124 | nº 31, pp. 107-129 | doxa.comunicación

July-December of 2020

European migrants on the Costa del Sol: an analysis of the consumption of foreign media by the German...

ISSN: 1696-019X / e-ISSN: 2386-3978

The focus group offers some clues that explain what factors increase or make their relationship with Spaniards more difficult. Positive factors include, for example, living in residential areas with a majority of Spaniards or having a romantic relationship with a Spanish partner (which makes contact with the family possible and extends the network of contacts). Thus, participants who are married to Spanish partners note that their social circle “is 99% Spanish” (participant, no.1, man, 48 years old), but for those whose partner is German it is the opposite. “It’s very difficult, I also work from home and it is very difficult to come into contact with Spaniards. There are some Spaniards with whom I have contact, but the others are German or English”. (Participant no.2, woman, 57 years old).

Another aspect of the poor integration is due to certain cultural aspects or customs of the Spanish, for example, the family ties that make it difficult for them to spend time with others outside their family.

I think that life with the family is a priority here, very important for Andalusians. This is not a Spanish thing, I think it’s an Andalusian thing, and it is very difficult because people do not have time to be with us. Andalusians spend all their free time with their family and so they have practically no spare time to spend with friends or other people – not only foreigners, but other Spaniards as well. There’s no room for new contacts. (Participant no.1, man, 57 years old).

Another factor hampering relations that the focus group commented on is the fact that Spaniards do not usually invite friends to their homes, not even those who they have previously invited to theirs. The participants stressed that Spanish culture, unlike that of Germany, is more inclined to arrange meetings and celebrations outside the family home:

But it’s quite odd with the Spanish, we like to invite friends over and have a barbecue in the garden or something like that. We have contact with Spaniards, as you just said, they are our closest neighbours, but they would never invite us beyond their terrace. (Participant no.7, man, 75 years old).

That is the difference, it’s decisive. (Participant no.2, woman, 57 years old).

It probably has to do with the fact that the buildings are very small, and it is difficult to have guests, the Spaniards. (Participant no.7, man, 75 years old).

But that is ingrained in their culture. (Participant no.2, woman, 57 years old).

The family comes first, and they go out with their family at the weekend and there is no time left to establish other contacts. The only person who speaks Spanish with us is the (neighbours’ association) administrator. (Participant no.7, man, 75 years old).

The settlement of the German population on the Costa del Sol, due to or in spite of all this, is not always successful and quite a few Germans return to their country after living or trying to survive here. The emotionally involuntary returns are not usually caused by social issues but by work or age. Germans who try to settle down working in Spain soon find that labour conditions and pay are a quite a lot worse than in Germany: