is the best... but actually mine is LOL. Gggole your martial arts in Spain and see if anything comes up???????

Jo xx

[SunnySpain]

You might want to try living with a Spanish family, as then you will be forced to speak Spanish 100% of the time and you could try Malaga as a base buy apply all over the country, the biggest cities clearly have the most jobs, but there exists a fast train called the AVE that runs between Malaga and Madrid, another from Malaga to Sevilla and another between Madrid and Barcelona

Oh and think positive 100% of the time, thats always a good starter for 10

[El Pichichi]

Thanks everyone.

At the moment I am thinking my best option is to get a summer job over there and just get the feeling for it. I am joining sites like this to prepare for the future whether that be next year or threes years down the line as I have just been offered a place on a degree course which would mean I could go there in a far stronger position at the end of it.

I am told Sevilla is a wonderful place and from what I have read up it seems like a perfect fit for me. My friends like to joke that Sevilla is the Liverpool of Spain because no one in either country can understand us. In all seriousness they say that working in Sevilla would ease the transition for me as it is a very culturally vibrant city and growing quickly, like Liverpool.

Another option of course would be to see if I can get on my degree course in Spain, obviously not this year though as my Spanish is at nothing like the level that would be required.

A lot to think about but threads like this are a good soundboard for my ideas.

[SunnySpain]

Originally Posted by El Pichichi

I have just been offered a place on a degree course which would mean I could go there in a far stronger position at the end of it.

I am told Sevilla is a wonderful place and from what I have read up it seems like a perfect fit for me. My friends like to joke that Sevilla is the Liverpool of Spain because no one in either country can understand us.

In all seriousness t

Another option of course would be to see if I can get on my degree course in Spain, obviously not this year though as my Spanish is at nothing like the level that would be required.

A lot to think about but threads like this are a good soundboard for my ideas.

Sevilla is a good idea, maybe a year out in Sevilla is a good idea, as part of your course I mean, seems a reasonable idea anyway

[El Pichichi]

Originally Posted by SunnySpain

You might want to try living with a Spanish family, as then you will be forced to speak Spanish 100% of the time and you could try Malaga as a base buy apply all over the country, the biggest cities clearly have the most jobs, but there exists a fast train called the AVE that runs between Malaga and Madrid, another from Malaga to Sevilla and another between Madrid and Barcelona

Oh and think positive 100% of the time, thats always a good starter for 10

Cheers. I've been through a lot the past few years, I won't go in to detail but thinking positive is really not a problem and now that I am well again I honestly don't believe much is beyond me, certainly not this dream.

The biggest positive influence in my life is Kuk Sool Won. Anyone who has not tried it I recommend greatly that you give it a go. This is a Martial Art that although uses strikes, throws and weapons has so much more to offer. Respect, healthy wellbeing in mind and body, meditation and deep breathing, it would be hyperbole to say it saved my life, what it did do was improved it massively.