Best Places In The World To Retire

The expats in San Miguel de Allende are amazing. The main reason why we are in this business is because of the people that we meet and the people that we work with. A lot of the expats that have chosen San Miguel to be their home are people who are in love with Mexico; people who are in love with San Miguel. This is not a perfect place to live but it is a colorful and authentic town, so the expats here are happy with that. They are looking for that authenticity that an old town and...

The expats in San Miguel de Allende are amazing. The main reason why we are in this business is because of the people that we meet and the people that we work with. A lot of the expats that have chosen San Miguel to be their home are people who are in love with Mexico; people who are in love with San Miguel. This is not a perfect place to live but it is a colorful and authentic town, so the expats here are happy with that. They are looking for that authenticity that an old town and many generations of local people bring.

 

There was a couple that moved down here from Indian Wells in California. The street that they were living at was in Guardiana.  Two doors down from them was another couple that moved down from Indian Wells. They became very good friends while living here but they were neighbors in Indian Wells and never saw each other. The reason was that their lives in the US was consumed by traveling by car from point A to point B while a lot of your life here in San Miguel is walking. So here in San Miguel, you would walk by your neighbor’s house and have a chance to meet them.

 

The expat community here has a very lively vibe. A lot of expats provide free time to NGOs (Non-Governmental Agencies; charities) in San Miguel, which is really amazing and commendable. San Miguel has the largest number of NGOs throughout Mexico, considering the size of the city. Most of these NGOs are managed, operated, and funded by expats and the work that they do is highly commendable.  As Mexicans, we appreciate how this expat community has impacted all of San Miguel de Allende. There are NGOs here whose mission is to feed the hungry like Patronato por Ninos. There are NGOs like Casita Linda that focuses on housing. San Miguel has about 90,000 people living within the city and about 90,000 living in and around San Miguel but the poverty level of these other 90,000 is very high, so there are a lot of opportunities to give back to the local community here. One thing that I really value about our expat community in San Miguel is their level of interest and commitment in helping this country and San Miguel.

 

Generally speaking, the expats here are living a slower pace of life. You can see that they are happy and enjoying life. It is not hard for them to meet new friends and to socialize.

 

(Patronato por Ninos, San Miguel de Allende, Mexico, pictured.)

The apartments in Panama City are expensive. The amount I pay to rent an apartment in Spain can only afford me to rent a room in Panama City. I am renting a room in an apartment and it costs US $500 per month but the good thing about it is that I am living in a nice neighborhood and the apartment building is close to transportation, the groceries, and other shops.

 

If you will rent an unfurnished apartment with two bedrooms and two bathrooms in a nice area...

The apartments in Panama City are expensive. The amount I pay to rent an apartment in Spain can only afford me to rent a room in Panama City. I am renting a room in an apartment and it costs US $500 per month but the good thing about it is that I am living in a nice neighborhood and the apartment building is close to transportation, the groceries, and other shops.

 

If you will rent an unfurnished apartment with two bedrooms and two bathrooms in a nice area in Panama City, it will cost around $1,000 per month.

 

A furnished apartment with two bedrooms and two bathrooms will cost around $1,500 or more per month. The rent includes electricity and water. Internet and cable TV may be included, depending on your agreement with the owner.

I have an international medical insurance policy that follows me anywhere in the world that I use for emergencies. I pay out of pocket for everything else because the costs are usually so much lower.

 

You can't use your Medicare outside the US because Medicare will not pay any healthcare facility that's not in the US. What some people do (because it’s relatively inexpensive) is to maintain Medicare part A in the US if they ever need to use it so...

I have an international medical insurance policy that follows me anywhere in the world that I use for emergencies. I pay out of pocket for everything else because the costs are usually so much lower.

 

You can't use your Medicare outside the US because Medicare will not pay any healthcare facility that's not in the US. What some people do (because it’s relatively inexpensive) is to maintain Medicare part A in the US if they ever need to use it so they can always come back to the US.

