Living And Retiring Abroad How About Nova Scotia Dominica Panama Or Cuba

L iving and Retiring Abroad:       visit: www.thegloballife.net.      How about Nova Scotia,                                             Dominica, Panama or Cuba?       1. Please tell us about yourself                                         and your background.               Many of us dream of relocating to                                        another country, perhaps to enjoy     As an American who had a teenage   warmer weather, perhaps to            fascination with Asian culture,    experience a slower-paced             after high school, I got a         lifestyle, perhaps because of a       part-time job, saved my money and  job transfer, or maybe simply         purchased a one-way ticket to      because we are intrigued by a         Taiwan, Republic of China. After   certain element of adventure and      arriving in the Far East, I        curiosity.                            taught English and eventually                                            landed an internship with SIDA, a  While moving to another country       German-based global risk           may sound like an exciting            consulting firm. After working as  proposition, it is a very serious     an intern and completing an        decision with major                   extensive training program, my     ramificiations, and there are         work took me to 13 East Asian      many factors to take into account     countries, where I assisted        in making this decision.              corporate and government clients                                         with international research and    I had a chance to talk with           other consulting projects.         Phillip Townsend, author of the                                          e-Book, Passport to Canada: The       After returning to the United      Complete Guide to Living &            States, I opened and ran the       Retiring in Nova Scotia, and          firm's U.S. office until the       special e-Reports of living and       company went out of business       retiring in Panama, the Caribbean     several years later. Afterwards,   and Cuba. For more information,       my career shifted and I began      writing freelance and consulting      man of the world, and don't        independently, Later, I was hired     believe there is any single        as stringer (correspondent) for       "best" country, but rather         Money magazine, America's leading     believe in reaping the unique      personal finance monthly. After       benefits that each nation has to   leaving, I wrote a biweekly           offer.                             international lifestyle Q&A                                              column for the International          2. You are an expert on living     Employment Gazette, which also        and retiring in various regions,   appeared monthly in Industrial        including Nova Scotia, the         Tradesman magazine. I have            Caribbean, Panama and Cuba.        assisted the governments of Sri       Please tell us about how you       Lanka and Ethiopia on promoting       became an expert on these topics.  tourism and trade (and was                                               considered for an official                                               diplomatic post with the latter).     In addition to my experience       My articles and other writings        living abroad and traveling        have appeared in publications as      widely, over the years, I have     diverse as GQ, the San Francisco      dedicated my life to               Chronicle and Expat World.            international living, conducting                                         extensive research and advising    Currently, I spend most of my         hundreds of clients on every       time writing and researching. I'm     aspect of moving abroad and        also a Country Contact for            strategic planning (offshore       American Citizens Abroad,             personal and financial issues).    representing the                      I've assisted people from all      Switzerland-based non-profit          walks of life with moves to over   organization in Nova Scotia.          sixty countries and six                                                  continents.                        I have always been a so-called                                           3. Please tell us about living,       C$20,000).                         retiring, travelling and                                                 investing in Nova Scotia. What        4. Please inform us about living,  makes Nova Scotia a great             travelling and investing in        destination for expatriate or         Dominica. What should one know     retirement living?                    about living and retiring to this                                        beautiful island in the            Nova Scotia is the type of place      Caribbean?                         that can seduce you through its                                          sheer natural beauty: The long        With no direct flights from North  stretches of picturesque              America or Europe, Dominica is     coastline, a beatiful                 welcome retreat of peace and       countryside, friendly people and      quiet in the Caribbean's sea of    a slower pace and reasonable          mass tourism. Roughly halfway      prices make it one of the most        between Martinique and             livable places in Canada or           Guadeloupe, the island is          anywhere in North America. The        splendidly underdeveloped. A land  climate is another plus. In many      of waterfalls, rivers (365 of      places in Nova Scotia, winters        them), hot springs, and lush rain  can be much milder (with less         forests, Dominica is the           snow) than in other places in         Caribbean's most rugged isle.      Canada or the northern US. Also,      Instead of luxury resorts and      Nova Scotia enjoys a low crime        long stretches of crowded white    rate, with incidents of violent       sand beaches, you'll find          crime being remarkably low.           volcanic mountains, intimate       Perhaps the most appealing            beaches, little-explored reefs     benefit of living in Nova Scotia      and small hotels (some of which    are the affordable real estate        are for sale for a steal). Unlike  prices (some lots with ocean          most of the Caribbean's islands,   views can be had for as little as     which cater to tourists and the    high-end market, Dominica's           restaurants to doctor's visits.    prices are refreshingly               Best of all, anyone over 18 can    down-to-earth. For example, you       qualify for these "retirement"     can find oceanfront lots for          benefits.                          