capelo- Really? Cheap furniture? I have not found that to be the case at all, where would you suggest? In the US we have so many places where we can get 2nd hand furniture for free or close to it. Here I saw a wreck of a table being sold for $50! I would have paid 10 max for it! But, I have seen the trend that most furniture is more expensive (yes, I am including clasipar in that opinion- I have often seen 2nd hand items being sold for nearly the same price as new goods cost!). A sofa set (sofa and 2 chairs) cost my father-in-law 950.000 guaranies (that being a "special deal" from a friend of his). That's nearly $250- cheap for a new set, yes. But the quality is absolutely HORRIBLE. We're not hard on our furniture by any means, and it's already torn a big hole in it. So, there's that to consider as well. The quality of what you get for the price is by no means comparable.
Also capelo, I am sure a professional from the US could get a good job such as you mentioned, as indeed, native-English speakers are highly in demand. However, I think you also need to know people in a lot of jobs to be successful in getting the position. (My good friend has a masters in teaching science- ASA needed a science teacher. She didn't even get a phone call! I find that hard to believe, when you have someone completely qualified AND a native English speaker!)
What sort of jobs or companies are you referring to? I'm not trying to disagree with you by any means! I've read your other posts and know you're much more knowledgeable about the country than myself! But I am honestly anxious to hear your answer. I have been here a year and I find the living conditions to be extremely harsh. My mother visited and said the same thing- everyone kept telling her she'd be able to live cheaply while she was here. She disagreed after visiting- the prices for a meal, food, etc are really quite comparable to the US (or, in many cases such as I mentioned with furniture, higher), while the typical wage is much less.
Yes, granted, you can get an empanada for 1 or 2 mil... but you can't really survive on fast food like that. I have done all I can to cut food costs, and am still stuck at about 20.000 a day for lunch. If I have bread left over from the day before, and we don't eat any meat, we might be able to do 10.000. But it's the rare day that happens, even eating as simply as possible. Throw in another 10.000 or so for dinner, and we've got at least 20.000 a day. We rarely eat breakfast. $5 doesn't sound like much, but most days, do as I will, it's more like 10. And, I am lucky to have a "professional" job, yet $10 a day is more than I can afford. I am making nowhere near what you mentioned unfortunately, as I need to have flexible hours to care for my son. And Maxwell, flexible hours are one thing you won't find in most Paraguayan jobs- they require you to work long hours Mon-Fri, plus half a day Saturday.
I am fortunate that apart from food, my costs are only the utilities and "other" (baby formula, dog food, vet bills, lots of bus fare, fees for my permanent residency paperwork, etc). No rent to pay, luckily. And the great thing about Paraguay in comparison to the US is the low cost of health care- we go to Hospital Regional in Luque, which is free. But, a lot of times their pharmacy is out of the medicine we need, and that adds up too. Simple things for colds due to the weather over the winter, my husband's asthma, etc.
Anyways, anyone who has money will do just fine coming to Paraguay. Anyone without money who wants to come for the lifestyle- the cost of living keeps rising, and the value of the dollar has decreased. It's not a good combination. My husband and I had planned to stay here in Paraguay for quite a bit longer before moving to the states, but we're now looking at going in the next few months. Try as we might, we're just not making it in Paraguay's current economy. I had seen an article previously stating that Asuncion was one of the cheapest places in the world to live, based on cost of living. I don't see how that could possibly be. I've lived in Mexico, and the prices there are much less.
Anyways. Sorry to go on and on about my situation, but, I want to give a realistic picture of the actuality of life in Paraguay. If you're fortunate and get a job that pays 1500-2000 dollars a month, boy, you'll be set! But if you don't have a great job like that, be careful before moving here. I love Paraguay. I love the people here. I love the laid-backness of the culture. But, economically, Paraguay is not (in my humble opinion) all people make it out to be.
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