What’s it like to live in…Spain - Mijas
Originally from North London, Peter Davis, 70, and his partner, Teresa Rendell, 61, have settled near the whitewashed village of Mijas in southern Spain. Why Spain?There was no actual moment of decision. I based myself in Italy for more than 20 years but the German lady I married - who died several years ago - lived here and, after a very short while, Spain just felt right. It continues to. Don’t you feel isolated here?Not at all. Malaga, only a few kilometres away, is one of the great cities of Europe. And just across the water we can see Morocco, another of my favourite countries. Being welcomed over there by the sort of people who play serious tennis gives you a very different insight into that kind of society than an ordinary visitor might get. Did you meet Teresa in Spain? No, she’s Portuguese, from the Cape Verde Islands. We met in Lisbon, where she was in charge of the lost-luggage department at the airport. When bags belonging to 16 of my clients went missing and she recovered them all within a couple of hours, I realised she was someone special. Later, when I became a widower she eventually agreed to join me here. She’s still getting used to the quiet of the countryside after hectic city life. Isn’t that quietness one of the best things about being here? She says that the best thing is being with me. But we both enjoy being away from big-city pollution and noise. This is a wonderful climate, and the natural landscape is beautiful. Then there’s the food, the wine, the pace of life, the sense of wellbeing, the feeling of vitality. Need I go on? But many people feel that the Spanish are inefficient.Many people have stupid opinions – especially those who’ve spent little or no time in the country they criticise. There are many different characteristics among Spaniards, as with other nationalities. When Teresa first came here, she was very aware of the little differences between the Spanish and the Portuguese, but she no longer notices them much. Do you feel the same about local bureaucracy?It seems to me no better or worse than the bureaucracies in other countries. There may be occasional problems over some matters but, in my experience, one should simply avoid tangling with bureaucrats whenever it is possible. And the Spanish health service?Seems just fine to me. I never had much to do with the NHS when I lived in Britain so I can’t make a comparison. There must be some things you don’t like.I think the despoiling of the countryside is the worst thing, especially the cheap “townhouse” type of construction. And I’m also concerned about boys and girls riding their noisy bikes so recklessly – 95 per cent of them without crash helmets. Teresa says their crazy behaviour scares her. When you’re not off with a tennis group, how do you pass the days?The fall-off in travel since 9/11 has given me more leisure time – I’ve started on my memoirs. I do some gardening, take long walks and play tennis at the Lew Hoad club down the road – I must keep up to the clients’ standard. Teresa has joined the Spanish ladies’ association, goes to the gym, and is taking Spanish lessons. It’s not the same language as Portuguese. The Portuguese sometimes say that Spanish is just Portuguese spoken badly. How is your own Spanish? Pretty good. I can’t conceive of living in a country and not learning its language. I can now get along in several languages, even the kind of Arabic spoken in Morocco, where I go quite a lot. How else could we communicate with our friends here, who are of all nationalities? Are your friends foreigners or Spanish?Most of the people I’ve become fond of in my life seem to have moved down here, so it’s probably about 50-50 for me. The majority of Teresa’s chums seem to be Spanish. She does miss her Portuguese relatives and friends. What about the cost of living?Prices have increased sharply since the introduction of the euro. There was a terrific jump because people needed to use money of dubious origin before it was converted into euros. The actual cost of living has certainly gone up. Do you ever think of going back to Britain? You can’t be serious! I haven’t been there since 1992, and I don’t know when I might visit it again. As for Teresa, if I weren’t in the picture she’d probably go back to Lisbon. Might you become a Spanish national, then?I have considered it, but there is no real reason to. We’re all Europeans, anyway. Interview by Anthony Delano Fancy a break in Spain to find out if it's your dream place in the sun? Visit Saga's holiday pages
This article was created: 18 July 2006.
This article was last edited: 11 September 2007.
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