From Spain to Maine

[PowerV]

Well thank you all for the information provided, very friendly of you. By the sounds of things it might be better to head for Port land, and one question how far a drive is Portland from Augusta. Rent wise I´d be looking for a spot for 4 years or so. So it would need to be ok and not your usual student rental property. As for the winters they probably wouldn´t bother me that much as i´m irish but my wife is spanish and i´m sure she would notice it more. But maybe she could nip back to spain to spend the colder months over there. We live on the eastern cost Valencia area. I´ve been there for a few years now, but I have a chance to Expat for a few years to the US. Also food is good in Maine? you know the spanish love their food so what´s a typical dish from Maine?

[lrfox]

Ah, Valencia. Gorgeous area. I had my best Paella there at a little restaurant on the beach just off of Calle de Pavia. You'll find the coast of Maine to be very different but no less beautiful.

The drive from Augusta to Portland is around 45 minutes. It's pretty direct. Apartments aren't too expensive in Maine. Even in Portland they're not bad. Certainly not as high as what you'd pay in a good location in Valencia. If it's just you and your wife, then I'd assume you're looking for some place with 2 bedrooms or so? You can find a comfortable 2 bedroom (good quality) in Portland (good location) for anywhere from $900/month to $1300 per month. More for a super luxury condo or something, but expect good quality for between $900-1300/month. If you lived in Augusta, rent would be lower, but there would be significantly less to do.

I understand your concern about food. I am an avid "foodie" and enjoy great and diverse types of food. Valencia was excellent. The blend of styles and cuisines was fantastic. It was a paradise for a food lover. In fact, all of Spain was. It was, perhaps, the most food-crazy place I've ever been (even more so than France). Maine is different. Maine food is of the "comfort" sort typically. It would be more similar to what you would be used to in Ireland (in fact, Maine is one of the largest producers of Potato in the United States) than in Spain.

This isn't to say that food in Maine is bad. It certainly isn't at all. It's just not as flavorful and creative as what you'd find on the Eastern Coast of Spain (near Valencia). Portland has a reputation for good food. I've found it to be a bit overstated. Portland's best restaurants do an excellent job with quality ingredients, but the restaurants tend to have relatively boring menus. There are a few high-quality restaurants in Maine (mostly in Portland, some scattered about elsewhere) but no top tier restaurants of the sort you'd find in Valencia, Barcelona, Madrid or in the United States' major cities. Most restaurants here have a casual atmosphere which is warm and inviting.

I think my favorite thing about food in Maine is the quality of ingredients. To be honest, when I first moved here I was disappointed in the quality of food (I am from the Boston area and have lived around some other larger cities). The BEST restaurants had quality ingredients, but the finished product was sort of bland and most menus were very similar to all of the other restaurants. Portland and Maine lack much ethnic diversity so finding the variety of ethnic and international restaurants that American cities are so famous for is tough to do as they don't really exist (with a few exceptions). That said, what Maine restaurants do (comfort foods and in some cases, seafood) they do VERY well.

What took me a while to figure out was that in Maine, you have access to the BEST ingredients so if you know where to look, you can produce ANYTHING yourself. So if the restaurants don't thrill you (and they didn't thrill me), you can make up for it by finding the freshest seafood, produce, meats, etc that you'll find anywhere in the world and preparing meals yourself. If you find you're missing the wonderful cuisine of Spain's Mediterranean coast you may not be able to find a restaurant that'll serve that type of food in Maine, but you'll CERTAINLY find the best ingredients to produce it yourself.

In Maine, you should be pleased with how easy it is to find good, fresh, well prepared comfort foods (a roast beef, a nice duck, a good fresh chicken), seafood (the freshest anywhere), and vegetarian foods (freshest produce). You'll miss the variety of cultures represented in the culinary scene that the bigger American and European cities have (though Portland has some good Sushi and some say they have found good Mexican food here. I can vouch for the Sushi, have yet to find a good Mexican place).

If you can cook, you'll love eating in Maine. If you rely on restaurants, you may find it a bit lacking. But that's just my experience.

[flycessna]

I think If you chose to live in the Portland area then you will have access to excellent restaurants! you will also have many choices as I think I read somewhere the Portland has high amount of restaurants when compared to populations also.

But for Maine the local dishes are good when it comes to "sea food". I know the maine farmers will not like this and I have great respect for them and always support them by buying local and in season...but our produce leaves little to be desired .

[PowerV]

well all, back again, the move to maine was postponed last year but back on again this year, but the goos news is that it´s Portland and not Augusta.
Thanks for all the info, will be moving now in end of june, i suppose it´s not a bad time of year to take the jump. So now looking at house rental etc... any advice i see good properties outside Portland but maybe in winter very isolate Cape Elizabeth etc also question, heating bills in maine, what´s the average bill during the winter, because i understand it´s cold

[flycessna]

Congrat's.. heating bills will be totally dependent on how big the home, type of heat, and how warm you like it... we predominantly use OIL to heat our homes here in the northeast and it can be alittle volitile as far as pricing.. right now I am paying about $230 per gallon of oil.. Any home or property you are looking at will have its usage for the prior year.. When you get here you should be able to look around and see how things a done here and get a feel for what you want..

Good luck!

[RHB]

Originally Posted by flycessna

.... right now I am paying about $230 per gallon of oil..

I'm pretty sure (I heat with wood) that it was meant to be $2.30 per gallon (at least I sure hope so!)

[flycessna]

Originally Posted by RHB

I'm pretty sure (I heat with wood) that it was meant to be $2.30 per gallon (at least I sure hope so!)

OOPS yup.. that was supposed to be $2.30 a gallon.. dont ask me litre's though

[PowerV]

ok, but monthly winter average for a 3-4 bed house?

[bigchuckie]

Spent 2 yrs in Spain Mostly Cadiz Rota Torremolinos and Alcala Deheneres. Lived in Maine for 40 years.
Bangor is a good bet as is Portland. Portland is Maine's biggest city 65,000 people. Bangor was just named of the 100 best places to live. Employment in Portland would be easier to find but houses cost more than in Bangor

[RHB]

Originally Posted by PowerV

ok, but monthly winter average for a 3-4 bed house?

I'm not sure there is one. So much depends on how well the house is insolated, what temp you are comfortable in, how good the furnace is. When you find a house you are interested in, you can contact the oil supplier and they can tell you how much the house used last year. Hopefully, it will be close to how warm you want the house.