We Bought our Tickets!

Well we bought tickets! I found a nonstop flight from Atlanta to Quito, we will drive to Atlanta in a rental and then be in Ecuador in 5.5 hours. Booked a hotel in Quito for three nights, then we have a 50 minute plane tide to Manta, where the beach house caregiver will pick us up and take us to the beach!

We decided to poke around Quito for a couple days, and see as much as possible. Our flight doesn't get in til late that first night, so it'll be nice yo have some leisure time. I guess really it'll be starting "island time" the minute we hit ground. Ecuador isn't an island, but our new relaxed lifestyle will surely qualify.

I'm not sure where this picture is, but it looks like the beach we are going to be for June and July. Crucita is where we will start, it's known for fishing and paragliding, this may be Montanita known for surfing. But it certainly qualifies for "island time", note the hammocks for siesta.

This picture is Salinas, south of Manta and Crucita. Near the mouth of the Guyaquil harbor, we will look for rental houses down here someday for sure. Bigger beach city than what Crucita is, as you can see. So much possibility! 

Health care and insurance costs

We have gotten a lot of questions about health care and insurance, so I thought I'd fill you in on what I've learned. Large numbers of medical staff in Ecuador have trained in the US or the UK and are highly skilled. The local embassy can help you find medical professionals who are English speaking so that if you do not speak fluent Spanish you can have peace of mind that your illnesses are not getting distorted in translation. Since 2008 Ecuador has upgraded most hospitals and clinics, In the bigger cities, such as Quito, Cuenca and Guayaquil, you will find that the hospitals are equipped with the latest innovations in medical technology and are staffed by fully trained and qualified doctors and nurses in all fields. The cost of the average visit to a doctor's office is $20 with a visit to a specialist costing a little more at around $25. This price is considered to be reasonable as Ecuadorian doctors spend on average between 30 and 45 minutes with each patient, and often give you their cell phone # when you leave.

As a tourist, with a Visa medical care is free. After you apply for residency you can buy in to the Social Security system and get health insurance for $60-95/ month or you can buy private insurance (Cigna etc) for $124/ month that was for $750 deductible. As a self employed person, with ObamaCare, to get coverage I would have had to spend $400/month, with a deductible of $3000. While I was covered under Mikes insurance with Whole Foods I paid $154 every two weeks, and it didn't even cover my birth control. Bottom line, insurance was only beneficial if we needed to be hospitalized. I recently had to have an MRI, with insurance the cost was $700... Without insurance $400...how is this helpful?

I read a blog post of a couple who live on the Ecuador coast who spent $80 a day for a stay at the clinic. That included private room (with 2beds, so the wife could stay) all meals, and round the clock doctor/nurse care, including tests. The doctor gave the wife a list of medicines, that she then took to the pharmacy and bought with NO markup! I've heard that most expats don't even bother with insurance, because the health care is so inexpensive.

Another story is of a woman who needed dental work,  she was able to fly from the States, stay in a hotel for 14 days, AND get the work done for less than HALF what it would cost in US. I think it was the Cigna Ecuador website that listed organ transplants as little as $20,000. You can't even have a bunion removed for that here... So there you go, what we can look forward to in our new adventure, affordable health care. 

Traveler or tourist?

I recently happened across a blog written by a couple from Texas, whose story is eerily similar to ours, they decided to "retire" in CostaRica, and it has been fun to read adventures of those not in Ecuador. http//costaricacurious@wordpress.com The topic came up of "tourist vs traveler" and by traveler, I don't mean Pikeys or Grifters...it seems that a tourist is one who goes to exotic places, but is always comparing them to "home" and actually can't wait to get back to their life, where a traveler is one who thrives in those exotic places, and calls wherever they are "home".

A traveler really wants to live the authentic life of the culture they are visiting, whether the visit is short or long term, immersion is part of the experience. A traveler is not content with just getting pretty pictures, they seek adventure, something entirely different than what they perhaps grew up with. As we continue to prepare, we are realizing so much of this journey simply can't be prepared for...I can only control so much via internet, some of the next steps just can't happen til we land on Ecuadorean soil. We are trying not to "fear the unknown" but have faith that it will all come together in the end, it has before! We knew very little about North Carolina when we made the trek across country from Idaho back in 2006, sure we knew the language...actually scratch that, turns out we really didn't know the language lol! But we learned, we adapted, we grew and we experienced. In short, we immersed ourselves in the new environment and thrived. We KNOW we can do it again!

