Wednesday December 24
Jayne and I want to wish all our family and friends a very Merry Christmas with peace, health, happiness, love and prosperity.
Remember to keep Christ in Christmas – regardless of how the non-Christians feel. If anyone is against the above that is their problem!
Right now Jayne and I are at the mall where we are on the internet.
Keep posted here to see what we did for Christmas.
A video from Cyprus I made. We hope to be there soon!
As it stands now, we won’t be seeing our other friends as some will be with their family. Our plans are to have a nice dinner with champagne. Then we’ll watch a Christmas film and have Irish Cream Whiskey.
We hope you enjoy quality time with the people you love.
Wednesday, December 24, 2008
A Little Shopping
Saturday December 20
Jayne and I left to get a taxi to the mall so she could go on the internet. We didn’t see any taxis but we waited for one anyhow. Finally one came and he said it would be $5 to go to the mall! I said that was too much, then he came down to $4. The reason for the high price was that there was much traffic. Though I know that would be traffic as many people would be shopping for Christmas we thought that was way too high.
Since the price was too high we decided to go home. Just about when we got home a taxi came by. I asked $2.50 to go to the mall, (which is the regular price) he agreed. There was traffic to the mall and it took longer but since we took another way, which I knew of, it didn’t take too much longer.
When we got to the restaurant I found out I couldn’t connect to the internet. I asked the waitress if the password was changed. She told us it was. However, I don’t know how to change the password that she gave me. I didn’t see a manager there to help me. If he was in the kitchen he would have been too busy to do it for me – assuming he knows how to do it.
So, it turned out to be a waste of time. After we got something to eat we checked out the internet area in the mall. They were full with people, so we couldn’t go on their internet either.
Then we went to the book store that sells some books in English. I saw one book by Donald Trump (American real estate tycoon). Both of us are interested in books written by Trump. Jayne asked if I would like it for a Christmas gift and I said yes. So she bought it. (The price of the book with the discount that she got was $25.) I look forward to reading it.
Then we went to a good coffee shop that is next to the bookstore. From there we went home.
Jayne and I left to get a taxi to the mall so she could go on the internet. We didn’t see any taxis but we waited for one anyhow. Finally one came and he said it would be $5 to go to the mall! I said that was too much, then he came down to $4. The reason for the high price was that there was much traffic. Though I know that would be traffic as many people would be shopping for Christmas we thought that was way too high.
Since the price was too high we decided to go home. Just about when we got home a taxi came by. I asked $2.50 to go to the mall, (which is the regular price) he agreed. There was traffic to the mall and it took longer but since we took another way, which I knew of, it didn’t take too much longer.
When we got to the restaurant I found out I couldn’t connect to the internet. I asked the waitress if the password was changed. She told us it was. However, I don’t know how to change the password that she gave me. I didn’t see a manager there to help me. If he was in the kitchen he would have been too busy to do it for me – assuming he knows how to do it.
So, it turned out to be a waste of time. After we got something to eat we checked out the internet area in the mall. They were full with people, so we couldn’t go on their internet either.
Then we went to the book store that sells some books in English. I saw one book by Donald Trump (American real estate tycoon). Both of us are interested in books written by Trump. Jayne asked if I would like it for a Christmas gift and I said yes. So she bought it. (The price of the book with the discount that she got was $25.) I look forward to reading it.
Then we went to a good coffee shop that is next to the bookstore. From there we went home.
Plans on Leaving Ecuador
Friday December 19
I had thought what Richard told us on Wednesday. He heard through the grapevine from the President of Ecuador that he plans to change the currency from U.S. dollars to their own currency after the elections in April (2009). I don’t want to give the details of how he heard this to keep his source secure.
Ecuador is on the U.S. dollar and had been since their currency collapsed back in 1999 or thereabouts. I assume they will call their currency by the old name, sucre.
When I was thinking about this this morning, it hit me!
I’ve got to sell my properties as soon as possible, even if I have to sell for less than what the market value is now!
