We’re back!
Today marks roughly
one week back at Lago Atitlan, San Pedro, Guatemala. It feels good to unpack the sand ridden
clothes of travel and air out belongings packed away so long in the house. The familiar softness of the down laden duvet
and pillows are a welcome comfort after 6 months of bouncing from bed to bed in
South America.
Where we were:
Ecuador is an amazing country
claiming to have more biodiversity per land mass to species ratio than the
entire rest of the continent, and possibly the western hemisphere. Four bio-diverse regions can be reached
within a day’s travel by inexpensive, clean and safely manageable busing
systems or by purchasing $90.00, one hour domestic flights to and from northern
& southern border cities. In one day
you can choose to climb snowcapped volcanoes towering over the mountain
villages of the Andes, trek the rain forests of the upper Amazon basin looking
for monkeys or surf epic point break surf waves on expansive undeveloped
beaches sandwiched by mangrove estuaries, offering rare wildlife sightings and
a general sense of freedom. It is as of yet relatively unspoiled by modernization and
human habitation.
We didn’t get to see
nearly everything that we wished for, requiring many return trips to the
Amazonia and before the point of no return impact to The Galapagos Islands, as
tourism exponentially harms the delicate eco system’s flora and fauna despite
Ecuador’s desire to be a global example
of sustainable tourism and environmental consciousness. Even with the best intentions to conserve the
natural environment, once humans get involved, things change.
Services:
Within the last months
both Reuters and Yahoo Finance home pages have advertised articles detailing
Ecuador as one of the top spots worldwide “places to retire.” The criteria they use are numerous including
cost of living, health care, infrastructure and quality of life. Personally, we found the people generally
favor President Correa for his efforts to upgrade national road access and
utilities program such as CNT which bundles electricity; satellite TV, high-speed
Internet and land line phones at a one stop shop price of $40.00 per month. Of course the biggie for the time being is subsidized
petrol, whereby, a gallon of super unleaded costs $2.00 and drops down to diesel
at $1.00 per gallon making it super cheap if you want to get about the
country.
Otherwise the pricing
for food and shelter was fairly comparable to Guatemala and other countries. You can find the gambit of price ranges and
services for hotels and hostels, but on average if you want a private bath it
will run $15 per person negotiable.
Restaurants run about the same as the states if you are in the cities
(expensive) but you can really save money by taking advantage of the almuerzos (lunch) and
meriendas (dinner) in the myriad of small independent spots offering soup, 2nd
course mains of fish, shrimp, meat, desert and fresh juice from $2.00 -
$3.00. The cuisine changes depending on
the terrain and what grows locally. If
you are on the coast - good luck abounds finding $2.00 - $4.00 per pound
Chilean sea bass and huge fresh langostinos (shrimp) right out of the ocean – bad luck
if you are allergic to seafood - because you won’t find much else to eat there.
Why we went:
Essentially, our
vacation turned into a bit more work than we bargained for as we toured many
properties up and down the coast and several in the mountain’s tropical rain
forests. Land prices per meter are all over
the place, of course, and typical problems such as legal entitlement to
registered lands are as prominent in Ecuador as they are in any Latin American
country. These factors and the influx of
foreign investment created by groups such as International Living (who target the
baby boomer market), sparks a bit of a feeding frenzy that indigenous land
holders and land flippers alike are all trying to capitalize on. This means you have to be careful. We were seeing huge fincas (plantations)
running $.45 per m2 in the forests all the way up to $110.00 per m2 on the ever
popular beaches. Prices are appreciating
rapidly as property is becoming an attractive investment alternative by regular
folks trying to protect their hard earned retirement money from the banking and
political uncertainties of the “first world”.
Ecuador is a country where
foreigners can legally own land, and one of the few that allow title to beach
front property. Many investors are
hedging funds against more traditional markets and /
or coupling it with 10% bank interest rate returns now being offered in banking
co-ops throughout the country. Watch out
for this, however, as there is a 5% tax to take US $ out of Ecuador. That being said, retirees and entrepreneurs
alike, are finding their money going a long way to provide a quality of life
not found in many other places on the planet.
What happened!
