Hello you All

Hi Ramoncito,

Welcome to Expat.com!

Maybe you should tell us more about you. Why have you chosen Cuenca?

I wish you get lots of new contacts here and share your expat experience with us on the Cuenca forum.

Thank you very much.
Christine
----------------
Expat.com team

I was born in Cuenca and have spent most of my life out of Ecuador. Now at the last part of my life I would like to live in Cuenca, and am moving there next year. Are you living in Cuenca?

Thank you for your reply Ramoncito.

I hope you will make new contacts very soon.

Christine from Expat.com team

NO, she is not living in Cuenca, she is the Adminitrator of this web page.
I'm living in Cuenca, I'm ecuadorian too but I lived many years in Spain and the States.

There is a lot of american expats, and they meet almost twice a week. So you can be very busy chating, eating and drinking.

Vinny

vinny66, thank you for your reply. I should be in Cuenca by August of next year if thing go as planed. Look forward to meeting you and others. You being from Ecuador makes it easier to relocate to Ecuador. I have many friends and family that lived there all their lives. The 10 years that I actually lived there, I lived in Esmeraldas and Lago Agrio. I have noticed that my friends are developing a "Anti-Gringo" attitude.This disturbs me, please elaborate a little for me, since you are there. Here are just a few posts made by some of my friends.

"Una ves más compruebo que los gringos que han llegado a vivir en cuenca son patanes, arrogantes y mal educados, vaya a ser que crezca el xenofobismo pior culpa de algunos malcriados"


"Estoy de acuerdo, pero no son pocos los que han llegado, no se integran y quieren que las cosas sean como en su país. Es allí donde las cosas no funcionan"

"es la falta de cultura de los americanos amigo, ademas quienes seran los que vienen a que quieran hacerse los importantes aca, totalmente de acuerdo amigo"

"Y lo pior de todo mi amigo que unos cuantos de estos también son estafadores y agresivos que creen que porque son "gringos" pueden hacer lo que les de la gana .... Pero es solucionable de la "forma cuencana"

This is just today. What do you think?

Ramoncito, I am so sorry some of your friends are feeling negative toward foreigners. Unfortunately, a few impatient, demanding gringos expect everything to be done as it is in their home country. I understand the frustration with bureaucracy and inconsistency that we aren't used to, but if one can't adjust to small annoyances they might be happier at home. Those who don't take the time or effort to understand the culture make a bad name for us all. Maybe you could point out to those Ecuadorians that this would be the same as a few gringos being robbed so others believe all Ecuadorians are not to be trusted. Those sterotypes of the "spoiled American" or the "dishonest Ecuadorian" create a level of mistrust that hurts all. I have lived and traveled outside the U.S. I think the biggest mistake some people make is expecting the same amenities and way of life they are accustomed to. I have felt ashamed of Americans I've seen on travels who act as though they are superior to local citizens. I don't understand why one would move to another country with different ways of doing things and think they should make accommodations to you instead of you making accommodations to them. If you are one of those reading this considering moving to Ecuador, here's a link to a book I found: "http://www.amazon.com/Culture-Shock-Ecuador-Customs-Etiquette/dp/1558686053". There are also helpful articles about Ecuadorian culture, customs, etiquette, beliefs and protocol on the internet that I urge everyone to read. Maybe there should be a requirement to pass a test on these topics before acquiring a visa :-D Please tell your friends I apologize on behalf of my countrymen and others who act badly. Please feel free to post or pass this on to your friends and family. I hope some will understand there are many of us who are not like that and we are embarrassed by those who are.

MissDenver ,my opinion is that we find there are intolerant individuals of every nationality, as there are some that don't have good manners or social skills. So when my friends come out with a statement that generalizes all "Gringos" as "persona no grata" it disturbs me. I personally have friends of both cultures and can say they are good people, and really very similar. Tolerance is the key to every relationship.

MissDenver you live in a beautiful part of Gods country. I lived in Marysville for may years and enjoyed hiking the Cascades, camping, sailing the Puget Sound and best of all, the micro brews that florished in the NW. I have many fond memories and in reality ran into very few angry "Gringos"

Hello Ramoncito & Miss denver,

Allow me to add some points to this matter.

What we have here is a cultural clash, americans see things in a different way as cuencanos does. And also, most of the americans coming here are older, so it's more difficult for them to adjust to this new country.

Yes, some american have big egos, OK they're coming from the 1st country in the world, but some cuencanos have a big ego, too. And because of that, they're rude. For example: Many times, when I asked for a rent apartment or some kind of services, they look at you like they were cops, and they began questioning you "cops style"
And if your answers are the right ones then they will give you the info you need.

One big problem with some expats is they don't want to learn Spanish.

One big problem with cuencanos is they try to take advantge of foreign people charging double for everything.

@Ramoncito I have been in contact with Miss Denver for a few weeks and we will meet soon. As I offer her if you need any help with your moving let me know.

Vinny

vinny66, yes I know what you are talking about, so nothing has really changed in Cuenca. I just wondered if this sentiment has gotten worse. With more foreigners retiring there.I am lost as far as shipping my half of container it seems to be a real maze. I will be living in Tarqui, out of town.

Lie most groups you will find some very good people among the gringos -- those who have taken the city and th country to their hearts: learning the language and experiencing the culture and learning to be a good neighbor.  And then there are those who came to Ecuador to extend their wealth -- the ones who will boast of living in the best condo and paying their employada the lowest wages, have no desire to learn the language, and belittlille the culture as "silly third world".

I have to say I had a group of those come to my B&B in Anconcito near Salinas and they smiled to my face but when they saw their bill - and they knew the cost ahead of time -- nickeled and dimed in the worst manner.  The worst was a guy who boasted of his other home in Dubai!  One of their comments was that our lobster salad -- which they had no trouble finishing every bite of -- contained too much potatoes and not enough lobster and they refused to pay $12 for their 5 course luncheon that day.  I ended up halving their bill and telling them not to let the door hit them on the way out (thank you very much!)  I was embarrassed that I even came froom the same country as them -- but they sure taught me a lot about Ugly Americans!

When you get settled -- come visit us at the beach!

Susan
TheOceanHideaway.com

You can count on our visit. Is there a refinery at Anconcito? I suppose that it's nice an peaceful there  from what I remember.