Moved

A Mis Seguidores,

I know you haven’t heard from me for a while. I’m still around, just somewhere else. At The Globetrotting Texan that is!

I decided to start a new blog that can take in more broader aspects of travel, life abroad and the expat experience.

Please come visit, leave a comment, and keep track of my moves and foreign adventures!

Just click here to go to the Globetrotting Texan FaceBook page, like it and get the latest info.

And don’t forget to follow me on Twitter too!

Thanks to all my faithful followers during the Spanish experience. Please feel free to contact me with your questions or comments anytime.

Saludos,

Carla

Become an “Autónom@” in Spain

Nowadays many jobs in Spain have started requiring autónomo status, also known as “self-employed”. Particularly in the fields of IT, education and translation. So how do you become a freelance worker in Spain?

Simple.

1. Do you have a NIE or Número de Identificación de Extranjero? If you are a foreigner living in Spain you need one. You can A) get it at your local Spanish Consulate or Embassy BEFORE you leave or B) get it once you arrive in Spain by booking an appointment beforehand online at this website. Either way, you will need to present this form, filled out of course. And don’t forget to take your passport and some passport pictures with you too.
2. Are you empadronado? Meaning, do you have a legal address in Spain? If you don´t, head to your nearest Ayuntamiento office and do it there. All you need to take is your NIE, your leasing contract for your flat plus a photocopy of the flatowner´s ID.
3. Are you registered at the Social Security office? Go. Now. Take your NIE and your passport, and go to the nearest office. The process takes 15 minutes, and that number is vital for your life in Spain.
4. Now you are ready to get serious. Head on to AEAT (tax office) and ask for form 036 or modelo 036. You can fill it out beforehand here, and just print it out and take it to the office with you, together with all the other papers from steps 1-3.
5. Go to your closest Social Security office with all these papers and tell them you are an autónomo and that you must register as such in Social Security. They will know what to do and take care of everything. AND YOU WILL HAVE TO PAY A FEE. It varies.

And you’re done.

Although the process can sound a bit confusing, in reality it’s not. The only problem you may face is that most of the aforementioned forms are only available in Spanish, so make sure to recruit a Spanish speaker to help you out if your language skills are not that good. Also, remember that each step is kindda quick, if there is no queue you are done in 5 minutes. If there is, well, this varies, but I have never queued longer than 1 hour in Spain.

Last, remember that each step will cost you something. Between 5 and 10 euros, I cannot remember. Some are free. But this varies. So just bring some cash with you, just in case.

Questions? Concerns? Feel free to ask.

Where Have I Been?

Well, some of you might have noticed that I disappeared from the blogosphere for a bit. In short, I have to say that I was out “on an adventure”, that has taken me some 3 months’ time, and which included Spain, Israel, Palestine, France, Poland, France again and Poland again.

Why? Friends, love, work.

But I haven’t forgotten about my dear blog, and I am conscious that there is still a lot to discuss on the topic of moving to Spain.

If you don’t hear from me often enough, you can just email me and ask me about anything Spain-related. I will gladly help you as much as I can!

Day of Multilingual Blogging

How many languages can you speak?

In order to honor  the day of multilingual blogging, I will post in Spanish today! Anglos, get google translate ready!

Entonces, hablemos sobre la importancia de tener la capacidad de comunicarse en otros idiomas.

Personalmente, a mi me salvo la vida: en el sentido que el ser bilingüe me da el privilegio de trabajar desde donde yo quiera, principalmente como traductora. Por lo tanto, puedo seguir con mi estilo de vida nomádico, sabiendo que siempre tendré trabajo, sin importar en que rincón del mundo yo esté. Eso si, aunque crecí hablando castellano, sé que mi nivel de inglés es un poco mejor que mi español, y por lo tanto generalmente hago traducciones del español al inglés- rara vez al inverso.

Tampoco deberíamos olvidarnos de lo fantástico que es hablar otros idiomas para comunicarnos con gente en todo el mundo. El hablar por lo menos dos idiomas con fluidez me ha dado la oportunidad de conocer a gente majísima, y de tener una red de amigos que ahora se encuentran diseminados por el mundo. Yo sé que si mañana quiero ir a Israel, Japón, Nueva Zelanda, Tahilandia, Perú o Canadá, tengo amigos ahí. Y eso es un sentimiento fantástico que no tiene precio.

Entonces, ¿Cómo lograr ser bilingüe o políglota? Hace falta un poco de suerte. Y mucha práctica.

Suerte en el sentido de que aprender idiomas desde niño es -creo yo- necesario para convertirse en un adulto -como mínimo- bilingüe. Entonces, este factor generalmente depende de nuestros padres, al menos que uno haya crecido en lugares como Luxemburgo o Suiza (¡malditos suertudos!).

