Hi from Cuernavaca Mexico

[blueb]

Retired in November 2011 at the age of 62.

About that time, I joined this forum. I did not post anything since I joined in 2011...I got busy retiring. haha

Since I just re-discovered this forum today, I thought I should reacquaint myself. {grin}

So here goes...

The winter of 2011-2012, freshly retired, my wife and I left for Uruguay for a nice long vacation and possibly find a winter retirement haven. Bottom line.. we liked Uruguay and it's beaches but it wasn't quite right so after 2 months we moved on to Ecuador.

We spent a month in the high country (8500 ft) in Cuenca, Ecuador and really enjoyed it. We also got a chance to go to the Galapagos Islands since we were very close. (about 600 miles off the coast)

When we got back in the spring of 2012, we took stock of what we wanted as far as a winter retreat. While South America was nice, the people were a bit different and there wasn't a lot to do (we even had trouble finding a golf course).

Having been to Mexico countless times, we decided we obviously loved it. But.. we needed to find the perfect location, in so far as livability, climate and things to do.

After some Internet searches, we ended up finding Cuernavaca, MX. It bills itself as 'The City Of Eternal Spring' and it 'really' does live up to that name. It's an hour south of Mexico City and it's about 5000 ft above sea level, so the average daily temperature is 28 deg. (78 F) and it doesn't rain in the winter, only June, July and August. So in 2013 we ended up buying a condo here and really fell in love with the place.

We did the six months Mexico /six months in Canada (for the summers) for five years and we thought we had the best of both worlds.

But the last two years started looking for a full time place. Last spring we ended up buying a house in Cuernavaca, returning to Canada and selling our home. Also sold our vehicles and shipped our furniture to our new home in Mexico.

We've been here for about nine months and everything couldn't be better. Hopefully I can add some insight into people wishing to retire.

 

[Oz investor]

Retired in November 2011 at the age of 62.

About that time, I joined this forum. I did not post anything since I joined in 2011...I got busy retiring. haha

Since I just re-discovered this forum today, I thought I should reacquaint myself. {grin}

So here goes...

The winter of 2011-2012, freshly retired, my wife and I left for Uruguay for a nice long vacation and possibly find a winter retirement haven. Bottom line.. we liked Uruguay and it's beaches but it wasn't quite right so after 2 months we moved on to Ecuador.

We spent a month in the high country (8500 ft) in Cuenca, Ecuador and really enjoyed it. We also got a chance to go to the Galapagos Islands since we were very close. (about 600 miles off the coast)

When we got back in the spring of 2012, we took stock of what we wanted as far as a winter retreat. While South America was nice, the people were a bit different and there wasn't a lot to do (we even had trouble finding a golf course).

Having been to Mexico countless times, we decided we obviously loved it. But.. we needed to find the perfect location, in so far as livability, climate and things to do.

After some Internet searches, we ended up finding Cuernavaca, MX. It bills itself as 'The City Of Eternal Spring' and it 'really' does live up to that name. It's an hour south of Mexico City and it's about 5000 ft above sea level, so the average daily temperature is 28 deg. (78 F) and it doesn't rain in the winter, only June, July and August. So in 2013 we ended up buying a condo here and really fell in love with the place.

We did the six months Mexico /six months in Canada (for the summers) for five years and we thought we had the best of both worlds.

But the last two years started looking for a full time place. Last spring we ended up buying a house in Cuernavaca, returning to Canada and selling our home. Also sold our vehicles and shipped our furniture to our new home in Mexico.

We've been here for about nine months and everything couldn't be better. Hopefully I can add some insight into people wishing to retire.

welcome to posting ,

actually i see Mexico as a future growth engine for the global economy

and will be watching for investment opportunities there

cheers

enjoy you new home and life-style

 

[ShokWaveRider]

BlueB Welcome! we are always looking for greener grass, if even only to check it out and think what it would be like to live there.

Can you expand a little re crime and general COL. Also is it by the coast in the region where you need a special trust to buy property or are you free to do as an ExPat.

What do you do for healthcare, visas etc. etc..... so many questions.

 

[indiajust]

Sir, could I please have some... more?


Perhaps not all at once, but a series of posts on the lifestyle and costs would be great.

