Before heading home from Malaga we found ourself ssmack in the middle of a demonstration where people had taken to the streets to protest corruption and the power of banks. It did (once again) remind me that the bubble I exist in in Spain, filled with love, cooking and gushing over glamorous ingredients is just that: a bubble.
The reality outside it is a lot less pretty.
There's no end in sight for the recession. Last year Spain had to resort to a bailout from EU, worth over €100 billion. Unemployment and poverty are rising and the future is bleak at best.
The reality outside it is a lot less pretty.
There's no end in sight for the recession. Last year Spain had to resort to a bailout from EU, worth over €100 billion. Unemployment and poverty are rising and the future is bleak at best.
Reruns on English TV channels from years ago keep banging about the cheap property and are full of people who, with their heads spinning with heady promises take the plunge and chase their dream of living in the sun.
Only few of my friends who came here after that very dream still remain. For many the dream came to an abrupt yet somewhat inevitable end. Life requires money - even here.
The property bubble has bursted a long time ago. Everywhere you go, you see for sale- signs. Costa is littered with developments that the developers didn't have money to finish and people don't have money to buy - not even with the 100 % mortgages the huge billboards advertize. Even my financially fuzzy brain can't help but think there might be a connection with the general recklessness with money and the situation this country finds itself in.
Only few of my friends who came here after that very dream still remain. For many the dream came to an abrupt yet somewhat inevitable end. Life requires money - even here.
The property bubble has bursted a long time ago. Everywhere you go, you see for sale- signs. Costa is littered with developments that the developers didn't have money to finish and people don't have money to buy - not even with the 100 % mortgages the huge billboards advertize. Even my financially fuzzy brain can't help but think there might be a connection with the general recklessness with money and the situation this country finds itself in.
Companies go bust every day. One of the latest victim was the organization behind Miss Spain pageant. Last year they didn't even have money to organise the contest.
This country's finances are even bigger mess than mine. My road will soon take me back to Finland - for work. I can't wait to get back here though. Money won't buy you happiness... but it can take you a lot closer.
This country's finances are even bigger mess than mine. My road will soon take me back to Finland - for work. I can't wait to get back here though. Money won't buy you happiness... but it can take you a lot closer.
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