 

It's important to be covered anywhere you are. Any type of basic insurance you can have when you're in US is definitely ideal to have. I have never had a problem. I always had good experiences with medical facilities in different countries. I injured myself once in Czech Republic. No one spoke English in the hospital but the care was good and it all worked out and I got my insurance to cover it.

 

I've been to medical facilities and hospitals in Mexico, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Canada, Thailand, Australia, and probably a few other places. If you don't have anything that's an expensive, ongoing serious condition, you’re in overall good health and you just need to go for a checkup, it's generally pretty affordable to pay out of pocket. My insurance has a multi-country travel and medical insurance option. It’s only US $300 to $400 a year. It includes my baggage, emergencies like life flighting, death or dismemberment. 

 

I ended up having to go to the emergency room in Costa Rica twice in a week. I had to get an IV and it cost around $1,000. In the end, because I had to get so many things done in two different days I had my insurance cover it. If I just wanted to go to a normal checkup, it would cost way less. A dental cleaning can be $20 -$50 in most places outside of the US. I was in North Carolina recently and was told that it would cost $500 for a dental cleaning. When you’re overseas, you can definitely pay out-of-pocket for anything like that.

 

When I was in Nicaragua I had an ear infection, so I went to the public clinic. I had to pay for my prescription for my infection.  However, the actual cost of going to the clinic (and they gave an itemized receipt), was the equivalent price in US dollars of around one penny.  I was there for a couple of hours. Pretty much anything that you need to get done, even if you go to the hospital when you need to see a doctor for something specific, is not usually not going be more than $40 or $50. It's usually cheaper to pay out-of-pocket and you can go to a private doctor, a private hospital, or a private clinic in places like Panama, compared to paying for some really expensive insurance that's going to cost more than going to the doctor, anyway.  

 

(Kristin Wilson, traveling for The World Series of Poker, pictured.)

Nicaraguans are very friendly and hospitable. Nicaraguans like talking to foreigners. They will talk about their personal lives within  five minutes of meeting you, and then later ask what is up with you. They may even invite you to a wedding that they are attending that same day that they met you. (Wedding in Nicaragua, pictured.)

 

Nicaraguans are very open. They may expect that friendliness to be reciprocated, or perhaps you will not see...

Nicaraguans are very friendly and hospitable. Nicaraguans like talking to foreigners. They will talk about their personal lives within  five minutes of meeting you, and then later ask what is up with you. They may even invite you to a wedding that they are attending that same day that they met you. (Wedding in Nicaragua, pictured.)

 

Nicaraguans are very open. They may expect that friendliness to be reciprocated, or perhaps you will not see the person again, but still it was a good moment for both the local Nicaraguan and the foreigner. 

Generally speaking, Portugal has a free market and fairly capitalistic system but still with a very strong role of the state in terms of its social responsibility.  As a result, you will still see a government that attempts to protect within the financial limits imposed by budgets and other things. You will still see a government attempting to protect the poorest relative to their salaries, the elderly, etc., and although those protected mechanisms have drastically reduced and...

Generally speaking, Portugal has a free market and fairly capitalistic system but still with a very strong role of the state in terms of its social responsibility.  As a result, you will still see a government that attempts to protect within the financial limits imposed by budgets and other things. You will still see a government attempting to protect the poorest relative to their salaries, the elderly, etc., and although those protected mechanisms have drastically reduced and fallen away over the years because of certain measures.  Nonetheless, compared to the US, for example, the state here in Portugal intervenes a lot.

 

A good example is that before the change of government, which happened just recently, the national airline, TAP was privatized and 51% of it was sold to a consortium headed by an American investor, but at the moment, the socialist government is trying to reverse that situation by renegotiating the shareholding of the external investor from the majority to the minority position. I think this is something that in the US would be unheard of or the state would not be looking to buy the shares back from any of the airlines because there isn’t really a national airline in the US. If there were one, it would be difficult to imagine the US government buying back shares in an airline to ensure some kind of say in its management or protection of the nation as a whole.

 

(1968 TAP airline commercial in lights behind  the fountain in  Rossio Square, Lisbon, Portugal, pictured.)