Here are the things that can happen:
There will be a loss in the exchange rate when people have to change their dollars for sucre
No other nation will recognize the new currency – at least for a period of time
When the new currency is recognized the world will give it a lower value than what Ecuador does
Currency controls in taking money out of the country – or a hefty tax
Just about all nations that switch currency screw people out of their money. This has happened in Europe when many countries gave up their sovereignty and switched to the Euro. This is what happened in Ecuador when they switched to the dollar. So, I don’t want to be in the middle of this.
Ecuador is a Third World country and when they issue new money you can be sure that other nations will not recognize it – at least for a certain period of time. Then how can I change my money into Euros? When other countries do recognize it you can be sure that the rate they give you is a lot less than what Ecuador says their money is worth. This is what happened in the Soviet Union, what they said their ruble was worth to the dollar was a lot less than on the open market.
With the world in an economic crises and having problems with the value of their currency imagine how European countries or other countries will look at the new currency of a Third World country!
With the new currency in Ecuador and other nations not recognizing it, anyone who has dollars here and wants to take it out of the country you can be sure that there will be a hefty tax on it. As Ecuador will need all the hard currency they can get (though the dollar is slipping from being a hard currency and in a short time it will be gone altogether).
With the world credit crises, bankruptcy and inflation of the U.S. dollar there will be few buyers of homes here. So, even if I have to take a loss (bigger than what I already planned) it will be much worse if I don’t sell the home now.
Not only do I have to find a buyer but I also have to have the sale and transfer of the money before election time. Who knows, President Carrares might do it sooner, so I have to sell sooner, too. If the dollar goes lower between now and April you can be sure he will want the law to pass sooner.
I talked to Jayne about this after she got up and she agrees. I then called our friend, Tarquin, as he said that he would like to live in Conocoto or somewhere around here to raise his children. As it is now, the whole family has to live with their clients at the hostel they have in Cotopaxi.
I thought I would give him the first opportunity to buy the property here, so I called him.
Tarquin said that he put a deposit down (‘good faith deposit’ I assume) on an apartment in some town. However he said that he would take a look at our home and consider it. I told him of the work that was done and the price. He said he would like to stop by with his family anyway to visit as we haven’t seen each other for awhile and would like to do so before Christmas.
When Katherine and Tarquin come here, I’ll show him the plans that the architect made of putting apartments on the lot that I own that is next to the house and the possibility of making more money. I’ll also mention that living in a home is nicer than an apartment and that they could put some clients up in it if they are not living here themselves and make money from it. I’ll also point out that their children can play in a big yard which he doesn’t have in an apartment.
Tarquin is the second person I’ve told about us moving. I plan to tell Matt when we see him for New Year. Then he can advertise the flat on his website.
I also plan to list the property with local real estate agents and also place an ad in the newspaper. Then I’ll pay him to show the property to Ecuadorians. Since he speaks Spanish well, there’ll be no problem in him talking to them.
Jayne and I discussed about selling everything shortly after she arrived here in April but we never told anyone else. We knew that it would take awhile to get everything ready for the prospective buyers. The move was my idea and Jayne agreed with it.
Our plans are to move back to Cyprus.
There are many reasons for moving and I’ll list some of them here.
Jayne will be closer to her family, as the flight is cheaper not only because Cyprus is closer but also because they have a lot of specials, which make it even cheaper. As it is now only her mother could afford to fly here. But her mother isn’t not in good health and a long flight would be too much for her. For shorter flights it’s no problem. The rest of her family (brothers and daughter) the cost would be too much to fly to Ecuador. Also, we can’t afford to fly there and visit.
By living in Cyprus it makes it easier and cheaper for everyone to visit.
Cyprus was chosen because we both like it there. Since I’ve lived there about 2.5 years I can talk from experience. There are a lot of advantages living there compared to Ecuador. There are some disadvantages, too, but the advantages outweigh the disadvantages.
