What are the best places in Mexico to live and retire?
Alfonso Galindo - I Go Yucatan
Merida Yucatan is one of the richest provincial cities in Mexico, and is an excellent option for settling down to live, due to its excellent infrastructure, amenities and major air connections to the United States and Mexico City.
Currently, its estimated 14,000 to 20,000 foreigners live full or part time in Yucatan.
Som eproperties in the Historic Center of Merida are sold for over USD $25,000 and their value may increase by eight or ten times, even more if they are...
Merida Yucatan is one of the richest provincial cities in Mexico, and is an excellent option for settling down to live, due to its excellent infrastructure, amenities and major air connections to the United States and Mexico City.
Currently, its estimated 14,000 to 20,000 foreigners live full or part time in Yucatan.
Som eproperties in the Historic Center of Merida are sold for over USD $25,000 and their value may increase by eight or ten times, even more if they are restored homes.
In recent years, Merida has seen its streets explode with art and culture. Something is always happening in Merida, such as concerts, festivities, parades and celebrations, which are a common sight in this vibrant city. You can also join groups engaged in rescuing dogs and cats, and help to make Merida a more attractive destination. Foreign expatriates also meet in reading workshops, such as the Merida English Language Library; as well as in art workshops, travel groups, wine-tasting groups, biking groups, dancing and language classes. There is no better way to learn Spanish than enrolling in a language school, and there are a large number of these institutions in Merida.
Merida residents flock to the port cities of Celestun, Sisal or Telchac to stroll along its beaches and take a dip in the emerald green waters of the Gulf of Mexico. Undiscovered beachfront fishing villages are always bustling with food and craft vendors, local residents and beach-goers, and the waters just off the coast are calm, clean and good for swimming.
Grab a seat at one of the many palapas (thatched-roof restaurants) that extend the length of the beachfront for an excellent spot to sample some of Yucatan’s distinct regional cuisine. Seafood dishes are popular and include sopa de mariscos (seafood soup), pescado tikin-xic (grouper seasoned with achiote).
Progreso is also a popular cruise ship destination, and the city is famous for its pier that extends an impressive four miles into the Gulf of Mexico. Cruise ship passengers arriving in Progreso are often bused the length of the pier before embarking on Progreso excursions, many heading inland to visit the city of Merida or tour the Mayan ruins at Uxmal and Chichén Itza.
Come and visit us and decide for yourself.
(Pictured above: Alfonso Galindo with daughter Zara at Izamal, Yucatan. Pictured below: Alfonso Galindo at Puerto Morelos, Yucatan Peninsula.)
What are the things I'll be most happily surprised by when moving or retiring abroad?
Allen Rosen - Chiriqui Coastal Real Estate
Move to Panama and you will discover that:
It is not necessary to be frantically busy 18 hours a day. There are places like Panama where people learn to slow down, relax and smell the roses. You can still be a valuable human being even if you no longer get 400 phone calls and email messages a day. Slow down! Enjoy life!
That new BMW? You don't need it. And no one here cares, anyway. Buy an old SUV with 4 wheel drive and spend the money you...
Move to Panama and you will discover that:
It is not necessary to be frantically busy 18 hours a day. There are places like Panama where people learn to slow down, relax and smell the roses. You can still be a valuable human being even if you no longer get 400 phone calls and email messages a day. Slow down! Enjoy life!
That new BMW? You don't need it. And no one here cares, anyway. Buy an old SUV with 4 wheel drive and spend the money you save on trips around this beautiful country.
Sunshine is good for the soul. Panama has lots of it. Places like London, Vancouver
and Portland don't. Leave your miserable weather behind and come to Panama, where there is always lots of sun (except in October).
It is really safe here in Panama City. You talk on your mobile without worrying that someone will rob you. I wouldn’t do that in New York, because there is always a threat that someone might grab your phone and other stuff when you are in the subway, for example. I have seen people get robbed in the subways in New York.
Here in Panama, you don’t have that sense of insecurity. I usually wear jewelry while walking in the streets of Panama City. I...
It is really safe here in Panama City. You talk on your mobile without worrying that someone will rob you. I wouldn’t do that in New York, because there is always a threat that someone might grab your phone and other stuff when you are in the subway, for example. I have seen people get robbed in the subways in New York.
Here in Panama, you don’t have that sense of insecurity. I usually wear jewelry while walking in the streets of Panama City. I couldn’t do that in Colombia. I hide all my jewelry when I’m there. In New York, there are some areas that are unsafe like the Bronx, and some areas of Brooklyn, but in the rest of New York City, it is safe to wear jewelry. In Panama City, I don't feel threatened or scared that somebody might steal my stuff. It is definitely safe here.
In New York City, you will find people on the streets who are on drugs or homeless people that are intimidating, and you will know them when you see them. People exchange information, too, so you learn that you are not supposed to go into those areas where they are. Here in Panama City, you won’t see anything like that. The people here are so pure in heart. I’m not saying that nothing bad happens here, but bad things like crime are not that rampant, because that is just not how Panamanians are.
There are over 450 surf spots in Portugal. We have over 300 kilometers (about 185 miles) of coastline. We have been a recognized country for surfing for many years. In 2011, Ericeira, which is 60 kilometers (37 miles) away from Cascais (near Lisbon), was elected second as World Surfing Reserve and the first in Europe.
I’ve surfed at Ericeira many times. Surfers use a lot of slang in their terminologies. But for the first timers, I can...
