Is Ecuador Dangerous? The latest from ECUADOR GEORGE 17 JUN 2014

Thank you GringoTree for picking www.ecuadorgeorge.com as your Best Blog of the Day.

The latest from ECUADOR GEORGE
by George M Forgues:

I hear the same questions all the time… Is Ecuador Dangerous? Can I bring my guns with me? Is the food safe to eat? Can you drink the water? Do the locals hate us?


When I was still in California, someone told me to be extra careful
when visiting Ecuador beaches. He had heard that there were fleas that would get under your skin and start eating away at your flesh. Only amputation would save you…. I was expecting to see a bunch of one legged surfers when we were in Montanita….



Someone else told me to always carry my wallet in my front pocket, no matter where I was. Expats are targets for pickpockets so you need to be extra careful at all times. This is a little more relevant than the flesh eating sand fleas, but for me, I only move my wallet to the front pocket when I am in crowded areas like buses, parades or festivals. But I did the same thing back in the states. Normal caution.....read more: Is Ecuador Dangerous?

Move Mountains or go through them or around them!

I got 18 out of 20 correct on my Spanish test out of a rotating pool of 200 questions at the ANT Agency National Transit = DMV to Grand Father / Transfer my GA CDL (Comm Driver License) Class A Tractor Trailer Combination up to 80,000#'s , to an EC equivalent to a Professional Class E in Quito today.

I started this process back on 17 MAR, the day b4 my GA LIC expired on my B-day, took 3 months.

In spite of it being FRI the 13th-

-Typical FRI Quito Traffic-

-My Pico y Placa Day, which means I cannot enter or leave the city limits of Quito from 7am - 9:30am and cannot leave or enter from 4pm - 7:30pm to cut down on rush hour traffic, designated by my Tag / License plate ending in "0".

-In spite of CME (Coronal Mass Ejections) predicted for today:) I just did a Hale Mary and went on it for it anyway!

I hope everyone had a Great Day. Don't let anything hold you back, if you hang in there and try hard enough you will see light at the end of the tunnel & can Move Mountains or go through them or around them!

..and Many Many Thanks = Mil Gracias to Attila Gyuris for his lengthy detailed posts on the various EC Expat Groups on just how to go about this License Transfer process.

...back in 2010 this was not an option, $200.+ ANETA driving school 3 nights a week for 1 month to get my EC. "B" class Light Vehicle License & Motorcycle License.

I have more typical EC Bureaucratic Hurdles to jump through this month, coming months, I just keep plugging along:)

Well this the only FRI the 13th we get in 2014, with a Full Moon to Boot, so get out there and soak up some Moon Beams, Gomez, Morticia & Uncle Fester would be proud of a night like tonight:)

--Full Moon on Friday, June 13th, 2014, A Rare Day For Omens and Magic-- By Dikki-Jo Mullen:

"Each year there is at least one Friday The 13th. Usually there are two, but occasionally there will be three of these mystical and controversial days. At first glance triskadekophiles (those who love the number thirteen) must just heave a sigh and decide to make the best of what they have been given by the cosmos this year. 2014 brings us only one, Friday June 13."
"However, http://dikkijomullen.wordpress.com/2014/06/04/full-moon-on-friday-the-thirteenth-friday-june-13-2014/

Cost of Living in Cuenca Ecuador 2014

 Cost of Living in Cuenca Ecuador 2014

This information was kept current every day during our second month in Ecuador.

These numbers should give a good indication as to what normal
expenses will be for the coming months. I was hoping it would be a
little less, but we would have to stop eating out, and how do you do
that?
Here are the numbers from May of 2014.

• Rent on our 2 bedroom 2 bath, 1300 square foot, fully furnished, El Centro apartment, with internet and Direct TV included was $650.
• Data plan for 2 smart phones $70. (we own the phones)...read more: Cost of Living in Cuenca Ecuador 2014

GI DJ - US Military Veteran in Ecuador: Smelling Pepperoni While Getting Acupuncture

GI DJ - US Military Veteran in Ecuador: Smelling Pepperoni While Getting Acupuncture: A few weeks back I wrote about discovering a older Chinese man who managed his sons pizzeria who told me he was a DR back in Taiwan. http://...

Agreement signed between U.S. And Ecuador for marketing of bananas

--That's no small bananas--



United States imports an annual average of 30 million boxes of bananas,
with an estimated market value of $885 million dollars, through the Port
of Hueneme. This agreement, managed by the PRO ECUADOR's Commercial
Office in Los Angeles, provides a more direct approach that will provide
exporters of Ecuadorian bananas, better facilities.

.....read more: Agreement signed between U.S. And Ecuador for marketing of bananas

Our New Andean Life: Father's Day

Damn Goats!

 

As many of you know we have been having serious issues with our goats. 
To the point where we are seriously considering selling them.  First it
started off with moving up here on this mountain above Cuenca and
eventually not having enough pasture.  So, we created more pasture with
the hopes of moving them back and forth between pastures every two
months or so.  



 Well, the wire that was sold to Mark as aluminum was not
and has started to rust, which has created shorts in the wire.  Which
means that the electric power running through the fence is weak and the
goats have learned that.  Every two or three times a day they go through
or hop the fence to head to greener pastures.  Our neighbor's
pastures.  They don't eat as much as his cows do and don't do any of the
damage that they do, but they are our neighbors and we want to be good
neighbors.  So, they can't keep doing this...read more:

Our New Andean Life: Father's Day:

Retiring to Ecuador....Why not!: Cinco de Mayo - a Mexican holiday in Ecuador

Cinco de Mayo - a Mexican holiday in Ecuador

Cinco de Mayo isn't celebrated in Ecuador. Why? Because it's a Mexican
holiday and one that many in the US have adopted as a reason to party.
In our case it became a reason to meet up with friends, both old and
new.



Jack Abercrombie,
a well known tour guide-driver from Quito (the capital of Ecuador) was
visiting the area for a few days and called for a gathering of friends
at Fabiano's (our favorite pizza spot). He anticipated maybe 20-25
people. We ended the afternoon at over 40!



We saw old friends and made several new ones. We caught up on folks were
doing, talked motorcycles, listened to stories about health care here
in Cuenca, chatted about the adventure of moving here and a lot more.



Here are some photos I took...great afternoon and delicious food (I had the lasagna and Stu had a meat lovers pizza)...: http://www.retiredincuenca.com/2014/05/cinco-de-mayo-mexican-holiday-in-ecuador.html