retiring

Welcome on Expat.com jistad,

I suppose you would like to retire in Mexico? (the title of the discussion isn't very clear)

jistad wrote:

Is speaking Spanish mandatory in Mexico or can I live in a small village without it?

Speaking the local language isn't mandatory anywhere that I know of if you're a tourist. However, if you take up residency how do you plan on getting through day-to-day living without it? If you have health problems as you mentioned then you are going to have a very hard time communicating with local doctors and medical staff.

Small village? You must be kidding - that's the very last place you're going to find anybody who speaks English.

thank you, Rio de Janero.  I certainly will want to learn the language while there.

Good idea, but you should really start learning long before you arrive. I can't imagine anyone being able to get along anywhere in Latin America without speaking Spanish, just as you can't get by here without Portuguese. From Latin America the only thing more distant than North America is the English language.

Cheers,
William James Woodward - Brazil Animator, Expat-blog Team