Safety

scubalynda wrote:

Object:  Safety

Where can a single woman in the mid 50s could safely move to? Considering that I have multiple sclerosis (RRMS) and have to use a cane occasionally. A place where they have pretty much everything on hand or nearby. I would love to be near a city with all the amenities and also have the possibility to be close to the beach.

I am planning to move to Central/South America or perhaps to Mexico, I am not sure yet. One thing is certain is that I want to move in the next 6 to 18 months, max.

Hoping to reach a lady who would be able to give me some advice. Thank you all in advance for your kind suggestions.

Regards,  Lynda

If you type in (single ladies) in the search box a whole bunch of threads will come up that should have a good bit of the information you are looking for.

Thank you, I will check it out.

scubalynda wrote:

Object:  Safety ...

I would love to be near a city with all the amenities and also have the possibility to be close to the beach.

Hoping to reach a lady who would be able to give me some advice.

Dear Lynda,

Welcome to the Ecuador forum.

Don’t rule out half the population.  Men have information too.

If you want safety, great healthcare and the beach .. Ecuador may not be ideal.

The beach areas are in the year-round warm/hot lowlands whereas the best healthcare is in the highland cities.

Consider Montevideo, Uruguay, which has plenty of beachfront .. and is far enough south to offer a milder climate with typical beach weather during the South American summer (December-March).

The Pacific coast of Chile is another possibility.

If you would appreciate rivers and water but could give up an actual beach, the place for you in Ecuador is Cuenca.

cccmedia

This is a great topic.

From an observational point, I see women of all ages walking around alone and with no issues, and some of these Ecuatoriana women have blond hair. As those who live here have realized there are different complexions of Ecuatorianos and some of them have migrated here many years ago from Europe.

My wife while younger radiates as an obvious foreign woman with her looks, attire, language and everything else. To the point that it concerns me at times because she sticks out so much. But there’s never been an issue, with the exception of a pickpocketing incident when we first moved here. I think there are other expat women who are similar to my wife who go about their days with no issues.

But I’ve seen older women and men who change trajectory when people walk behind them. So, I don’t know if that’s because of prior incidents or if it’s precautionary. I know I look over my shoulder from time to time in certain areas or certain times of the night, but this is true everywhere and not just Ecuador, and it’s ingrained in me or instinctive. So maybe these folks are the same way and exercising city smarts, but I don’t know that.

You walking with a cane is definitely an obvious show of disability. And if you know anything about crime here, the majority of it is petty crime including pickpocketing or a grab and run, and so a thief might grab a cellphone, purse, necklace, earrings or whatever else is easy.

In truly hideous crimes Ecuador is safer than most countries in South America, and probably safer than all countries in Central America, and there are numbers out there that attest to this assertion. 

Choose a good neighborhood no matter where you live especially the more vulnerable you are, learn the language, become familiar with your area, and hopefully you’ll be okay.

Thank you very much for you comments. They are very appropriate and interesting. You gave me something to ponder on. I guess there are so many things to think about when a person finds herself alone for the first time and worries about maybe to much things.

Regards,

Lynda

No, you are not worrying about too many things. This is perhaps the number one and most important topic when moving to this part of the world. And let’s be frank, Latin America has a stigma, it’s all over the news, the gangs, the drugs, the kidnappings, the murders, the robberies and so on. And we conflate this as a whole when in truth every country and every city differs. Ecuador is not Mexico, it’s not Brazil, it’s not Colombia or El Salvador if we are objectively comparing crime. And I’m not putting down any of these countries, I’m simply stating statistical facts.

Ecuador is not dangerous. And to share a story, before we came here, I read and read to the point when addressing some of the concerns to my wife she said “excuse me but why are we moving there”, and my reply was, “well you know we lived in countries that were stigmatized before and found out they were okay.” And that’s the approach that we took, to be cautious based on stuff we read online but to also be open minded and to eventually find out for ourselves the realities on the ground.

One day during our initial days here, and at a time when altitude sickness was smacking me around, my wife and son returned to our Airbnb apartment with a lot of SuperMaxi (supermarket) shopping bags and I said, “wow, how did you guys get here.” And my wife replied “taxi.” My reply to that was one of disapproval because I read so much about the dangers of taxis, and whether they have orange plates and blah blah blah. But we had a lovely dinner that evening and moved on with our lives. This is one of the memories that I cherish about living here because we were in a transition, and we didn’t know what to expect or the rules or anything.

But we progressed, initially it was isolating, and a bit dark because we didn’t know Spanish and because of the negative information that I read and which took a while to debunk. But little by little we became comfortable and our curfew was no longer sundown, and the areas we explored grew.

That’s the best advice that I can give to anyone moving to Quito, whether it’s a man, woman, or family. Take all the information in, and be cautious, but don’t let that information dictate your life. Get comfortable with your surroundings at your pace, and form your own opinion. Everyone has a different experience.

To: vsimple

Thank you for your encouragement. I should know better, having had the chance to travel in Europe with a backpack and not a worry in my mind during my 20s, 30s & 40s.

Now my life has been turned around by having a TIA and MS. I don't know why but everything seems so complicated and as you mentioned earlier I have read a lot of negative things and naturally it is in the back of my mind.

Not having anyone close by, and going in a country where I have no idea what to expect, is very hard.  I am not seeking big adventures as I use to. Now, shall I say, in my mid 50s and having some health issues, my perspectives of life has changed tremendously.

I truly appreciate you taking the time to give me your perspective on life in Quito.

Regards,
Lynda

In both Cuenca and Salinas there are very active women's groups with members who keep an eye on each other, check in if someone is I'll or feeling under the weather, and generally providing a sense of sisterhood. Either if these locations would be a good starting point to getting settled and comfortable in your new home.

BTW I'm a 55 year old single woman and have lived here on the coast for over 8 years. I also live with some chronic health issues, but I  can say that moving here was one of the best things I could have done, adding years to  life and life to my years!

Hi,

If you have health issues, you should stay in major cities. Only major cities has hosp that has equipment to take care big issues or big emergencies. If you like the beach, you might want to look into Salinas, which is 90 north of Guayaquil where big. well equipped hosp are available.
Hospital Alcivar, Hospital Kennedy, Omni Hospital are well known and well equipped. (Better than others)

Public hosp are good (not all of them) but, if I were you under those conditions, I wuld just expect to pay out of pocket and not to have to wait for a Dr for maybe hrs. (It has happen to Ecuadorians and foreigners)