Some other reasons for moving to Cyprus:
We like the weather there
There is much less crime
Houses and flats are built much better
Less repair cost
Many of my friends live there
Much more social life
Nice things to do that doesn’t cost anything or cost very little
Closer to other countries to visit when we want to go on vacation
I’ll make some comments on the above.
The weather is warm all year long here, but since we are in the mountains it does get cooler than in Cyprus (except when it’s winter time in Cyprus). Ecuador has a lot of rain and at times during the rainy season you don’t see the sun for two weeks. At night you need a sweater to wear in the house no matter what time of year it is or if it’s raining or not.
Crime is high here. There are places that are not safe to go during the day and at night you can forget it. Also we’ve had theft with workers taking tools, which is very common here.
I detect an anti-White sentiment here. Some people look at you as if they were saying, “What are you doing in our country?” Of course they have a lot of nerve as us Saxons are trying to bring some property and culture here, but they don’t see it that way. If anyone actually said something like that to me, I’d say, “What in the hell are one million Ecuadorians doing in America – many illegal and all of them taking some social welfare from the American tax payers!”
Jayne mentioned to Richard the other day that we have on social life. He said, “Is this the type of life I want to live? And the answer is no.” In Cyprus there are my friends (now Jayne’s friends, too) who go out dancing once a week, go bowling or what-have-you.
With crime almost non-existent in Cyprus, it’s a pleasure of walking the streets, going on the beach and swimming, or going on a hike with my friends who are Norwegian (they love to hike). So, this type of activity costs very little or no money. This is something you can’t do in Ecuador.
The cost of living in Cyprus is higher but you get a much better quality of life with it – which is worth something.
Let’s take a look at the costs to see if it’s really that more expensive.
First, the fact that the quality of life is better, how can you put price tag on that? You pay more for things but you get other things that you can’t put a price tag on, such as being able to enjoy going to the beach, etc.
The houses in Ecuador are cheaper but not as cheap if you just looked just at the price difference. For example, in Ecuador they look at property worth less if it’s 10 years old or more. They pay less or they will have something new built. Also, there are the never ending costs of repairs because as they don’t build things right in the first place.
Workers stealing things and not fulfilling their contracts when you do have workers – not to mention the shoddy work many do.
To find a renter and to sell your property is harder in Ecuador.
Social entertainment is, in many cases higher in Ecuador when you take everything into consideration. For example, if Jayne and I wanted to go out dancing at night it would cost more. First we would have to take a taxi to Quito and back again. It would be at least $12 each way. Then to go to a decent place the drinks are just as high as in Cyprus. If we go to a cheaper place there would be no entertainment. Then we have to make sure we get a taxi right in front of the club as walking down the street at midnight or 1am would not be safe. Then there would be no body we know or people we would even want to talk to. Then there is the language barrier.
In Cyprus, some places are within walking distance, and there is no danger of walking at night either. For other places it would be a short ride. Even if a taxi would be taken the cost would be about $6. Taxis are much more expensive but with such a short ride the price would still be cheaper than Ecuador. And of course, we’d be meeting our friends. If our friends were not there, at least there would be other people to talk to.
As for the drinks in Ecuador at a decent place you can pay anywhere from $4-$8 (in Friday’s Restaurant it’s $8 and some change for a drink!).
In Cyprus, the whole evening would be more enjoyable and cheaper.
Another thing you get with Cyprus that you don’t get with Ecuador is the whole environment and infrastructure is better. There are nice buildings wherever you go. Nicer stores, better service, friendly people, and more intelligent people that you meet. You just don’t get this in Ecuador.
There are other negative things about Ecuador but it’s too much to go into now.
So, that is our plans.
I had thought what Richard told us on Wednesday. He heard through the grapevine from the President of Ecuador that he plans to change the currency from U.S. dollars to their own currency after the elections in April (2009). I don’t want to give the details of how he heard this to keep his source secure.
