Home in Cuenca

In case any of you missed it, HGTV did a special on "Home in Ecuador." Mark and I have watched it several times (okay, about twenty times!) and we keep coming up with new insights. I have it listed on my links on the sidebar of this blog as well. It aired on February 10, 2010 and I've referred many people to the site because when I say the word, "Ecuador" they look at me strangely and say, "Is that place safe?" I think they forgot we lived in Sicily for six years!

Tomorrow at 3:00 AM my hubby (now dubbed "Christopher Columbus") leaves for Ecuador. First stop will be Quito where he will meet with our lawyer, a University professor who is a friend of the family, and then on to Cuenca. He will be there on Friday and will be staying at the Villa Nova Inn, where he will meet with our realtor. Our top three apartments are now available, so he will check those out and others as well.

He will take videos and then upload them for me to see (I will be the extra pair of eyes!). But after 34 years, I trust him (really, I do!).

I have a speaking engagement on Saturday at the Talamor Country Club and a book deadline which keeps looming larger and larger. But all I want to do is read books on Ecuador and watch videos. I find myself wandering into Barnes & Noble and picking up everything I can find and flipping through the pages. Not good when I'm supposed to be writing, writing, writing!

Next week I have a radio interview so in preparation for that I jumped on a few websites and found a link to the best retirement films by the Wall Street Journal . I'm not sure, but I think that "Home in Cuenca" should be on that list as well!

"About Schmidt" (2000)
"Cocoon" (1985)
"Going in Style" (1979)
"Harry and Tonto" (1974)
"High Noon" (1952)
"Lost in America" (1985)
"The Lion in Winter" (1968)
"On Golden Pond" (1981)
"The Straight Story" (1999)
"Unforgiven" (1992)

"Home in Cuenca" is becoming more of a reality now as "years" of preparation are fitting into place. After hearing so much about this place through blogs, through Mark's sister who spent many years in Ecuador, and other friends I can't imagine that it doesn't feel like home already. But we shall soon see.

Until next time...hasta luego!


Connie and Mark

First Day of Retirement!

Today is my hubby's first official day of retirement. He woke up at 5:30 a.m., his usual time, and did a load of wash, painted the rest of the basement, and fixed breakfast. Then he woke me up at 7:30 a.m. and we had a cup of coffee together and looked at each other and started laughing!

"Pinch me...is it real?" he asked.

"Yes, dear, it's the real deal. You are officially retired and today and every day is ‘Saturday’ if you want it to be," I whispered back. (I'm still recovering from laryngitis!)

We got on our snow boots and went for a walk with the wind whipping in our faces. After about 1-1/2 miles we turned back because my face was numb and had a slightly bluish tint to it. Then we got in the car and drove to "La Tienda" a.k.a. Rutter's convenience store for a hot chocolate. Afterwards we drove to our Ecuadorian mechanic to check on the status of our car. The familiar refrain resonated, "Manana!" It's been manana for the last two weeks (but we're used to it!). Sorry, I can't find the "squiggly" mark that goes over the "n"!

We are now going to take our afternoon nap (albeit a little late), and then have a movie marathon tonight with popcorn.

We tested our budget for living in Ecuador on $1,300 a month and passed with flying colors! We lived on $25 a week for food (actually $23.50). We had lentil beans and rice every day for the past month. We have an apple for breakfast with a teaspoon of peanut butter, beans and rice for lunch, and salad for dinner (with almonds and seedless grapes). Except last night we went out to dinner and ordered quesadillas to celebrate. And that's with a $800 mortgage!

If we can do it in the States, can you imagine how life will be in Ecuador? The only thing I might miss is being a "mystery shopper"; we've been eating out at five-star restaurants for free for the last five years. If you call "free" staying up until 2:00 a.m. to write the report and then wait a month to be reimbursed?! But we keep that money in a separate account so we have never paid for eating out.

Our system of selling things is working out well on E-Bay. I have ready-made printed stickers so as I clean out closets and drawers I slap the sticker on it for the garage sale we’re having the first week of May (that is if the snow melts by then!).

I love our new life and I've been writing a series of articles about retiring overseas on the Internet which I'll post later. My Internet writing will provide us with another source of income as we don't want to touch our savings unless we have to. We will not be living the "high life" in Cuenca, more like the "low life" and we like it that way. Most foreigners consider Americans wealthy and we are out to prove them wrong!

