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Recently Answered Questions

Who are the residents of Los Cabos - La Paz, Mexico? Who lives in Los Cabos - La Paz, Mexico?

John K. Glaab - the settlement company®

Sammy Haggar in Cabos, Mexico – Best Places In The World To Retire – International Living

There are many foreigners in Los Cabos and La Paz. Many of the people who came down here were from California. Now, we also have people from British Colombia, Alberta, Minnesota, etc. People come from all over the US but there are not that many Europeans on a percentage basis. It’s mostly Canadians and Americans who live here. As Los Cabos grew, there was quite an influx of people, particularly of professionals and Mexicans who came from the mainland. Now we have everything from...

What are the best things to do in and around Ambergris Caye?

Christian Burn

There is lots of things to do in Ambergris Caye. You can go to the wood fabrication company and the chocolate factory (shade cacao plantation, pictured) shade cacao plantation, Belize, Mayan techniques – Best Places In The World To Retire – International Living

shade cacao plantation, Belize, Mayan techniques – Best Places In The World To Retire – International Living

, where you can take classes. There is always Belizean cuisine to experience and learn. There is no shortage of cultural entertainment here. There is always music and dancing in the town park. They constantly have concerts for the school and there are parades most of the time. Belizeans love to celebrate, so there is a festival for...

What are the construction standards in the Panama City, Panama area of Marbella?

Jose Broce - Broce-Pinilla & Asociados

Marbella, Panama buildings under construction – Best Places In The World To Retire – International Living

Buildings in Marbella, Panama are well built.

The finishing is not up to US standards because the practice here is that the finishing would be up to the person who will buy the property just so that they can finish the building as they want. It is not up to US standards but it is better than any other Latin country.

The structures are of the highest standards you can get. We have huge structures here in Marbella and they are all high-quality builds.

What's the crime rate in general in Nicaragua?

Esmerelda Vargas - Schuvar Tours

Metrocentro, Mangua mall – Best Places In The World To Retire – International Living

The crime rate in overall in the country of Nicaragua is lower than other countries in Central America. If you go to the worst neighborhoods in Nicaragua, however, the crime rate will be higher than in better neighborhoods.

In general, Nicaragua is very safe. For instance, I send my daughter alone to the mall in Managua and she can go alone to many other places here. In other countries, you cannot do that.

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Can I receive my Social Security checks or benefits abroad, as an expat, outside the US and if so, how?

John Ohe - Hola Expat Tax Services

Castillo de San Felipe, Rio Dulce, Guatemala – Best Places In The World To Retire – International Living

You can receive your Social Security check outside of the US directly to a foreign bank account. However, there is some paperwork that is required to do this. It's easier to have your Social Security check deposited into a US bank account and just access that money through a debit card.

There is absolutely no US law that states that if you're living outside of the United States, you're not entitled to Social Security anymore. If you're...

How are the rules of etiquette or customs different in Portugal?

Carol Bartlett Ribeiro - Carol Bartlett Ribeiro, Property Consultant

1836 sketches of women of Portugal – Best Places In The World To Retire – International Living

The Portuguese language is a very formal language, but like everything else in the world today it’s becoming more and more relaxed.

There is a generation of Portuguese who are “old school” who would stand up when elder people come in to a room, and that, in Portuguese would never refer to their mother or father using the informal of “you”, “tu.” Today, in general, young children today will be less formal but in certain levels in Portugal there are still very strict rules of who you are, where you are, where you’ve been, and how you live.

On average now it’s a lot easier going than it used to be. I was talking to a friend of mine today about the time when girls would go out there would always have to be chaperone because the parents wouldn’t let it be any other way. These days if you told a 12 year old they needed to have a chaperone, they would say, “Are you crazy?”

In America, even if you’re the president of the company, people would say to you, “Hi, Bob,” whereas here in Portugal it would always be “senior doctor” or “senior professor” or “mister engineer.” You would never use the more informal way of speaking; until you became friendly with them, there’s always that formality. So you would never say, for example, “Senior Bob” you would say “Senior Johnson,” you wouldn’t say the first name. So there are small things like that that would be a faux pas.

The Portuguese are really, really impatient when they get behind the wheel of a car. They drive like lunatics on the motorways and you wouldn’t think it was the same race of people that gets behind the wheels of their cars and they sit on your bumper or don’t let you in. For them, it’s “me first, me first,” which is odd, because they’re not like that we’re they’re chatting to you, but behind the wheels of their cars, you do have to be careful, or, alternatively, you just do what they do.

(1836 sketches of women of Portugal, pictured.)

Recently Posted Expat Stories

Mexico’s Riviera Maya, Including Cancun, Playa del Carmen, Akumal and Tulum: From Modern Resort Destinations to Mayan Ruins

Tulum Beach with Jet Metier – Best Places In The World To Retire – International Living

If you want to travel by any vehicle in the Riviera Maya (Cancun, Playa del Carmen, Akumal, Tulum and everything in between), you’ll have to take the main highway. As in every other place in Mexico we’ve been, this means driving amongst Mexicans who drive way too fast to be safe, and lots of ill-advised passing. In addition, there are “returnos.”

The simplest, most non-threatening definition of a “retorno” is that it is nothing more than...

Sunshine Morning Invites the Camera to Come Outdoors

We enjoy our coffee on the patio in Boquete, Panama, most mornings. This recent Sunday the weather was spectacular. We filled our coffee thermos and hastily dressed for a ride around Boquete while there was time before the clouds and rain arrived!

First stop was the Tourist Information Center at the bottom of the hill from where we live. Great timing, we had the camera this time and the White-nosed Coati troupe was there as if on cue. Best to see between 8:30 and 9:00 am....

Anne of the Wild and Sea

Not many little girls who love animals grow up to be animal trainers in films, but as Jet Metier found out about Anne Gordon de Barrigón, that was one of her earlier steps to do what she really wanted to do: swim with dolphins and whales as a way of life. And along the way she married a man from a native Panamanian tribe and opened a B & B on Contadora Island that offers studies for those interested in spiritually connecting with dolphins and whales.

This interview...