This brings me to the
REAL NEWS! We bought 1.5 acres of beach front on one of the most beautiful bays
on the entire Pacific coast line! So if you have any real
estate questions about Ecuador, we have a wealth of information, learned the
hard way - through a steep learning curve!
I now hold in my hot
little hands a registered escritura for 1.5 acres of Pacific beach front, 45
coconut palm trees and a boat port to an intra-coastal waterway through the
mangrove canals in the Northern Esmeraldas Province, Mompiche, Ecuador. On premise there is a rustic 2 story cottage
and 20 year old gardens hosting a beautiful assortment of flowering trees
including Crotons, Hibiscus and Ficus.
There are also double headed outdoor showers and separate outdoor bath
facilities, so there is plenty of crash space, camping or it could be easily
turned into a tourist business with cabins on the beach or rental house.
Mompiche is relatively
unknown on the tourist trail and until last year was not passable by bus via a
dirt road entrance into town. But Ecuador has recently invested a country wide
effort to improve infrastructure focusing on tourism as an important part of
their future economy, so now a newly paved bridge hosts the way for daily buses
as they snake their descent from the lush green rainforests on route to the
fresh air of the expansive Pacific Ocean.
Mompiche is a rustic village of maybe 800 people and dotted thatched
roofs called Tiquil. This creates an African
village feeling nestled against the lapping waves of a pristine beach
backdrop.
This little corner of
the earth, just 32 minutes north of the equator, is the meeting point of the
Humboldt current from the south and the warm La Nina current from the north
providing temperate swimming waters year round.
The marine life is prolific where local fisherman and their kids’ dot the
white sand beaches, dragging in their early morning catch by hand from small
skiffs or dugout canoes called bongos.
We are located almost dead center of this 40 mile long bay bookended by
capes of rock outcroppings and we see the sunset all year long. Interestingly, the tides (mareas) rise and
fall up to 4 meters per day, creating an island between diverging rivers during
the high tide. The tides being heavily
impacted by the moon, and the rivers by the rains, creates an ever changing
beach with seasonal charms. The rainy
season carries a great deal of organic matter to the beach including exotic
hardwoods, bamboo, shells and sea beans, but ironically very little to NO
garbage! It is only passable by car 2
times per day during the low tide 5 hour window. The rest of time, you have to cross a river and walk 3 kilometers to reach the
house, or take a boat to the port through the mangroves – so it really is like
living to the rhythm of nature’s clock.
It is a little labor intensive at times, but the lack of access provides
plenty of privacy and most times I feel like it is my personal beach with only
my footprints in the sand for miles.
The best part is the
point break surf wave that the pros call “Epic” during larger swells. This is one of the best continuous waves in
the world, yet few people know about it, and the locals want to keep it that
way! It is perfect for beginner surfers
(like me – I bought my first long board & rode my first wave in!) who can
catch any of 3 series of waves and ride them in up to 500 meters! The busy season is the surf season November
through April, (winter) and a bit rainier and June through August (summer)
drier and a bit cooler. Average
temperatures range 83–85F Highs, 74–76F Lows / 28C Highs 23C Lows… pretty nice
but the sun can be a scorcher if there is not a wind, remember it is the
Equator. Most times there is a sea
breeze, however, and it is very pleasant when it is cloudy during the winter. I found I needed a light sweater most evenings.
In conclusion – Come and Stay with us in
Ecuador!
Thanks for reading my
first blog post. I hope you check back
again to read future posts on topics listed below!
Meanwhile, this is an
open invitation for friends and family to consider your next travel spot. Come and stay with us either in Guatemala or
Ecuador!
Future topics – Still to come:
Escrituras and Legal
Docs: If you are buying
land now, this is a no miss article!!!! A comprehensive in and out listing of what you
need to do to Register land and hold legal title, including the players and
price breakdown for services, Governmental agencies and taxes.
How to:
Extend your
Visa in Ecuador: 12-IX Visa up to 6 months. Trials and Tribulations of the Ministerio
Interior, Quito, Ecuador
Acquire a Visa
Inversion: (Investment Visa) with
$25,000 investment. Top 5 Entrepreneurial Businesses: Ecuador is W I D E open! What’s lacking in an emerging market.
Photo Gallery: Cool pics of Ecuador’s natural beauty!
Vegetable Steel: Building out of Bamboo