I’m sick of the winter landscape around here, so I’m posting pictures of spring in hopes of seeing it soon!

Until next time...hasta luego!


Connie and Mark

Ecuador -- Culture Shock!

Yesterday my hubby called Nicholas Crowder the author of Culture Shock: Ecuador! and they talked for 2-1/2 hours. Mr. Crowder gave his home phone number on one of the Ecuadorian forums with an invitation to call anytime, so my hubby did just that.

Nicholas has been married to an Ecuadorian for 28 years and his book has sold over 4 million copies! If you don't have a copy of this masterpiece and you're planning to visit, live or retire in Ecuador, it is must-have reading.

Mr. Crowder doesn't sugarcoat anything, which is refreshing! Having lived in Sicily for six years, we wish we would have had a handbook similar to this one. Inside its glossy covers you will find a wealth of information including -- but not limited to --first impressions, fitting into society, do's and don'ts, settling in, and cultural taboos!

I took the "culture quiz" in the back of the book and passed (only because it is so similar to the Italian culture!).

Here are some things I did NOT know:

• "Don't laugh very loudly!" (Oops...I'm going to have to work on that one!)
  
• "Understand that elephants are a sign of good luck in Ecuador. Many houses have a number of elephant ornaments. There's a phrase that says each home should have one elephant ornament that was given, one bought and one stolen. Many Ecuadorians will have the elephant ornaments facing a window or door for good luck." (Okay, I'm out to buy an elephant!)
  
• "Remember that women from the United States are often seen by Ecuadorian men as being sexually permissive." (Yes, I think I remember that from Sicily, although the men were overtly suggestive -- complete with hand gestures to match!)
  

Some of the book was review, but other fine points were startling and revealing. Keeping an open mind is so important and part of the cross-cultural process.

A side note: Today was my hubby's last day of work (he is officially retired!). We are going out to dinner tonight to celebrate, but I didn't realize how difficult this day was for him. I thought he would return home with a smile on his face, but instead tears were streaming down his cheeks.

I don't care what culture you are from, men gain their significance from their work, unlike women who are more nurturers by nature. I remember feeling differently after leaving the medical field after 20 years. I turned in my magnetic name badge, had my exit interview, and walked out into the hospital parking lot kicking my heels and shouting, "I'm free...free at last!" Unlike my husband, I did not gain my significance from my work and didn't care if I ever saw green-tiled hospital walls ever again!

Retirement gets a whopping 100 points on the stress scale (right up there with the death of a spouse), so I will let this culture shock (of sorts) take time to seep in. I'm sure after Mark leaves for Ecuador next week, he will be feeling differently (I hope!).

Oh, on a happier note, my manuscript was turned into the publisher today. One book down and one to go (May 15 is the deadline). I can do this!

Until next time...hasta luego!


Mark and Connie

More Snow?!

We are again receiving a blast from Mother Nature in the form of a blizzard! This time it is an official blizzard with 35 MPH winds -- sustained for more than three hours (that constitutes an official "blizzard" according to meteorologists). What that means for us is being snowed in (literally!). Pennsylvania has officially been declared "in a state of emergency."

Mark has exactly five days left of work (until he officially retires from UPS and it looks like those remaining five days will be spent as snow days!), so we're taking the opportunity to get our paperwork in order.

There are many types of visas for Ecuador, but we are applying for the pensioner's visa. That means a 9-1 residency. You need to show proof that you have Social Security or a pension from a reliable source. It must be $800 plus $100 for each dependent. There are other ways you can qualify for this type of visa including those who are living off a trust (but that's another blog post!).

For a pensioner's visa, we need the following:

*Current Passports

*Criminal records

*Marriage Certificate

*Pension documentation

All documents must be original copies. We will take our criminal records to the notary, have them notarized, and then to our Secretary of State in Harrisburg to be apostilled. All of our documents must be apostilled FIRST before we go to the Ecuadorian Consulate in Philadelphia to get our documents legalized. The legalization stamp will be placed on the back of our original documents.

I'm not sure why, but our health record is not part of the process which astounds me. So just in case they decide to change the law, we will get that done as well. It's better to have too much documentation than not enough! There's nothing worse than showing up at the Consulate without all the necessary documentation.

