Interview with Sylvie Islam
What is your name, age and how long have you lived in Girona?
My name is Anne Sylvie Islam, I have lived in Girona for two years.(July 2010)
Why did you decide to move to Girona?
We came to Spain for health reasons, my husband suffers with back problems.
Originally we were going to live in Barcelona as we wanted the children to go to the Waldorf Steiner school in Bellaterra. But due to financial reasons, we were unable to do so. This left us open to go anywhere as we were not tied down by work.
We thought it would be much better for the children to live outside a big city, coming from London we just wanted to move away from the hustling and bustling of the city.
We visited Girona quite by accident and really liked the feel of the town, it was relaxing, beautiful, clean, had history and generally felt right for us.
What nationality are you and your partner?
I was born in France and am a French national. I went to the UK when I was 7 years old with my family and grew up in London where I lived for 40 years.
My husband is British, was born in India and also went to the UK when he was 7 years old where he grew up in Oxford.
How many children do you have and what are their names and when were they born?
We have two children, they were both born in India. Our son is called Varun and is 13 years old and our daughter is called Aiesha and she is 10 years old.
Do you work and if so what do you do?.
I develop websites and have been working on a Website of Girona for the past year.
What was your experience of relocating to Girona with children? (if relevant)
My kids have been amazing. Having left all their friends behind (and they had a lot of friends in London), coming to a country where they did not speak the language and a culture which is really very different from what we are use to, they have complained very little and have gone along with our decision with as much support as could be expected.
It has not been easy for them, I remember the first day at school, it felt like the very first day your toddler goes to kindergarten and you are left with a tremendous guilt an anxiety, looking at the clock all day until it is finally time to pick them up.
All things considered, two years down the line they have done very well, they now have two more languages (Catalan and Spanish) and have experience of living in a different culture, all this I believe will broaden their minds and enrich their lives. They do miss many things from the UK such as their friends, their old school (no school here will ever compare to their school in London), being able to communicate to their friends in English, the way people think, the English sense of humour etc...
On the positive side, the children have a lot more freedom here, it is much safer and cleaner than the big city. As a small town people get to know you. The children have much more of an outdoor life, my son is out all the time on his BMX with his friends (when he is not doing his homework!) and that freedom he would never have had in London or Barcelona. He can go to the cinema with his friends without an adult, he even goes to restaurants with his friends without us. He really loves this now life and would miss it if we moved back to the city.
For me and my husband it has probably been more difficult as we also had a lot of friends in the UK, lived a very social life and here people live very differently. In Girona, people’s social network is the family and so it makes it very difficult to build yourself a network of friends as they give very little time to socialising outside the family.
Also I have found the Gironins very closed (many people say that, even other Catalans). At first I was shocked by the lack of smiles, greetings amongst parents at school, the staring which is something we are not really use to in the UK. It took a good seven months before I got a hello from other parents of the school! Some days I would come home nearly in tears wondering what was wrong with me. Now most people say hello to me (it’s almost as if there was a formal period of time to wait, like an initiation time before you become visible and accepted).
It’s always hard to understand another cultures with the eyes of a foreigner and it’s really been an eye opener for me into how it feels to be an 'immigrant'.
I remember the first day we arrived in Girona, we got to our flat and saw our neighbours for the first time. I remember thinking how great it was that they too had children of similar ages. So I said hello to them (I speak Spanish fluently) and in an almost triumphant way, told them that we had just arrived from the UK. Well! You know when someone pours a bucket of frizzing water on you, that’s what the response I got felt like, they just stared and said nothing and made me feel very stupid.
Nowadays I just about get a short conversation from them (if I'm lucky) and I still am amazed by the lack of interest people have in the outside world.
Ok, as you see you have opened up the floodgates! So I’ll stop here.
How well integrated would you say you and your children are?
My son is more socially intergrated than my daughter, he has many friends, all acquired through his interest in BMX, I think you need something like that to bring children together.
My daughter does not have many friends at school even though she is very sociable and extroverted. I am forever looking for playmates.
What language do you speak to your children?
We speak English to our children.
Many people from the International Community say they are ‘put off’ living in Girona because of the amount of Catalan spoken, is this justified?
Yes.
If you come to live here, you will never integrate unless you show an interest in learning Catalan and probably will not get work unless you can speak it.
I speak to people in Spanish (always referred to as Castellean) and some people will always answer back in Catalan, regardless.
So I am learning Catalan, have been on a course all year and will start again in September.
It is also a necessity if you want to be able to help your children with their schoolwork and communicating with some teachers who insist in talking to you in Catalan.
Girona is often cited as having the best quality of life for its inhabitants in Spain, why is this?
The pace of life here is slower, I guess there is much less stress, your world is smaller and therefore you have less to worry about. The crime rate must be very low. Most people have a city house or flat and a house by the sea (usually the grand-parents house) and so every weekend and public holidays, they are off to the seaside. The sky is nearly always blue, the winters are usually very mild and the air is good. I guess all this contributes to a good quality of life.
What is your impression of childcare and education in Girona so far?
I think the education system generally is many years behind that of the UK. It seems very basic, not very proactive. Teachers and schools are not really monitored as they are in the UK with OFTED. Teachers are not sent on as many courses as they are in the UK. School books are expensive and very poor in their content. Teaching methods are really old fashion and not really well thought out and way too much emphasis is given to exams and grades from an early age.
In terms of secondary schools, my son has just finished his first year at secondary. It was a really hard year for him, the first term, no one seems to know what was happening, the communication between parents and teachers is really very basic. They do not have any regular parent/teacher meetings. Children are lectured in the same way as at university. I have spent the year chasing his tutor to make sure I was kept up to date as to the progress of my son.
On the plus side, the content seems good and quite high level in maths and sciences.
What school (s) do your children go to?
My daughter goes to a primary school called Annexa Joan Puigbert and my son is at the Institut Jaume Vicens Vives.
Why did you choose this school and are you happy with your choice?
We choose Annexa as we liked the headmaster and felt that he had a good vision on education and a good understanding of children.
We choose Vicens Vives as most of our son’s friends from primary were going there and we were told by his primary school that it was a good Institute.
What are your feelings on State run schools over private?
I have no experience of private schools in Catalunya so cannot really comment.
Where you live, how good are the facilities for children (shops, restaurants, activities etc?)
In Girona everything is walking distance. We live in the centre but even if you live a bit further out there are plenty of supermarkets, chemists, play areas, it's all easily accessible.
The town buses are very good and regular and run every 15 minutes weekdays, but weekends are not so good (30 minutes on Saturdays and 60 minutes on Sundays).
There are plenty of children and baby shops.
Activities are a little limited. We have public swimming pools, parks and play areas for younger children. There is a good Art Schools (La Merce) which runs workshops and courses for children.
Dance, music and theatre is also a little limited unless you want to sign up on a waiting list for the conservatory or the School of Music.
Are there any particular activities, groups, classes etc for children in Girona that you would recommend?
I would recommend La Merce (Art school), there is also the Galliner theatre school which runs classes for children as well as adults but have no experience of it.
I am hoping to get Aiesha onto a Jazz dance class in September.
Are there any particular service providers (doctors, dentists, babysitters, tutors etc) for children that you would recommend?
I would recommend the pain clinic at the Joseph Trueta hospital and their emergencies have always been thorough as well as the emergencies at the Guell hospital.
GP wise, we have had really good Doctors and really bad ones. We are registered with the Santa Clara health centre and we currently have a new Doctor.
What do you think are the main advantages and disadvantages of being a parent from the international community living in Girona?
The disadvantages are that we have no family here and the international community is very small.
Is there anything that you think would improve childrens’ lives living in Girona?
Yes, my son is a proactive member of lobbying for a Skate Park in Girona and that would definitely be great for all the skaters and BMXers as they do not currently have anywhere to go.
It would be great to have a school similar to the ‘Stagecoach’ school where my daughter could do dance, music, singing…
What advice would you give anyone having a baby or thinking of relocating to Girona with children?
It will take time to make friends but will happen and they can always contact me.
What couldn’t you live without in Girona?
The blue skies and pink at dusk…
What could you live without in Girona?
The permanent road works and dusty building sites.
(July 2010)
