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Old 06-21-2007, 10:58 PM   #21
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i need a lazy-catagory visa. you know, the visa that doesn't make me work, doesn't make me put down roots, just lets me hang-out for year. a visa of convenience.
though to my ear the border crossings sound like such a hassle, my cousin said last night over dinner: "what hassle. you're not working, what else do you have to do?"
Hi lg4n - I would love one of these visas also but haven't been able to find one yet. -- I'm with your cousin -- when you are working you have one set of hassles, when you are retired, you have another. It's just life -- sort of 'inconvenient' at times, so you simply must make the most of it. Don't let it getcha down!


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seems the world mistrusts anyone who isn't tied to a mortgage or at least to some fixed address.
I agree. Being a PT is still considered strange. I haven't quite figured that out yet -- I mean why 'everyone' thinks it so strange. Why do we have to load ourselves down with 30 year financial commitments just to be 'accepted' by the masses? I guess it's a version of being responsible, dependable or something. If you don't have these burdens, then you are suspect..??

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i'm considering either no residence here or maybe a cheap condo someplace which i can easily close up and not worry about too much.
Have you read our 'Worry-Free' Housing piece yet? Worry Free Housing This is what we do, and it works for us. Just a suggestion. Be sure to check out page 2
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i'm a little concerned with ground transportation. i've never been sans a car as an adult. so i thought while vagabonding i could get a used car for 6 months or a year
andy r
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I love living without a car. It has forced me to take my time and walk to do things. Here in Buenos Aires having a car would be a liability.
Cars in foreign countries can be a serious burden and a liability. What most vacationers don't realize is that renting a car or driving a car in a foreign country can be quite dangerous. Between the road rules changing (what side of the road you drive on, whether or not you actually stop at a red light and stop signs or not, etc.) and the corruption of the police who give out tickets, you can be putting yourself at quite a risk. In NZ and Australia lots of folks buy a car and then sell it at the end of their stay, but public transport is pretty available in most other places.

We like being as car free as possible. It saves on hassle, expense and stress.
pedorerro
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In my travels in Mexico, I met one ex-pat whose solution was to pay someone $100 to take his passport to Belize to have it stamped every few months.
This is really common in Mexico. You simply pay a person to do the 'visa run' for you or get your papers in order.

Good luck in your upcoming travels..

Akaisha
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Old 06-23-2007, 04:47 PM   #22
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I also have a friend who is living in Mozambique (just North of S Africa). He has an unbelievable place on the beach in a nice high rise next to a 5 star hotel. He pays a monthly fee to use the hotel's facilities (spa & pool) and really enjoys it there. I think this would be more like going to Thailand 10 years ago.
Sounds nice. Where in Mozambique is this?
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Old 06-23-2007, 05:00 PM   #23
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Sounds nice. Where in Mozambique is this?
Here is the email I got from my friend when I was thinking of heading to that corner of the world. It came a couple days late as I decided the flight to S America was cheaper. It would have definately been an adventure and I still want to go at some point.
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Cape Town is beautiful. South Africa is an adventure. I am currently living in Mozambique and would say it is likely one of if not the nicest places I have ever been. Maputo is a bustling city, lots of investment taking place. One of the highest % growth rates in the world....granted it is still a very poor country. Locals are so friendly and there is a pretty large foreign crowd that is a lot of fun as well.

If you do some research and decide to try Maputo let me know soon. I actually am leaving mid January till mid May on a program around the world and will be subletting my apartment. I have not advertised it yet, I want to find someone I trust or not rent it out. It is a super nice place, 3 bedroom, 12th floor sea view. Rent is 800 bucks a month + 90 bucks for cable which includes a fast wireless internet connection. The maid (we are spoilt here) comes 6 times a week and is honest and a great cook, her salary is 60 bucks a month. Water and electricity vary – 20 to 40 bucks a month combined. I live across from a 5 star hotel that has a good Gym, kinda of expensive for here, but I pay 100 bucks that gives me the gym, a pool and sauna. Rrrrrrrrrrrrrrr, it’s not all luxury though, lots of field work for me still....