Actually all of this can be done once you are in Ecuador, except the criminal record -- that has to be done before you leave (notarized and apostilled). Once in Ecuador, that important piece of documentation cannot be obtained for you. I should never say never because I guess, you could just hop back on the plane and go get it (but who wants to do that?!).

After everything is notarized and apostilled, we will take the documents to our local Ecuadorian Consulate in order to get the documents legalized (by placing a stamp on the back of each document). I have read that all documents in English must be translated into Spanish. Any bi-lingual notary can perform this task; however, I have not found this to be a consistent finding through my reading, so we still need to check into that.

By the way, having lived in a foreign country (Sicily) has been a great advantage for us. With few exceptions, we went through the exact same process except we needed immunization records and also a health document notarized.

We have an accordion file with labels for everything. If you are thinking of making this journey, I suggest you do the same. Have birth certificates, marriage certificate and all important documents in one place. And just for "kicks and giggles" make copies of everything!

If they call for more snow, we're set...we've got lots of paperwork to keep us busy. So bring it on...

Until next time...hasta luego!

Connie and Mark

P.S. I'm learning as I go, so please realize this is our journey to Ecuador and yours may be totally different. Only you can determine what type of visa is best for you.

Cold Feet?

The "Blizzard of 2010" has passed! Technically, it can't be called a "blizzard" because it fell short of three hours of sustained winds of 35 MPH! So what? It sure felt like a blizzard! All I know is we live in an igloo!

Yesterday I had too much time to think and started to get "cold" feet. I was cleaning out drawers, closets, and sorting through old photo albums. Did I mention I was a Creative Memories Scrapbooker?

So I called my mom in California and said, "I'm sending you the photos -- okay?"

"What photos?" asked my mom tentatively.

"You know...the ones that contain my heart and soul!"

"Oh, those! Go ahead and send them and I'll make sure they have a nice 'home.'"

That was it -- I burst into tears! Not over "materialistic" stuff (that can be replaced!), but photos that cannot. I spent well over 300 hours on my parent's 50th anniversary album. Who does that sort of thing?

Me!

This morning, I'm over it. Cold feet for one day didn't last long! I separated the albums and will take a few pictures: one from our wedding, one of the boys as babies, and Jon's wedding picture in May (that's it!).

Problem solved.

Lately, I've been on a lot of forums and gained some useful information. Because Cuenca, Ecuador has been named #1 place to retire by International Living, there has been a vast amount of interest in this place. Actually, we knew about it 10 years ago when Mark's sister lived there for eight years and fell in love with the place. We always thought we would retire in Sicily where we lived for six years, but several trips to Europe this past year made me realize that wasn't going to happen.

So we started to explore the possibility once again of Cuenca, Ecuador. As in Sicily, you need an insider. We have one (I think!). You need someone from Cuenca (not a realtor), but rather a person from Cuenca who speaks both English and Spanish, who knows the culture and the inside track. It's not that much different from Sicily (in that regard!).

Like Sicily, it's not what you know, but who you know! There are condos, apartments and homes for sale, but unlike America there are no "for sale" signs, you just need to ask, watch the moving van, and ask around. "Se vende" signs are in windows (maybe), but most people don't want to risk keeping a place vacant and having things robbed.

In Sicily, we found our "villa" on the Mediterranean by word of mouth. Without a doubt it was the most gorgeous place in the world and we have treasured memories there. But we will put that behind us because "nothing" will ever come close to that (ever!). People would come to visit us and say, "So this is what heaven on earth is all about!" Yes, it was heaven and I'm so thankful our son was born there and we have those memories to sustain us for life.

In language school, we learned something very important in our cross-cultures class, "It's not wrong; it's just different!"

When you go into a new culture, don't compare! Don't say "guinea pig" is something I would never eat, but instead say, "Hmm...might have to try that some day!" It's not wrong or right; it's just different. I never thought I would eat "blood sausage" and I did (not right away though!).

Keep an open mind and don't get cold feet (it will pass!).

Until next time...hasta luego!


Connie and Mark


Technorati Tags:retire in ecuador, Cuenca, retirement living,

18 days to Ecuador

Mark leaves for Ecuador in 18 days for his exploratory trip to seek out a place for us to rent. Today we are preparing for that trip by going over the list of would-be apartments that our realtor sent us. It's a great day to stay indoors as we just had the "Blizzard of 2010" pass through last night, leaving an historic snowfall (the records of 1993 and 2003 are now history!).

