Our Trip to Minas, Uruguay: Part One

article from July 7, 2012

By Jamie Douglas

We have crisscrossed this small nation in search of affordable housing, and unfortunately had to discount our first choice, Colonia del Sacramento, clearly our favorite. Unfortunately, it has become way too costly to rent a place there, so we looked at several other options while burning up our financial resources (see the PayPal donation button to help!) and ended up back in La Paloma on the Atlantic coast, about two and a half hours from the Brazilian border and about four hours from Montevideo, all by bus, of course.

While we were in Argentina, La Paloma suffered through some of the worst tourist-seasons in its history. Many of the vacation houses that normally rent out for megabucks stayed empty as the rich Argentineans just did not come. We saw the first signs of that develop when we left Uruguay in February of 2010. Many of the owners of the seasonal rentals were sitting on their front porches of their homes waiting for the visitors, who never showed. The restaurant owners were also complaining that nobody came to eat; the tourists who did come cooked their meals in their rentals.

So we are back to the ghost town La Paloma is during the off-season, having contacted our friendly landlady from Montevideo. Once we arrived in Rocha to visit with her, we were shocked to learn that our little cave by the beach had quintupled in price. But we had no other choice than to cough up the sum, hoping we would find something more affordable away from the tourist zone that would be good for the whole year, instead of turning us into economic fugitives when the season starts again in December. So we made a plan to go to Minas, a very charming and very clean town in the sierras that serves as the capital of the department of Lavalleja.

Our timing was impeccable: We arrived during a two-day rainy period, which also came with very cold winds, but we had a beautiful third day, although it was also very cold. We looked and asked around, but in the end, we had to go see real estate vultures. We found that in order to rent, they require you to own property that you could put up as collateral plus five month’s rent for a deposit as well as first and last month’s rent – in all, seven months up front to get a one year lease, during which the parasitic real estate agents would hold your money, with uncertain guarantees that you would get your money back, or that they would even be around when the time came to get your money back. We have heard a good amount of horror stories of renters getting completely screwed out of their money, and we did not want to try that route, never mind that we would not have had any money left to put toward buying furniture and appliances.

So we had to satisfy ourselves with having a nice trip to one of our favorite towns in the country, staying at the lovely Posada Verdún , located a mere two blocks from the bus station and two blocks from the center of town. It features the fastest Wi-Fi I have ever experienced in a public location outside of Asia. The in-house restaurant is superb, featuring international cuisine, and we felt very welcomed by the friendly and caring staff. I will elaborate more about our visit to Minas in my next article, which will feature more photos as well.

All photos by Jamie Douglas

see also: Uruguay's "Secret": Minas and Our Trip to Minas, Uruguy: Part Two

Jamie Douglas

Waiting for Summer to Return to Uruguay

I encourage you to write me at cruzansailor [at] gmail [dot] com with any questions or suggestions you may have. Disclaimer: I am not in any travel-related business. My advice is based on my own experiences and is free of charge (Donations welcome). It is always my pleasure to act as a beneficial counselor to those who are seekers of the next adventure.

Costa Rica Property Double Whammy

article from April 24, 2012

By Jamie Douglas

In May 1974, I moved down to the southern Pacific coast of Costa Rica, in Dominical, at the mouth of the Barú River. It was summer still, the river was low and I was able to rent the only house within miles. Soon, the “Hey Gringo, you wanna buy my finca?” doorknockers came. I had become friendly with a few of the locals, and they all warned me not to buy in Dominical because the government had already advised them not to build anything within 50 meters of the high-tide line, and the next 150 meters would be considered public property, as well.

