Best Places In The World To Retire

In Puerto Vallarta, you can get by just speaking English. You will not have any issues if you only speak English because Puerto Vallarta is a resort and a vacation area. Most of the people here in Puerto Vallarta will speak a some English. That being said, I always like to remind everybody that we’re guests to this beautiful country, and that it’s always a good idea to learn some Spanish, because if you can show the respect to the people who live here and own the country...

In Puerto Vallarta, you can get by just speaking English. You will not have any issues if you only speak English because Puerto Vallarta is a resort and a vacation area. Most of the people here in Puerto Vallarta will speak a some English. That being said, I always like to remind everybody that we’re guests to this beautiful country, and that it’s always a good idea to learn some Spanish, because if you can show the respect to the people who live here and own the country where you recognize you’re a guest, they will treat you like a queen and a king, and they appreciate that you respect them and their culture.

 

I always joke around that I may not speak a ton of Spanish, but I can kick anybody’s butt in charades. That’s very helpful because the locals in Puerto Vallarta have a great sense of humor, and they love that you try to learn their language and their culture. I would say that I have a proficiency of about 60% in Spanish after living here eight years. 

 

 

 

In learning Spanish and any other language, you tend to use the same phrases over and over again, so it shouldn’t be daunting. You start asking the same things. If you’re coming to Puerto Vallarta to visit, you need to know about 5 or 6 main phrases, and those phrases will get you by. Once you’re living in Puerto Vallarta, you need to know a little bit more, and everyone is so helpful.

 

I have a cute little story. I was at a store, and I was trying to explain what it was that I was looking for. I’m trying to pull out every Spanish word I can think of, and after trying to explain in Spanish what I was requiring for two minutes, the Mexican lady behind the counter looked at me and said, “Would you rather say it to me in English?” Oftentimes, while I’m practicing my Spanish and doing terribly, they’re practicing their English on me, and they’re apologizing for doing terribly.  

 

(Table legs make from cactus in a furniture store, Puerto Nayarit, Mexico, pictured.)

I cannot put a dollar amount on the cost of living here in Placencia because the cost of living here depends on the lifestyle that you choose.

 

When we go shopping here, we buy mostly local brands. All the aisles in the supermarkets here are now filled with American imported products. A bag of Ruffles here in Placencia is around US $6.50, but I am not happy to pay that amount, so I do not eat chips. There are local cassava chips that you can buy in little...

I cannot put a dollar amount on the cost of living here in Placencia because the cost of living here depends on the lifestyle that you choose.

 

When we go shopping here, we buy mostly local brands. All the aisles in the supermarkets here are now filled with American imported products. A bag of Ruffles here in Placencia is around US $6.50, but I am not happy to pay that amount, so I do not eat chips. There are local cassava chips that you can buy in little packs that cost only 50 cents, so that is how I get my little fix. There are also vegetable trucks where you can buy your fresh produce. We eat a lot of fish and a lot of chicken. We do not buy a lot of the imported products, so our food bill here is relatively inexpensive.

 

When we go to a happy hour, our drink is about $1.50. I think if you wrote down all the things you spend in the US for a day, you will say, “Oh my, I am spending $100 a day!” Here in Placencia, it is completely different. You do not stop at the store or at Starbucks to get coffee every day. It is how you do things differently here in Placencia that makes you not spend a lot. We used to spend more in the US.

 

My husband and I are both healthier due to the lifestyle change that we have here in Placencia. In the US, even the produce has preservatives, whereas here in Placencia, they do not put any preservatives in fruits and vegetables. My husband lost 30 pounds in 6 months without even trying. He was borderline needing high blood pressure medication because of the high powered job he had, but now, he is not even close to what his blood pressure used to be. We attribute that to a lot of walking, biking, and on the food that we eat here in Placencia. And I mean walking and biking to get things, since we do not own a car. We do not go biking 20 miles every morning, so it not really serious exercise, but as we do it, we get healthier in the process.