When I look at the weather in Cuenca right now, I want to get on a plane and never come back, but we can't even make it out our front door -- we're literally snowed in.

It's also a good day to do the necessary things for our move, like paint the basement with drylock. Mark got up early at 5:30 a.m. to finish that project. We were going to have the screen door replaced but that's totally out of the question; today as we have 28 inches of snow covering it up!

We did find out some great news from our realtor in Cuenca. We don't have to buy right away as there are several different types of resident visas, one for business, one for property ownership, and another for a pension. You just have to prove that the spouse receiving the pension makes at least $800 and $100 for the spouse. Well, we've got that covered!!!

We can't draw on our Social Security until we're 62 and at age 55 we have seven more years, but I write for the Internet and I can do that anywhere in the world as long as there is Internet connection.

Today we are wishing we were somewhere else, but 18 more days and Mark will be my "Christopher Columbus" and post pictures and video for me to look at as he makes this historic journey!

Until next time...hasta luego!



Connie and Mark

Snowing!

I'm not sure how it happened, but the weatherman was right -- it's snowing (blizzard-like conditions!). Our plans for this weekend had to be cancelled due to the weather, but I'm rather thankful for the change in events as it's perfect writing weather!

Last night I found this awesome site: "destination Ecuador." There was more information on that website in concentrated form than I have found anywhere else on the Internet, and the photos are gorgeous.

I love how the contributor explained the taxi service. Give the "taxista" a $5.00 bill before you get in the taxi so he is forced to give you change. A complete list of charges are available on the site. It's hard to believe that you can go basically from one side of town to the other for $5.00. Having been in France and Austria this past year, I can tell you that it wasn't cheap!

Without having been to Cuenca yet, Mark and I have a feel for the land and the layout of the city. Many of the YouTube videos are couples who are coming to search out housing options in Cuenca. We've watched one particular video several times already and each time we catch something different.

The wind is howling outside, but my weather channel guide for Cuenca tells me that I could be a lot more comfortable with a stable temperature all year round. "Eternal spring" sounds nice right about now!

I cleaned the hall closet today and sold some more stuff on E-bay. I have a system now, so it's more efficient. I also have color-coded sticky dots with a price sheet for the garage sale in May. When I come across something, I stick a tag on to match the color-coded price board. That should makes things run more smoothly.

There are a few major obstacles which we face every time we move and that's the picture albums. I literally have 20 albums with hundreds of hours of work -- filled with precious memories. So I think they will be shipped with a box of other non-negotiable (paintings from Italy, ceramic plate and figurine). Those four items were bought on our last day in Sicily before we returned after six years! It's not the "materialistic" attachment I have to them, it's the memories. I remember the day distinctly: I was pregnant with our youngest son and we were wandering the streets of Taormina during the "Fragola Festival" the first week of May. There was that moment in time when I stopped, felt Jon kick me hard in my tummy, as if to say, "Don't take me back to America...I love it here!" After some fragola gelato, I was fine!

We're looking forward to more memories filled with new people, places, and things! Oh, and no more snow!

Hasta luego!


Connie and Mark

P.S. I fell asleep and hit the "publish" button by mistake! I'm on cold medicine and I keep nodding off. I wanted to post a photo of our family...so I'll add that. It was taken in May at Jon's graduation and now he will be getting married this May (Kim is our daughter-in-love to be!).

Snow in the Forecast

Yep, you guessed it...a winter snow warning has been issued. Tomorrow we are "promised" to be hammered with anywhere from 10 inches to two feet of snow! When someone asks me why we're moving to Ecuador, I have a simple three-word answer: "No more snow!" The snow shovel is in place, ice melt has been found (the last bag was bought this evening), and now we wait and watch!

In the meantime, we're preparing in earnest for our next adventure. Mark talked with our realtor in Cuenca this evening. He answered all of our questions to our delight and satisfaction. Mark is now dubbed "Christopher Columbus" as I set him off on his journey at the end of February. It's part birthday/retirement gift. His official last day of work is in a couple of weeks at which time he will take six weeks of vacation. When he returns on April 1, he will turn in his key (20 plus years at United Parcel Service in Management).