We are so excited for our next big adventure, dreaming of the vacation possibilities while living on the coast of Ecuador. Peru and Machu Pichu? Brazil for Carnivale? Costa Rica to visit fellow bloggers? If you have the desire, the possibilities are endless, the first thing you have to do is figure out

Are you a Tourist or are you a Traveler?

Holy Tomatoes Batman!

Here is a picture from a blog I follow, showing a San Clemente, Ecuador tomato farm. He says these plants are 6 feet tall, and almost ready to harvest...in MARCH!!! You can find his Blog Here >>>   http://johnandmarylivingitupinecuador.wordpress.com/

leftCOAST

Here is a fun Google map shot of North and South America. You can see why our timezone doesn't change. It will be nice to be on the left Coast because we've always been WEST Coast! Mike

Shopping

Here is a picture of some items we are gathering before our move.

Head Flashlights, Battery Charger and Batteries and Electronic Fly Swatter (Mike says it hurts so don't touch it) In my research for the move, I've followed three couples on the coast, and two couples in the larger cities who have written blogs about their adventures. When I saw these fly zappers at Harbor Freight I told Mike we had to get them, and in remembering what I had read about them, it was funny to realize it was always the men that were writing about how great they are! After the picture, he promptly unwrapped it and starting hunting for flying insects ( which he didn't find) but did get his finger thru the safety frame, and thus knows first hand THEY WORK! He wants to buy more next time we are at Harbor Freight. We will continue to purchase rechargeable batteries and things I've read about being scarce. We bought them for $3.99, where in Ecuador they are $10.

I have come to realize that when one person says some item is scarce, it may be that they just haven't looked in the right place yet. One blog said there weren't any good thread count sheets, but then 6 months later were introduced to another store, and Voila! Turns out you may just have to hunt around. So I want to have some things on hand ( like batteries) until I find where they are.

We went to the Outlet Mall the other day, and I spent way too much on some ugly sandals ( if you know me, you know about my shoes) but they will be perfect for cobble stone streets and rocky beach hikes, so ugly sandals it is. We will stock up on sunscreen, sunglasses and whatever else we can think of. It's strange, stocking up for a move, usually it's a mad dash to get rid of stuff...oh yeah, that's next month! Yard sale scheduled in April! Urgh!! So much to do! Til next time, Adios!

Shipping

Well it looks like we're going FCL, for those of you who don't know that's Full Container Load.

It'll take anywhere from 24 days to a month and a half for our container to hit Ecuador.

Yep one of those huge 20' metal containers, we were looking at sharing a container, getting 7'x4'x7' wooden crates (2) but for a mere $1000 more we can have the whole container and not have to cut so drastically. We did that when we moved from  Boise, and it was fine, we knew we could go to Walmart and replace everything we left behind, but moving to South America is MUCH different. Electronics are expensive, so we knew we had to ship the tvs and computers, and clothing, bedding, towels and such aren't the same quality, (according to the blogs) so we want to take our sheets and towels. We have to take clothes in multiple sizes because when we start walking on the beach everyday and eating fresh we will loose weight ;) I also read that Christmas decorations are expensive so we will want to ship those. Maybe sell the snowman collection, and pare down.

Things are moving along. The weather is finally turning to spring, and we will start the process of sorting things. Will talk to the neighbors about advertising " multi-family" yard sale, and will shoot for mid April, then another in May if needed. Off to get new passport photos, so we can have those renewed, they don't expire for a year, but better to have them fresh. We look so different anyway, an updated photo is probably a good thing. Lunch, and a walk through the Botanical garden, good day. Hope you're having a good one too, stay tuned loved ones...the adventure continues!

Preparing

I've found that blogs offer so much information, I recently found one about international eating establishments here in Greensboro. Not only does this blog post food reviews, but pictures, and since we eat with our eyes first, this is a plus. Mike and I decided to be brave, and try one yesterday after my sundress shopping, and we were blown away! From the outside, it looks like a Latino market (which it is) but adjoining the market is "Mr. Taco". From the Ecuador blogs, I've learned that the dining experience "down south" is quite different than here in the states, more often than not, you place your order and then get little attention, unless you ask. As long as you know that, you won't feel neglected, we are so used to servers fawning over us, and if they don't we chalk it up to poor service...another thing I've learned from the Ecuador blogs is "almuerzo"