Y también, el tener la oportunidad de vivir en el exterior, en el país donde se habla el idioma que uno aprende, tiene un peso importante. Sólo así se alcanza a aprender el “idioma hablado”: se dominan las expresiones y referencias a la cultura general que nos dan fluidez en el idioma aprendido.

Y no nos olvidemos de la práctica. Si no practicamos, se nos olvida todo lo aprendido y la fluidez se pierde rápidamente. Pero por suerte, esta la parte más fácil (creo yo), especialmente hoy en día que podemos contar con el internet. Desde ahí podemos acceder a blogs como este, a periódicos extranjeros, películas, música o hasta libros enteros, en cualquier idioma que queramos. Sólo toma un poco de dedicación, que no es algo que todos tenemos. Pero por experiencia, les puedo decir que si uno se pone las pilas, puede alcanzar un nivel de fluidez en otro idioma con tan solo utilizar el internet: hace un par de semanas conocí a un Moldavo de 20 años. Hablamos en inglés. Tenía un acento Americano tan pronunciado y tan natural, que le pregunté cuanto tiempo vivió en EEUU. Me dijo que nunca había estado fuera de Europa.

¿Su secreto? Mirar pelis y series Americanas, casi todos los días y durante años, siempre en inglés y sin subtítulos.

Y ahora, unas preguntas para ustedes, queridos lectores: ¿Cuales son las ventajas y desventajas de aprender otros idiomas? ¿Qué obstáculos encuentran que les impiden alcanzar la fluidez deseada? ¿Cuántos idiomas hablan?

Siéntanse libres de comentar en cualquier idioma, ya que, después de todo, hoy es el día para hacerlo.

“Those who know nothing of foreign languages know nothing of their own,” Goethe

Side Post: Quitting Your Job

It seems that the most important factor taken into consideration, before one embarks in far-fetched adventures and the achievement of life-long dreams such as  moving to Spain, is quitting your job.

Nobody lacks a long-list of reasons for which they would like to quit their job. What they lack is the balls to do it.

My question to you dear reader is: How much more can you take? When will you have had “enough”?

Personally, I have to admit I quit many jobs. I’m mostly proud of it, and I have learned to carefully look into new job opportunities – so I won’t feel compelled to quit again. And, for your information,what makes me “tick” and tell my boss to “stuff it”, is definitely being treated like shit- which is sadly something that many people nowadays are used to.

For some inspiration, I have compiled two recent stories about people that had “enough” and quit their jobs – in style!

Case number one is the now famous Jet Blue flight attendant who told a nasty customer off via the inter-phone, and as soon as the plane landed, grabbed two beers and took off via the plane’s emergency slide. More here.

Case number two, if from an assistant with a pervy boss, who with the help of a dry erase board and a camera, composed a compelling slide-show of pictures  -emailed to everybody in her office- exposing her boss’s laziness and overall douchebaggery. More here. (NOTE: I just confirmed that this one was a hoax, nevertheless, still amusing)

So what does this tell me? That I’ve made the right choice by switching to freelance translating and writing.

So what does this tell you? Enough is enough. Being a masochist will not take you far in life. Following your dreams will. And supporting mine will also help – me. Remember me if you ever need a Spanish to English, or English to Spanish translator, and check out my professional website. Or, sponsor my writing ventures.

Side Post: Traveling Within Spain

A Coruña

Traveling around Spain is quite easy, as soon as you get the hang of it. By this I mean that the transportation system works a bit differently than people might expect.

Most people think “Europe” and they think “trains”. Although Spain is in Europe (although some might beg to differ after having contact with “primitive” members of the Spanish population), trains are not always the best way to travel within Spain. This all depends on how much time you have to plan your trip. So:

The Alhambra in Granada

– If you have A LOT of time to plan: Your best bet are low-cost airlines. If you buy plane tickets beforehand on Ryanair or EasyJet, they can cost nearly nothing, and they will get you to your destination the quickest. Just remember not to carry more than a backpack, otherwise the luggage charges will start adding up.

Barcelona

- If you have SOME time to plan: Then maybe you want to consider the trains. Most of them are rather decent, and I’ve been lucky enough to only have traveled in some of the best trains I’ve ever seen in Europe. If you buy your ticket online and around a month in advance, you can get really good deals even on the high-speed trains. For example, I got Madrid-San Sebastian for 20 euros, and I was there in 4 hours.

-If you are a last minute traveler: Stick to buses. Spain is very well connected by inter-city buses, and they have frequent departures. So if you’re a last minute traveler, the cheapest option will be this one. The most popular bus company in Spain, and the one with the most connections, is ALSA.

