Best Places In The World To Retire

There are very few disruptions in the water supply for San Miguel at this time ---- but problems are likely in the future.

 

I first visited San Miguel de Allende ten years ago and even then, most of the people that I met were concerned about water.

Since that time there have been many articles and reports in local and national news and even one in the New York Times that have discussed the water problems.

There have been many...

There are very few disruptions in the water supply for San Miguel at this time ---- but problems are likely in the future.

 

I first visited San Miguel de Allende ten years ago and even then, most of the people that I met were concerned about water.

Since that time there have been many articles and reports in local and national news and even one in the New York Times that have discussed the water problems.

There have been many seminars, studies, and meetings with comments from concerned citizens and leaders.

Angélica Casillas Martínez, director of the State Water Commission (CEAG) is one official who has indicated that forecasts are poor for future water supplies.

Researcher Marcos Adrián Ortega Guerrero from Geosciences Center (CGeo) at National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM) said arsenic and fluoride were found in the Lerma-Chapala system (the aquifer supplying San Miguel), in concentrations 10 times greater than what are deemed tolerable limits for human consumption. “Arsenic is generating cancer issues among the population. Fluoride has gone from affecting teeth and the skeleton to being associated with neurotransmitter issues, reducing the intelligence quotient of children by between 40 and 50%; children stop learning, and that’s irreversible,” he said.

 

There are two problems. First, so much water is being pumped from the aquifer that it is not being resupplied and underground water levels have dropped significantly. Currently, San Miguel and surrounding areas are going deep in the ground and extracting ancient waters. These waters are from the Pleistocene era.

 

 

Second, the ground waters are carrying increasing levels of arsenic and fluoride which are recognized worldwide as the most serious inorganic contaminants in drinking water. They have been shown to impair learning and memory. They are also known to cause many other medical problems including cancer. Tests show levels well beyond international and national standards.

The contamination affects much of the population in San Miguel – many of whom who drink straight from the tap or use common household filtration systems. Many of the filtration systems used in households and even by some of the bottled water companies do not actually eliminate arsenic or fluoride.

 

The problems are not insurmountable but expats need to know about them and become involved. They need to know that the well water or municipal water may have high levels of arsenic and fluoride and that many filters do not remove them. They may need to install filters designed specifically for arsenic and fluoride.

 

 

I’ve met expats who were positive that drinking unfiltered well water was safe because they had tested it for pathogens. But they did not consider the heavy metals. Many new developments are water intensive with lush vegetation and many pools – this may be a problem. I lived in Las Vegas, Nevada for many years and we made a major effort to cut down on the water usage and this should become the trend for San Miguel.

 

Also, expats are not a separate community; the health problems of the general population affect everyone. Some studies have shown that increased levels of arsenic have led to lead poisoning and that has led to delinquency and crime.

 

 

 

​Photos: 

San Francisco Church, San Miguel de Allende, Mexico

This entire area is above the Lerma-Chapala aquifer

New Development using plenty of water - San Miguel de Allende, Mexico

Lots of lawns and vegetation around many homes in San Miguel de Allende

 

 

 

 

Under most circumstances, having a dual citizenship is the preferred way to go about when moving abroad because formally renouncing your citizenship is actually a rather complicated process. Dealing with the IRS is never fun and pre-paying future taxes in order to relinquish citizenship is a significant burden vs continuing to file taxes as a US citizen despite living abroad.
 
There are some tax advantages living abroad. Most notably, if you’re out of the country for more...

Under most circumstances, having a dual citizenship is the preferred way to go about when moving abroad because formally renouncing your citizenship is actually a rather complicated process. Dealing with the IRS is never fun and pre-paying future taxes in order to relinquish citizenship is a significant burden vs continuing to file taxes as a US citizen despite living abroad.
 
There are some tax advantages living abroad. Most notably, if you’re out of the country for more than 330 days, you will get a tax exemption called the Foreign Earned Income Exclusion. In a nutshell, if you have low income then you are not going to be paying the US taxes. The Foreign Income Exclusion stops a little over $100,000 in earned income for a single US taxpayer. What’s nice about it is that you pay 0% on earnings up to the amount of the exclusion and then that first money earned above that is taxed at a lower rate. This is what I understand but it’s probably something that is best to revisit from a financial perspective especially when you are getting closer to making that decision. You do not need to renounce or relinquish your US citizenship in order to live in another country. Making this decision is not something to be taken lightly as revoking your citizenship is a big deal.  Certainly review all matters tax related since rules definitely change and how your income arrives, w-2 vs. investment, vs foreign payroll are all factors that should be considered and advised by a tax professional.

Outside of Panama City, Bocas has the best night life. On Bastimentos, its OK, but not quite as good as on the main island, Isla Colon. Check out the Iguana Bar, Barco Hundido, the Aqua lounge on Carineros and some of new spots that pop up all the time.

 

 

Outside of Panama City, Bocas has the best night life. On Bastimentos, its OK, but not quite as good as on the main island, Isla Colon. Check out the Iguana Bar, Barco Hundido, the Aqua lounge on Carineros and some of new spots that pop up all the time.

 

 

In my opinion, the best place in Nicaragua to live is Managua.  It’s still not super-developed, but it’s just developed enough for you to have a comfortable life. Managua has modern technology and it’s not that expensive to live here.  The weather’s kind of hot, but you can put the air conditioning on.
 
Granada is a little bit more expensive, because it’s more touristic.
 
Within Managua, the best place to live is all the area...

In my opinion, the best place in Nicaragua to live is Managua.  It’s still not super-developed, but it’s just developed enough for you to have a comfortable life. Managua has modern technology and it’s not that expensive to live here.  The weather’s kind of hot, but you can put the air conditioning on.
 
Granada is a little bit more expensive, because it’s more touristic.
 
Within Managua, the best place to live is all the area surrounding Carretera Masaya.  Carretera Masaya is a very good, upper middle class and wealthy residential neighborhood outside of the center of Managua with lots of condominiums and houses and very little commercial development.  Carretera Masaya has both gate guarded communities and non-gate guarded communities.

All the doctors I’ve come across in Ambergris Caye speak English. 
 
We have a few doctors that are from Cuba who moved down to Belize to work, and even they speak English. A lot of the reason is because we’re such a big tourist destination but, believe or not, a lot of people, especially the younger generation still speak Spanish in San Pedro, Ambergris Caye. Even my kids’ first language is English. I grew up speaking Spanish in my house but our school...

All the doctors I’ve come across in Ambergris Caye speak English. 
 
We have a few doctors that are from Cuba who moved down to Belize to work, and even they speak English. A lot of the reason is because we’re such a big tourist destination but, believe or not, a lot of people, especially the younger generation still speak Spanish in San Pedro, Ambergris Caye. Even my kids’ first language is English. I grew up speaking Spanish in my house but our school system is based on the British system so all of our schools are English speaking. You have to know English to get around here. So even when doctors come from Spanish speaking countries like Cuba or Mexico, they eventually have to learn English to work. 
 
Belize is the only English speaking country in all of Central America. Its official language is English. All the contracts for our condos are in English.

 

(Sign in English of a historical artifact in Burrell Boom, Belize, pictured.)