Wanting to move to Ecuador

Thailand is better choice for many reasons.

Kevin, perhaps the best thing you can do is to clarify in your mind all the reasons WHY you want to move to Ecuador.  Then you can work on finding out how to satisfy those desires, and whether Ecuador fits in with them.

Thailand may be a better choice for some people, but most Westerners will find that the Latin people are much closer to them in so many ways.

Do you already know Spanish, or are you willing to work hard to learn it?  If not you would be missing out on a major portion of life in Ecuador.  Will you need a support network of English speakers, and are you not interested in learning much Spanish?  In Quito and Cuenca you may be able to get by, but in most other parts of Ecuador Spanish is a must.  Do you seek a lower cost of living?  You can find that in Ecuador, but not necessarily, and you will have to give up some things that you may take for granted in a more developed country.  Would you be able to stand many things in everyday life taking 2-3 times longer, and the infrastructure in general being much less efficient, and many things just do not work as they should?  What kind of weather do you like?  Are you able to stand somewhat high altitudes in the mountains, if you don't want heat and humidity?  Would you be able to live without hot water, which is not available everywhere?

You should make several exploratory trips of short duration to investigate, visiting various areas, and see for yourself.  Also if you ask specific questions people on this forum can respond with specific answers.

I love Ecuador. The people are friendly, and the ones I know personally are straightforward. The more your Spanish improves the more your relationships with locals and other South Americans become more personal, now whether that is good or bad is another matter.

OsageArcher's post mentions “desires”, and I think that is extremely important because as expats for most of us anyway is to lead happier lives. Only you can determine if Ecuador can fulfill your authentic desires.

I believe initially it becomes obvious whether a certain country/city is right, but it may take much more time to find a satisfactory lifestyle. So make a determination based on your initial feel for the country/city, and if you feel good about Ecuador/city when visiting then set realistic expectations.

Personally Ecuador meets most of my needs, and utmost of which is social interactions with locals.

Before you move to any country, I would advice you to go to those countries and stay for 3 months and see how you like it. In regards Ecuador we have to keep in mind that you always gone be a rich gringo and poor Ecuadorian will expect money from you. Ecuadorian are nice people, but cold and Ecuador is not a cheap. For example electronics or cars are expensive. Thailand on the other hand  is cheap and people very warm and open and some area in Thailand the English language is spoken openly

IMO, Ecuadorians are not “cold”, but the people from the Sierra are more reserved. When I communicate and socialize with people from Quito it is a different approach compared to Ecuadorians from the coast who are more outgoing. An expat simply has to be patient with sierra people by developing the relationships and within time they will invite you to their lives. And by being patient it could mean more than a year as was the case with one of my friends who invited me to un brindis con vino, which is essentially wine toasting with dinner, shared among family and close friends. And when I kindly declined because of prior plans, the drama went into high gear.

Rarely would you see a show of emotion from locals unless they are confident in displaying such with you. At some point they will stop seeing you as an extranjero and that is when it becomes more personal. Of course one won't achieve this without communicating in their language. Another friend from the coast when I passed by their hometown invited me to their home despite the friendship having been new.

One other friend is opening a comida rápida  or fast food restaurant, a small one for his wife. So I asked him I want to go through the process so I can learn and also share some ideas. It's happening, and something like this is quite personal for people to share, but it's not a problem at all.

So we all have different experiences but living here I know it may take some time to develop relationships but when they are formed the potential for them to be genuine is quite high.

Kevin,

Why Ecuador? What area of Ecuador are you considering?

Hector

Very vague Kevin.  You should have some goals and see if they can be met by moving here.  My number one goal was to keep myself challenged and I have not been disappointed yet.  It's not easy to pull up roots and move to knew country and Ecuador has its unique challenges.

I visited three times, for two to three weeks, during the three years before I moved here, each visit with a different and very practical goal.  If you want to move from the US and be among other US citizens I can tell Quito is not the place.  Cuenca or Manta might be a better a choice.

Hey, let's move to Ecuador! seems like a thin thread to move on.

First and only post last December, done on a whim, not serious.

JadeRiver wrote:

If you want to move from the US and be among other US citizens I can tell Quito is not the place.  Cuenca or Manta might be a better a choice.

Definitely, Quito is Ecuadorian and with substantial South American communities especially Colombians, Venezuelans, and Cubans. Even supposedly Expat/tourist pubs for instance you rarely hear English, if ever, with the exception of Sports Planet (Plaza Foch), not the one up north (Plaza Las Américas) as that is 100% Ecuadorian/South American.