I could have bought all the land from the mouth of the Barú all the way south to Crazy Norman’s house for US$35,000 – a steal! Then the law was published. In most cases, beachfront properties are untitled because the ownership and possession of the shoreline is governed by the Ley Sobre la Zona Maritima Terrestre (Maritime Zone Law), which restricts the possession and ownership of beachfront properties. By law, the first 200 meters of beachfront starting at the high-tide markers is owned by the government. Of the 200 meters, the first 50 are deemed public zones and nobody may possess or control that area. On the remaining 150 meters, the government, through the local municipality, will lease the land by way of concessions to private individuals. Since virtually all of Dominical is located in the 200-meter range, I would have been entangled with various departments in Costa Rica for the next two lifetimes. Good thing I didn’t get involved, as multiple murders have been committed over the property both north and south of the Barú.

I had the money, but not the inclination. I did not go to Costa Rica to buy a finca. I was a nomad with no fixed destination, and it was the jungle and photography that had me by the tail. After about a year or so, I moved on to Panama (That was another adventure!) and then the Big Inheritance came, and another and another and another, and I was able to keep exploring the planet. Meanwhile, the civil war raged in Nicaragua and El Salvador, making Costa Rica, Honduras and Guatemala into US surrogate states.

Eventually, thousands of gringos moved to the area south of Limón on the Caribbean side of Costa Rica and flooded the Pacific side with their surf resorts and yoga retreats, and naturally, Latin America’s least popular president is ready to cash in on all the gullible foreigners who listened to the “don’t worry about it” sales pitches.

So now, suddenly, comes the second slam of this double whammy. A few weeks ago, the Costa Rican government decreed that all of the land that had been granted to the aborigines, and was never to be sold to whites, not even Costa Rican whites, was to be returned to its original owners. Reaching back for decades, this decree is creating quite a bit of panic among all the people who bought land on the BriBri and the Talamanca, along with some of those Ticos who sold their jungle paradise for a few dollars or euros. There is an attorney general who, if she doesn’t get assassinated, will give all that land back to the indigenous people. It does not matter that they are the very ones who sold the land. All of the titles to indigenous lands are communally owned. I knew about those laws when I did a documentary in 1975 in the Boruca area. The cacique (chief) informed me in no uncertain terms that not a millimeter of their land could ever be sold to a non-Indian. Too bad they did not include all the natural resources.

So all those foreigners along the coastlines – Pacific and Atlantic – are likely in for quite an expensive fight. Costa Rica has become a more developed nation that does not need to sell its fincas anymore. They have an INTEL Microchip factory, one of which has powered this computer flawlessly for the past two and a half years.

Jamie Douglas

San Rafael, Mendoza

[Image of Manuel Antonio, Costa Rica via Wikipedia]

I encourage you to write me at cruzansailor [at] gmail [dot] com with any questions or suggestions you may have. Disclaimer: I am not in any travel-related business. My advice is based on my own experiences and is free of charge (Donations welcome). It is always my pleasure to act as a beneficial counselor to those who are seekers of the next adventure.

Central America News Roundup Sept 22, 2011: Costa Rica, Panama

article from September 22, 2011

By Jamie Douglas

Costa Rica

The misnamed “Switzerland of Central America” (there is no such thing) is contemplating building an international jetport on the Osa Peninsula in the southwest part of the country. This is an ecologically sensitive area and one of the last regions to fall victim to tourism development. After having seen what the CIA-sponsored airport (I am not making this up) did to the overdevelopment of the Nicoya Peninsula and the mainland of the northwestern part of Costa Rica, one must question the sanity of those greedy government officials who operate out of the pockets of foreign land developers. Corruption is and has been one of this country’s overwhelming problems.

Meanwhile over on the Caribbean side of the nation, a shocking development for developers and agribusinesses: Judges in Goicecoechea ruled last week that the government will seize several hundred thousand hectares of land and return it to the Bribri people, who are part of the indigenous Keköldi nation of people of the Talamanca. What really makes this bite sting is that a lot of this land is near the very popular Puerto Viejo tourist area. The ruling is to compel the Agricultural Development Institute to expropriate the land and relocate any and all non-indigenous residents. This epic decision is based largely on the Indigenous Law of 1977, along with the presidential decree that established the Keköldi Reserve that same year. This established law states very clearly, “Land and property may only be traded between the indigenous residents of the reserve.” Judge Cynthia Abarca, president of the court, stated in an interview with La Nacion of San José that “the obligation to recover said land is sanctioned by international agreements, protecting the indigenous people’s rights. The lands have very special meaning for them, being places they consider sacred.” The government plans to appeal the decision.