There are over 450 surf spots in Portugal. We have over 300 kilometers (about 185 miles) of coastline. We have been a recognized country for surfing for many years. In 2011, Ericeira, which is 60 kilometers (37 miles) away from Cascais (near Lisbon), was elected second as World Surfing Reserve and the first in Europe.
I’ve surfed at Ericeira many times. Surfers use a lot of slang in their terminologies. But for the first timers, I can tell you, you have all sized waves—you have lefts, you have rights, you have sandbanks, you have rockbanks. Each of these makes the waves different. People at any level of expertise will find waves in Portugal.
The ASP, (the professional tour of surfing, now the WSL-- World Surfing League) has one of their events in Portugal in October in which they get well known attendees like Kelly Slater, 11-time world surfing champion.
In Cascais, where I am, near Lisbon, we don’t get waves for two months out of the year, but there are always places like Ericeira and further north Aveiro or Porto, which are more exposed to the Atlantic Ocean and where we get mid-sized waves. The best time to surf in Portugal is from September to May; the whole winter and spring there are waves in Portugal all over the place.
How are Americans in Managua, Nicaragua treated? How are expats in Managua, Nicaragua treated generally?
Aaron Skelly
In my experience living here in Managua, Americans are treated very well! Nicaraguans are usually happy to start up a conversation about their relatives living in the states, or to practice their English with you. The people are very warm and friendly no matter your nationality. I have made a number of local Nicaraguan friends in my time living here in-country.
In my experience living here in Managua, Americans are treated very well! Nicaraguans are usually happy to start up a conversation about their relatives living in the states, or to practice their English with you. The people are very warm and friendly no matter your nationality. I have made a number of local Nicaraguan friends in my time living here in-country.
You have numerous options to get TV in Belize. You can go with BTL, which is Belize Telecommunications Limited. For approximately 140 channels, that would cost you about US $55 a month, which would include low Internet connectivity. I don’t remember the Internet speed but it includes a bit of download as well.
If you decide to bring your own satellite dish, you are required to have a permit from Belize for your own system, which costs about US $75....
You have numerous options to get TV in Belize. You can go with BTL, which is Belize Telecommunications Limited. For approximately 140 channels, that would cost you about US $55 a month, which would include low Internet connectivity. I don’t remember the Internet speed but it includes a bit of download as well.
If you decide to bring your own satellite dish, you are required to have a permit from Belize for your own system, which costs about US $75. That’s a one-time cost because you’re taking business from the communications company down here in Belize. Then, you hook it up with US or Canadian provider such as Dish satellite, Direct TV or Shaw. Once everything is set up, you pay your subscription to your provider via your credit card. It’s exactly the same price as if you were in the US, so you could actually have anything you want as far as TV.
If you are a movie buff and you want all those 700 channels, that is what you would do. What I do is I use a very inexpensive satellite subscribed to a Mexican company and that keeps the kids happy at the house. That gives me three US channels for sports. Most of the other channels are in Spanish.
What I do is for what I like to watch is subscribe to what I want via the Internet. If you like hockey then you subscribe to NHL dot com or NFL Game Pass for NFL and get every game on your computer. I just plug it into my TV and I watch my games that way. So I haven’t hooked up though Directv or Dish network system and I have these in storage.
So, you could subscribe to BTL for 55 a month, which would have your basic cable like ABC, CBC, NBS, etc., and be about half the price you would pay for the same thing in, for example, in Florida. I live off-grid so we do not have Btl. Our Internet is WIFI, provided by a company called SMART.
I don't spend all of my time in Boquete, even though it is a very easy place to live with lots of good places to eat and the nice weather and cool temperatures there are times I need a little beach. Just two hours southwest of my home in the mountains is Limones, a little beach town that is home to Hooked on Panama, a gringo fishing resort that is finally getting the recognition it deserves and a few local fishermen and a few cowboys, and a couple of rice farmers. Having been born on Cape...
As you meander through the village of Boquete you would have to be blind not to notice the beautiful Latin faces. Handsome men and boys; beautiful women and girls, precious babies coming and going up and down the streets each day. The Indian women in their brightly colored dresses; children in school uniforms; teenagers wearing the fashionable logos and labels they love. Even the poorest people are very clean, (unless they are working or just running errands while working.)
On a windy day in February three of us ladies drove the hour and forty-five minute scenic route to Boca Chica. Bright as a blue umbrella the sky above us was a vivid blue. Strong winds pushed us down the narrow, two-lane road toward the Pan America Highway. it was definitely time for the A/C in the car! We chatted and laughed all along the way. Donna was making the trip to spruce up and change out her jewelry display at the Seagull Cove Lodge gift shop....
Merida Yucatan is one of the richest provincial cities in Mexico, and is an excellent option for settling down to live, due to its excellent infrastructure, amenities and major air connections to the United States and Mexico City..png)
Merida residents flock to the port cities of Celestun, Sisal or Telchac to stroll along its beaches and take a dip in the emerald green waters of the Gulf of Mexico. Undiscovered beachfront fishing villages are always bustling with food and craft vendors, local residents and beach-goers, and the waters just off the coast are calm, clean and good for swimming.
There are over 450 surf spots in Portugal. We have over 300 kilometers (about 185 miles) of coastline. We have been a recognized country for surfing for many years. In 2011, Ericeira, which is 60 kilometers (37 miles) away from Cascais (near Lisbon), was elected second as World Surfing Reserve and the first in Europe. 