prices ranging from C42,000 to                                           C58,000, and build a home for as      Though Spanish is the official     little as C$28,000 to C$47,000.       language, English is widely                                              spoken and understood in major     5. Please give us a brief             cities. Right now, the three best  overview about living, travelling     places to purchase real estate in  and investing in Panama. What         Panama are Panama City, the        makes this a desirable place and      capital which boasts First-world   what do we need to know about it?     infrastructure and is home to                                            virtually every large American                                           brand-name chain; Boquette, a      Panama's coast, both on the           scenic and growing expatriate      Caribbean and Pacific sides, is       hideaway in Panama's mountainous   like Florida, but less crowded        region; and the Pearl Islands, a   and with property prices about a      chain of over 90 islands and 130   tenth of the cost in many cases.      islets in the Caribbean.           Panama offers affordable real                                            estate, a warm climate and great      6. Please talk to us about         beaches. In order to attract          living, travelling and investing   expatriates, the Panamanian           in Cuba. What makes this unique    government has put together an        island an interesting destination  impressive list of benefits in        for foreigners thinking of living  their pensionado program,             or retiring there? What do they    including 20-year tax-free status     need to know about Cuba before     and discounts on everything from      considering to move there?         public transportation to                                                 Cuba is home to just over 11          will wait until the fall of the    million people, with more than 2      Castro-lead communist rule, a few  million living in the capital,        have already made an investment    Havana. The island's Cuba's rich      in the "forbidden" isle by         culture, interesting political        putting down roots there, with     history, and continued economic       the hope that property values and  hardship make it one of the           other investments will multiply    world's most eye-opening nations      after the fall of communist rule.  with a wealth of places just                                             waiting to be discovered. The                                            food, music, and, most of all,        7. Where are you currently         the warm hospitality of the Cuban     travelling and what is on your     people all combine to make it a       agenda for the near future?        great place to visit and                                                 potentially live.                     Currently, I'm in upstate New                                            York, but will be exploring some   U.S. officials say open trade and     interesting locales in South       travel to Cuba would strengthen       America and Eastern Europe. I      Castro's oppressive government.       plan to continue my ongoing        But critics argue that the Cold       pursuit of reporting on new and    War-era U.S. embargo, aimed at        interesting expatriate             forcing a change in Cuba's            destinations around the world.     leadership, has not achieved its                                         goals after being in place for        8. In general, what are your       more than 40 years. Despite the       suggestions for anyone thinking    embargo, last year, 200,000           of living or retiring abroad?      Americans visited Cuba (most                                             through Canada or Mexico).            Many Canadians and Americans are                                         lured abroad by a lower cost of    Though most would-be expatriates      living and higher quality of       life. Some will want to return to     the seller to agree on a price, a  their ancestral homes or to           security deposit (generally, 10    places where they once                to 25 percent) will probably be    vacationed, worked or studied,        required to take the house off     and fell in love with a country.      the market. Your attorney should   Others will be enticed by retiree     then receive a copy of the title   perks and tax incentives. With        and verify that the property is    literally dozens of appealing         free from any liens or claims      countries to choose from,             against the property. They should  narrowing the possibilities can       also advise you of any strange     be a daunting task.                   archaic laws, like those in parts                                        of Canada that allow anyone to     No matter where you consider          fish on your land, those in        settling, the most important          England and France that allow      thing is to do your homework.         sheep to pass through your         Make an exploratory visit and         property, those in rural Italy     stay for a few months before          that give your neighbors           committing yourself by purchasing     first-refusal rights on any land   property. Be sure to talk with        used for agricultural purposes     locals and expatriates living         (which could leave someone else    there. Most importantly, consult      with the fruit in the vineyard or  competent real estate and legal       olive grove on "your" property),   professionals before signing any      or historic construction bans      contracts or other official           that prevent you from making any   documents.                            external changes to a property                                           (even installing a pool). Also,    While every place has it own set      if you are buying anything in      of rules and nuances, the process     need of restoration (or more than  of buying abroad generally works      a hundred years old), have a       like this: First, the buyer and       structural survey done.                                                  important background information   Thank you, Phillip, for providing     about a few interesting choices    us with further ideas and             on living and retiring abroad      About the Author: Susanne Pacher is the publisher of a website called Travel and Transitions (http://www.travelandtransitions.com). Find unconventional travel information, cross-cultural experiences, interviews with travellers and other inspiring people. Submit your own travel stories & win an exciting Amazon River cruise! "Life is a Journey - Explore New Horizons" Source: www.isnare.com