I have lived in Cuenca for 8 years. If you'd like to correspond, I can offer my experience here as a single, retired, female expat. Have you ever visited Ecuador?
Regina ***

lampshade65 wrote:

I have lived in Cuenca for 8 years. If you'd like to correspond, I can offer my experience here as a single, retired, female expat....
Regina

The Home Office discourages posting of personal contact information, such as Regina's email address.

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cccmedia

Thank you for responding - can you tell me why you think Thailand would be a better choice ?

many thanks

Kevin

Thanks so much for your reply. Its been interesting to see the range of responses (and some surprising assumptions).
Moving to another country is certainly not what one does on a 'whim' and exploring the potential requires a lot of research and of course, considerable effort.  I have been very fortunate to have travelled and lived in a number of places. To date the research indicates that Ecuador has a lot of ex pats and this is due to the lifestyle on offer.
I would plan to learn Spanish - preferably some of that at a course in Ecuador. Some visits to see if it appears comfortable will be important. The other issue is to hear of different experiences by other expats in different locations.
I enjoy languages and the challenge of really being immersed in language to learn. I have been offered very generous opportunities to appreciate different cultural perspectives and I thoroughly enjoy this. I think I would be described as a gregarious character and I gather that there is an emphasis on being social.   
I welcome the thought of using my teaching /training background for some part time work (more about vocation rather than income). So thats  a brief about me really - I'm very grateful for any information (minus assumptions) that anyone genuinely cares to offer. For those that have already been so generous , I'm sincerely grateful.

Kind regards

Kevin

Thanks so much for your reply. Its been interesting to see the range of responses and the implied assumptions that I have received on the broader more general forum.
Im aware that moving to another country is certainly not what one does on a 'whim' and exploring the potential requires a lot of research and of course, considerable effort.  I have been very fortunate to have travelled and lived in a number of places Regina. To date the research indicates that Ecuador has a lot of ex pats and this is due to the lifestyle on offer.
I would plan to learn Spanish - preferably some of that at a course in Ecuador. It would be totally ridiculous to contemplate not learning Spanish. Equally not realistic to neglect some visits to see if it appears comfortable for me. The other important thing is to hear of different experiences by other expats in different locations. You are in Ceuna , can I ask what prompted you to choose that area over others ?
I enjoy languages and the challenge of really being immersed in language to learn. I have been offered very generous opportunities to appreciate different cultural perspectives and I thoroughly enjoy this. I think I would be described as a gregarious character and I gather that there is an emphasis on being social.   
I welcome the thought of using my teaching /training background for some part time work (more about vocation rather than income). So thats  a brief about me really - I'm very grateful for any information - my sincere thanks.

Kind regards

Kevin

Thanks so much for your reply. I really appreciate your comments ! particularly because you are so positive - thank you !

As Im sure you know, moving to another country is certainly not what one does on a 'whim' and exploring the potential requires a lot of research and of course, considerable effort.  I have been very fortunate to have travelled and lived in a number of places. To date the research indicates that Ecuador has a lot of ex pats and this is due to the lifestyle on offer.

Yes , I would absolutely have to (and want to) learn Spanish -  what would be the point of living in a country and committing myself to being a mute. I think it would be very disrespectful as well.

I would like to have several visits to see how different locations feel. Hopefully people may tell me why they chose their particular location ? No doubt there will be a range of reasons about what suits some people better than others.

I appreciated your comment about how things may not operate as they do here in my country of birth because of the infrastructure. Whilst I originated in an Australian city , different parts of Australia do not have the infrastructure of Australia's larger cities.

As you indicated its about what is more important for a person. I guess I'm not a very materialistic person in many ways - social quality is of more importance to me .You are in Cuenca is that correct ? Can I ask what prompted you to choose that area over others ? I have thought that Quito looked interesting as well ? Im interested in your thoughts about areas.

I enjoy urban living and for me the beach or near the sea is a great plus but not essential. I currently  live in the far North of Australia and I definitely prefer a warmer climate - not so big on the cold all the time.

I enjoy languages and the challenge of really being immersed in language to learn. I have been offered very generous opportunities to appreciate different cultural perspectives and I thoroughly enjoy this. I think I would be described as a gregarious character and I gather that there is an emphasis on being social.   
I welcome the thought of using my teaching /training background for some part time work (more about vocation rather than income). So thats  a brief about me really - I'm very grateful for any information - my sincere thanks.

Kind regards

Kevin

Kevin,  it is not possible to tell who you are responding to with your three replies, all saying more or less the same thing.  I think you have a good attitude about your possible move to Ecuador - but I would repeat, the more specific your questions, the better the chances are that members in this forum can answer them.

