Expats in Cartagena

Hello Eve.

Welcome to Expat.com!

Aurélie

Hello: Sorry for the very late reply but I only look at this site from time to time.

I live in the middle of the city and there are lots and lots of foreignrs who do the same but, at the same time, most of the typical sort of expat population (families, retirees etc) live in the coastal parts of Cartagena at Cabo de Palos, la Manga etc.

I don't know if you work on Friday afternoons but, if not, Funcarele (you'll have to search for it in Google as we are not allowed to advertise) run a little get together for foreigners who want to speak Spanish on the first Friday of the month in Mr Witt at 4pm in Cartagena centre. To date there have been Dutch, German, Brits, Thai, Slovaks, Koreans, Morrocans and Belgians.

hello, regarding the get together in Cartagena - Is that a bar where the meeting is or what? is it still held ..thanks and regards Trudy

I don't think the group still meets - or it may just be that they don't invite me anymore!

If you are interested in an intercambio (equal time speaking English/Spanish usually in a bar) the "Bolsa de Idiomas" organised by the Town Hall is always desperate for English speakers to partner up with Spaniards who want to learn some English.

The co-ordinator is called Maria Amor and her email address is [email protected]

Hello Eve,
iv just seen this message,
have you moved to Cartagena yet? I live in Mar de Crystal which is very close if you still wanted to meet for a coffee one day?
I am 32 and I have my own hair salon in los belones but I come into catagena quite allot (shopping)
Hope to hear from you soon
Clayre

Hi! I,m living in Cartagena. I,m 29 and I would like taking up a language exchange. Are you interested in having a drink and talk a bit?????
How is your spanish like?

My name is Maria.
Thanks a lot.

Hi girls! Thank you for your messages! I'd love to meet to have a drink and a chat! We still live in Los Alcazares but can come to Cartagena any day after work.its only 10 minutes away!
Let me know if/when you'd like to meet!
Speak soon x

Hi eve, my name's Lisa. I'm 26. I moved to Cartagena two weeks ago to live with my spanish boyfriend and hopefully teach English. It would be great to meet someone of a similar age locally. Let me know if you would like to meet for a drink. X

Hi Lisa!
Have tried to send you a couple of messages but it won't work
Still on for tonight?x

Hi eve, did you get my message about meeting at the port at 8.30? I have class now until 8 and then I will walk straight in. I won't be able to check my emails before I go so if there are any problems then message me. My mobile number is +447884464271. Xx

Perfect! Will see you then and will keep your phone on as ewe can't f ind each other haha x

Hi,

Just saw this.  I posted a message on this forum but I'll post a reply here as well.  My name is Aoife (pron ee-fa). I'm Irish,  I'm nearly 25 and I've been living in Cartagena, Murcia since November.  I would really like to meet up with other expats in the region.  I live in the centre of Cartagena.

Hi, do you still live in Murcia, and teach English?? I used to teach in Madrid and am hoping to do CELTA this year and move over to Murcia next year. I'm trying to find out how easy it is to find work teaching? Thank you!! Danielle

Hello  Danielle,

Please note that you have posted on an old thread dated 2013. You may not get any replies

Please do not hesitate to create a new thread with your queries on the Murcia forum

Cheers

Mishna

Hi. Well I still teach English in Murcia but I've moved academy. I now teach in a small town called Fortuna.

When I had to leave Cartagena I was offered interviews almost instantly in a couple of other academies and there are plenty of ads for jobs. My present boss told me that she had had a lot of trouble finding anyone for the job.

I think we English teachers are still in relatively short supply so at least you have a fighting chance.

Thank you for the reply! Brilliant, that's exactly what I wanted to hear! There seem to be plenty of academies in Murcia, and in Madrid is is relatively easy to get work teaching.

Danielle

Hi guys,

I'm trying to make up my mind about whether to take up a job offer in Cartagena. So far I've heard a lot of positive things about the town - It really sounds lovely! In fact, I'm just wondering if you can think of any negatives you can think of that I should consider before accepting a job there

I'd really appreciate it if someone has time to answer this - I realise it is an old thread but noticed that people have been active fairly recently.

Thanks a lot!

To be honest the short answer is I can't really think of any serious negatives. I tried though.

Not far away from the bit where the tourists walk in the centre of the town there are some pretty run down areas. They are a bit ugly and a bit squalid but I walked around there tens of times late at night and never felt the least threatened though some people wouldn't agree. There are a couple of barrios where I would be less likely to go for an early morning stroll but there is no reason you would ever go there.

Some of the outer central neighbourhoods look a bit scruffy. I lived in Barrio Peral for a while before moving to the city centre. Every time I went back to Peral I was surprised how scruffy it looked but I'm talking about closed shops and unswept streets rather than anything more serious.

There are plenty of Brits and other Northern Europeans who live relatively close to Cartagena and who use it for shopping, supermarket runs and the like. Also the cruise ships bring lots of tourists so there is a lot of English spoken and there are often Brits and the like around. We are not talking Benidorm but it's hardly in the depths of Palencia either.

Otherwise I'd have to complain that there always seems to be something going on, there is plenty of culture, the food and drink is remarkably cheap, flat rental is inexpensive, there are parking places in the city centre, people are over welcoming, the bus service is efficient, the hospital and medical services treated us well and all sorts of other terrible things.

Thank you so much for your honest answer! Good to know about the 'scruffier' areas but all in all it sounds like I should just accept the job offer (teaching English) and get on with planning my move! 
Thanks again!