Maria left for Alicante in September 2023 to work for Post.nl‘s customer service through Yource. Four months later, we spoke to Maria to learn more about her experiences in sunny Spain.

Maria, why Spain?

I’ve been on holiday to Spain many times and always had a positive feeling about it. The sun, the different atmosphere, life happening much more outdoors here, and the cheerful nature of the Spanish people really appealed to me. That cheerfulness probably also has to do with the fact that the sun often shines, because I feel more cheerful myself here too. Besides, I already knew a bit of the language because I already spoke Portuguese.

What Exactly Do You Do in Alicante?

Through Yource International, I work for Post.NL in a customer service department. I answer numerous customer questions about mail and parcel processing by phone and handle complaints.

What Does your Work Week Look like?

The first work week was an in-office training to get to know Post.NL‘s systems and learn other practical aspects of customer service. Normally, I work Monday through Friday, 32 hours a week. Twice a week I work in the evening, and twice a month I have a Saturday shift. I can decide whether I work from home or at the office. Because I enjoy the company, I’m often at the office. An office day starts with a nice walk, usually in the sun, to the bus station. After about a 20-minute ride, I arrive at the office, if the bus takes me, that is… I’ll get back to that later. At the office, there are usually 20 colleagues “working, these are Dutch and Belgian people. So, at the office, I’m there to answer customer questions, and sometimes there are complaints to handle. What I like is that we also have colleagues” who fulfill the role of “go-to person”; we can turn to them if we have customer questions we can’t answer ourselves. Sometimes I have a shift from 9:00 AM to 2:00 PM, then I have time after work to go out and discover more of Alicante.

How Did You Settle in Alicante?

It happened quite naturally; I think I’m quite adaptable in that regard. On the one hand, I get to know many colleagues at the office with whom I sometimes hang out in my free time. On the other hand, I also make contact with Spanish people. The fact that I already knew some Spanish makes this easier. For example, I struck up a conversation with someone on the street, whom I still meet up with sometimes, and by now I also know some of her friends. I recently went to Cartagena with them on a Sunday. Recently, I’ve also started going to church here, which I also did in the Netherlands. I noticed that I was truly welcome here, which was great! In my free time, I also meet up with people I’ve met there, for a drink, for example.

Four Months Have Passed; Looking Back, What are the Striking Differences for You between Spain and the Netherlands?

What surprises me here is that if the bus is full, it doesn’t stop and just drives on. I was really surprised by that; in the Netherlands, you can just stand or move further into the bus. If the driver here thinks his bus is full, then that’s it, and he drives on. To avoid this risk and ensure I’m at the office on time, I have to leave home earlier. What I find striking is that people here are grateful and express that gratitude, which in my opinion is less often the case in the Netherlands. As a rule, I find people here very polite. There is a lot of space here; I felt a lack of space in the Netherlands. Here, you feel the space. Although I look back fondly on all the years I lived in Rotterdam, the feeling of space here is very different! (Editor’s note: For comparison: in the Netherlands, we live with an average of 529 people per square kilometer, and in the Randstad, even over 1,000 people per square kilometer. In Spain, an average of 97 people live per square kilometer)

That Sounds Very Positive, Were there No Setbacks?

Certainly positive, but of course, I did encounter some hurdles, but they were manageable. These hurdles are the formal matters you need to arrange here, for which you need agencies where you have to make an appointment. For example, I’m talking about registering with the municipality, applying for a NIE number, registering with the “Seguridad Social” to be able to use public healthcare. Those kinds of things; the problem is that they don’t answer the phone when you call to schedule an appointment, or there’s no availability in the agency’s schedule to book an appointment. Fortunately, once everything is arranged, you’re done; you don’t need them again.

And Finding Accommodation in Alicante, Does that Fall into the Category of Pleasant Surprises or Setbacks?

That was actually a pleasant surprise. Yource helped me find accommodation for the first month. From there, I found a home through word-of-mouth that I share with 3 other ladies, and I live there happily. We all have our own room, and there are 2 bathrooms and toilets. We pay €400 per person per month for this.

How Do You Look Back on your Decision to Emigrate to Spain?

I’m very glad I did it and that I made the decision despite my doubts. Moreover, my children are already grown up, I’m not in a relationship, so nothing held me back. In hindsight, I rightly trusted that everything would turn out fine.

Finally, What is your Advice to People Considering Working and Living in Spain?

Learn the language and start at home or immediately upon arrival in Spain; that truly makes life easier. Try to arrange a NIE* beforehand (* the Spanish social security number, see also blog “Working in Spain, a job under the sun”), because this takes a lot of time and is necessary to be able to work in Spain. Be aware of a lower income than you are used to in the Netherlands. If you want to earn a lot, you shouldn’t go to Spain. But you should if you want to experience more sun, atmosphere, and space, if you are adventurous, and don’t want to get stuck in one place. Then it’s good to take the step and gain other experiences. You grow as a person from that. My motto is therefore: “Everyone belongs to the World, and the World belongs to Everyone! So why not explore?”