Ecuador is possibly a "turnkey" expat solution for many, given that it is possible to land in Quito or Cuenca with little to no Spanish and eventually integrate successfully, given the relatively large expat communities in both places - but that's not recommended.  You will make it easier on yourself, if before you get wherever you're going, to have at least a moderate amount of Spanish and be able to carry on basic conversations, no matter how stumbling.  It's the effort that counts, people can read your sincerity and interest no matter what the spoken language.

People choose one location over another for many reasons - you stated you like hotter weather and the beach.  Well, you won't find either of those in Quito or Cuenca - so you may want to tailor your questions to conditions in Manta, Guayaquil, Bahia de Caráquez or other Pacific coast locations.  I am familiar only with Manta and that from many many years ago - just based on those memories it's not a place I'd choose - my heart was then and still remains now, in the mountains!  Back then the mountain dwellers would sometimes refer to the costeños as monos or cholos, and the coastal dwellers would refer to the mountain dwellers as burros or longos which are  scornful terms - hopefully that has changed at least a bit with more communication and easier travel between the two regions!

many thanks for your reply and thats very valuable information about the difference you found in different areas - thank you

Before you get too deeply into considering Thailand, Kevin, consider...

1.  Thailand is hot.  Even the northwestern area, which is touted for cool getaways in the winter, is hot during the day ten months a year.  Heat in Bangkok, don't get me started.

2.  If you took Spanish or any Latin-based language in high school or college, you'd find that learning Spanish is much easier to learn than speaking Thai.  The Thai language does not have Latin roots for 99-percent-plus of its words .. the five-toned speech and sentence construction are strictly from the Bizarro planet .. and reading Thai is a hopeless exercise for most Farang (the Thai word for Gringos).

3.  From North America, getting to almost anywhere in Thailand is a 24-hour ordeal involving changing planes in Tokyo, China or somewhere else in Asia.  I stopped visiting Thailand in 2013 after I was able to sleep only one hour on the Asia-to-LAX portion of my return trip on a crowded plane .. and suffered subsequent health problems.

4.  Dating a Farang male is taboo for most Thai women, the exceptions being the infamous boom-boom girls. 

Thailand, in particular Chiang Mai, is a great destination for up to two months of vacation .. and those two months better be November and December in the northern provinces unless you love extreme heat.

However, Thailand is not a better choice than South America for most Expat arrivals from the USA and Canada who want to make a permanent move involving year-round living.

cccmedia near the Ecuador-Colombia border in Nariño province

cccmedia wrote:

Before you get too deeply into considering Thailand, Kevin, consider...

1.  Thailand is hot.  Even the northwestern area, which is touted for cool getaways in the winter, is hot during the day ten months a year.  Heat in Bangkok, don't get me started.

2.  If you took Spanish or any Latin-based language in high school or college, you'd find that learning Spanish is much easier to learn than speaking Thai.  The Thai language does not have Latin roots for 99-percent-plus of its words .. the five-toned speech and sentence construction are strictly from the Bizarro planet .. and reading Thai is a hopeless exercise for most Farang (the Thai word for Gringos).

3.  From North America, getting to almost anywhere in Thailand is a 24-hour ordeal involving changing planes in Tokyo, China or somewhere else in Asia.  I stopped visiting Thailand in 2013 after I was able to sleep only one hour on the Asia-to-LAX portion of my return trip on a crowded plane .. and suffered subsequent health problems.

4.  Dating a Farang male is taboo for most Thai women, the exceptions being the infamous boom-boom girls. 

Thailand, in particular Chiang Mai, is a great destination for up to two months of vacation .. and those two months better be November and December in the northern provinces unless you love extreme heat.

However, Thailand is not a better choice than South America for most Expat arrivals from the USA and Canada who want to make a permanent move involving year-round living.

cccmedia near the Ecuador-Colombia border in Nariño province

Gotta agree with acc about the shortcomings in Thailand, but there are other Asia choices that are better.  Living in Tagaytay or Baguio City on the island of Luzon in the Philippines offers a cooler climate in the tropics because of elevation.  In the Philippines one can get by on English, it is taught in the schools.  There are plenty of Filipinas married to older expats from UK, Australia and the USA, no stigma.  The plane flight is 10 hours from the west coast, the question being how often you gonna make these flights?  In addition, if you are married to a citizen of the Philippines or dual citizen, then Every time you enter the country with your spouse you are given a year to stay on your passport without having to deal with immigration.