Single man, looking at Ecuador to retire

Hi James!

Welcome to Expat.com and thanks for the introduction.

Regards
Armand

Welcome James,
  I am new here myself and don't really have any good input for you, but I have to agree with your view of this site. It is very civil and friendly here. Good luck on your move. I can't wait till I retire and get a chance to try out the Ecuadoran culture for myself.It sounds like your goals and mine are similar. I too want a small place where I can grow a few things.

Greg

Thanks Armand, your team has a nice blog.

Hi Greg, maybe we'll be neighbours one day! There's not a lot of info available on Santa Isabel, but check it out for the climate. It looks very good, maybe warmer than Cuenca, which seems possibly a bit on the cool side for me.
Cheers!

Hey James
Welcome :-)

Your description sounds very similar to what I'm looking for…. although I'm trying to do it at 36 and with two kids in tow.  I'm looking for software developers who may be residing in Cuenca (or ideally a place that is safe and has bilingual schools) who may be interested in collaborating.  I'm in the early planning phase, but eager to find some route soon while my kids are young and will easily adapt.

Hello James, give some thought to Paute roughly 30-40 minutes from Cuenca with a reduced elevation from 8300 feet to something akin to 5,000 making for a 10 degree difference. Really a beautiful location and much of the flowers Ecuador is known for are grown in and around Paute.
Just some food for thought

Good luck, FYI great weekend bazaar with virtually anyhting you can imagine sold there. Great leather wear goods.

Do you plan on moving with just your 2 kids? Quito would be a great place for you....

Hi benbenson
I think you can move to Quito, there are some schools and it is safe with some exception like everywhere

Got the wife too  :-)   She speaks Chinese, so if we do this we are expecting kids to learn English, Mandarin, and Spanish.  They will be truly international!

Anyhow - this is James' post… so I just wanted to say hello and any software developers interested to give me a shout. 

Cheers.

Well hello again James ! Sounds like things are moving right along with your plans. My house is as good as sold so now I can start making mine. Just depends on how long Bank of America drags it's feet with the short sale and the compensation I get. Don't know how far north of Toronto you are but it must be chilly with short days this time of year and Ecuador a great place  to think about. Are you planning to make a preliminary trip?

Hope not to get moderated but my sister in Connecticut is friends with a single female architect trying to break into project management. This is not a personal ad-don't think she'd like Ecuador. Never realized that architects didn't get paid that well. Still very tough economy down here for construction industry although it is improving .

Give my best to the mayor. Down here we are enjoying the implosion of NJ governor.

Jesse's project in Las Penas is moving right along last post I read. Maria Pia explored possibility of building with SCIP system on her land in Puerto Lopez. Fortunnately I think she was talked out of it by the folks who used to post on the "Building Supplies and stuff" thread. She is pretty savvy about how things work in Ecuador and there were all kinds of problems with suppliers and people familiar enough with them to do the work.

I think you've made an excellent choice with Ecuador. I spent 3 months this summer in Quito, Cuenca, and Banos. I loved all three cities with Banos being my favorite.

Quito is a very cool large city. Being a big city, there's of course just about anything you might want to do. And as far as big cities go, the people were mostly very welcoming and friendly. The only troubles I heard from Gringos happened in New Town. It feels very safe there (police on every corner), and I personally didn't have any problems, but the criminal element flocks there because so many Gringos hang out there and are perceived to be wealthy. Old Town is really cool, but everything shuts down fairly early at night for the most part. I had a good time in Quito and the locals were good to me. Remember, if Ecuadorans stare at you, it doesn't necessarily mean they're being rude or want to rob you. They're likely just curious because you're a foreigner. Just say hello, and they'll smile and welcome you to Ecuador. Quito gets a bad rap, and although a lot of the problems are certainly true, there's no reason to walk around scared. Just mind yourself and your things as you would in any large city anywhere else in the world.

Cuenca is also a really cool city. The cobblestone streets, parks, and massive churches are all very impressive. I ran into lots of expats there, and they were a friendly, cool bunch. The middle, main part of the town felt very safe and I didn't hear of any travelers having troubles with anything. The outlying areas are where the trouble starts from my understanding, so keep this in mind. Walk up to the Mirador one day and have a beer. You'll curse me after climbing about the 400th step, but the view is really nice and there's little shops and restaurants and street food up top.

Now, for my favorite... Banos. I stayed 7 weeks. I could sit and write all day long about Banos. When I came to Ecuador I had the highest expectations. I was actually concerned that I was expecting far too much and might be let down. Banos not only met my dreams for Ecuador, but far exceeded what I imagined. Some other travelers there asked me if I thought I could ever get bored with such a small town. So, I pointed to the green mountains surrounding the city and then to the waterfall and said, "How could I possibly ever get tired of this?" I'll end my Banos description at this point, else I'll end up going on and on.

I wish you the best on your trip. Enjoy!

Maybe I sent this before but I am here in Cumbaya and it is truly beautiful here. I have been here only about nine days but have covered a lot of territory thanks to my Ecuadorian friends who are helping me find a place. The weather is truly lovely--para mi-- and I think I will enjoy living here. Hopefully--you will too!!!

hi James I think the best you can do  take a tour to  Quito, Cuenca, banos, Guayaquil and Salinas after you can make decision ;-)

Hi,

If you come to Ecuador you can visit Quito, Tumbaco and Cumbaya. You can find there some International schools as follows::
- Academia Cotopaxi
- Alliance Academy International
- SEK  (Quito and Los Valles)
-  The Brithsh school
- The American school of Quito
.
You may find almost the same options in Guayaquil either.

Hi James,

Fellow Canadian here also interested in gardening and growing my own food. Did you find what you were looking for ?

Brandon, are you referring to Banos near Cuenca or...?

Hi Brandon. i'm currently looking at El Bolson in Arg. I think it best fits my interest.
Cheers!
James

Welcome, James!
Here from Calgary --in Cuenca and enjoying life. If you are interested in a get together with other Canadians--I am organizing one. Please let me know!
Barbara