If you just come and visit you can have all of the above for free as my cousin and I share the place and the guest room is often empty. If it is whilst I am gone, maybe someone will be here, but you must come and visit Maputo anyway. I will hook you up with a place to stay at a friend’s, who will show you a good time. My cousin will be 3 hours south, place called Ponta D’Ouro, which to me is the most beautiful, still very natural, beach village you can imagine. They have one of the best untouched diving reefs (you can do your Padi there) as well as swimming with wild dolphins – which is an amazing experience. Definitely you must come to Mozambique for a visit if you are in this part of the world!
Sounds nice and adventurous to me! Here are some photos of Mozambique on Google Images. As you can see on this map, Maputo is directly east of Johannesburg. I hear it is a popular winter destination because the beaches in the south are cold. Of course side trips to S. Africa, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Seychelles Islands, and Madagascar would be pretty amazing.
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Old 06-25-2007, 04:59 PM   #24
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hiya akaisha. thanx so much for your input. the hassle of travel might actually be good for me, border runs and all, as i find myself in retirement losing some coping skills which i am slowly learning to replace with patience so that it doesn't bother me when the cashier can't figure out my change.

i'm "only 50" (bet i won't be saying that a lot) so too early for the worry-free housing of adult communities, but i am considering relatively less worrisome housing than i currently have.

interesting aspect of foreign travel and thanx for mentioning liability aspects of automobiles overseas. definitely changes my way of thinking about this.

andyr. one of the things i like about the idea of travel to africa is that when i google english speaking countries, it seems like there are more english speaking areas in africa than even in europe. as i am just dumb enough to only speak one language, i think being where english is spoken will make me much more comfortable with traveling and living overseas.

besides, i really really want to play with a baby lion.
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Old 06-25-2007, 06:08 PM   #25
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thanx for mentioning liability aspects of automobiles overseas. definitely changes my way of thinking about this.
Don't be afraid though, sometimes you will need a car and then the driving can be a big part of the adventure. Once I went to Morocco and the trains were on strike, we took the bus from Tangier to Casablanca where we got stuck as we were trying to go to Marrakesh. We ended up renting an Audi A8 turbo from some small rental shop at the airport and told the guy we wanted to return the car in Tangier. He said "no problem" and we set a place and time to return the car. Part of the adventure was figuring out what the signs meant in Arabic. Low and behold 4 days later we made it back to Tangier and the same guy was there to pick up the car. I would not trade that experience for anything.

I personally like life without a car. It's very relaxing and helps me be less stressed out but sometimes you just need your own wheels. From what I hear you will need a car in Cape Town and there is an amazing drive up/down the coast that is very nice (like 101 in Cali).
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andyr. one of the things i like about the idea of travel to africa is that when i google english speaking countries, it seems like there are more english speaking areas in africa than even in europe. as i am just dumb enough to only speak one language, i think being where english is spoken will make me much more comfortable with traveling and living overseas.
Although it is very nice to be places where you can communicate, don't be afraid of the other countries. I think the world is starting to speak English at an astonishing rate. Computers, TV, etc are all helping people learn to speak English so even in the strangest places you will find people who are happy to show you that they know a little bit. Also body language and non-verbal communication is huge and makes up to 93% of the communication process. Here is an interesting article:
Listen With Your Eyes: Tips for Understanding Nonverbal Communication

Obviously you are not going to have a deep discussion with people who don't speak the same language but you will be able to communicate. I actually think one of the most fun things to do is arrive some where and listen to a new language and think how crazy it sounds.

I found learning the basics of the local language to be a very fun challenge. In Africa you will have a lot of English but also other languages like Afrikaans and various indigenous languages. In Europe if you lived in Madrid or Barcelona and did not speak a word of Spanish, you would be fine, in my opinion (you might not like it as much, but I don't think you would have to really worry about it to much). Even here in Buenos Aires and in Thailand the movies are in English with subtitles (some are dubbed). There are english channels on TV everywhere. I would not worry about the language too much, you will figure it out and that will be part of the fun too!
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besides, i really really want to play with a baby lion.
That sounds excellent. You should look at going on an amazing trip like this one down the Omo river in Ethiopia.

