A year later... are we still living the dream?

A year later... are we still living the dream?

Well, it's true what they say, time flies when you're having fun. We have somehow been in Spain a year already and we can confidently say there is no looking back. I remember saying to people before I left "I will either see you in 3 months penniless and homeless or I will never see you again". It's nice to say we are neither of the above and we have also visited our loved ones and had many, many visitors. As you may know, when we arrived in Valencia we decided to let our hair down for a bit and then try to secure a job and a place to live. Unfortunately it didn't work out for us that way but this opened a few doors for us and we made the move to Alicante and it was all uphill from there. 

"Mate, this iz rate good 'ere init" - Joey 

We drove to Alicante from Valencia which was slightly scary as I don't think the Spanish are the most careful drivers, but we got here in one piece. This time we had a more serious and proactive approach which made us get straight out there and start the job hunt. Within a couple of weeks I was successful and began working in an English language academy - which I still work at a year on. After a few more weeks Alison landed a job in an estate agency which seemed great at the time but it turned out to be a lot of hours for a low salary. Luckily, after only a month an opportunity came up for Alison to begin working in the same academy as me and likewise she is still there to this day. It has been such a great experience teaching English to a huge variety of age groups and levels. Unless you are super lucky or have a great job lined up then I would say that teaching English is up there with one of the best jobs you could have. The pay is quite good compared to the very low minimum wage you would earn in the likes of a bar job or most others. So after landing on our feet this allowed us to start really living the life in Spain.

"Is it weird to say I actually love my job?" - Ally

So apart from working what else have we been doing the last year? The truth is, I don't even know where to begin. Every day is a new adventure. If you are a fan of living in the streets, watching parades, going to a festival every other week or even experiencing a different culture I would tell you to book a flight here tomorrow. There is always something going on and that's owing to the beautiful weather and the fact that Spanish people love to fiesta. One of the first festivals we stumbled across was Alicante Carnival and it was almost one of the best. I can only describe it as crazy. We always say "there is no way you could do this in the U.K." Soon after that it started getting hot. This was what we had been waiting for. During the summer we literally spent more time on the beach than anywhere else. We would even go to the beach on our breaks and have a beer and some lunch which definitely made us sit there and agree that this was the best decision we have ever made. What's even better is that the novelty of going to the beach and topping up the tan or just chilling in the sea never wears off. In fact, we are counting down the days that it is hot enough to sunbathe again. 

"Ooh its hot today... Beach?" - Jally 

The biggest part of the year was on Ally's birthday when of course we went to the beach. We watched the sunset with blankets and a bottle of champagne. After a few gallons my nerves had finally settled and I decided to give her a present. She was expecting to get a motorbike helmet so you can imagine the look on her face when she saw me on one knee holding a ring. Since then things couldn't have been better. We are currently in the process of planning our wedding in the sun but we will talk about that another time and give you all the information just in case anyone is feeling brave. We are planning to get married in September 2019 and spend around a month in the Philippines to see Ally's family that won't be able to make it here, and to have a little bit of a honeymoon, relaxing on the white sands sippin' a rum and coke. It's very exciting but as you can imagine very stressful, we are trying to find a venue, accommodation, catering, decorations etc. And if that isn't difficult enough we have to do it in a second language. So hopefully we don't get lost in translation and end up with a crazy flamenco style wedding with indoor fireworks and the other insane Spanish stuff.

It's very hard to move to Spain and not go out regularly, it's just so cheap and there is literally a bar or a cafe every 5 metres. There is a different approach to drinking here. For example, it's completely normal here to have a beer with your lunch before you go back to work for the afternoon, and then another one after. In fact, its not a rare sight to see crowds of people outside the cafe's at 9a.m. having a beer and some breakfast. As for the nightlife, well, there is everything. You can go from a little bar in the centre that sells pints for 1.50 or you can go to a classy nightclub on the port that has a pool and an outside DJ. However you will probably need a loan to buy a few drinks in that place. On top of your average night out there is always some kind of outdoor party in the streets that attracts a lot of the locals to drink and dance all night long. Slightly more classy than the U.K's version of drinking in the streets.

The best month so far has to be June. Basically, the whole of Alicante stops functioning, puts everything aside and has a huge party. It sounds good eh? It was amazing but it was also annoying when trying to sort something out, there is literally no hope. So make sure you are prepared and have done everything you may need to do in regards to paperwork and all that jazz. So what happens? Ok, each 'barrio' (neighbourhood) comes together and creates something called 'Hogueras'. They are like huge statue things and they are put on most of the streets. When it reaches the last week of June people take to the streets everyday and party. On Saturday at midnight a firework is let off from the castle and that is the sign to start burning the Hogueras. A parade of people along with firemen will go to each Hoguera and set it on fire until it is burnt to the ground. This goes on until every single one is a pile of ash, so as you can imagine it runs into early hours in the morning. While this happens you can either watch as many burn as you can or you can find a street that is full of tents and outdoor bars and party the whole night. The following week there is a firework competition every night and they are rather spectacular. If you want to visit Alicante and have a bit of a fiesta then I would recommend coming to this one (Hogueras). I'm sure you won't regret it and I'm sure you won't sleep for the whole week.

So, to wrap it up, things couldn't have worked out any better than they have. It's great to look back and see that we have turned a random one way flight to Spain into a new life. Although we may not stay here forever as we have many more adventures planned, it has definitely been worth the experience and I'm sure we will always feel like this is our home. As time continues to fly by, we will carry on living our best life and take advantage of living in this amazing country. Its true what they say, 'nothing is handed to you on a plate'. For this reason we are proud of what we have achieved because it hasn't been easy and there has been struggles but in the end we are proud to say we have done it.  Like I have said before if you are sat at home thinking about moving abroad, wherever it may be, I would say go for it. Don't let anything hold you back.                                                                          

                                                                                                               

Thank you for taking the time to read our blog, it is purely for fun and to pass the time on the five rainy days a year but we really do appreciate it. We hope to write many more about making the move and giving people all the information they need before they do it too. If you have any questions or would like us to write about anything in particular then please leave us a comment or let us know somehow. Muchas gracias.

Jally