 

[blueb]

Hi..

Oz Investor's comment -
actually i see Mexico as a future growth engine for the global economy
and will be watching for investment opportunities there."

Although investing here wasn't on my list... I've invested some funds in term deposits which are paying a little less than 7.5%
This is a lot more than I was getting in Canada (less than 1.8%)
I'm also into Gold and Silver at the moment. haha
I was able to purchase some Gold 'Centenario' coins (1.2 oz of gold), which I think will give me a hedge against inflation and economic uncertainty.
--------------------

ShokWaveRider's comment -

Hard to do in this thread, I'll get a post together later.

While crime is a problem all over the world, and Mexico is a bit higher than the USA, it is concentrated in the drug
trade states of: Sonora, Chihuahua, and Jalisco. Mexico as a whole has less violent crime than the USA.
The city we live in is safe, but I keep a low profile and reasonable caution as I would anywhere.

Cuernavaca is inland (south of Mexico City) and buying property is completely 'freehold'and not an issue.

Insurance... We purchased International medical insurance. We will look at local insurance in time.

Visas... We started 3 years ago with a temporary resident card, so we could stay year-round if we wished.
This fall we will get our permanent resident card. We will still hold our Canadian passport.

NOTE: a blog that I follow is 'Two Expats Mexico' and they can answer many questions. see: http://www.qroo.us/

--------------------

indiajust's comment -

"posts on the lifestyle and costs would be great."

I have to see which threads have these types of posts. I will work on it.

As far as costs... I use 2 web sites... https://www.numbeo.com/cost-of-living/ and https://www.expatistan.com/cost-of-living

----------------------------

Thanks for all the comments.

 

[ExFlyBoy5]

Welcome "back" to the forum...looks like you are living a GREAT retirement life in MX.

Thanks for the blogs too. I was beginning to think I had "come to the end of the internet" so it's good to have something new to read!

 

[blueb]

Welcome "back" to the forum...looks like you are living a GREAT retirement life in MX.

Thanks for the blogs too. I was beginning to think I had "come to the end of the internet" so it's good to have something new to read!

Thanks.

Yes, it has been a great ride. An 'un-expected' bonus has been the cost of living.

From Numbeo website (see above)...
You would need around 67,105.34MXN (4,635.92C$) in Nanaimo, BC to maintain the same standard of life that you can have with 27,000.00MXN in Cuernavaca

I'm burning about 1/2 the cash I would be in Canada. Bonus!

Plenty of other benefits too.

 

[ShokWaveRider]

Healthcare is my only concern. Probably because I do not really understand the system
or the costs in any given country.

 

[Dtail]

Hi..

Oz Investor's comment -
actually i see Mexico as a future growth engine for the global economy
and will be watching for investment opportunities there."

Although investing here wasn't on my list... I've invested some funds in term deposits which are paying a little less than 7.5%
This is a lot more than I was getting in Canada (less than 1.8%)
I'm also into Gold and Silver at the moment. haha
I was able to purchase some Gold 'Centenario' coins (1.2 oz of gold), which I think will give me a hedge against inflation and economic uncertainty.
--------------------

ShokWaveRider's comment -

Hard to do in this thread, I'll get a post together later.

While crime is a problem all over the world, and Mexico is a bit higher than the USA, it is concentrated in the drug
trade states of: Sonora, Chihuahua, and Jalisco. Mexico as a whole has less violent crime than the USA.
The city we live in is safe, but I keep a low profile and reasonable caution as I would anywhere.

Cuernavaca is inland (south of Mexico City) and buying property is completely 'freehold'and not an issue.

Insurance... We purchased International medical insurance. We will look at local insurance in time.

Visas... We started 3 years ago with a temporary resident card, so we could stay year-round if we wished.
This fall we will get our permanent resident card. We will still hold our Canadian passport.

NOTE: a blog that I follow is 'Two Expats Mexico' and they can answer many questions. see: http://www.qroo.us/

--------------------

indiajust's comment -

"posts on the lifestyle and costs would be great."

I have to see which threads have these types of posts. I will work on it.

As far as costs... I use 2 web sites... https://www.numbeo.com/cost-of-living/ and https://www.expatistan.com/cost-of-living

----------------------------

Thanks for all the comments.