A fiery Tica beauty, Johanna Solano from Heredia, made the country proud once again for its famously lovely ladies by placing in the top 10 at the Miss Universe pageant in São Paulo, Brazil. She is the current Miss Costa Rica, and will remain so until March 2012. Felicidades Johanna!

Costa Rica is also celebrating its independence from Spain 190 years ago. All the Central American nations except Belize tore themselves loose from the crumbling and broke Spanish Empire, and of course, that freedom did not come easily. The region has since been plagued with various dictators, despots and megalomaniacs, as well as an endless procession of civil wars. Costa Rica’s last civil war was fought for 44 days from March 12 until April 24, 1948. It is estimated that over 2,000 people lost their lives in that uprising caused by the country’s legislature voting to void the election results from February of that year. A rebel army, under the command of José (Pepe) Figueres, rose up and defeated the government of President Teodoro Picado in the bloodiest chapter of this tiny nation’s 20th-century history. After winning the revolt, Figueres ruled the country for a year and a half, wisely abolishing the army to keep history from repeating itself.

Meanwhile, on the narco front, Costa Rica managed to maintain its spot on the US State Department’s cherished blacklist of countries contributing to the illicit drug trade. Belize and El Salvador were just added this year.

Panama

Panama will have to exercise a little more patience until they get their hands on former strongman Manuel Noriega, the object of the United States’ affection in the 1970s and 80s. Noriega, a rogue CIA asset, was captured in the Vatican Embassy in Panama City in 1989 by George Bush’s invading army. Once again, like in Granada, the US went into a non-aggressor country and, according to UN estimates, slaughtered 2,500 civilians as well a number of members of the military, raking up an oft-mentioned figure of 4,000 dead, while the US forces numbered 23 dead and 325 wounded. Some surgical strike that was!

Manuel Noriega was to be returned to Panama from France, where he is currently incarcerated for money laundering. But French judges have held up the extradition because they needed more time to study the issue. Noriega has now been imprisoned for over 20 years, and I feel it is unlikely he will ever be released, as it could prove to be very embarrassing for the CIA-head-turned-US-president, George H. Bush, who is ultimately responsible for the crimes committed by Noriega. It sure would make for some very interesting reading if Noriega were ever able to publish his memoirs.

Ebrahim Asvat, a lawyer and activist for the voiceless masses of poor people in the country, is trying to get himself killed by attempting to have the law of Anati (National Land Authority) overturned. Laws and regulations have been no match for corruption in Panama ever since private land developers found out what a lovely country Panama is and how easy it is to get prime land for development by lining the pockets of everyone from the president down. Knowing how Panamanian “justice” works, I have no hope at all that he will prevail.

While on the subject of presidential corruption, it should be mentioned that President Ricardo Martinelli has declared that the Italian citizen wanted by the prosecutor of Naples for the extortion of a million dollars from Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi is welcome to stay in Panama. Berlusconi did not mind paying the money to protect himself from exposure in his underage prostitution “Bunga Bunga” scandal. Martinelli considers Valter Lavitola to be a very useful asset for Panama since, by giving him shelter, Berlusconi has become a major Panamanian benefactor, donating six patrol boats to the nation that are valued at close to US$300 million. Martinelli and Berlusconi also signed a no-bid sweetheart deal valued at $335 million for helicopters, radars and other assorted items.

