Best Places In The World To Retire

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Recently Answered Questions

How good are the medical centers, hospitals and health clinics in Yucatan: Riviera Maya, Playa del Carmen, Cancun, Merida, etc, and how close are they?

Doug Willey - Doug Willey, Independent Real Estate Consultant

Star Medica – Best Places In The World To Retire – International Living

The main medical area in the Yucatan Peninsula is in Merida. Some of the top doctors in the world are in Merida. Most of the doctors have been trained either in Europe or in the US, so they’re very well trained. The have very nice, modern hospitals. One of the nicest hospitals that expats like to go to in Merida is called Star Medica, where they have all the modern facilities, machinery and everything. They provide top quality medical care here. And the prices of having a...

Last year on December 14, I had taken my wife to Playa del Carmen (which is located in the state of Quintana Roo in the Yucatan Peninsula) for her birthday and I walked into some sliding glass doors and severed some arteries in my left leg. They called an ambulance and rushed me to the hospital in Playa del Carmen but they could not help me because they didn’t have an arterial surgeon. They transferred me to Cancun (also on the Yucatan Peninsula in the state of Quintana Roo) and when I got to Cancun, they got me to the operating room because they said it was very urgent; if I didn’t have something done immediately, I was either going to bleed to death or lose my leg. But when they got me to the operating room, they informed me that the arterial surgeon was on Christmas holiday and not available so they said we had to drive you to Merida, where they did have an arterial surgeon. So they took me on a five-hour ambulance ride to Merida.

They had notified my insurance agent, so even though it was 2:00 in the morning when I arrived in Merida, she was at the hospital with me. She did all the paperwork because I’m not a 100% fluent Spanish speaker, and especially with medical terms, I would have been completely lost. My insurance agent had already contacted the surgeon, who was already dressed and in the waiting room waiting for me to take me in immediately. While they were waiting for me, they had done all the paperwork all got everything all sorted out. It turned out they ended up not only saving my leg, but also saving my life.

Everything worked out very well. The arterial surgeon came to visit me probably two times a day while I was recovering in the hospital. He also spoke English so we communicated. He could tell me what my status was and I could ask him any questions that I needed to ask It was definitely a great experience.

I spent four days in the hospital. Once I was released, the doctor said that after doing physical therapy, I would probably be able to start using my leg normally again. At that time, I was living in Mahahual, in the state of Quintana Roo. After the surgery, I went back to Mahahual, put the house up for sale and I moved back to the state of Yucatan, so I could be closer to the medical facilities in Merida. I was lucky to have survived my accident but my wife and I thought, “We’re not 30 year olds anymore.”

I’m 62 and she’s almost 60, so we’re just uncomfortable not having very good medical care close by. Where I live now, on the beaches in the state of Yucatan, I could be in Merida in less than an hour. If I have a medical emergency, I would be very comfortable being next to topnotch quality medical care.

(Hospitales Star Medica, pictured.)

Does the ocean in Panama have dangerous animals in it?

Mirhanna Sandoya - Lucero Homes Golf & Country Club

Beach at Parque Nacional Chiriquí, Panama – Best Places In The World To Retire – International Living

In the Caribbean coast in Boca del Toro, or Colon, or San Blas, where we have the beautiful white sand and pristine water, we do not have any record of any dangerous animal.

In the Pacific Ocean, on the other hand, in Chiriquí, Panama City, and some of the other provinces, there are reports of sharks. Most of the time they do not come over here, but we have reports because people go surfing and then they see the shark. In general, though, we...

How much does it cost to get landline phone service in Portugal?

Ana Ferraz

Telephone booth in Lisbon, Portugal – Best Places In The World To Retire – International Living

The cost for landline phone service in Portugal is about €10 to €20 (US $10.75 to $21.70 or £7.21 to £14.42), which would give you unlimited calls within Portugal.

During weekends, you would also get free calls from 9 PM to 9 AM to any place in Europe. Outside those times, you would have to pay for calls that you make to Europe.

(Telephone booth in Lisbon, Portugal, pictured.)

What are the best places to live in the world?

Zach Smith - Anywhere

Riding bikes by the beach – Best Places In The World To Retire – International Living

In general, the best places to live is anywhere where you can find fresh food, areas where there is relative peace, areas where there is an emphasis on education, and a place where people want to be a productive member of society. You can look at different cultures through that lens and then start to identify parts of the world that are attractive.

The Mediterranean, traditionally, has a very good reputation as far as lifestyle and pace of life. There are parts of Mexico and...

What's the food like in the markets in Managua, Nicaragua?

Elizabeth Samayoa - Bosa Tours and Travel

Traditional snacks from Nicaragua – Best Places In The World To Retire – International Living

Markets in Managua offer a great variety of food and traditional snacks. Prices are low compared to supermarkets, but one thing to keep in mind while buying at the markets is that your health is first.

If you want to buy vegetables, you may find all tropical vegetables and basic grains produced in Nicaragua and some others imported. Be sure to pick them well because not all of them are always fresh, and of course, you must wash...

To drive in Belize, do I need a Belize driver’s license?

Christian Burn

You do not need a Belizean driver’s license to drive in Belize. An international driver's license suffices. You can get an international driver’s license from your home country before you come here to Belize. So as long as you have legal, up to date license, in whichever US state you are from or whichever country, you can get an International driver's license and you can use that in Belize when driving or renting a car.

As a resident in Belize, I now have a...

Recently Posted Expat Stories

French Fries or Foie Gras? Comparing the Famous Expat Locations Ajijic and San Miguel de Allende

Jet Metier by Lake Chapala in Ajijic – Best Places In The World To Retire – International Living

We have been asked several times to compare the lifestyle of the very well known and established expat locations San Miguel de Allende with Ajijic, both in the Mexican Highlands. Let’s start with what they have in common:

“Gringolandia,” Yes, But With Plenty of Local Flavor

While no reliable figures are available, a reasonable guess is that Ajijic and San Miguel de Allende may each have somewhere around 10,000 or so expats in...

Las Posadas – Dec. 16th through Dec 24th

Las Posadas is the name for the popular celebrations in Mexico, Honduras, Guatemala, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Colombia, the United States and Panama during the nine days before Christmas (December 16-24). Las Posadas (which is Spanish for the “inns” or “lodging”) relates to the search by Joseph and Mary for a place to stay in Bethlehem.

This tradition began in Mexico in 1586 when Catholic...

My life in Panama so far...

Many, many years ago, back when they still printed Newsweek and we managed to live without iPhones, I was leading a quiet existence in Geneva, minding my own business, when my friend Dr. César Pereira Burgos introduced me to Rita, a bright young diplomat and my future Panamanian wife. César, a prominent lawyer and politician, went on to become my compadre (my son's godfather) and Panama's Supreme Court president. Love at first sight; we married a few months later. The timing was a...