CNN
 — 

For Regina and John Zdravich, the Italian dream started greater than 20 years in the past, after a friendship with a younger Italian change scholar they had been internet hosting bought them occupied with the longer term.

The couple from Northwest Indiana had no means of understanding on the time it could ship them on an intercontinental odyssey that might embody frustration, homelessness and at last happiness in an surprising vacation spot.

It was again in 2001 after they fashioned a detailed bond with their younger lodger, happening to go to her in Italy thrice, throughout which they “fell in love” with the nation and commenced to consider what life can be like in the event that they moved there.

“Then we had one other international change scholar from Germany,” John tells CNN Journey.

“And we began pondering, ‘Properly, perhaps we might do that, as a result of we stored going again to go to them in Europe.”

As they bought nearer to their retirement, the couple, who’ve been married since 1988, began to take the thought extra severely.

“We had lived within the US all our lives and needed to attempt one thing completely different,” says Regina, who had a number of completely different jobs over time, however was working as a bookkeeper earlier than retiring.

They had been additionally eager to downsize.

“Our home was too massive for us,” says Regina. “And we knew we must transfer someplace. After which we thought, ‘Let’s simply go abroad.’”

The Zdravichs, who each retired on the age of 62, had gotten to know Italy properly throughout their visits, so it was prime of their record of locations to maneuver to.

After doing a little analysis into the prospect, they determined to go for it, and set about promoting their three-bedroom house in Northwest Indiana in 2017.

The couple then packed a few of their important belongings right into a crate, shipped them over to Italy, and “began eliminating every part we owned.”

“We began promoting stuff on-line, as a lot stuff as we might promote,” says Regina. “We gave a bunch to charity. It took a very long time to eliminate every part.”

In accordance with John, they “did properly” from the sale of their home and had been “fairly financially comfy” as they ready to relocate.

The Zdravichs left the US for Italy in January 2018, with their cat Sonya in tow. However issues didn’t precisely go to plan.

They moved into an condo in Salerno, close to Naples, and commenced the method of making use of for an elective residence visa, also called an Italian retirement visa, a long-stay allow for non-EU residents with a certain amount of passive earnings who intend to take residence in Italy.

“We would have liked a nationwide fiscal ID (a tax code much like a Social Safety quantity) and we would have liked a lease on an condo proving we had a spot to remain,” says Regina.

After three months, the couple returned to the US to finish the remainder of the method by the Italian Consulate in Detroit, hoping they’d be capable of return to the nation completely as soon as that they had their paperwork so as.

Whereas they supplied as a lot documentation as they may, the Zdravichs say they discovered the method “an absolute nightmare,” and reached a serious stumbling block after they had been requested to supply their earnings tax returns with their retirement earnings.

“That wasn’t going to occur for an additional yr,” says Regina, stating that she had solely retired on the finish of 2017.

Realizing that they had been unlikely to be permitted with out these particulars, the disheartened couple selected to withdraw their utility, and requested for his or her passports to be despatched again to them.

“Then we thought, ‘What the hell are we going to do?’” provides Regina.

At this level, the couple, who’d been staying in Airbnbs in Indiana and northern Wisconsin whereas they submitted their paperwork, didn’t actually have wherever to go.

“We had been homeless,” says Regina. “We had no house. No automotive. Nothing. And it was winter in Northwest Indiana, which is snow, ice, all that type of stuff.”

Not sure of what step to take subsequent, they selected to return to Italy to attempt to determine issues out.

Whereas they had been there, the Zdravichs scoured web site boards for recommendation or data from others who’d been in comparable conditions and realized that some who’d struggled to achieve residency in Italy had chosen to retire to Spain as an alternative.

“We thought, ‘Okay, we will do this,’” says Regina.

Because the couple had by no means visited Spain earlier than, they determined to journey their to see if it was someplace they may envision themselves dwelling.

“We’d been again to Italy a lot of occasions and traveled to fairly a little bit of the nation… However Spain had by no means been on our radar, apart from with the ability to level to it on the map,” admits John.

Whereas within the nation, they took of venture and signed a year-long lease on an condo in order that they’d have a spot to remain if every part labored out.

The Zdravichs then determined to return to the US as soon as once more, renting an condo in Chicago, whereas they bought their affairs so as.

At this stage, John, whose father is from southeast European nation Serbia, started the method of acquiring Serbian citizenship, which might in the end make a transfer to a different European nation a lot less complicated if issues had been to go flawed once more.

“We had been type of situated close to the Serbian consulate and the Spanish consulate (within the US),” says Regina. “So then we began the method with each of them.”

John’s Serbian citizenship got here by after a couple of month, in line with Regina.

The couple had been granted Non-Profitable visas (or retirement visas,) a allow that permits non-EU nationals to stay within the nation with out working or partaking in any skilled exercise, for Spain, inside round three months.

“It was a course of that was like having a full-time job,” she provides.

In August 2018, round eight months after initially leaving the US for Italy, the Zdravichs arrived again in Spain to start their new lives.

The change of location created a lot confusion for the couple throughout their first few months within the nation, notably when it got here to the language.

“It was type of disorienting, as a result of we had been learning Italian,” says Regina. “And actually in a single day, we removed all of our Italian books and Rosetta Stone and went out and bought it in Spanish.”

