Sister web site?

Hello all.

It's been a while since I last logged in.

Good to be here again.

I found an interesting web site that I kind of consider its sister web site to MadridMan, NOT, however, the competion since the true element of it's existence is the opposite of this one... I shall elaborate more...

It's one about Spaniards living out of Spain, although the majority seem to reside in the US, it at times mirrors this site,,, quite interesting in my opinion.

Well, that was it, I simply wanted to share it as yet another Spain related internet media item.

I also suggested MadridMan there in a couple of posts appropriate to the topic, such as a EstodoUnidense who's planning to move to Madrid,,, Hello!?!? What better place than MadridMan?!?!?!



Tony

So what's the website's name?

Wow! That was dumb of me, eh? totally forgot to put the link,,, I'd better stay from any advertising jobs in the future,,, hahaha.

Here it goes:

WWW.Spaniards.es

...easy to remember too...

Tony

Thanks for the comment, NO&DO Yankaluz! Yeah, I'd found that website a few months back when I noticed they'd linked to MadridMan.com.

It is a pretty interesting blog, really. Definitely worth a look.

Saludos, MadridMan

Its probably a fantastic read if you could understand it!

Interesting web.

Reading the posts of the Spanish expats I realize how different is Spain to other countries.

Sometimes I wish to live anywhere out far from Spain, you know we Spanish people are very harsh with our country (it has many things to improve). But when we are far from here we really miss it.

Valenciano,

The U.S. will always be the best in my eyes, but after seeing many other countries, you can do much worse that Spain.

And visiting Spain is the best.

I think it is a very exciting time for Spain, as it has only been a democracy for 30 years, and the changes that will be made over the next couple of decades will be phenomenal.

Sallyanne
I hope that your prediction will become true. I am quite confident about Spain's next future even though the Asian economical threat.
The change in Spain has been spectacular since General Franco died 31 years ago.

30 years ago we didn't have freedom of speech, press, assembly and worship.
No divorce, no abortion, no political parties.
We didn't have a constitution and elections.
Catalan, Galician and Basque languages were forbidden.
We had the capital punishment and tortures. There were lots of political prissoners.
Women could not have a bank account without her husband consent. Women used to stay at home, only a few brave women studied at the universities.
Homosexuals were persecuted, 1000 gays were imprisoned in the 70's only for his sexual condition.
Despite all these things Manolo Escobar used to sing "¡Que viva España, España es la mejor!" (Viva Spain, Spain is the best nation!"

Now we have a real democracy with all liberties.
Capital punishment and torture are forbidden.
Now we have abortion, quick divorce, gay marriage.
Our law for human assisted reproduction is one of the most avanced in the world. Couples, and single women from many countries come here to conceive a child, specialy from Italy.
We have universal health care for free, even for ilegal inmigrants who don't pay any taxes.
There are more women than men at universities, the working female population has doubled in 30 years.
All parties must have by law same number of candidates of each sex for the elections.

The economical change has been even more spectacular. We were a really backward country. We had four million of emigrants. We didn't have any inmigrants, furthermore when people saw a black person looked at her/him like an alien.

Now Spain is one of the world biggest economies wich attracted five million of inmigrants.

But there are still many things to improve, "Spain is not the best!". We are in the way and inmigrants and foreigners visions and opinions are helping.

I don't know if MM would consider this post too political and for that reason inappropiate. Sorry MM.
By the way MM, 30 years ago top less and nudity were forbidden as the erotic films were.

Saludos

Ugh..............

It's amazing what is considered progress.

For me it was a very nice place 30 years ago.

30 years ago we didn't have freedom of speech, press, assembly and worship.
No divorce, no abortion, no political parties.
We didn't have a constitution and elections.
Catalan, Galician and Basque languages were forbidden.
We had the capital punishment and tortures. There were lots of political prissoners.
Women could not have a bank account without his husband consent. Women used to stay at home, only a few brave women studied at the universities.
Homosexuals were persecuted, 1000 gays were imprisoned in the 70's only for his sexual condition.

i fail to see how that makes for a very nice place. Spain under Franco was not, by all accounts, a very nice place to live!

I can't share that with you here sallyanne. And as I was a visitor to Spain some thirty years ago, I was there when the Constitution was "ratified?", perhaps it wasn't so nice for Spaniards during those times. But it was very safe and peaceful for visitors.

I would like to thank Valenciano who has had me thinking about a different aspect of democracy and freedom and progress, since yesterday, that is very insightful. I'm beginning to see why these ideas are so hard to take root in different parts of the world.

I agree with Gazpacho.
Spain was wonderful for foreigners coming from rich countries. As it is now for Cuba, tourism was the main source of incomes, so tourist were treated like kings by the submissive people (there were campaigns on mass media telling people to be friendly with them).
Moreover as foreigners from rich countries in a very poor nation you could eat in the best restaurants and stay at the best hotels.
Yes it was peaceful, people didn't have cars, traffic jams didn't existed.

Spanish people was craving for democracy for centuries. We did have some frustrated attempts in the past two centuries. So after Franco died democracy was the only way to avoid a civil war again.
In this ocasion the western governments supported the democratic winds of change here in opposition to the Spanish Civil War times when they abandoned the Spanish democracy.

The word democracy comes from greek language, it means demo=people and cracy=government, people's government. So democracy must be a people's claim and never can be imposed. Imposition is the dictator's way to do things.

Valenciano,

"Eating at the best restaurants and staying at the best hotels....", yeah, that sounds like me alright. I was living off of bocadillos de calamares and beer in cervecerias and staying in barracks at Torrejon. It only costs me about 35 cents back then and that and the metro costs me about $2 for a day in Madrid. I don't eat at the best restaurants and stay in the best hotels even now that I can afford it.

I suppose in your schools they teach you about how horrible it was to live in Spain under Franco. Yeah, what a mean ol' fascist. Do you think that if he didn't win, the other side, we both know who they were, well, I do anyway, wouldn't have been equally despotic or more likely totalitarian? Probably much worse?

You gave quite a laundry list of what you considered improvements but it seems to me that a lot of the things you now have were left off of this list. I'm so happy you have your constitution now and are proud of it, as you should be. But I know that things just weren't that bad before you did. Spain was an excellent country then and a very good one now.

Gazpacho,

I am very sorry if I my post sounded like if I was personalizing on you. That was not my intention.

I failed to explain how different are things from the two differents perspectives.
For example, all Spanish people that visit Cuba say that it is a wonderful country but some Cuban people living in Spain told me that people there are very unhappy with Castro.

I am against any totalitarian system.
Sorry again.

Okay! I think this thread has reached its end - before it goes off the edge. TOPIC CLOSED.

But do visit http://www.spaniards.es/ . Good site with good INsight.

Saludos, MadridMan