Pookie and TeacherTraveler,

It seems to me, though, that our gracious host, an American who moved to Madrid a few years ago, could shed some light on the question.

Maybe if you read some of MM's earlier blogs it would help, if they're still available to browse. I asked him a couple of times in a Private Message how it was really like to move to Spain. I would still be interested in hearing of his experiences.

Gazpacho

P.S. I was about to mention a precaution about the economic fate of Spain, if you've been listening to the news lately about Greece, Portugal and Spain and the IMF. Then it occurred to me, the way things are going here, six of one, half a dozen of the other.