Regardless of their disorientation, the couple threw themselves into life in Spain, basing themselves in seaside city Oliva, located within the area of Valencia.

The Zdravichs shortly discovered that they loved the Spanish life-style very a lot.

“The Spanish prefer to have enjoyable,” says John, including that he finds Spaniards to be “just a little extra laid again.”

“This might be a terrific place to have been 40 years youthful. They’ve their fiestas. We’ve enjoyable.”

The couple, who had beforehand purchased and renovated properties collectively, went on to buy a three-bedroom house within the city of Garcia in Catalonia, northeastern Spain, with two hectares of land for 165,000 euros (round $184,000) in November 2018.

“We had horses after we lived within the US, and we knew we needed to have horses once more,” says Regina.

“In order that’s why a spot with land was enticing to us. And plus, we’re in kind of a nature-zone space.

“For us and what we needed to do, it was simply the right setting, though it was in Catalonia, which has its personal language and needs to interrupt away from Spain.”

Whereas the home “was in actually fine condition,” the Zdravichs went on to spend round 10,000 euros (about $11,187) on renovation work, and an additional 15,000 euros on a brand new solar energy system.

“We’re truly on the River Ebro, which the Spanish won’t suppose is that massive of a deal,” says John.

“However in the US, to be dwelling on a serious river is, though I don’t fish anymore, it’s good.”

One of many greatest struggles they are saying they’ve encountered since relocating has been studying the language, notably now that they’re in Catalonia, which has its personal language, Catalan – in addition to its personal parliament and flag.

The autonomous area held a referendum for independence from Spain again in 2017.

“Typically we get combined up… They communicate Catalan, particularly in these small cities,” says Regina. “They wish to hold on to their Catalan language.

“And we have to know Spanish as a result of all the official stuff that we have now to do is finished in Spanish…

“The very fact that there’s a second language right here, has made our progress just a little bit slower I believe.”

John factors out that lots of their mates within the nation are retirees from England, which hasn’t helped issues.

“We do take language courses,” he says. “However since we don’t work, we communicate English to one another (on a regular basis).”

One other side of dwelling in Spain that Regina finds tough is using the metric system.

“I’m baffled,” she admits. “Recipes baffle me as a result of I simply can’t get my head wrapped round it. I’m lastly getting used to the temperature.”

The couple, who now have long-term residency playing cards, have discovered Spain to be rather more inexpensive than the US, notably relating to consuming out.

“Typically it’s nearly like you possibly can’t afford to not exit to dinner,” says John. “As a result of it’s so inexpensive.

“And for those who don’t like wine, you’re within the flawed place. As a result of wine right here is superb and it’s inexpensive.”

The Zdravichs are additionally filled with reward for the nation’s “wonderful” public healthcare system.

They are saying they purchased a non-public medical insurance coverage throughout their “first couple of years” in Spain, however had been then in a position to register for healthcare after offering their residency documentation and well being data.

Catalonia has its personal public well being system, which might be accessed by any of its residents.

“John needed to have again surgical procedure, we didn’t pay a penny,” says Regina. “You go and you purchase a prescription, and you should utilize your pocket change.

“Within the US, it’s simply insane how costly healthcare is. And right here it simply isn’t.”

In accordance with Regina, the couple save some huge cash every year on her bronchial asthma treatment, which wasn’t coated by her medical insurance within the US.

Nevertheless, there are some issues which might be costlier in Spain.

“We pay extra in earnings taxes in Spain than what we do in the US,” she says. “However I really feel like we get lots for it… The roads are in good situation. There’s a variety of social kind providers for those who want them.”

Though they’ve additionally discovered gasoline to be extra pricey in Spain, the couple say that they drive shorter distances now, so this hasn’t impacted them massively.

“Going out to do issues is means cheaper than what it’s within the US,” says Regina. “So total, it’s lots cheaper to stay right here.

“Dwelling within the US on the cash that we have now, I believe it could be just a little extra difficult.”

The Zdravichs have solely returned house a number of occasions since relocating to Spain completely and say that, whereas they miss their mates, they don’t miss dwelling there.

“America’s just about gone off the deep finish proper now,” says John. “We watch the night information each night time, and also you simply sit there and also you go, ‘It’s getting crazier and crazier.’”

They haven’t any want to return completely, and say they maintain their visits to a minimal as they discover touring lengthy distances notably grueling these days.

When reflecting on their unsuccessful try to get hold of residency for Italy, the couple now really feel that issues may need turned out in a different way in the event that they’d employed an immigration lawyer.

In reality, they are saying they’d advise anybody making an attempt to relocate to a brand new nation completely to make use of one, supplied that they “have the cash to have the ability to do this.”

“We did all of it on our personal, and it was an terrible lot of labor,” says Regina. “There’s a variety of documentation you’ve bought to drag collectively… You must be organized.”

Though they had been “very, very dissatisfied” to have to surrender on their Italian dream in 2018, the Zdravichs are actually very pleased in Spain and stay in contact with the previous change scholar who first launched them to the thought of dwelling in Italy.

“We had our hearts set on Italy,” says Regina. “However in hindsight, I believe it may need labored out higher.”