Everything Is A Trade Off

When you move to a new country, especially one that offers a much different lifestyle than what you are used to, it’s important to understand that there are reasons why that is so.

When we first did long-term travel, we spent time in Lisbon, Portugal. One night we hired a babysitter who was Portuguese but going to college in London. She said as much as she loved her home country, she couldn’t envision moving back after finishing her degree. This was an astonishing thing to hear, if for no other reason than we found (and still find) Portugal to be a wonderful place.

I pressed her to learn why, and she talked about how frustrating it can be living there because, essentially, nothing is on time. The buses run at their leisure, appointments don’t necessarily happen when they are supposed to, etc. However in the UK, in her experience, schedules are much more reliable.

That’s generally been our experience in Spain, from our previous lives in the U.S. Things here happen at a much slower pace, and that can certainly be a source of frustration from time to time. However, you can’t have it both ways. If you want a calmer, more relaxed pace of life, then you have to be prepared for everything to be that way.

Most businesses are closed in Spain during the afternoon - that’s not something that ever happens in America. However, that time is used to rest, to eat together with family, and that also doesn’t happen with regularity in the U.S.

So, if you want everything to run with precision timing, you’re going to want to be in a place that prioritizes efficiency over tranquility.

Neither option is bad, but it’s good to know which version you prefer more when deciding where you want to spend the bulk of your time.