@Gina in the same way Dutch is a mix of German and French I suppose.

I think no one will expect you to speak Catalan but if you’re open to it and respectful when other people speak it they will love you.

@Gina this kind of arrangements in rural dwellings is related to Masoveria, a contract that comes from the 10th century.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Masoveria

People rent the house that usually was used by the Masover.

This happens a lot since the 20th century due to industrialisation of farming and much more now with automatisation.

Also, the Catalan donkey (ruc) is a particular breed.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catalan_donkey

@Gina if you’re moving to Girona you should be leaning Catalan.

@Gina then you should come to Cat-alonia or go to Cat-ania.

@Gina if you can afford to leave most of your things in a warehouse I would go mobile for a year and stay 2 or 3 months on each country and if possible on different cities. In Spain changing province can feel like changing country social and climate-wise.

If it’s for timezone I would also explore options from Egypt to Morocco. The Atlantic coast is amazing.

Also Spain and Italy have heatwave issues, I would look for northern mountain areas. Ivrea is delightful.