 lunch special, and right away the waitress yesterday tells us of the special, she warns it's slightly spicy, but we take one anyway. I also ordered a sandwich which the Greensboro Eats blog recommended. I asked for water, and she asked if I wanted orange? She saw my confusion and left for a minute, came back with the spicy sauce to try (on chips) and two small cups of orange water. The sauce turned out not too spicy, and the orange water was glorious! Think very weak Tang, they make it fresh, with oranges, water and a little agave sweetener, it was very refreshing. Lunch was amazing, fresh, filling and completely satisfying ! The special was green enchiladas with side of rice, it came with four! My torta was pork loin and all the fixings, lettuce, tomato, avocado, queso fresco and jalapeños on the side. We shared it all, and when a bite of green enchilada was too spicy, we chased it with a bite of cool sandwich...yum The orange water even acted as dessert, being just enough to satisfy the after meal sweet tooth. Total meal $12, now in Ecuador, I've read the lunch specials are usually $2.50 so we could be looking at lunch for $5, sounds good to me! So as we wait, we continue to be adventurous, and consider our lunch out to be preparation. We are practicing (our Spanish, and patience) and preparing to be amazed!

The other thing we've done in preparation is secure a rental house, we have it for June and July and it's located in Crucita. 4 minute walk to beach/ tourist area and close (30minutes) to major cities. It's getting real, and real exciting! Waiting and preparing! 

Waiting

We are adventurous. We bloom where we are planted, but are not trees, and know we can move. When we make big decisions, we don't make them lightly, we research, but ultimately it comes down to faith. Faith that God has our back, faith that the research we've done is well rounded, and faith that no matter what we will be together, a united team. We have never been ones who like to wait...18 years ago we got engaged and then married within a year of our first date, why wait, we knew it was real. We bought a house a couple months later, why wait, the opportunity was there. Our adventure continued with an unfortunate event, a house fire, but after it was all said and done, we were more united as a team and we survived. 

The first time we thought of Ecuador was back in December 2004, but the time wasn't right, we needed a "home base". So we started brainstorming. Our research showed us we could downsize and buy a " home base" for cash, lower property prices led us to North Carolina. We got busy preparing our house, repairing, repainting and releasing our junk. Several yard sales, and painting parties later we were ready, (probably 6months) the house was going on the market May 2006, but how long would it take? It took 2days, yep you read it right! The very first person who saw it, she took the weekend to think it over, but on Monday we got full price offer. (Did I mention, we listed it for 10k over what our realtor said it would sell for?) we took it as a  sign, God knows we don't like to wait!

When one adventure ends, another one begins. Now we were homeless, rich, but homeless. Not to worry, we bought a used motor home, packed up our dogs and what we could, and headed East. North Carolina here we come! What an adventure we had, it was captured in "the road to NC", read the blog. So now we are in the same boat...Waiting for all the ducks to get in a row, not waiting for the adventure to start, because it never ends, just waiting for the sweet spot. Waiting on shipping quotes, waiting on passport renewal, waiting for spring so we can have our first yard sale. (Knowing better what we will ship and what needs to go, after shipping quotes come in.) After we get some stuff sold, we will get the property management team to come take pictures, and start getting renter applications. We will have this house ready to be rented June 1st. 

What we've learned, is to continue to enjoy life and each other as we wait. Waiting can be sweet, anticipation grows and every bit of research fuels the fire. We are moving forward, baby steps, it may seem slow, but when we look back, and see it was only 6months, we will be amazed. Part of getting ready is shopping for clothes, going to thrift store today to look for sundresses, I'm sure no one else will be buying them in this winter weather. Let the adventure continue!

So much snow!

Our little part of the world is being bombarded with snow, mostly they don't know how to handle it, so it's a big mess! I sat this morning reading the Ecuador blogs I'm following and waited for the "big storm" to start, Weatherbug said the snow would hit at 3 pm, but by 3 pm there was plenty already on the ground. It snowed fast and furious for a good 5 hrs, and only has slowed down after dark. Will be exciting to see how much more is out there in the morning, needless to say we are staying close to home, no driving for us tomorrow. Will play in our last snow in the states...that'll be fun, but I'm ready for warmer climate!

Looks like we got about 6 inches yesterday, was not snowing this morning, but now (noon) it is slushy snowing Great! Again, glad we have no place we have to go today. Hot tub could not keep up last night, but is 97 and rising, so I'm sure we will be in it before too long. Life can be good here in North Carolina, but will be better soon in Ecuador! Until later, adios!

