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female
age
36-40,
anonymous
writes: Hi. I hope you can help.I am 25 years old and i'm from England, and I have recently got a job as an Au Pair in Spain. I'm supposed to move next week! The problem is, my mum doesn't want me to go, as i haven't had any childcare experience, and i don't know much Spanish, and she gets really paranoid about stories you hear, such as girls getting murdered when they go abroad. She has even said she won't go to a concert that she was supposed to be going to with me next monday, if i decide to go abroad. And she said if i don't go, she wants me to give her my passport to prove that i'm not going! My dad said he would also be concerned, as this would be not only my first time moving abroad alone, but my first time going abroad alone ever. However, me and my dad have read all the emails the family have sent me, and seen their photos, and we believe that it is genuine. They even sent us their address, home phone and cell phone numbers.My mum thinks i should study child care here first and go abroad after that. However, the family would like me to stay until June, or possibly longer, but have also said that i can go home earlier if i want to, and all i have to do while i am there is walk the kids back and to from school and after school activities, and everything is within walking distance.And i would also help them to improve their English, and i don't have to do housework. The area they live in sounds very nice too, as they said it is a small, cosy city. So it sounds like a great opportunity !. The kids are 8 and 10 years old, so i don't think that would be as difficult as looking after younger kids.Also, they have the internet, and i can keep intouch with my family on there and by phone.I will also take a lot of money with me, which i will have besides my wages, just incase i need it.And i will buy a phrase book to learn Spanish, although the family will also help with that.Plus i've seen some websites where you can translate from English into Spanish, so that could help too !.What do you think ?.
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female
reader, anonymous, writes (29 October 2009): Hi.I want to add that i hae been to Spain a few times before on holiday, but always with family. I just haven't been alone before.Everytime i go there i never want to come home !!. I love it there.
The family aren't with an agency, I found them on a website called newaupair.com, if you'd like to have a look.I had also been looking for families on greataupair.com. I'm not sure why they aren't with an agency, it could be because of money, because they said the reason why there is no contract for the job as well is because we would both have to pay a lot of money for taxes if we had a contract, and it costs double the amount of money that they want to pay for an Au Pair. Plus they said families dont usually have contracts for the Au Pairs in Spain, as a lot of Au Pairs are students and don't need one.
What concerns me though is they are going to pay me 75 Euros a week, and the parents in the family are a doctor and nurse, so i would have thought they could afford a contract. Then again, i'm not sure what the wages are like in Spain, and if they are going to pay me a lot of money they might not be able to afford much else.Plus, they'd have to spend money on themselves.
The brother of the mother of the family has been corresponding with me because he said his sister doesn't know much English.Once, she sent me an email, and even though it was only a short email, i thought she spoke English very well.So i'm not sure about that.He also said that her husband doesn't know any English at all.He didn't say if the kids knew a little, or any, English, but he said i need to help them with it.
The photos look genuine though to me, and everytime he has written to me, thre has been a lot of detail in the emails and he has spoke in an intelligent way.
Where abouts in Spain are you going to ?.
A
female
reader, SirenaBlusera  +, writes (29 October 2009):
 I can't believe this coincidence.
I'm going to Spain for the first time in November, and, like your mom, my mom is in a tailspin.
The important thing is to know what you're getting into, and using common sense. Your safety depends on those things. It's very important to be careful, but you shouldn't let fear deter you from going abroad.
This isn't my first time abroad, just my first trip to Spain.
I've been to Mexico more than once (loved it!!).
When I was younger than you are now, I went abroad on my own. I had never been abroad AT ALL, let alone on my own, and my mom freaked out when I told her about my plans to study abroad in Mexico.
She's always been a tad overprotective and USA, unfortunately, there are a lot of forces that try to dumb us down and deter us from going abroad. I didn't want her to worry, but I had been dying to go to Mexico all my life and I'd read about Cuernavaca (the city where I lived) and it would have been criminal to let that opportunity pass me by. One thing that helped my mom was talking to the study abroad coordinator at my university. She understood what I was getting into and why it was a good idea for me to study abroad.
How did you come into contact with this family? Have you researched and talked to people about Spain? Were you put in contact with them through an agency? Did you check the agency out? Those are important things to consider.
If you are part of a reputable program, then I think you should go.
When I studied abroad in Mexico I was part of an organized exchange program between my university in USA and the university in Cuernavaca where I studied. I knew they were reputable because they're one of the best technology schools in the world (Tec de Monterrey!!).
Of course, the more Spanish you know, the better. I speak fluent Spanish... I have my degree in Spanish as well as experience teaching it. Too bad you're far away or we could do business :)
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