Good news for film buffs: Panama will finally have its own world-class film festival in 2012, when it will host the International Film Festival April 11-17. The festival will be in the capable and experienced hands of the cofounder of the highly successful Toronto Film Festival, as well as those of Panama’s own Pituka Ortega Heilbron, a well know producer/director whose work includes a documentary about the life of famous pugilist Roberto Duran. Quiet on the set! And … ACTION!

Jamie Douglas

San Rafael, Mendoza

Where that Fine Malbec wine is ever-present! Salud!

I encourage you to write me at cruzansailor [at] gmail [dot] com with any questions or suggestions you may have. Disclaimer: I am not in any travel-related business. My advice is based on my own experiences and is free of charge (Donations welcome). It is always my pleasure to act as a beneficial counselor to those who are seekers of the next adventure.

New Expat Housing: Rent or Buy?

article from November 18, 2010
By Jamie Douglas

So you want to become an expat! No matter the reason or where you come from, the most important thing is housing. So what are you to do when you are finally ready to make the big leap into the great unknown? Should you contact real estate agents at your chosen destination?  Look at online classifieds in publications?  Rent or buy?

Here are some of my experiences over that last 40 years. I have lived in countless countries and always rented. I had mostly great experiences and a couple that were only good. The worst were in the USA, where apparently landlords believe that that the security deposit is theirs to keep, no matter what, when they know you are leaving the country.

On the other hand, when the washer or water heater check out, I call the landlord, and generally speaking, things get fixed quickly. And that is just one advantage. The other is mobility. If the location does not live up to your expectations, you are much more free to move on.

So you go to – let’s say – Parador, where there is a large expat community, and everything is hunky-dory, until the Army decides to suspend the constitution and declares martial law. Chances are, of course, the CIA and United Fruit or some mining company had something to do with that, and Yanquis and Gringos are not very popular at the moment. Now you are confronted with two choices: Stay and risk everything, including your life, or bail out on the last flight leaving Parador, which is already overbooked with the former corrupt  government officials trying to flee the country along with your fellow expats.  I speak from experience here, and not just once!

If you rented, you sacrifice your household goods and walk away – with a minimum loss.

If you bought land or a house, you are now completely on your own, and selling your dream-become-nightmare will not be so easy because the other 7,000 expats are trying to sell as well, and some are willing to take centavos on the dollar just to get out, thereby  depressing the market tremendously – that is, assuming that the new Maximum Leader has not decided to nationalize your lovely coffee plantation and adjoining vineyard, which you put so much time and dedication and all of your and your investors’ money into.

And if you bought into a gated community, don’t forget that the friendly man in the pseudo-police uniform never really could stand all the rich foreigners and locals who lived behind their walled compounds, and he won’t be there to keep looters and kidnappers out.

The army and police will be either decimated or busy establishing themselves in positions of importance. Everywhere you look, the graffiti on wall says “GRINGOS FUERA DE SAN VINCENTE!” And of course, there will be the usual chorus of peasants: "Parador’s lands are for Paradoreños!" 

So now what do you do? Stay and fight like in the Wild West Movies – bad, bad idea – or get packing – great idea, as you can always come back later when things calm down? And don’t worry about your caretakers. They will squat on the land and then claim it as their own.

So, my suggestion is to RENT until you get to know the place pretty well, make local friends, blend in, and don’t flash your wealth.  If, after a year or two, you feel comfortable, and you have that absolute need to want to fix your own appliances, roof and anything else that will definitely go wrong, you now have a great circle of local acquaintances who will know who wants to sell what, you can hire a local attorney of repute (again your local friends will gladly help you) and you can save yourself a bundle of money, all the while making new friends and actually getting to know your neighbors.

Jamie Douglas
At large in South America

I encourage you to write me at cruzansailor [at] gmail [dot] com with any questions or suggestions you may have. Disclaimer: I am not in any travel-related business. My advice is based on my own experiences and is free of charge (Donations welcome). It is always my pleasure to act as a beneficial counselor to those who are seekers of the next adventure.