So many choices

Since I last posted, we haved changed our minds about where to start. First, thanks mom, I misread that Cuenca was 2500 ft above sea level, it's 2500 meters... Which makes it 8000 ft above sea level, not horribly high altitude, but there could be health issues. (Mike has had asthma in the past, and it may be difficult to adapt) And while reading blogs of people who settled on the coast, we realized that we would really like to be near the ocean, so we are looking at rentals anywhere from Salinas up to Crucita. Bigger beach cities will have better internet connections, and more people who speak English, but the accommodations are smaller and more expensive. We found a furnished house in Crucita with lots of outdoor space, 4minute walk to ocean including utilities $645, while the places available in Salinas are mostly condos for $800+ ( not including utilities) and the only outdoor space would be a balcony, not great for the pups. These condos also rent by the week ($150-200) so maybe we will use them as vacation places, and rent them short term to check out the bigger beach scene. Inland are the bigger cities and buses or private drivers will take you from the coast inland to do shopping or govt buildings for cheap. Buses are $1 per hour ( and remember the whole country is the size of Colorado) and private drivers are making a great wage if they get $10 for The DAY. What an adventure! Stay tuned, who knows what we'll learn next! Till then, adios!

Passport to Latin America: Quito Ecuador (Part 2)

Passport to Latin America: Quito Ecuador (Part 1)

Why aren't we there yet?

Since my last post, I've found a blog and have been pouring over the entries, starting back in 2010. With each of her posts, I share with Mike what I'm learning, and each time he says..."and why aren't we there yet?" Yesterday in North Carolina it was 50 degrees and we walked the zoo, all 6 miles of it, had a beautiful day... Now today, it's snowing. I guess what I should be doing, is starting our visa process, so for now, adios! 

Why, you ask?

In the past month, we have been reading books and making lists. We have finalized our starting location, decided on Cuenca, Ecuador. We will rent something online, with a 3-6 month lease, from there who knows? Maybe something bigger, more extravagant, maybe another town...like I said who knows. Cuenca has a large expat community and good transportation, it also is a great walking city, perfect for us just starting out. The apartment we will look for will be near the city center so we can walk to shopping and eating, see the sights and start the process of becoming "gringos".

In our research, we have found a shipping expert, and are in the process of emailing questions, concerns and time frames. We pretty much know what to ship, and what to sell. We have found housing rental websites, and know where to look when we know our arrival date. We know we will have to make a trip to Atlanta to the Ecuadorean consulate to finalize our visas, and we know a visit to the vet, no more than ten days before departure for valid paperwork for the pups. I would think, we know quite a lot...

We are doing this, this isn't a dream! It's a matter of when. Our timeline consists of getting visas, that's the biggest hurdle, after that process is done, it's adios! Well, it's yard sales, start to show the house to rent, sell the cars, pack our stuff to ship, then go. But, it's GO! So, we've started telling people, and the question is why? Why move? Why not visit, why Ecuador? The short answer is why not?! But I will share what we have learned.

Ecuador strattles the equator and has diverse landscape and climates. Mountain regions are cool year round, highs in low 60's- eternal spring is what they call it. Nice, but we want warmer...Cuenca is south of the equator by approx 200 miles, it's weather ranges from lows in 40's to highs in low 90's. And the average humidity hovers at 50% the rainy season is August -November but with rainfall at 40" yearly, not so different from here in North Carolina. Cuenca is 2500 ft above sea level, so we hear they don't have much of a bug population, great! Now if we choose to move to the coast, we would have more humidity, more rain and more bugs, but we will have to visit at different times of year to see if it's a deal breaker.

So, that's the weather. Ecuador adopted the US dollar in 2006, so we don't have to worry about that, and we probably know more Spanish than we think, but Rosetta stone is on the ready. Health care is the other issue, and improvements have been made by leaps and bounds in the past 10 years. Listed one of top 10 in the world. Cost of living here in the states is obscene, in Ecuador we can work less, and make our dollars go farther, perfect way to ease into retirement. So, again I say why not?

Let's Do It Again. Bigger This Time.

Once upon a Time we started a blog to chronicle our journey from Boise, Idaho to Winston-Salem, North Carolina. We sold almost everything and just left. We have been here about 8 years and it's time to move again, this time to another country. Ecuador. It's is early in the process so you can see it progress step by step. Come join us for the ride. Mike & Paige