San Sebastian

Now all you have left to do is to chose your destination. To make sure you are well informed on all the things to see and do, and how to get around your chosen tourist destination, check out WikiTravel for invaluable advice and money-saving tips.

For hostels, go back and check my previous post on how to find cheap hostels in Spain.

Madrid

So you’re all set. Now I propose for you to get back to me on the comments section with your favorite destinations in Spain. Share them and help others discover AWESOME SPAIN!

Step IX: How To Buy a Cell Phone/Mobile Phone in Spain

Did you know that just like Americans call it a cell phone and the Brits call it a mobile, the same divide exists in Spanish? Yes, Latin Americans call it a teléfono celular and Spaniards call it a teléfono móvil. Or celu or móvil for short.

Now that you´re a bit smarter, let me continue de-stupidifying you by shedding some light on the mystery of “portable” (I don´t want to piss anybody off by displaying a preference for wording) phones in Spain.

There are many companies, some more expensive than others. First off I have to assume that all you want is a cheap Spanish SIM card. And that you have a phone set up for you to be able to do exactly that.

What if your celumobile from home is “locked” to your country’s phone company? No problem, bring it over and hand it to the chinos (chinese shop owners) that advertise the service of “freeing” phones, or liberar móviles. You usually leave your phone overnight, and when you come to pick it up you pay them their 10 euros for whatever Chinese magic they performed on your phone, and your celumobile is ready to go!

IF by any chance the chino magic doesn’t work on your phone, or you just don’t have one, you will have to buy a new one. Well, you do have two options: you can buy a new one including a pre-paid SIM card for around 30 euros. Or you can buy a second-hand phone from the zillion shops dedicated to the trade that flood any major Spanish locality.

Now, assuming you have a phone and nothing else, it’s time for some shopping. Some SIM card shopping.

 

The biggest companies in Spain are:

Orange

Vodafone

Telefónica

 

Other minor companies are:

Amena

Yoigo

and regional companies like Euskatel in the Basque Country, for example.

 

If you have time, shop around for a good deal. They depend on how much calling and texting you want to do, and of course, on what company most people you will be calling have.

The first three companies have shops all around Spain, and the minor companies’ SIM cards are sold in random shops or locutorios (shops in which you make phone calls and use computers for cheap).

Step VIII- Finding (decent) Housing

Believe it or not, finding decent and affordable housing is quite a feat in Spain. If you’re obviously a foreigner (read: you don’t speak fluent Spanish) houseowners and prospective flatmates will try to screw you over quite often. Of course, this is not a RULE, but it’s quite possible that this will happen in the form of:

-”Special (overpriced) deals” just for you, in virtually unliveable conditions
-No contracts (meaning that if they decide to change the lock and kick you out, you’re homeless)
-The houseowner trying to ease out of his/her responsabilities (not fixing problems in your flat)
-Sucky flatmates
-and mostly anything horrible you can imagine…

In addition, for semi-decent living conditions in big cities such as Madrid or Barcelona, be prepared to fork out at least 300 euros per month, plus expenses, plus an initial deposit of the same amount.

And remember, the worst month to look for a room in a shared apartment (because that’s pretty much what any normal person can expect to afford, with studios starting at 600 euros) is September, while the best is June or July. Why? Students. They move out in June/July and they all room-hunt in September.

So, let’s imagine you found a nice ad, with decent pictures of a room, at a good price and centrally located (HA! Good luck!). Then, you contact the author of this ad, usually the prospective flatmates. If they like the idea of you (state age, nationality, what you’re doing, if you don’t have a job make one up because NOBODY wants somebody unemployed as a housemate: too risky), they will ask you to come over to take a look at the flat and somehow “interview” you. If after this “interview” they tell you “We’ll call you”, forget about it. They probably won’t. Instead, if they ask you “When can you move in?”, pop open the champagne: you made it through the wilderness of house-hunting in Spain.

So where to find said ads? Check out the following:

Loquo
Idealista
LingoBongo (Madrid and Barcelona only)
CraigsList
Angloinfo (Madrid and other cities available)
In Madrid (Madrid only)
Segundamano (last resort honestly)

What else to expect?

-Rooms usually come furnished
-Ask things about bills, if smoking is allowed or not, if pets are allowed or not, if guests are allowed or not BEFOREHAND, because it kindda sucks to have an awesome apartment and not even be able to invite your friends over for dinner.
-Watch out for good public transport connections. It’s imperative to have them when you stumble back home at 4 am.
-Most of all, make sure you double check with a local to see if you are getting screwed over or not.

A last resort is to do this through the assurance that the Dirección General de la Juventud provides. It’s a government branch geared towards helping young people find jobs and apartments. They also give out money to help you pay for your apartment, if you qualify. You don’t have to be Spanish, just a EU citizen. For example, in Madrid you would go here. Each city has its own, and any local would be able to point you the right way.

