JKBrown_US wrote:
First, on Thailand, we had a coup steal yards ago and now the generals have been elected to run the country. They are cracking down on foreigner businesses, rehires below a certain level of income, and mountains of paperwork for travel, residency, and visas. All of this is running of western retirees in favor of Indian and Chinese tourists. The collective effect is bars are closing, girls are going to work overseas, and I worry about the future of this place.
Also, after being here for three years with 2 to 3 to go I am less enthused with being 30 hours away from the US. Have some good buddies getting ready to retire I would like to be able to visit and have them be able to easily visit me.
Lastly, I think I can easily clear any financial hurdles of any country. Therefore looking for the right lifestyle, weather, possible women opportunities, proximity to other expats, etc life balance.
What you described in Thailand is a downside of living in many of these so-called third-world countries. Colombia came close to electing a socialist ex-guerrilla leader as president last year. If he won, I would have been gone quickly because it would have been miserable to live here. Colombia does not have the large ex-pat communities that Mexico, CR and Panama have... but the small ex-pat communities are growing slowly. But if being around fellow countrymen is important to you, you may want to look in those countries. Climate-wise, Colombia is enjoyed best from the higher elevations where the weather is usually mild and cool. The cities are a novelty of sorts at first, but after living there for while, the congestion, pollution and crime get kind of old after awhile.