Best Places In The World To Retire

As a US citizen living in Cabo San Lucas, I see that most women are treated well in Mexico.  US American women, in my opinion, are raised to be more independent and outspoken than most women in any other country in the world.  That being said, I'd say that American women are probably treated a little better simply because they expect and demand it.

 

Mexico is a very progressive county and the old attitudes of women staying at home to raise families are...

As a US citizen living in Cabo San Lucas, I see that most women are treated well in Mexico.  US American women, in my opinion, are raised to be more independent and outspoken than most women in any other country in the world.  That being said, I'd say that American women are probably treated a little better simply because they expect and demand it.

 

Mexico is a very progressive county and the old attitudes of women staying at home to raise families are changing in the more metropolitan cities like Cabo San Lucas.  First, dual incomes are becoming a necessity. Second, education opportunities are more readily available to girls here vs. the very rural areas of Mexico.  Yet Mexico still has a very conservative history with centuries old traditions.

 

In Cabo, besides the service industry workforce (house-keeping, child care, food servers retail sales, etc.), we have many local Mexican women selling real estate, going into the medical and legal industries and so much more.  For all Mexicans in the Los Cabos area, being bi-lingual is very important.

 

I see confidence in the younger generation here in Los Cabos.  The young women talk of their aspirations and goals of "what they want to be when they grow up."  The expat female community is a bit of a curiosity to the Mexican women because our cultural upbringings for the most part, are very different.

 

As to the expats who are women, they dominate the real estate market as sales agents.  Many are retirees.  I've never heard of anyone being treated poorly on purpose simply because the person was a woman.  I do notice that many of the expats here in Cabo do not strive to speak Spanish, so that does create a communication barrier.  But with effort, that is an easy barrier to overcome.

 

The cultural and economic differences will always be there.  Mexico has a reputation for machismo, but as the world changes and Mexico gets more exposure to international living, you will see the Mexican women rise to a different level. It happened in the USA, and it's only a matter of time that is happens in Mexico.

 

(Couple on ATVs, Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, pictured.) 

One of the best reasons to retire in Portugal is the safety. Where I live here in Portugal, I can go to the café or to the supermarket around the corner and I don’t have to lock my front door. The neighbors know each other and if anything happens, everybody watches for each other. In contrast, in England, everybody keeps to themselves. They don’t trust anybody because of the crime. We don’t have that here in Portugal because you know your neighbors. In England, you...

One of the best reasons to retire in Portugal is the safety. Where I live here in Portugal, I can go to the café or to the supermarket around the corner and I don’t have to lock my front door. The neighbors know each other and if anything happens, everybody watches for each other. In contrast, in England, everybody keeps to themselves. They don’t trust anybody because of the crime. We don’t have that here in Portugal because you know your neighbors. In England, you can live on the same street and not know your neighbor next door. 
 
Another good reason to retire in Portugal is the lower cost of living. My daughter lives in England but she comes here four times a year and she is constantly amazed by the prices here in Portugal. It’s very cheap.
 
The quality and taste of food in Portugal is another factor for retiring here. Food here has a flavor. We have very good cuisine. The fish is unbelievable. Meat is very good as well. You only need to You just haves to know where to buy your food. Once you know that, you will have food that is very tasty. 
 
Healthcare in Portugal is good. I would recommend the private health system here in Portugal because of the good quality and fast service. Relative to the US, healthcare I Portugal is extremely inexpensive and it’s possible to get insurance for a couple in good health, without pre-existing conditions for around €60 to €100 (US $65 or £44 to US $109 or £73) a month. If you have insurance and you go to see a doctor, it would cost €30 to €40 (US $33 or £22 to $44 or £29).
 
The weather is great in Portugal. During December, we have sunshine and the temperature is 20 degrees Celsius (68 Fahrenheit). That is winter, so it’s great. We are not on the Mediterranean but we are by the Atlantic Ocean so we have mild temperatures. We don’t get snow or frost. In the winter, the temperature goes down to about 10 to 20 degrees Celsius (50 to 68 Fahrenheit).
 
The lifestyle here in Portugal is very nice as well. People are very friendly. There are a lot of outdoor activities so you don’t spend too much time at home. You can definitely keep yourself busy by going to the beach, golfing, horseback riding, playing water sports, etc.  
 
So to me, those are the best reasons to retire in Portugal; the safety, everything being cheaper here, the food, healthcare, great weather, and the wine. What else do you want in life?

The cost for a restaurant in Corozal can range from from $3 - $6 (US) for breakfast, $5 - $7 for lunch, the same for dinner.

 

You can buy chicken with some sides for as little as $3.  You can go to a few places that are more expensive for lunch and dinner.

 

(Chicken stew, Belize, pictured.)

The cost for a restaurant in Corozal can range from from $3 - $6 (US) for breakfast, $5 - $7 for lunch, the same for dinner.

 

You can buy chicken with some sides for as little as $3.  You can go to a few places that are more expensive for lunch and dinner.

 

(Chicken stew, Belize, pictured.)

Moving to Nicaragua is a fairly easy process assuming you do your paperwork and packing correctly up front. We packed each box with a number, listed exactly what was inside, down the number of socks stuffed into the glassware. Each list was in both Spanish and English and the manifest matched the inventory exactly. The only hassle was our car. If I had to do it over again, I’d sell my car in the U.S. and buy one here.

Moving to Nicaragua is a fairly easy process assuming you do your paperwork and packing correctly up front. We packed each box with a number, listed exactly what was inside, down the number of socks stuffed into the glassware. Each list was in both Spanish and English and the manifest matched the inventory exactly. The only hassle was our car. If I had to do it over again, I’d sell my car in the U.S. and buy one here.

The short answer to what are the best places to live in the world is where you are happy 75% of the time.  Cost of Living, ease of living and solid medical care are what you need to consider in finding the best place to live in the world.  There are a few cities in Canada that are on the top 10 yet as a former Toronto resident we were looking for a warmer climate, solid infrastructure so we could take our careers virtual and a lower cost of living.  We found that in Panama....

The short answer to what are the best places to live in the world is where you are happy 75% of the time.  Cost of Living, ease of living and solid medical care are what you need to consider in finding the best place to live in the world.  There are a few cities in Canada that are on the top 10 yet as a former Toronto resident we were looking for a warmer climate, solid infrastructure so we could take our careers virtual and a lower cost of living.  We found that in Panama.  Others have found it in Ecuador that is now up and coming and yet others found it in Spain and parts of Europe.  We also needed to find a country that allowed us to get back to Canada in one flight, two max.  As well as a country that was in our time zone as we are still working with North American clients.  If one destination checked off the boxes for everyone that would cause huge problems as you can well imagine.