Questions? Comments? Feel free to post and I’ll get back to you dear readers.

Step VII- Find a job

This is quite an appropriate post for me at the moment given that I am one week shy from obtaining my Master’s degree, and I still have no job prospects. Funny enough, I somehow survived university life again by living off of around 400 euros a month for the last two years (self-generated income from baby sitting and translating), so getting a lame job for 1000 euros a month should be an objective to look forward to, right? Wrong. I am a masochist and I am applying for a PhD. Why? Because having a BA in Economics from the US, a Master’s in Local Development from Italy, experience abroad in Serbia, Slovenia and Moldavia, as well as being fluent in Spanish, English and Italian plus having a good degree of fluency in Romanian and French, does NOTHING for you in the current job market, in Spain OR anywhere else in Europe/USA/Mercosur (all areas in which I am legally allowed to work). But YOU can help me…

Keeping my example in mind, if you have any standards for your job search in Spain, lower them now, or you’ll end up quite miserable.

As I mentioned in my previous post about “creating” a nice CV, when looking for a first job in Spain you should settle for the basic and easiest opportunities, because after you get the hang of Spain and save up some money, you can easily move up to something else job-wise in which you may feel more useful.

The most common first job in Spain for English-speaking expats is of course that of an English Teacher. It’s rather simple, doesn’t require much, the hours are flexible and it pays rather well in comparison to other jobs.

Generally, the best websites to find these types of jobs are:

***WARNING*** Some of these websites are only in Spanish, so put the “translate website” function on the Google translate page to good use.

Loquo- It works for all of Spain, and you can find English Teacher positions as well as other jobs. Just type “English” as a keyword and see what you get.

Segundamano- It also works for all of Spain, but it’s slightly crappier and has suckier options than Loquo.

Infojobs- Here you can find more “serious” job offers, most of them do require papers though, even the ones for teaching English.

Monster- Again, more “serious” jobs for people with papers.

LingoBongo- This website is exclusively for teaching jobs in Madrid, Barcelona and Berlin. You can also find other stuff like rooms in shared flats, expat meetings, and language exchanges.

In Madrid- Yes, you got it, it’s only for Madrid. This is an English-only free newspaper (that I highly recommend to check out if you’re in Madrid) that has a nice array of job opportunities. The online version of the newspaper only has a few though.

If you are seriously interested in teaching English, you can use the slot filler option for the LingoBongo website, choose the hours you want to work, and they will forward your CV to companies that are looking for teachers to cover those hours. Another option is to google all the English-teaching institutes and schools in Madrid, and forward them your CV.

Also worth mentioning here, although it’s not a real job, is the English Immersion programme in which, if you speak English, a school pays for you to stay for 8 days in a 4 star hotel (including food) as long as you speak in English to students that actually pay to be there. Not bad for a week-long vacation, huh? More info here.

If you insist on drifting away from the mighty ranks of English Teachers of the world, you can darn well try. If you want a bar job, I suggest to take that nice CV of yours to every Irish/British/American bar/pub in whichever place you decided to move to. That would always be your best bet, because if you wait for an ad to pop out online, hundreds of expats hungry for a chance out of English-teaching will jump on that like starving wolves on handicapped deer.

Last, I should mention that if you are fluent in English, Spanish and possibly another language, another good area to get into is freelance translating. It has personally helped me to survive for the last year or so, but it’s not income that you can really depend on. Besides, you have to invest some time and money on making a website, marketing yourself, convincing translation companies that it’s way better to hire you rather than any of the Spaniards that studied translation and supposedly learned a language well enough in 4 years enabling them to make quality translations… Yeah. Right.

Or, you can also start a fun and awesomely useful blog, and beg your readers to enable you to buy food in order to keep on writing by SPONSORING you.

Yes, please do so. I have a good excuse. Merely a month ago I was still a student. Then I finished my thesis and I converted into an highly skilled unemployed person. I’m graduating next week, I only have 400 euros in my bank account, no job (besides occasional freelance translation), and my family’s gift for graduation is French classes, so I can keep on getting smarter and finally become an unemployed multi-lingual genius.

In any case, my current situation will surely bring about some fun adventures that I will tell you all about soon. I am actually considering dumpster diving. Sounds like a fun experiment to blog about.

Or maybe you all out there can help me find a real job? I could possibly end up doing something like this guy.

Eastern Europe Break- Be Back Soon

Yes, I’ve been out for a bit. But don’t worry, I will be back to España soon(ish) and ready to get back to blogging with brand new shiny rants. For now, greetings from the wild East!