One of the major benefits of my being self employed and working remotely is that technically, I can work from anywhere with a decent wifi connection. This means that when I want a change of scenery, I can head out to a local cafe or even sit in a friend’s garden and work from there.

I’ve a friend who also works remotely, and she and her husband literally travel the globe. At the moment they are living in Egypt and working with their clients in exactly the same way as if they were in the UK. One of my clients also has an employee who seems to have a different background every time we log in for a video call together. This got me thinking: could I up sticks for the summer, and just live in Spain for a month? Being a self employed single parent is so much easier and more fun if the sun is shining and you have an outdoor space to play in! I found a website called https://www.immoabroad.com/ which you can use to find a property to buy or rent abroad. They have properties all over the globe, but they specialise in France and Spain. 

I’ve not been abroad since before S was born, and the typical week-long package holiday always bothered me because by about the third day you’re already getting that “back to work soon” feeling. I like the idea of really taking advantage of the fact I don’t need to be in anyone’s office and realistically there is nothing keeping us here. A hotel for more than a week or two would cost a fortune – but renting a house or apartment could be a feasible alternative. And what fun we could have!

A friend also pointed out to me that whilst renting a property in the UK for the summer might cost a small fortune, there are many countries where the cost of living is consierably lower and we could afford to stay for longer. Many of these places also have a thriving expat or “digital nomad” community of people who all work remotely so there’s a great community spirit.

I can’t help but feel that spending her summer in a different country would be a brilliant education for S too – not only for learning a different language but also the culture, and meeting different people of different backgrounds. The more I think about it, the more I think this is something I’d love to do with her every summer.


Vicky Charles

Vicky is a single mother, writer and card reader.

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