Where and why

Germuno,
Why does Spain suck...am planning to go to Granollers soon and have never been so any opinion of yours would be much appreciated! Thanks in advance!!

i said it was my opinion that spain sucks these days because it's been discovered by the masses & is on a major construction program of cookie cutter 8 to 10 story condos... kilometer after kilometer of cranes as far as you can see at times

...portugal on the other hand is still a great place...& lisboa is a beautiful city on a par with buenos aires...

I was in Hainan a few years ago and we drove around the island and up the middle,climbed the 5 finger mountain and I must say I preferred the mountains to the beach, probably because it was the middle of summer . Well worth a visit. You can now take a train from the mainland to the island.
Still don't know what paradise is but I liked the sound of the Canadian place totally agree about the humidity thing.

it's nothing new about staying on the train across the channel to hainan island...what's relatively new is that now the train continues on to sanyo on the south end of the island

hmm..thx. germuno

Further grist for the mill Jesuisnu.

Spain is the number 1 destination for Brits moving abroad. Many retire, buy a 'villa' and begin living life in Brit enclaves. The same is true of other N. European nationalities as well to a lesser degree.

As a result, in many places in Spain there has begun to be a backlash. The same is also true in parts of France for the very same reasons.

These 'in-comers' drive property prices up which means it becomes harder for young local couples to afford to buy a home.

They use the government medical system which means access by locals is affected. i.e wait times for an appointment or elective surgery go up. The Spanish government has recently admitted this is becoming a serious problem for their health system.

While taking advantage of all social services provided by their adopted country, many in-comers contribute very little to the economy and even pay their taxes back in their home country. Many also refuse to integrate in any meaningful way. They live in enclaves, mix only with other foreigners primarily and make little if any attempt to even learn the language.

In response, it is only natural that there be a backlash. In some parts of France for example (particularly around the ski areas) it has become commonplace to see any car with UK registration plates, with key scratches down the sides of the car. There have been signs painted (a la graffiti) proclaiming, 'Brits go Home'.

So as a place to live and work which is the subject of this post, it really isn't somewhere to be reccommended.

One foreign couple moving into a village or city isn't a problem. But when you see mile after mile of purpose built condos all over Spain it doesn't take a genius to figure out the impact.

well said wayworm...

..i haven't been to france in over 2 decades but just about every year i look at my almanac it's the #1 turist country in the world

i should have said france is the #1 turist destination...the states followed by spain is number 1 in turist revenues...then france

Read an article once about a guy visiting Costa Rica. He was staying at a lodge on one of the rivers and the owner mentioned that it was his goal in life to move to Trenton, NJ. Apparently he visited a relative there and was willing to trade a tropical paradise for Trenton.

I would love to go and live and work in Yemen again. I did so for a couple of years back in the 90's and would go back in a flash if it weren't for family commitments that keeps me where I am.

Why do I love Yemen? I think it is a spectacularly beautiful country (I love mountains and deserts) with lots of fascinating cultural sites. Yemeni people in general are tough but welcoming and hospitable to those that treat them with respect. I lived in Aden the last time (and worked 2 hours outside of Aden - travelled 4 hours every day) but would probably live in Sana'a if I had my "druthers". Even though I loved Aden the weather got me down and Sana'a was much more pleasant.