# A few last min questions



## Duchess (Sep 28, 2009)

Getting close to our move now. Our removal company has passed our details onto currency exchange companies, and now I'm being bombarded with phone calls and emails. Before you all say it, yes I prob did miss the TINY tick box saying if you do not wish to be contacted etc etc!

Have you used them, are they not necessary? 
We intend to keep our UK bank accounts, and open one in Spain, and just transfer money. Is this what you do?

Separate issue, are clothes cheap in Spain, or do we need to stock up? Are larger sizes common or harder to find?

Might sound silly, but the small stuff is what I'm sweating at the moment.


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## VFR (Dec 23, 2009)

Hello Duchess.
Yes I would stock up on some clothes before you come as it will take you a while to find what you want here/sizes to suit here.
Currency ?, just chill as from what you say you are in no rush to use anyone at present (IMO)

Oh don't forget your passport.


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## 90199 (Mar 21, 2010)

I use a currency exchange, much better than banks, more reliable and a far superior exchange rate.

I transfer when the exchange rate is better for me, a lump sum, direct into my bank account here. Over 3000 pounds and I am not charged commission.


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## snikpoh (Nov 19, 2007)

Yes, clothes are VERY expensive in Spain (in my experience).


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## Alcalaina (Aug 6, 2010)

CurrencyFair or TransferWise are the best ways to transfer money. Their exchange rates are much better than the banks. Money goes in the same day once they are set up.

There are plenty of cheap clothes retailers in Spain, like H&M, Zara, Primark, C&A, Carrefour and lots of other high street chains. C&A are good for larger sizes. Decathlon are great for sportswear of all kinds. You can always use M&S online, they deliver free for orders over €30. 

The only thing I've had problems with is finding nice shoes my size - most Spanish women's shoes only go up to 40. So I tend to buy shoes on my annual trip back to the UK.


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## tonymar (Jan 29, 2015)

Primark is always good for budget clothing !

Tony


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## snikpoh (Nov 19, 2007)

tonymar said:


> Primark is always good for budget clothing !
> 
> Tony


They certainly are - if there's one close by.

Went there recently and they had no shorts nor white T-shirts - apparently Summer had finished!


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## Pesky Wesky (May 10, 2009)

There are large sizes, but I think you'll find that there isn't such a variety of styles, qualities, fashions. You don't really need to stock up though unless you don't want to buy by mail order. Oh, you might want to get some underwear though as that is more difficult in any size, is more expensive for good quality, and not available in so many sizes.

I would ignore all the calls and if you have to tell them something tell them you want to be unsubscribed. You'll need time and peace of mind to think about money, so do it when you're ready.

I don't transfer any money as I don't have, and never have had "money" in the UK


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## MagicWriter2014 (Jun 11, 2014)

Tried to PM you Duchess but it only lets you use 1000 characters and got fed up having to delete most of what I wrote. I would just advise you to ask lots of questions and if you don't get full answers, be wary. Ask if they have a residential licence or are they holiday parks? Go into the villages at night, after about 9pm and speak to anyone you hear speaking with an English accent and they will tell you what they know. Don't be pressured into making a decision straight away. Really think about what you want, do you want to be part of a Spanish community with a few Brits on hand to speak to if you are feeling homesick or do you want to be part of a British community in Spain. We were worried about being in a foreign country and not being able to communicate ect ect, but we found the locals in Mollina wear lovely and if you tried to speak a bit of Spanish, they would try their English and you always got there in the end with a bit of laughter on the way. It has given us the confidence now to say, no, we don't want to live on a park home, we want to be in there with the locals. Good luck and let us know what you decide on.


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## Duchess (Sep 28, 2009)

MagicWriter2014 said:


> Tried to PM you Duchess but it only lets you use 1000 characters and got fed up having to delete most of what I wrote. I would just advise you to ask lots of questions and if you don't get full answers, be wary. Ask if they have a residential licence or are they holiday parks? Go into the villages at night, after about 9pm and speak to anyone you hear speaking with an English accent and they will tell you what they know. Don't be pressured into making a decision straight away. Really think about what you want, do you want to be part of a Spanish community with a few Brits on hand to speak to if you are feeling homesick or do you want to be part of a British community in Spain. We were worried about being in a foreign country and not being able to communicate ect ect, but we found the locals in Mollina wear lovely and if you tried to speak a bit of Spanish, they would try their English and you always got there in the end with a bit of laughter on the way. It has given us the confidence now to say, no, we don't want to live on a park home, we want to be in there with the locals. Good luck and let us know what you decide on.


