Have enjoyed reading some of your blog especially the one about Cesares where we are thinking of moving this summer. We have a boy six who is now in kindergarten in Cuenca, Ecuador and speaks Spanish and English. We are all US citizens from NC. and currently have Ecuador residency. Would you let us know if you investigated the primary state school situation in Cesares? Would it be possible to drive him to school in Estapona or would it be too far. Thanks for any information you could give us about the Cesares area. We have a blog too at http://www.ourecuador.blogspot.com. All the best, Loretta

I think Valencia is a fabulous choice! If we ever go again, we’d go to Valencia or Salamanca. We thought Javea would be close enough to Valencia that we’d get up there more often to take in the museums and shopping and events, but at an hour and half to get there, we didn’t go a lot. As much as we didn’t think we wanted to live in a city, Valencia was very manageable, offered history and culture, beaches and much more Spanish language and culture.

Regarding schools, I do remember hearing the international schools in Valencia are in the suburbs. I don’t know the suburbs well enough to have an opinion, other than at least you’d be close enough to take the train frequently into the historic center. The burbs really might be okay.

A school consideration for us was learning that the local schools in the Valencia region teach in Valenciano, a dialect of Catalan. Javea’s local schools were very strict about it; I’m not sure about Valencia’s but it is something in which to be aware.

The private schools are the way to go in my opinion if you can find them and get in. Most are affiliated with churches. Try searching in Spanish on Google, and I also had some luck searching on Google maps under “FIND A BUSINESS” which acts like a yellow pages. Maybe search for churches too in a neighborhood you like and see if there is a school affiliated. There must be a school associated with the cathedral in Valencia? And the one in Javea taught in Castilian Spanish, not Valenciano.

So much to consider, but it’s all worth it! Let me know if you have other questions and keep me posted on your decisions!

~ Dee

One of the biggest reason was school for our daughters. Our youngest was facing some reading challenges in English at the time, and we felt the timing poor to throw her into a local Spanish school. And from Gaucin, the drive to the international schools on the coast was more than we were willing to commit to on a daily basis.

And for us, we decided Gaucin was just too small of a community for a year. We wanted easy access to bigger cities and more cultural things to do. In hindsight, even Javea, with some 30,000 residents, was too small, and we decided a city such as Salamanca or Valencia would have met our needs best.

We did love the mountain setting of Gaucin, though perhaps because it reminded us of our home in Colorado. I would definitely go back for a relaxing holiday that could combine mountains, hikes, and the countryside with the beach close by.

Good luck!

Best wishes to you and your beautiful family,

Jilly G

http://www.belvilla.co.uk/holiday_cottages/ES-37001-02.html

~ Dee

Loved reading about your adventure.

How exciting!

Please can you tell me if your girls went to an international school? Was it Almunecar? If so was it any good in your opinion?

Rox x