About Us

Mark said, "Come to Cuenca!"


And I said, "Are you crazy?"


That's how it all started in February of 2010. In a few short months we sold our home and all our earthly possessions (except the kids!), married a son, and arrived in Ecuador on June 3, 2010 with just four suitcases.


We rented a furnished apartment for a couple of months before moving to an unfurnished apartment for about one-quarter of the cost. We're standing right in front of our second-story condo complete with a balcony that overlooks the Tomebamba River. How great to lie in bed at night and listen to the sounds of nature!


Mark and I first met at Whitworth University in Spokane, Washington and have been married for 35 years. We have two wonderful sons, Jeremy and Jonathan (ages 24 and 29). 


Jeremy is a World Cultures teacher in Lancaster, Pennsylvania and Jonathan is a SEO specialist for Rosetta Corporation in Cleveland, Ohio.


Mark and I have moved 34 times in 35 years, so we have become "experts" in the field. Our last overseas experience was in Sicily, Italy for six years where our oldest son was born. After returning to the States, I worked in the medical field for 20 years before settling into a writing career. Mark retired from United Parcel Service after serving 20 years and took early retirement at 55.  He now works part-time as an English teacher at CEDEI language school in Cuenca.


We both admit that Ecuador has been our best move yet! 






Connie and Mark (Expats to Cuenca)

Contact Us

We welcome your questions!

You can contact us via our “Contact Button” on the website: “The Best of Living and Retiring in Ecuador.com,” sign up for our newsletter which is delivered once a month or join us on Facebook for the most up-to-date information.

Feel free to leave a comment on our blog and we’ll be sure to get back w you within 24 hours.

Hasta pronto!

Connie and Mark

Home

Store

http://astore.amazon.com/httplivinga06-20

Manuscript Call Out!

Ecuador Expats: 101 Inspirational Stories

Story Call Out!

Everyone who comes to Ecuador has a story to tell, even if you’re an expat “wannabe” and still haven’t made it here yet. Tell us your story about how you decided on Ecuador as a place to retire, to work, to volunteer, to live or just to seek the next adventure. Whether you’re here to stay, have come for a while and left or have made Ecuador your home, we want to hear the why.

Topics could include:

• ·         Unexpected benefits and challenges of an international move
• ·         What made you realize that Ecuador was the place for you
• ·         Packing up and saying goodbye
• ·         What you would have done differently
• ·         Lighten up and laugh
• ·         Red tape drama and mishaps
• ·         We came, we saw, we left
• ·         We came, we stayed, we’re glad we did
• ·         Wannabe stories
• ·         It’s all we had hoped for and more
• ·         Silver linings you have discovered while you’re here
• ·         Appreciating the simple pleasures
• ·         Life is good!
• ·         Unexpected benefits, challenges and how you turned a negative into a positive
• ·         There’s no place like “home”
• ·         The best is yet to come
• ·         They didn’t tell us about…
• ·         Turning negatives into positives

Your stories need to be nonfiction and about your personal experiences. We prefer stories written in the first person (600-1200 words). No “as told to” stories or “creative writing”; we want personal account stories. Stories should not have been previously published.

If your story is chosen, you will retain the copyrights to your story and the right to resell it.

Each story should have a creative title, an attention-grabbing lead, main body explaining a conflict or challenge, and a resolution.

Please include on each manuscript your name, contact information (name, phone, e-mail) and a bio up to 50 words. Please attach to the e-mail rather than pasting your text in the body. In the subject line of the e-mail, include your name and title of your story (i.e., Pombo,Connie JustAnotherDay!).

If your story is chosen, you will be a published author and your bio will be printed in the book. There will also be a first ($100), second ($75) and third prize ($50) story which will be chosen by a team of judges. Prize winners will be notified by e-mail if they are selected. This will be a Kindle book and not a trade paperback book.

Submissions go to: conniepombo@hotmail.com. Deadline for Story Submissions:  August 30, 2012.