Feb. 18, 2010
Panama City, Panama
PLUS:
- Panama Versus Ecuador...
- The Basket Case That Is Argentina...Again And Still...
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Dear Live and Invest Overseas Reader,
Unless you're very lucky, your friends and family aren't going to understand.
When you tell them you're thinking about moving to a new country for your retirement, their responses will likely range from bemusement to shock and horror. They'll think you've lost your grounding and are over-indulging in fantasy...or, worse, that you've flat out lost your mind.
My family still doesn't get it. When I announced more than a dozen years ago that I was making plans to relocate from the East Coast of the United States to the southeast coast of Ireland, they at first indulged me by saying nothing. Then, when it became clear that the planning stage was moving into the moving stage, they got vocal. My mother cried. My sister wondered if a move like this could possibly be in the best interest of her niece (my 8-year-old daughter Kaitlin). My aunt asked how I could be so heartless as to take my mother and father's grandchild so far away from them.
Our first year in Ireland, we heard little from my family. Then I became pregnant with my second child, Jackson, and my mom and dad put their misgivings about our international relocation aside and, finally, came to visit.
Years later, when I called my mother to tell her we intended to move again, this time from Waterford, Ireland, to Paris, France, she responded at first, again, with silence. Then, after an awkward pause, "Don't the French hate Americans?"
Many phone calls and months later, my mom did come to visit. The morning we escorted her to the airport for her return flight to the States after she'd spent 10 days with us in Paris, she turned and said, "I was wrong not to have come sooner. You're right. The French are fine, and this city is beautiful."
A year-and-a-half ago, we were at it again. "Mom, we're moving to Panama!" I called to exclaim one morning.
Silence.
Then: "But I thought you loved Paris? Why would you move again now? Where will Jack go to school? Isn't it miserably hot in Panama? What about your lovely apartment in Paris? You're not going to give that up, are you?"
Eighteen months later, my mother and Panama City remain strangers, though she indicated at Christmas that she might venture down to the tropics for a visit sometime this summer.
Lief and I are on a different track from many, and we long ago gave up on the idea that everyone would understand. The lifestyle we've chosen doesn't have to make sense to everyone else. It makes sense to us.
This is the point you'll need to get to. Don't expect the woman in front of you in the grocery store checkout line to endorse or validate your plan to reinvent your life in a foreign country. Why in the world would you want to leave everything familiar...your family and friends, all things comfortable and secure...to start over somewhere new?
Your reasons are likely many, for the benefits of spending even some of your time in a foreign locale can be great. You can reduce your cost of living, sure, but that's only the beginning of the story. The real advantages to internationalizing your lifestyle are less practical. Living in a foreign country, all or even just part of the time, your life becomes fuller and richer in ways you likely couldn't predict right now, certainly that you couldn't articulate for your dry cleaner.
But that's ok. Remember...he doesn't have to understand.
Kathleen Peddicord
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"Kathleen, in all your newsletters, you invite people to ask questions. My question is, why are you no longer including
Ecuador on your 'top 10' lists? My research indicates this beautiful country has a very affordable cost of living and is safe and secure. Am I mistaken?"
-- Chris C., United States
I've shared
my thoughts on Ecuador in the past. It's a great budget retirement choice but not a place I'd invest or try again to do business. My past experiences operating a business in this country were frustrating and hassle-filled.
And Ecuador is certainly not a place to keep money. This country is no asset haven.
That's my view. In the interest of offering another perspective, I asked roving Latin America Correspondent Christian MacDonald, who lived in Cuenca, Ecuador, until a couple of years ago, for his thoughts. Christian says:
"I'm not sure you want me to respond to this question, Kathleen. Fact is, I'd rate Ecuador higher than you do.
"When comparing Ecuador and Panama, I see two Third World countries. And, given that I'm going to be in such an environment, I'd opt for one that costs less, has better weather, less crime, and cheaper properties. Also, the last time I was in Panama City, the breeze was blowing onshore and bringing the smell of sewage, which was unpleasant.
"Yes, if I were operating an international business, Panama would make sense. The fact that Panama is an hour closer to the United States saves me time only once or twice per year.
"As to banking, a regular expat will appreciate the ease with which you can open a local account in Ecuador. My niece just showed her passport and got an account and an ATM card with no problem.
"With respect to health care, Panama City no doubt has more First World hospitals than Cuenca does (for example). But how many hospitals does one need? In Cuenca I had a choice of three good ones and used Mount Sinai, a Blue Cross participant, no less. (There was also a wealth of sub-standard hospitals and medical facilities in the Cuenca area.)
"Bottom line, Ecuador still looks like a good deal to me, all things considered."
Finally, one more point of view. Reading over my shoulder, my husband, Lief Simon, adds:
"In fact, there are more than three world categories. The United States, for example, is First World. The Second World was the countries of the Eastern bloc, many of which would still fall into this category today, along with some other countries.
"The Third World category needs to be broken down further to allow for a Fourth World. This would include many African countries, but I'd put Ecuador in this category, too. Yes, it's cheaper than Panama, but there is a reason for that."
"Kathleen, I don't know where you got your information about the
economic situation in Argentina. Inflation is running 25%. Devaluation of the Argentine peso has been 23% in the last three years. The country is falling apart. Things are not much better in Uruguay, where I live presently.
"One point you never make is that, if you do not speak fluent Spanish, you are screwed in these countries. What is the problem with a place such as San Miguel Allende, Mexico, where everyone speaks English?"
-- Philip G., Uruguay
Intrepid Correspondent Paul Terhorst, at home now in Buenos Aires, responds:
"According to local economists, Argentine inflation in 2009 ran about 17%. (Government inflation numbers cannot be relied on.) The current estimated annual rate is about 25%, as you point out, and projections for 2010 come in at 30% or even 40%.
"As you also point out, we've had very little devaluation. Argentina has become expensive. According to today's paper, the price of meat here is about the same as in the United States.
"Vicki and I speak Spanish. I'm sure that helps a lot.
"There's nothing wrong with San Miguel de Allende, Mexico. It's a charming place. Vicki and I lived in Chapala/Ajijic for two years. We liked it there, too."
I'll add that I, too, have been to San Miguel, which is home to an established expatriate community. Yes, of course, these folks speak English, but it'd be an overstatement to suggest that everyone else does, as well.
