Staying positive and being a happy expat
I love living in Spain, the climate, laid-back lifestyle, language and culture all really suit me and I couldn’t imagine going back to the UK. However, I know that there are lots of people here at the moment who feel really differently and are frustrated and annoyed with Spain and disappointed that they aren’t living the dream that they expected. I think that making things work in a foreign country is a combination of realism, positivity and being proactive.
As I’ve lived abroad before I was ready for the challenge of a foreign language and new culture and knew that I’d have to start all over again, making friends, establishing myself in my profession and working out what was what in the area. As I was prepared and also spoke Spanish I didn’t get a nasty shock when I arrived.
I threw myself into networking to meet people and become established and was very proactive if I met someone I liked so I quickly developed a good network of friends. I didn’t want to overstretch myself or be isolated, so I chose a cheap flat share in the centre of town to start with and took up any offer of going out with my flat mate. I also looked on the bright side and saw just how many advantages there were here that I couldn’t enjoy in the UK, walking back from work along the beach, having cocktails as the sun went down outside in November and having a more relaxed and healthy way of life.
I believe that this attitude and the proactive way we went about meeting people and getting established is the key to why we’re happy as can be and in no hurry to go anywhere else. On Eye on Spain, there’s a really interesting article all about Positive expat attitudes from someone living in China which is a great example of steps you can take to be positive and make the most of life in whatever country you find yourself in.