We happened across different approaches to the ex-pat lifestyle on our visit to Spain

Since it dropped, alarmingly at one stage, and finally moved up from 1.06 to 1.20, there have been many who have opted to head back for the UK. Such an about turn has never crossed our minds but who knows what might happen in the years ahead.

Suffice to say we are happy and can entertain ourselves. We have similar interests, British television preferences (outside of sport that is) and Ellie can pass the time painting or playing the guitar, while I attempt to string some words together on the computer.

We had a chance to see how other ex-pats are coping, albeit in Spain, for, the other week, we were invited to pay a return visit to former Watford striker Ross Jenkins and his wife Eve, who live on the Costa Blanca in Javea. While we were there, we popped further down the coast to Torrevieja to stay the night with some relatively new friends, Charlie and Ann.

We had met them in the course of our annual trips to Tamariu, a village on the Costa Brava which, since we have moved down into The Tarn, is just a three-hour drive away. In 2005, Charlie had decided to retire having sold his nursery business in London and when driving in to Spain that year, they dropped in and stayed over with us, talking about the problems of settling in foreign climes.

They drove on down and bought a place in Torrevieja, which is not our cup of tea. That part of the coast takes on the appearance of one large estate that links up with a succession of towns, with the Brits making up the majority of the population. It is a bit like Dagenham by the sea.

From our point of view, it was good to see our friends and we had a great stop over. It was also nice to plug into the advantages of having so many British stores, such as Iceland and C & A and pick up some English goods at reasonable prices, for if you want a tin of baked beans in France, you pay the best part of £2 for it.

Charlie opted not to become fully committed to the Spanish adventure in that they are not registered as domiciled in Spain. They fly back to the UK for significant medical requirements and they will probably move back to Blighty within the next couple of years. The Spanish health system is excellent but they feel when Charlie’s health deteriorates, they will be better in the UK.

While in Spain we also took a day-trip to Benidorm, for we were told it had moved somewhat up-market and had a lot to offer in respect of live music etc. Unfortunately we must have visited it on the wrong day because quite clearly there was a UK Obesity Convention taking place in the town, judging by the number of size 18s and above that walked the streets.

I must admit, while Ross and Eve say they have had good times there and this fact was endorsed by Charlie and Ann, Benidorm did not float our boat.

We promised to return to see Charlie and Ann for a longer visit next time. We headed back to join Ross and Eve and we very much enjoyed Javea, where ex-pats constitute around 50 per cent of the population, and here too we were able to indulge in meals we do not have in our area of France: Indian curries and Thai restaurants.

Ross converted an old shepherd’s cottage up the side of a mountain some 15 miles in land from Javea and we stayed there one night, enjoying the stillness, the isolation and the colours of sunrise. It was basic, in that there was no electricity, but a really enjoyable experience.

Next, we headed north to stay over at our daughter Carrie-Anne’s apartment in Sant Cugat, just the other side of the mountain from Barcelona, where ex-pats do not abound. Ironically Carrie and her husband do meet up for the occasional coffee morning with a Coronation Street actor and his wife, who also live in the town, but we enjoyed that Spanish feel to the centre where families gather and socialise at the bars in the square with their children until late in the evenings. That is one Spanish custom we really do appreciate.

Then we dropped by at Tamariu, having seen a considerable amount of the Spanish coast. We stayed there a couple of nights, once again confirming that when it comes to beauty and less commercialism, this is miles ahead of the rest of the Spanish coast.

Of course it is different strokes for different folks and our lifestyle might not appeal to many. We socialise with a couple of ex-pats in our French village, have two French friends and we exchange visits with our French neighbours but essentially we spend much time on our own.

When we lived in Limousin, there was a flourishing ex-pat social life but that has fallen slightly flat in the interim, so perhaps our timing was spot on in moving south. Here, in the Tarn, we know we can visit ex-pat watering holes and plug into that aspect of life but so far we have not bothered,.

We have had four of our five daughters and their families visit this year plus four groups of friends come out and stay at various times. What with holidays, hospital visits, and return trips to the UK, life is full enough without actively seeking an extension to our French social life.

We like the fact it is French and the area does not suffer from outbreaks of anglicising.

We have a great house, enough room to enjoy our own space and also to accommodate a number of guests. We have also committed to France, pay our taxes here and reap the benefits of a far superior health system.

It was good to look over the fence in Spain, but the grass did not look any greener.

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