Attached is a photo feeding the elephants after a ride through the rain forest in Chiang Mai, Thailand.
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File Type: jpg SSL10414-1.JPG (110.1 KB, 3 views)
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Old 06-26-2007, 11:22 AM   #26
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andyr. that pic with those elephants is just too cool. i also found a place-- online at least (which i've previously posted here)--near chiang mai where you pay to volunteer to help care for elephants. i would just love that.

your stories really makes me wish the real estate market would come back at least strong enough so i could sell these houses and really start enjoying my early retirement.

as to reading body language, i'm single and gay and have spent plenty of time in one of the few truly safe places we have to meet each other: the gaybar. so i've become adept at picking up (& ignoring) subtleties. geez, without body language, no one would be talking.
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Old 06-26-2007, 10:02 PM   #27
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hiya akaisha. thanx so much for your input. the hassle of travel might actually be good for me, border runs and all, as i find myself in retirement losing some coping skills which i am slowly learning to replace with patience so that it doesn't bother me when the cashier can't figure out my change.
i'm "only 50" (bet i won't be saying that a lot) so too early for the worry-free housing of adult communities, but i am considering relatively less worrisome housing than i currently have.
interesting aspect of foreign travel and thanx for mentioning liability aspects of automobiles overseas. definitely changes my way of thinking about this.


You're welcome, LG4N. RE: the 'worry-free' housing option, I have found that if you are 'too' young to age qualify, the ones in charge seem to be much more open to the idea of you coming on board if you offer them some kind of skill that you can do -- teaching a class for when the snow birds come down, taking care of the gardening or starting a garden club, teaching computer skills, etc. They tend to look the other way, if they consider you 'valuable'. Or trade your time in the office, or in the maintenance yard for 'free' rent or a discount. You would only have to do that for a couple of seasons, and when the office knows you are 'workable' they become so also. Just an idea.


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i also found a place-- online at least (which i've previously posted here)--near chiang mai where you pay to volunteer to help care for elephants. i would just love that.


Was it this link? www.elephantnaturepark.org We are planning to go up there ourselves sometime soon and hope to get some good photos!

Be well,

Akaisha
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Old 06-27-2007, 02:39 PM   #28
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akaisha, you are proposing that i put myself at the mercy of a condo board? and here i held you in such high regard. well, i suppose it would be good to have that option. only now that i've been out of my parents' house for at least a few years, i'm rather enjoying not having to do all my chores.

and ya, that's the park. i read also that the owner is an excellent vegetarian cook. i think helping to wash elephants down by the river would be pretty amazing. or feeding a baby elephant out of a bottle, wow. now there's a chore i wouldn't mind at all.
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Old 06-27-2007, 03:59 PM   #29
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The elephant experience for me was interesting but we took a ride in the rain forest and I would encourage people not to do the same. The uneducated trainers of the elephants were cruel and it just did not seem humane. I really enjoyed Chiang Mai though.
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Old 06-30-2007, 07:32 PM   #30
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lg4n
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akaisha, you are proposing that i put myself at the mercy of a condo board? and here i held you in such high regard.


You have left me speechless, LG4N...
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and ya, that's the park. i read also that the owner is an excellent vegetarian cook. i think helping to wash elephants down by the river would be pretty amazing. or feeding a baby elephant out of a bottle, wow. now there's a chore i wouldn't mind at all.


We hope to get out there and do a photo shoot. Lek, the owner/manager/head animal activist person has dedicated her life to saving these animals and putting them back into a natural surrounding... although I don't know how 'natural' it is for us to be bathing them or giving them a bottle... am I confused here?

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The uneducated trainers of the elephants were cruel and it just did not seem humane. I really enjoyed Chiang Mai though.


That was Lek's main point - at least how it was presented to me when we met her at her new office's opening party. The Mahouts are often cruel to these beasts and elephants can be killed in the line of duty (begging for food so the Mahouts get the $$ you pay for it) by either the cruelty of the Mahout, the Mahout not giving the elephant the medical care it needs or by getting run over by cars on the road (!!)

At Lek's place there is no elephant riding, only elephant serving.

Amazing. Will keep you posted!

Akaisha
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Try Malaysia
Old 07-05-2007, 08:00 PM   #31
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Try Malaysia

I'd recommend Singapore as a place to stay, but as much as I like it here, most travelers prefers countries near Singapore. When you are traveling overseas, particularly in SE Asia, it is nice not to make these border runs if you can avoid them, but I also understand that when you are retired, that becomes your new headache. You learn to cope, and it can even be fun.

Check out the "Malaysia, My Second Home Website"- :: MM2H :: Malaysia My Second Home
You can either make a direct bank deposit or show evidence of a retirement income. I have several friends (and their families) living in Malaysia and they love it. Buying a car is quite inexpensive and the highways are excellent.
My 2 cents worth.

Rob
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Old 07-06-2007, 12:28 PM   #32
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For those 50 and older and wish to make Thailand their home base.

Application requirements from The Royal Thai Consulate in Los Angeles.
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