Everyone asks why I'm not going on this first trip. Quite frankly I would love to go, but I have a book contract (May 15 is the deadline!) and I NEED to finish it...even if I have to lock myself in the closet! Jon our youngest son is getting married (May 30th) and we have a house to prepare to sell.

My goal is to clean a drawer or closet a day and sell what I find on E-bay. So far that has been working out; I can't believe what people buy! What I think no one could possibly want (like Mark's old ski boots) often strike the highest number of bidders. Wait until I tackle the basement!

I have a full speaking/writing schedule up until the wedding, so I don't have a moment to waste. Mark is already in retirement mode and I'm scurrying around trying to get things in by their deadline. I can't wait until we can be on the same "time zone" in our daily duties.

My publisher e-mailed and asked, "So what plans do you have for marketing your book?" I had to write a lengthy e-mail back to her stating that my plans had changed (indefinitely!). Hmm...not what she wanted to hear. Oh well...

This blog is being kept a secret (well, almost a secret!) until the unveiling on March 4, 2010 when Mark returns from Ecuador. At that time, we will make a "formal" announcement. I can't wait....

Back to cleaning those drawers, closets, and waiting for the snow!


Hasta leugo!



Technorati Tags:
Ecuador, retiring, Cuenta

Overwhelmed!

Today I had a mini-meltdown. With a book deadline, son getting married, and freelancing I'm exhausted.

In my "spare" time I research articles on Mark's visit to Cuenca. Since I'm writing a series of articles on living overseas, I added "retirement in Cuenca" to my list.


I cannot believe the wealth of information hidden in various blogs, so for the sake of my sanity and availability to access them when I need a stroke of genius, I will post them on the sidebar so you won't be as overwhelmed as I have been lately. It's almost like the time I wrote a chapter in my book, Moms of Sons, and couldn't find it when I sent it to the publisher! That's because it was still in my head and not on paper. I've got a system now, which will help. But if this is anything like Sicily, the paperwork trail will be different for everyone (us included) because everything and I do mean everything is subject to who you know and when!


We have a saying in Italian, "Ci penso io." I'll take care of it. Well, be sure you know who takes care of it or you will be in for a big surprise.


Compared to most couples retiring in Ecuador, we don't have a huge amount of money, so we'll be lucky if we meet the requirements for property ownership (which I hear is $30,000 for application for residency visas). Oh well, we'll live in a box with 30 square feet! Not bad for a starter home.


My theory: You can only live in one room at a time. And we did all the entertaining in Sicily that we ever want to do. People would come and stay months at a time and then complain that there was no variety in the food. Did I mention they never offered to pay! We lived in a villa on the Mediterranean, so I doubt anything will ever compare to that (not in this lifetime anyway!). It was pure heaven!


So my mantra is don't be overwhelmed..."adagio, adagio!" I don't won't to forget my Italian, so before I totally immerse myself in Spanish, I'm going to enjoy Italian as much as I can!


Chao for Now,

Healthcare in the USA

Today is a reminder why we are moving to Cuenca!

We had a travel consult (as in pay me 500 plus dollars to tell me what I found off the CDC website!). Only the doctor had to read it out loud very fast (so I couldn't understand what I already knew), and then he told me what I needed without telling me what it would cost!

When we went to pay our bill (after Mark passed out and I grabbed his wallet before he hit the floor), I asked politely, "Can we pay half now and the other half later?"

That was a stupid question; I knew I wasn't getting out of that office unless I turned over the money.

The next question actually shocked me. "Well, did you get the shots?"

I turned to my hubby and said, "It's time to surrender your wallet! This isn't a restaurant and you can't do dishes to pay for your bill!"

It seems that insurance companies do not pay for travel consults and therefore all payment must be rendered at the time of service. That message is always posted on the back of the exam room doors (just like hotel rates!).

If I knew that yellow fever, Hep-A, typhoid, and whatever else they stuck me with would not only give me two arms full of "hurties" and an empty wallet, I would have taken my chances on getting the diseases that they said would surely cause me to die!

Oh, but I got this cool little card (it's yellow) and says that I've been vaccinated against...you guessed it "yellow fever."

