A nursery teacher in south London considers returning home after years of professional stability. Rising living costs and family distance shape a decision driven more by life stage than political factors.
Mehdy C Ortiz
Born in Belorado, a small town in the north of Spain, Gabriela always wanted to live in a big city and moved to Madrid in her early twenties in search of more opportunities and a different life compared to the one she knew. She remained in Madrid for a couple of years, however her love for travelling and curiosity about moving abroad led to her wanting to go to London. When the free movement of workers was established in the European Union in 1992, this provided the perfect opportunity to do so. She packed her bags and headed for London with her best friend. Gabriela’s first job was as an au pair where she lived with a Spanish family in Portobello Road. “It was hard at first being in a different environment, however this challenge is what I loved the most. I lived with a Spanish family and so it probably wasn’t the best way to learn and practice my English.”
During this time she met her future husband and decided to return to Madrid, only to move back to the UK permanently 5 years later with her husband and son.
Every summer and Christmas,Gabriela travels to Spain to spend time with her loved ones. “Apart from my family, what I miss the most about Spain is the laid-back attitude, food and the weather, although it can get unbearably hot at times in the summer!”, she says.
Despite becoming a pescatarian 15 years ago, Gabriela loves her food and says she finds it hard to find the same quality ingredients in London compared to Spain.
“I do however love London, it is one of my favourite cities in the world, but to living here can become very stressful, and the cost of living keeps getting higher”, Gabriela explains.
Since moving to the UK 20 years ago, she now works as a nursery teacher in Clapham, and although she loves her job she is getting older and can’t help thinking whether it would be a good decision to move back to Spain. The outcome of the referendum on leaving the EU created doubt among EU citizens about their residency status post-Brexit, and led to an increase in EU citizens wanting to move back to their home country.
I mention this to Gabriela, who doesn’t seem affected by the outcome: “My decision has nothing to do with Brexit. I have been thinking about moving back to Spain for a long time and I feel like at this point in my life it would be the right decision, if not this year, then in the coming years. My parents are also in their mid-80s now and so it would be nice to live closer to them.”
What Gabriela does advice though, is that any EU citizen living in the UK eligible for permanent residency who hasn’t already applied should do so, so that their legal status is not put into question. For Gabriela however, her time in London is coming to an end. Content in her decision she looks forward to opening a new chapter of her life in Spain.
(Photos: Pixabay)
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