10 years ago I was blessed with the luck of finding Lubrin, a small very Spanish village,
nestling some 2000ft above and just 45 minutes from,
the Costa del Almeria at Mojacar. What a difference 45 minutes makes!!!!!
I am a retired Chartered Surveyor who has worked in many overseas countries and soon learned that [I]its not the place that matters but the people![/I]
The Lubrinenses are so proud that I have chosen to live in their humble village and do not expect them to speak English, or Welsh as I come from a small Welsh mining village!!!
Lubrin is a time warp that reminds me so much of my childhood where we had only enough money to live on but had such a wonderful childhood with just our imagination and the mountains and valleys.
When I first arrived the village its traditional industries of agriculture and animal husbandry were already in decline, similar to coal mining in South Wales. But what was NOT in decline was the importance of the family unit and it this inherent strength that can overcome booms and busts and credit crunches.
How wonderful to walk through the village on a summer's evening and see groups of neighbours sitting out in the street and chatting ( a real live forum!)and the children setting up cardboard box counters and playing shop!!
I soon abandoned my Spanish learning tools and simply picked up enough Spanish on the hoof to communicate with my neighbours. Many of these neighbours are now good friends and I must admit that a social occasion is difficult but very enjoyable. "NO PAIN NO GAIN"
Being able to converse opens up a new dimension to life in Spain and you know that you have arrived when you can share a joke!