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Top Searches: • moving to san jose uruguay expat • espa ol est s mejorando cada d a m s • uraguay dairy farms • blancarenas project • irish rover montevideo • true uruguay • |
Too true....This forum post has messages dated from 11/09/09 through 11/16/09, please be sure to read all the messages. If you feel it is old or outdated, please follow up with a question or comment and someone may be able to update it, or reply with newer information if you have it.
| Too true.... It does no favor to anyone--to Uruguay or to the prospective expat-- to try and sell them some "pie in the sky". I also knew the case of a family who moved to Uruguay lock, stock and barrel based on impressions they got over the internet (though who in their right mind would make such a monumental move without some first-hand, shoes-on-the-ground research is beyond me). They lasted one week before they up and moved on to New Zealand (having to reroute their already-enroute container as well).As for a farm close to a beach.....the prices for land with any proximity to the eastern coast are pretty high, and the quality of the soil varies greatly as well. It all depends on how close to civilization one wants to be. When we bought our dairy farm in 2005, we paid US$1600 per hectare (1.25 acres, I believe) Now it would go for at least US$5000 per hectare, and we are outside of San Jose de Mayo (between Montevideo and Colonia). The land closer to the Atlantic coast is in much higher demand because of potential tourism development, so bear this in mind. Expert Page: Customized Rural Property Management |
Comment #111/09/09 16:03Rural east Colonia departmento | "Yes indeed."
We also have (river) beaches in San Jose and Colonia. The water may be a bit brown at times but its usually clean and usually warmer than the sea. |
| "one week expats"
As crazy as it is to move here with no first hand experience, especially given the incredible lack of true and up-to-date information on the internet about Uruguay, I did it! Now, I am young, with flexible plans, and I studied International Relations for 4 years so I knew quite a bit about the history, politics and culture of Uruguay and most Latin American countries. However I had never set foot in South America and didn't speak any Spanish! More than one year later I am here, I am happy, I feel at home, and el español está mejorando cada día :) If you are moving with a young family I will say that it really is a whole different ball game, but then again who am I to judge? If you are a non-judgmental and flexible person who is open to new cultural norms and new methods of doing things than you should be just fine - but DO NOT expect it to be like it is in every picture. Just like any country in the world there are plenty of people and places in between all the pretty pictures that aren't so marketable! As for those people that arrived with no knowledge...ok, that is a crazy idea, but what is even more crazy is to decide after only ONE WEEK that Uruguay is not for you!!! It takes at the very least a few months (and a good grasp of the local language!) to decide if you could make a life in a country. If they thought they could know enough about Uruguay to make this decision in just one week then they shouldn't have come in the first place really. |
Comment #311/10/09 10:36Rural east Colonia departmento | "Irish rovers"
Us Irish have the advantage of being a bunch of wild geese who seem to be able to adapt ourselves to new places wherever we happen to go.There are an estimated 64 million of us who do NOT live in Ireland and a mere 4 million who do. :-) |
| "we're special!"
Ay tis true, sure everyone loves the Irish :) the only problem is that not everyone can be Irish, so they can't all fall back on the ol "luck of the Irish" one I'm afraid.Instead it is really important that people have at least SOME idea what they're getting themselves into before coming. I understand that sometimes its expensive and time consuming to take exploratory trips, but if you plan on uprooting young children, or moving here long term and investing in property I think it is really essential that you know the country 1st hand. |
| "Flexibility...Just Do It!"
There is always a reason NOT to do something. I mean, if we could reasonably calculate our odds for success, we'd never get up in the morning! Granted, some schemes ARE hair-brained from the get-go, but there is a lot to be said for putting fear aside and just doing something. "God will provide!" may seem a bit flimsy as a foundation for uprooting a family with small children...but people have survived, and thrived even for millennia on the basis of much less.Flexibility, enthusiasm, determination...shoe leather. New lives are forged on these all the time. Now, having said all of this, and waxed poetic on the virtue of overcoming one's fear (presumably in an attempt to live a better, more authentic life)...in practice you have to stay humble and patient. I AM amazed by the number of people who jump at the first apartment rental or house offer or uranium-mining project they are offered. You have to pay your dues. As an outsider (culturally and linguistically-speaking) YOU ARE the sucker at the table until you can prove otherwise. Walk the ground. Conduct a few small transactions before you commit your life's savings on that 'incredible beachfront opportunity!' (Ciudad Vieja is full of sharpies selling "the next San Miguel de Allende" to foreigners AND locals alike.) This is a great place to live. It's not perfect, and it's not like 'back home', wherever that is. People here think, talk and conduct business differently; when you arrive you'll be adrift because of all of the above. Be patient. Dig in; build a base...and observe. Enjoy the process of becoming more descriminating. Talk a walk. Take a lot of walks. Learn the language. Read the paper. Talk with people. Of course, too many people are in too big a hurry to do all of that. So be it. But in the end "God will provide!" will, strange as it sounds, probably be true. We humans are a resourceful species. Living in fear of change is the bigger killer. Amen. |
| "nicely put!"
A lovely post :)I came here on the basis of "God will provide"...although personally I prefer the Field of Dreams "build it and they will come" :) Its great to take a leap, but when you do its good to accept that you might not land on your feet...flexibility is key, things are different here but it is not hard to survive. As you say Doug people have indeed survived on much less with small children...but in the past many people left their homelands because of poverty, hunger, war, persecution etc. They had a tougher skin and more determination than rich folk looking for a place to live like kings on a tiny budget. Unfortunately there seems to be an increasing number of people looking for "Neverland"! |
| "Better outlook on Life"
And I think for kids... the experience of their family moving to a different country or countries even if they don't live forever in any of them... will give them a much more rounded outlook on life that video games and coca cola. |
Comment #811/16/09 20:16Rural east Colonia departmento | ""nicely put!""
I'd like to echo Elaine's view.I also reckon that doing diligent research is rarely a waste of time or money and that doing it helps God to provide :-) |
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