We both have decent, but challenging jobs that we enjoy, so that begs the question…. why move? Why go to all this hassle?
Our passion is being outdoors. Whether that is just sitting in the back garden around the fire pit, or travelling in our camper van. For us being outdoors is the best thing in the world, and Spain has the opportunities and the weather to spend a lot of time outdoors. In the area we live, there are mountains within two hours that get snowed in winter, hundreds of beautiful beaches and loads of regional parks.
Another big reason for us, is how crowded and busy England is. Too many people in too small a space. When one town ends, the next one begins with little or no wild spaces in between. In contrast, countries like Spain and France are bigger than England and have many places that are sparsely inhabited.
On a nice day in England, everyone flocks to the same beauty spots and they become crowded. In Spain, you can find beaches and forests that are empty even on a nice day.
In England everything seems to have rules that are enthusiastically enforced. Most land has restrictions of what you can do and not do. Most beaches and rivers have restrictions. And there is just a general attitude of people who hate to see other people having fun. In Spain, generally, you can do what you want within reason. As long as you do not bother anyone else, no one really bothers you. I do not want to bad mouth my mother country, because it is a beautiful place, but sometimes the petty minded minority can and do spoil things for the rest of us.
I mentioned our jobs. Even though they were rewarding, they were also stressful and took all our energy. In some ways, I will miss working. I had some amazing colleagues, and felt like I was making a difference to people. However it was also making my health suffer with stress and being unable to “switch off”.
So, even though it is going to be a right pain to up sticks, the improvements to our quality of life will make it worth our while. Even if we will also be financially poorer as a result!
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