Ecuador is on the U.S. dollar and had been since their currency collapsed back in 1999 or thereabouts. I assume they will call their currency by the old name, sucre.
When I was thinking about this this morning, it hit me!
I’ve got to sell my properties as soon as possible, even if I have to sell for less than what the market value is now!
Here are the things that can happen:
There will be a loss in the exchange rate when people have to change their dollars for sucre
No other nation will recognize the new currency – at least for a period of time
When the new currency is recognized the world will give it a lower value than what Ecuador does
Currency controls in taking money out of the country – or a hefty tax
Just about all nations that switch currency screw people out of their money. This has happened in Europe when many countries gave up their sovereignty and switched to the Euro. This is what happened in Ecuador when they switched to the dollar. So, I don’t want to be in the middle of this.
Ecuador is a Third World country and when they issue new money you can be sure that other nations will not recognize it – at least for a certain period of time. Then how can I change my money into Euros? When other countries do recognize it you can be sure that the rate they give you is a lot less than what Ecuador says their money is worth. This is what happened in the Soviet Union, what they said their ruble was worth to the dollar was a lot less than on the open market.
With the world in an economic crises and having problems with the value of their currency imagine how European countries or other countries will look at the new currency of a Third World country!
With the new currency in Ecuador and other nations not recognizing it, anyone who has dollars here and wants to take it out of the country you can be sure that there will be a hefty tax on it. As Ecuador will need all the hard currency they can get (though the dollar is slipping from being a hard currency and in a short time it will be gone altogether).
With the world credit crises, bankruptcy and inflation of the U.S. dollar there will be few buyers of homes here. So, even if I have to take a loss (bigger than what I already planned) it will be much worse if I don’t sell the home now.
Not only do I have to find a buyer but I also have to have the sale and transfer of the money before election time. Who knows, President Carrares might do it sooner, so I have to sell sooner, too. If the dollar goes lower between now and April you can be sure he will want the law to pass sooner.
I talked to Jayne about this after she got up and she agrees. I then called our friend, Tarquin, as he said that he would like to live in Conocoto or somewhere around here to raise his children. As it is now, the whole family has to live with their clients at the hostel they have in Cotopaxi.
I thought I would give him the first opportunity to buy the property here, so I called him.
Tarquin said that he put a deposit down (‘good faith deposit’ I assume) on an apartment in some town. However he said that he would take a look at our home and consider it. I told him of the work that was done and the price. He said he would like to stop by with his family anyway to visit as we haven’t seen each other for awhile and would like to do so before Christmas.
When Katherine and Tarquin come here, I’ll show him the plans that the architect made of putting apartments on the lot that I own that is next to the house and the possibility of making more money. I’ll also mention that living in a home is nicer than an apartment and that they could put some clients up in it if they are not living here themselves and make money from it. I’ll also point out that their children can play in a big yard which he doesn’t have in an apartment.
Tarquin is the second person I’ve told about us moving. I plan to tell Matt when we see him for New Year. Then he can advertise the flat on his website.
I also plan to list the property with local real estate agents and also place an ad in the newspaper. Then I’ll pay him to show the property to Ecuadorians. Since he speaks Spanish well, there’ll be no problem in him talking to them.
Jayne and I discussed about selling everything shortly after she arrived here in April but we never told anyone else. We knew that it would take awhile to get everything ready for the prospective buyers. The move was my idea and Jayne agreed with it.
Our plans are to move back to Cyprus.
There are many reasons for moving and I’ll list some of them here.
Jayne will be closer to her family, as the flight is cheaper not only because Cyprus is closer but also because they have a lot of specials, which make it even cheaper. As it is now only her mother could afford to fly here. But her mother isn’t not in good health and a long flight would be too much for her. For shorter flights it’s no problem. The rest of her family (brothers and daughter) the cost would be too much to fly to Ecuador. Also, we can’t afford to fly there and visit.
By living in Cyprus it makes it easier and cheaper for everyone to visit.
