Interview with Wendy Duchain-Gulamali
Nationality:
Dutch
Age range:
45-54 years old
Landed in:
2019
Languages:
Dutch, English and German
Municipality:
Montgat
Work:
content2click YOUR BRAND IN SPOTLIGHTS ⚡️Social Media Management ⚡️Power Hours ⚡️Social Media Check ⚡️Photography ⚡️(Animation) Video ⚡️Social Media Workshops www.content2click.com
Introducing Wendy duchain-gulamali, A Dutch expat in Barcelona.
Why did you choose to relocate to Barcelona?
Project life, that's what we call it. We wanted to leave the "rat-race" in the Netherlands. Our motto is "work hard, play harder". Working hard is something my husband and I both love, but so that we are able to live life to the full and not for work to become our life.
What have been the biggest challenges you’ve faced after your relocation?
Definately the bureaucracy. Everything needs to be done in person. I've seen more paper in a little over a year here, than the last 5-10 years in the Netherlands. That, and the pandemic (as we moved end of December 2019). That's the same everywhere, but with both of us having our own companies it was a challenge. It brings out creativity and innovative spririt though, so it's all good.
If you could give one piece of advice to future expats in Barcelona, what would it be?
Read up on what you need here, like: NIE, a Spanish bank account and health insurance. But also, keep in mind the cost of living for instance. As a tourist it's easy to think that everything is much cheaper here when it really isn't. Of course some things are, like going out for lunch or dinner.
What do you love the most about Barcelona?
The fact that you have everything on your doorstep or around the corner. Beach, city, mountains, nature, even snowboarding is only a 2 hour drive.
What do you miss the most about home?
To be honest only my mom and friends. But I'm sure that when travel gets better they will visit us rather than the other way around.
How did you meet your main community of friends?
There are a lot of expats here and they easily connect or share tips. We meet on a terrace or the beach. Personally, I "meet" many people online because of my business as well. The locals are very kind and helpful, but the family culture is adamant. Which makes it challenging to get close.
Do you use your native language at work?
I do use my native language at work, because I still work for Dutch customers. I even have English, American and Spanish customers now. The advantage of working as a Social Media Manager is that you can work online. This pandemic actually sped up the process of customers acceptation of remote working and has given me the international clients I have now.
Did you find the paperwork difficult to manage?
No, there's a lot of it though. We hired a bureau to handle the NIE appointment and got some recommendations on a good honest gestor to become Autonomo.
How did you prepare your children to move abroad?
We came here for a couple of week in Fall and in Summer for him to get used to the surroundings. He just loves the beach in Montgat, where we live. Our son was accepted into an international school but, when we moved they didn't have a spot for him in his year so he now is attending a Catalan school.
Thank you to Wendy duchain-gulamali for sharing your expat story with us!
More expat stories
Add a comment