Clear on Criteria

As I have mentioned in previous blog posts, if you plan on relocating somewhere warm in retirement, it is pertinent that you spend some time not only exploring different areas, but that you spend some time exploring yourself. Knowing what is really important to you can take some time and trial and error. We are certainly not there yet, but some things are definitely coming into focus.

Seeing and experiencing several different places has helped a lot because it has given us a basis of comparison. For example, The west coast of Mexico (Puerto Vallarta, Bucerias, Zihuatenejo) have stunning geography: mountain vistas, crashing waves on rocky outcroppings and the cities and towns are "charming" with cobblestone streets, lengthy malecons, and every home and restaurant has a view. The East Coast of Mexico, in comparison(Cancun, Playa del Carmen) have cleaner streets, white sand and turquoise water (though not this year due to seaweed issue), and the interior colonial cities like Merida are more modern and have better municipal organization and infrastructure. Riviera Nayarit (Bucerias, La Cruz, Punta Mita) is always sunny and never humid in the winter, something we took for granted until we came to Playa del Carmen which ranges from hot and muggy to really hot and muggy. Everyone in Puerta Vallarta and area plays pickle ball but on the east coast people say, "Pickle ball? Never heard of it."

We loved Merida. We were instantly emotionally impacted by its charm, cleanliness, history, architecture, Mayan culture and incredibly friendly people. By the end of our first day there we were ready to buy a house! By day two, we had seen every museum and had walked every street in the historic centre. By day three we were – well – just melting! We started wondering if it was worth it to go out and see more pretty buildings and risk sticking to the pavement! Seriously, it was 40 degrees Celsius and the “hot” season does not come until May! We quickly realized that if we lived in Merida we would end up cocooning for three months a year – hiding from the heat – much like we did in Canada in the winter. Kinda defeats the purpose of going south.

Merida did help me clarify one thing though. While I was there I loved the idea of renovating one of the amazing colonial homes. This reminded me how much I love being productive and having a creative outlet. I always feel best about myself when I have something productive to do. Choosing a permanent location will have to bear that in mind.

Analyzing all this reminds me of investing: financial advisors are always saying “design an investment plan that makes sense for your stage of life, and stick to it. Don’t make emotional decisions.” That is sound advice. Emotionally, we want to live on a white sandy beach on a tropical island where there is complete silence save the sound of crashing waves, starry skies and bio-luminescence. Emotionally we want to live where government does not want to manage every aspect of our lives, and where beer is cheap and mangoes grow in your backyard.

In fact, that is exactly where we are headed next – to Utila, Honduras, where for two months we will live exactly that life. But something tells me there is another side to that life that goes something like this…

The lovely white sandy beach is so full of seaweed and sand fleas we cannot enjoy a nice long walk for risk of being eaten alive, all the while our nostrils are filling with the stench of rotting seaweed. The starry skies which are so stunning and mesmerizing for the first few weeks become old and I am so bored I want to gouge my eyes out. The government does not manage my life – in any way - in fact they don't manage anything in any way...

Only time will tell, and we may be hugely disappointed, or incredibly pleased. Either way, we are looking forward to the experience for what it will teach us about ourselves and our needs. As I alluded to in my last post, Stephane and I are beginning to see that there is no shame in wanting a minimum level of comfort, cleanliness, and safety, and that there is more to creating happiness in ones life than endless fountains of cheap beer and white sand. We may need to compromise some luxuries in this two star retirement, but we are quickly clarifying our criteria.