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You are here: Home Employment Employment Information A life in the day of a euro commuter

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18/05/2011A life in the day of a euro commuter

A life in the day of a euro commuter They are an ever-increasing breed - expats who live in one country, and work in another. One such 'euro commuter' Gail McNeillie kept a diary of her life and times as she lives between London and Barcelona.

I'm sitting at Barcelona airport, again. It is almost 10pm on a Monday night and I'm waiting for my regular return flight to Luton. This is where you'll find me every Monday evening at this time, give or take the odd week when I do not travel home for the weekend.

For just over a year now I have been commuting between London and Barcelona, renting a spare room from a friend during the week and returning to the flat I share with my partner at weekends in Spain.

At the beginning London was very much home and I felt as though I was just 'visiting' at the weekends.

Then there was a period when nowhere felt quite like home, which was very unsettling.

But now Barcelona is home. We have furnished the flat gradually, having started with nothing but an inflatable mattress and a couple of plastic chairs.

It now has everything we need and is somewhere we can enjoy spending time. We have a mixed group of friends, some locals and a variety of expats from around the world, and there are always things going on.

We know the area and know where to find things and how the little things work. We are settled.

I know the pattern of my journey inside out; which train I have to get in order to reach the check-in desks in time (allowing for the inevitable queues), when it is worth rushing to try to get to the front of row D so that I'm the 91st person on the plane rather than the 121st (I'm always one of the last to check in), whether it is worth sitting at the front or the back of the plane, and those little indicators which mean you just know the flight going to be delayed. All of these things make the journey go more smoothly.


I recognise more of the airport staff than I do the easyjet crew. Easyjet seem to have a never-ending supply of orange-and-grey clad staff who rarely seem to fly the same routes twice.

Still, none of the staff, easyjet or ground personnel recognise me yet. But then they see thousands of people every week and can't be expected to remember someone who sleeps through every flight (a very useful habit if you can manage it).

The only person who does know me from my travelling is the controller from the taxi firm I ring at about midnight each Monday night to arrange to be picked up and taken back to my London lodgings.

(One of the downsides of late night travel is the lack of public transport in the small hours. A taxi is my only option.)

I don't recognise any of my fellow passengers. I thought I might find other people making the same crazy journey as me week after week, but that doesn't seem to be the case.

It sounds very luxurious this jet-set lifestyle. I work in the City of London during the week and spend my weekends in the sun. But having travelled backwards and forwards for so long I am now starting to feel that I've had enough.

All that rushing for trains, waiting around at airports (even when there isn't a delay there's a lot of waiting) and finally arriving at my destination very late at night or in the small hours of the morning takes it out of you.

But the worst thing is finding you have no time to do anything for yourself. I have three free evenings a week, which, when you allow for working late, cooking, laundry and the other mundane things of every day life, doesn't leave much time for arranging to see friends or doing anything else. My employers have been extremely supportive and have allowed me to work one day a week from Barcelona, which is why I spend so much time on a Monday evening sitting at the airport.

I am able to fly out on a Friday and then have a full weekend before settling down to a day's work and flying home.

That Monday has made all the difference. It is not easy. I have to be disciplined and it always has my impending departure hanging over it, something neither my partner nor I look forward to, but we couldn't manage without it.

I am hoping to extend this arrangement and am discussing the options with my employer at the moment. Spending more time working remotely and less time in the office would significantly reduce the travelling involved and give me my life back.

The last year has been a very interesting learning experience, despite all of the 'wasted' time spent at airports.

I have learnt a lot about myself: just facing the adventure and setting off to a new country and trying to establish a new life has given me confidence in my abilities to deal with life, with all sorts of situations, and with people in general.

Of course I have also learnt about life in a different country and a different culture: it is close enough to the UK to still be largely familiar, but it is the little things, the fully functioning transport system, the sense of community, the fiestas, the castellers (human towers found in Catalonia), and so much more that can make it feel quite foreign, but also very welcoming and exciting.

Do I regret deciding to make the move? No.

Would I do it again, knowing what the travelling really involves? Yes.

It has all been worth it and I will continue to travel backwards and forwards for as long as it is necessary.

Hopefully I will be able to come to some arrangement with work, but if not then I will just have to concentrate on improving my Spanish and get a job in Barcelona.

The commuting has been a good way of staggering an overseas move and making that transition as smooth as possible, but it is not a long-term solution and I think it is now time to work on phase 2.

Gail McNeillie / Expatica

Originally published June 2005

 


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