Introducing Marjan and René, they have been living in Spain since 2021. In the Netherlands, Marjan worked in the catering industry and at an airline. René works in logistics at a transport company in the IT department. Now they are the proud home owners of Finca Tranquilidad in Iznájar, Andalusia.
“Why Spain, you might ask? Well, why not? Sometimes you have 100 reasons not to do something, but you only need 1 to do something. In our case there are a number of reasons. We were doing well in the Netherlands; a nice house in a nice city (Gouda) and our working life was also excellent.”
And then Corona hit…. René was able to work from home just fine, but in aviation it became a lot more difficult. Marjan decide to leave her job with a pleasant severance package.
“We didn’t leave the Netherlands because we no longer enjoyed it there. But we left the Netherlands because we thought the quality of our life would be better in Spain, and so far that’s true. We love the peace and quiet, and especially being outside more often. Discovering new things and enjoying the surroundings, and of course the house we live in now. The people we met here have become real friends.
Campo life
After arriving in Spain, we first rented a house in the countryside, or “the campo”, for about a year and a half. We wanted to experience what it is like to live in the campo and discover whether we would like the town of Iznájar and the surrounding area. We think it is a nice village and the residents are very friendly. It was time to look for a house of our own.
After a search that lasted about six months, the real estate agent showed us Finca Tranquilidad. A Finca with 3 houses, a few sheds, a swimming pool and a piece of land. Neglected and dirty because it had been empty for quite some time. But we saw the potential it had for us; the silence, olive trees as far as you can see, the continuous sound of twittering birds and the possibility of renting out holiday homes. This was exactly what we were looking for! We thought about it for two weeks and then made the decision. “We have a lot of work ahead of us, but we’re going for it!”
A good neighbor…
With the indispensable help of our neighbor, we started demolishing, building up, plastering, painting a lot of ‘blanco’, and furnishing the rental. The surrounding sheds were also tackled. Planters have been made, sewers installed and renewed. Our guests rave about the wonderful mattresses on the brand new beds and the cozy indoor and outdoor areas. The lovely swimming pool has already provided a lot of water fun and relaxation moments, and will be made even more beautiful in the near future. The work of a Spanish home owner never ends 😉
We respect the privacy of our guests at all times and our guests appreciate that. ‘rummaging’ around the grounds, keeping the swimming pool clean, taking care of the plants, changing beds or doing errands, having a drink on a terrace somewhere with a tapa; life here in Spain at our Finca Tranquilidad is a life that suits us.”