Hi thanks for that. If you PM me your email address we can discuss it more. I have tried to find park home residents on here, but to no avail. Just a lot of people saying rent a place, but that costs more and dogs can't be in apartments.


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## Duchess (Sep 28, 2009)

Pesky Wesky said:


> There are large sizes, but I think you'll find that there isn't such a variety of styles, qualities, fashions. You don't really need to stock up though unless you don't want to buy by mail order. Oh, you might want to get some underwear though as that is more difficult in any size, is more expensive for good quality, and not available in so many sizes.
> 
> I would ignore all the calls and if you have to tell them something tell them you want to be unsubscribed. You'll need time and peace of mind to think about money, so do it when you're ready.
> 
> I don't transfer any money as I don't have, and never have had "money" in the UK


Thanks, I'm busy unsubscribing from all sorts! 
Is it expensive to order from the UK by mail order? Will stock up on undies but T shirts here are £8-12 each. Thought they might be cheaper in Spain, and available more, as now we're getting autumn wear in already!


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## Pesky Wesky (May 10, 2009)

Duchess said:


> Thanks, I'm busy unsubscribing from all sorts!
> Is it expensive to order from the UK by mail order? Will stock up on undies but T shirts here are £8-12 each. Thought they might be cheaper in Spain, and available more, as now we're getting autumn wear in already!


I have to say I don't really know as I only order to get things delivered in the UK because I go at Christmas and in the summer.


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## MagicWriter2014 (Jun 11, 2014)

Won't let me put my mail address in PM either. Am on Facebook, Lorraine Fraser.


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## Lynn R (Feb 21, 2014)

Duchess said:


> Thanks, I'm busy unsubscribing from all sorts!
> Is it expensive to order from the UK by mail order? Will stock up on undies but T shirts here are £8-12 each. Thought they might be cheaper in Spain, and available more, as now we're getting autumn wear in already!


They are getting autumn wear in the shops in Spain already, too. The thing is, Spanish people don't wear summer clothes much, if at all, after the 1st October, and neither will you once you've been here for a while. You will be feeling too cold for short sleeved T shirts, except maybe between 12 noon and 5 pm. Outside of those times you'll need a cardigan, sweater or fleece over your T shirt. Therefore, the shops stock autumn and winter clothes from September onwards, and you'll have difficulty buying sandals too, until next April/May when the summer clothes go on sale.


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## Duchess (Sep 28, 2009)

Lynn R said:


> They are getting autumn wear in the shops in Spain already, too. The thing is, Spanish people don't wear summer clothes much, if at all, after the 1st October, and neither will you once you've been here for a while. You will be feeling too cold for short sleeved T shirts, except maybe between 12 noon and 5 pm. Outside of those times you'll need a cardigan, sweater or fleece over your T shirt. Therefore, the shops stock autumn and winter clothes from September onwards, and you'll have difficulty buying sandals too, until next April/May when the summer clothes go on sale.


Thanks Lynn that is really helpful, as we are coming over for a quick trip before our move in October, then move in November. At least it won't be hot and uncomfortable for moving. Only problem we may encounter is the horrendous queues for Eurotunnel!


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## Lynn R (Feb 21, 2014)

Just in case anybody contemplating a move to Spain still might be thinking they will be wearing summer clothes all year round, take a look at what happened in the Axarquia region in the early hours of this morning.


Las tormentas provocan inundaciones en Torre del Mar, Benamocarra, Frigiliana y Algarrobo . SUR.es

This kind of thing happens practically every year during September, somewhere or other in Andalucia - 3 years ago, there were pictures of people canoeing down some main streets in the city of Málaga.

We didn't get any flooding here, but more rain and thunderstorms are on the way until the weather is forecast to settle down again after tomorrow.


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## Duchess (Sep 28, 2009)

I'll be asking more questions on here as I think of them, so keep those helpful answers coming!

Been reading about processionary caterpillars, and want to know how to kill them. So far the info says a) tread on them (that would release the hairs)
b) burn them (also hairs get airborne)
c) get a child's super soaker and squirt 50/50 bleach and water (that sprays bleach on lots of things and I get migraine from bleach)
How do you deal with them? Will we have to check outside in the morning before letting the dog out? Do they come out more in the evening?
There was a tablet mentioned that we can keep for the dog just in case it has a run in with them, until you get it to the vets. 
The article also says we should cover up, and have eye protection and dust masks!
Is this really all necessary, do you have them?


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## snikpoh (Nov 19, 2007)

Duchess said:


> I'll be asking more questions on here as I think of them, so keep those helpful answers coming!
> 
> Been reading about processionary caterpillars, and want to know how to kill them. So far the info says a) tread on them (that would release the hairs)
> b) burn them (also hairs get airborne)
> ...


I don't cover up but once I've cut the branch off (with them on) or when I see them on the ground, I spray petrol on them and then torch them. The other way I've done it is with a can of hairspray used as a flame thrower.


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## Chica22 (Feb 26, 2010)

Duchess said:


> Thanks, I'm busy unsubscribing from all sorts!
> Is it expensive to order from the UK by mail order? Will stock up on undies but T shirts here are £8-12 each. Thought they might be cheaper in Spain, and available more, as now we're getting autumn wear in already!


I personally stock up on 'cheap t shirts' in Primark and Zara here in Spain (normally 6 euros or less). You will find, once next summer hits, that you need to change the t shirt at least once a day, and once washed, when hanging out to dry, the colours do fade. So, for me, I stock up annually on cheap clothes for summer, which can be thrown away once winter arrives. 
Similarly I can find 'very cheap' winter clothes for wearing in the house, which I can then throw away at the end of the season.
My advice would be, if you are limited on storage, is bring your 'nice' summer/winter evening wear and your underwear and buy the rest of the stuff here.


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## VFR (Dec 23, 2009)

Also (for males)
Short sleeved shirts are much better that T-Shirts & you will be cooler and I guess a bit smarter as well. 

IMO.


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## baldilocks (Mar 7, 2010)

SWMBO likes M&S short-sleeved T-shirts which just look like regular tops (not Ts) from M&S.eu. Personally I like poly-cotton pilot shirts which have two breast pockets so that, in summer, when I am not wearing a jacket, I have two pockets for important things - the left pocket has the drops for my eyes (I wear contact lenses so when they start to dry out, they can become quite painful) and the right pocket carries the dogs' poo-bags and in both cases, I can access what I need without a lot of fuss getting these essential things out of trousers' pockets or a 'man-bag.'


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## Duchess (Sep 28, 2009)

baldilocks said:


> SWMBO likes M&S short-sleeved T-shirts which just look like regular tops (not Ts) from M&S.eu. Personally I like poly-cotton pilot shirts which have two breast pockets so that, in summer, when I am not wearing a jacket, I have two pockets for important things - the left pocket has the drops for my eyes (I wear contact lenses so when they start to dry out, they can become quite painful) and the right pocket carries the dogs' poo-bags and in both cases, I can access what I need without a lot of fuss getting these essential things out of trousers' pockets or a 'man-bag.'


Hi is M & S.eu expensive or same price as their T-shirts in the UK? Good idea about pilot shirts, can we get them for OH in Spain easily?


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## baldilocks (Mar 7, 2010)

Duchess said:


> Hi is M & S.eu expensive or same price as their T-shirts in the UK? Good idea about pilot shirts, can we get them for OH in Spain easily?


M&S Cool comfort T shirts €9.95 on M&S EU
The people I used to get the pilot shirts from in UK have stopped doing them so I bought through Amazon and the last ones I got were by "Alexandra" (the well known, uniform specialists especially for nurses uniforms, so they are good) and supplied by Scotts workwear. they cost £6.76 unfortunately they don't deliver to Spain but we had friends who were coming so that didn't matter. However there are sellers who will send to Spain but the shirts are a little more expensive. If he wants to show off, he can even get pilots bars to go on the epaulettes D)


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## VFR (Dec 23, 2009)

baldilocks said:


> SWMBO likes M&S short-sleeved T-shirts which just look like regular tops (not Ts) from M&S.eu. Personally I like poly-cotton pilot shirts which have two breast pockets so that, in summer, when I am not wearing a jacket, I have two pockets for important things - the left pocket has the drops for my eyes (I wear contact lenses so when they start to dry out, they can become quite painful) and the right pocket carries the dogs' poo-bags and in both cases, I can access what I need without a lot of fuss getting these essential things out of trousers' pockets or a 'man-bag.'


I was thinking something a little more casual & loose when I suggested short sleeve shirts.


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## fcexpat (Sep 25, 2014)

Lynn R said:


> Just in case anybody contemplating a move to Spain still might be thinking they will be wearing summer clothes all year round, take a look at what happened in the Axarquia region in the early hours of this morning.
> 
> 
> Las tormentas provocan inundaciones en Torre del Mar, Benamocarra, Frigiliana y Algarrobo . SUR.es
> ...


Oh yes ... we are in Frigiliana ..... drains didn't cope with the sudden onrush of water .... jeans and trainers on today and doors and windows closed ......


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