Hi there
We thought heavily about Mexico and it still is part of a potential future plan.
Curious, did you ever consider Lake Chapala?

 

[CaliKid]

I was in Curenvaca during the rainy season and it did POUR one day. Oh wow!

Generally felt perfectly safe walking down the street, out for early morning runs, etc.... Definitely on our list of possibilities some day.

I am still very remedial with my Spanish. How necessary to you find it to be good in Spanish there?

Enjoy!

 

[FUEGO]

I did a summer of study abroad in Cuernavaca and loved it (way back in 1999). We've been back twice for extended trips of 6-7 weeks in and around the central highland parts of Mexico centered on Mexico City. The first trip was before kids, the second after we had kids and we brought all 3 with them. And it's starting to look like our big 8-9 week trip in Summer of 2019 will see us return to central Mexico.

Had a lot of fun in Cuernavaca. Have you been to Los Arcos bar in downtown on the south side of the Zocalo? That's where we used to go all the time for the dos por uno beers.

 

[blueb]

Hi there
We thought heavily about Mexico and it still is part of a potential future plan.
Curious, did you ever consider Lake Chapala?

Yes.. I RV'd at Lake Chapala back in 1999. At the time the lake was receding, and did not look very good. (it's since recovered when the gov't put restrictions on agriculture use)
It's only about 60 km south of Guadalajara, but it was a little too small and the temperature are not as pleasing. (I think weather's a big factor)

I used Wikipedia extensively when I was doing my research, and still do when I'm travelling around the country, looking for adventure.

 

[blueb]

Had a lot of fun in Cuernavaca. Have you been to Los Arcos bar in downtown on the south side of the Zocalo? That's where we used to go all the time for the dos por uno beers.

I have been there, but I usually spend my time next door at Casa Hidalgo (we have friends whose sister owns it). Sadly, they don't offer dos por uno.. I'll have a talk with her. haha

 

[blueb]

I was in Curenvaca during the rainy season and it did POUR one day. Oh wow!

Generally felt perfectly safe walking down the street, out for early morning runs, etc.... Definitely on our list of possibilities some day.

I am still very remedial with my Spanish. How necessary to you find it to be good in Spanish there?

Enjoy!

Definitely safe walking around anywhere in the city. When I first got here a few years ago, we had no vehicle, so we walked and took the bus everywhere. We had a blast searching out possible areas to live etc. We ended up in the central area of Cuernavaca called 'Vista Hermosa'. Not a poor area of town, but not the most high end either.

My wife will be a better speaker than I'll ever be, but I'm getting by. Even if I spoke absolutely no Spanish, I'd still make this place my home, as the people are very friendly and more than accommodating to us Gringos.

 

[kevink]

Great to hear from someone with first-hand experience living in Cuernavaca. Friends who live in San Miguel de Allende often rave about the place.

Lake Chapala and San Miguel have become so over-run with gringos fleeing the U.S. in the past ~18 months that rents have gone up dramatically and some locals are losing their patience. Wondering if you're seeing any of this in Cuernavaca?

I also assumed that you'd be over-run on weekends and holidays with Chilangos as Lake Chapala is with Tapatios.

Thanks for sharing your experience!

 

[blueb]

Great to hear from someone with first-hand experience living in Cuernavaca. Friends who live in San Miguel de Allende often rave about the place.

Lake Chapala and San Miguel have become so over-run with gringos fleeing the U.S. in the past ~18 months that rents have gone up dramatically and some locals are losing their patience. Wondering if you're seeing any of this in Cuernavaca?

I also assumed that you'd be over-run on weekends and holidays with Chilangos as Lake Chapala is with Tapatios.

Thanks for sharing your experience!

San Miguel de Allende was another place on my hit list but it never made the cut. I have followed developments there just out of curiosity. Yes, not doubt more Americans will increase prices.

The pricing in Cuernavaca is quite reasonable (using the 2 sites I mentioned above).

As far as Chilangos, it is a mixed blessing. Because we're only an hour out of CDMX, the weekends are busier, no doubt. But I golf with many of them at my club, so many have become friends.