This comes on the day we also got the bill from Mark's back surgery ($20,000 and that was just for the bed!). I worked in the healthcare field for 20 years and I've seen what we have compared to other countries (we also lived in Sicily), and I have to say we pay mostly for people to push papers, enter ICD9-CM codes into the computer, so the insurance company can reject our claim and send it to another department where more people shuffle papers. How do I know this? I was a paper shuffler (yes, a career in healthcare management).

Now, when people ask me, "What...you're leaving the country?" I smile politely and say, "And you aren't? What's wrong with you?"

Healthcare...I miss it!

Sicily was wonderful and I'm sure Cuenca is much like what I remember 20 years ago (caring physicians who know your name, who don't shuffle papers, and who say, "Gracias!").

De nada!

And that's all I'm going to say about healthcare in the USA.

Until next time...hasta luego!

Travel Consult

Tomorrow Mark and I have our travel consults and go over the CDC list of vaccinations that are required (suggested!) for life in Ecuador. Having worked in the medical field for 20 years, particularly with these doctors, I already know what they might suggest. Mark leaves for his exploratory trip the end of February and we already feel like we have friends in Cuenca by reading their blogs. Chuck and Nancy have graciously offered to meet Mark during his time there, so I don't feel !like I'm sending him on a "Christopher Columbus" journey on his own. Mark's official day of retirement is April 1st (no joke!), and I think he's ready now. I've done so much traveling this past year (mostly to Europe with friends), I think it's time that Mark does some scouting on his own.

I have a feeling (from what I heard) that he may just end up staying there and making me sell the house and do the moving (you won't do that will you Mark?!). Don't answer that!

Every day I see new pictures posted on Cuenca (more parades, great food, beautiful scenery, more food, great friends, more food -- did I mention more food?!). It seems like there's no end to the choices, variety, and abundance of places to eat and things to see.

I know that living in Sicily we were land locked (it was an island afterall) and just getting on the traghetto to the mainland was a HUGE undertaking), but this will be different.

Spanish is coming along (the 12 years I took growing up are coming back), and I listen to tapes in the car. I've given Mark a cheat sheet to get him through his week in Ecuador (he has a distcint Italian accent, but I'm sure he'll do just fine!).

My goal is to finish the book I'm writing and get it off to the publisher before he returns, so that means I will be hibernating! The few people that we have told that we are "thinking" of retiring in Ecuadaor fall into two distcint categories: "you're crazy" or "that is so cool." I guess it's the pessimists and the optimists duking it out.

We only have one life to live and we surely don't want to spend it in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania (although the Amish have been a nice diversion through the years). Now we're ready for some adventure and "yes" I'm sure well get it!

I hope there are some rental apartments left (it seems like every day more Americans are finding this lovely piece of paradise tucked in the Andes), but as Mark's sister said when she moved from Ecuador aftering having lived there for eight years, "It was the worst mistake of my life...I should have stayed!"

Regrets...we don't want to have them. Life is just to short, so I guess that's why we're having a travel consult because we want to enjoy our time there and not worry about getting sick. I had cholera just once in my life and I'm not sure that I want that "bug" again! Nastsy stuff.

It's funny, our boys (now 23 and 28) have given us their blessing which was important to us, but also my parents and Mark's dad. We assured them that we aren't that far away (we were a lot further living in Sicily!).

This blog is being kept a secret; I'm having the unveiling when Mark returns in March; hopefully, with all the videos he's going to take we'll have a plan in place.

Exciting days are ahead and to think we thought retirement was going to be boring. HA!



Until next time...hasta luego!

Moving Thoughts

Last night I got out my conversational Spanish book and had fun talking back and forth with Mark. Of course, he answered me all in Italian.

When we arrived back from Italy after six years, I took a conversational Spanish course (we lived in California -- a must!), and I drove the professor nuts by combining Italian and Spanish (all the time!). I think he gave me an "A" just to get rid of me (he didn't want a repeat student).

Today, I'm reading the proofs of my book, Moms of Sons, and cleaning out my office (no small task). I have three piles: to throw away, to save, and to file. Since we will not be doing the "container" thing like we did when we left for Italy (half of it was stolen anyway), we're just bringing clothes, a few pictures, and some books. That's it! I haven't figured out what pictures to take with me, so now comes the weeding out process. Ouch!

It doesn't help that I have a problem with making up my mind. That will soon change!

Until next time...hasta luego!