Cyprus was chosen because we both like it there. Since I’ve lived there about 2.5 years I can talk from experience. There are a lot of advantages living there compared to Ecuador. There are some disadvantages, too, but the advantages outweigh the disadvantages.
Some other reasons for moving to Cyprus:
We like the weather there
There is much less crime
Houses and flats are built much better
Less repair cost
Many of my friends live there
Much more social life
Nice things to do that doesn’t cost anything or cost very little
Closer to other countries to visit when we want to go on vacation
I’ll make some comments on the above.
The weather is warm all year long here, but since we are in the mountains it does get cooler than in Cyprus (except when it’s winter time in Cyprus). Ecuador has a lot of rain and at times during the rainy season you don’t see the sun for two weeks. At night you need a sweater to wear in the house no matter what time of year it is or if it’s raining or not.
Crime is high here. There are places that are not safe to go during the day and at night you can forget it. Also we’ve had theft with workers taking tools, which is very common here.
I detect an anti-White sentiment here. Some people look at you as if they were saying, “What are you doing in our country?” Of course they have a lot of nerve as us Saxons are trying to bring some property and culture here, but they don’t see it that way. If anyone actually said something like that to me, I’d say, “What in the hell are one million Ecuadorians doing in America – many illegal and all of them taking some social welfare from the American tax payers!”
Jayne mentioned to Richard the other day that we have on social life. He said, “Is this the type of life I want to live? And the answer is no.” In Cyprus there are my friends (now Jayne’s friends, too) who go out dancing once a week, go bowling or what-have-you.
With crime almost non-existent in Cyprus, it’s a pleasure of walking the streets, going on the beach and swimming, or going on a hike with my friends who are Norwegian (they love to hike). So, this type of activity costs very little or no money. This is something you can’t do in Ecuador.
The cost of living in Cyprus is higher but you get a much better quality of life with it – which is worth something.
Let’s take a look at the costs to see if it’s really that more expensive.
First, the fact that the quality of life is better, how can you put price tag on that? You pay more for things but you get other things that you can’t put a price tag on, such as being able to enjoy going to the beach, etc.
The houses in Ecuador are cheaper but not as cheap if you just looked just at the price difference. For example, in Ecuador they look at property worth less if it’s 10 years old or more. They pay less or they will have something new built. Also, there are the never ending costs of repairs because as they don’t build things right in the first place.
Workers stealing things and not fulfilling their contracts when you do have workers – not to mention the shoddy work many do.
To find a renter and to sell your property is harder in Ecuador.
Social entertainment is, in many cases higher in Ecuador when you take everything into consideration. For example, if Jayne and I wanted to go out dancing at night it would cost more. First we would have to take a taxi to Quito and back again. It would be at least $12 each way. Then to go to a decent place the drinks are just as high as in Cyprus. If we go to a cheaper place there would be no entertainment. Then we have to make sure we get a taxi right in front of the club as walking down the street at midnight or 1am would not be safe. Then there would be no body we know or people we would even want to talk to. Then there is the language barrier.
In Cyprus, some places are within walking distance, and there is no danger of walking at night either. For other places it would be a short ride. Even if a taxi would be taken the cost would be about $6. Taxis are much more expensive but with such a short ride the price would still be cheaper than Ecuador. And of course, we’d be meeting our friends. If our friends were not there, at least there would be other people to talk to.
As for the drinks in Ecuador at a decent place you can pay anywhere from $4-$8 (in Friday’s Restaurant it’s $8 and some change for a drink!).
In Cyprus, the whole evening would be more enjoyable and cheaper.
Another thing you get with Cyprus that you don’t get with Ecuador is the whole environment and infrastructure is better. There are nice buildings wherever you go. Nicer stores, better service, friendly people, and more intelligent people that you meet. You just don’t get this in Ecuador.
There are other negative things about Ecuador but it’s too much to go into now.
So, that is our plans.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