But it's really no problem. The real problem was when the Chilangos wanted to go to Acapulco for the weekend. They passed through the center of town on the 4 lane 'autopista'. Nightmare! Last year they doubled it to 4 lanes in each direction with the 4 center lanes being an 'expressway' where you can't get off and have to drive straight through. No traffic problems now. haha

 

[Dtail]

Yes.. I RV'd at Lake Chapala back in 1999. At the time the lake was receding, and did not look very good. (it's since recovered when the gov't put restrictions on agriculture use)
It's only about 60 km south of Guadalajara, but it was a little too small and the temperature are not as pleasing. (I think weather's a big factor)

I used Wikipedia extensively when I was doing my research, and still do when I'm travelling around the country, looking for adventure.

Interesting. I thought the weather in LC was considered great for those who want 70's most of the year with no winter and a minor summer in May I believe.

 

[blueb]

Interesting. I thought the weather in LC was considered great for those who want 70's most of the year with no winter and a minor summer in May I believe.

Well, it's certainly great compared to most locations. But Cuernavaca is better. I took a couple of wiki JPG's to show what I mean.

I also remember a story that I heard that said: Barbara Hutton (heir to the Woolworth family) asked her people to find a place with the best weather in the world, period. She built a house here and lived here for many years.

 

[umograd83]

I adore Cuernavaca. I did a semester abroad in Mexico City in 1981. Cuernavaca was one of the places I visited. I always said if I ever were to live in Mexico, it would be there. The temperature is perfect.

 

[blueb]

I adore Cuernavaca. I did a semester abroad in Mexico City in 1981. Cuernavaca was one of the places I visited. I always said if I ever were to live in Mexico, it would be there. The temperature is perfect.

While the weather is terrific, there's a lot to do. It's very central.
North - an hour to CDMX (Mexico City)
West - 2 1/2 hours to Acapulco
East - 5 hours to the Gulf of Mexico (Veracruz)
South - 6 hours to Oaxaca

And there's plenty of other places that have a lot of history that I'd like to see. Our next trip is likely to be Ixtapa/Zihuatenajo at the end of the month. (about 7 hours on the Pacific coast)

 

[CountryGal]

Can you comment on supermarkets or farmer market availability and selection? Primarily interested in real foods (fruits, veggies, meats). Do you tend to cook or eat out?

 

[kitesurfer2]

great thread! one of my retirement dreams was to ride my motorcycle down to Mex. That didn't happen and I sold my bike last week. but I still want to see Mexico. Now I have a destination. i'll be picking your brain as I plan my trip...if that is ok.

 

[blueb]

Can you comment on supermarkets or farmer market availability and selection? Primarily interested in real foods (fruits, veggies, meats). Do you tend to cook or eat out?

We tend to eat in because we, more or less, follow a paleo lifestyle.

Supermarkets are as modern as any... I can't think of anything that I couldn't get.

Farmers markets - here we call them 'Mercados'. There is a huge one about a kilometer from us that has so many vendors that they literally flow out onto the street. And here most things are in season all year.

There are small Mercados everywhere. In most areas, they'll close off the street for one day of the week and setup shop. Kinda nice actually.

Everything's always fresh.. that's for certain.

As far as eating out... There are more eating places per capita than I've ever seen. Some high-end, most are small Mom n' Pop establishments. Endless variety, although Ethnic restaurants will be a problem.

 

[blueb]

great thread! one of my retirement dreams was to ride my motorcycle down to Mex. That didn't happen and I sold my bike last week. but I still want to see Mexico. Now I have a destination. i'll be picking your brain as I plan my trip...if that is ok.

Too bad you sold you bike. Sold mine in Canada and just bought one here.

While Cuernavaca is a great place to live and see, it doesn't see itself as a 'tourist' destination.

It has a lot of history, and has some historical sites, etc., it might not offer everything a tourist likes... beaches, etc.

When I went to Veracruz last year, I had the same experience. Nice place, but other than the large fortress San Juan de Ulúa, it was just a typical port city.

 

[FUEGO]

I have been there, but I usually spend my time next door at Casa Hidalgo (we have friends whose sister owns it). Sadly, they don't offer dos por uno.. I'll have a talk with her. haha

That looks like a classier joint than Los Arcos! Disfrute!