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A guide to moving to Latin America, finding work, and settling in.
Episodes
Sunday Jun 14, 2015
Sunday Jun 14, 2015
It just might happen that a Latin friend or acquaintance will try to get you to support a local scumbag politician. Remember, it’s a huge feather in a politico’s hat to have a real live gringo at his or her event. Its considered a 1st world stamp of approval. No use telling a Latin that after a while, no matter how innocent and sincere these politicians seem at first, they all inevitably become scumbags. It’s just not news and everyone knows it. So what do you do when something like that happens, and how do you get out of a situation like that diplomatically or otherwise? Or should you?
-Here’s another very bad Latin custom to keep an eye out for. At Christmas, Easter and national holidays- in mostly poor and lower class sections of big cities- certain lower class type of drunk macho guys think it’s good fun to occasionally discharge firearms into the sky. As old Yosemite Sam knows all too well, what goes up must come down and people do get hurt. So here’s the scoop on another stupid macho past time. By the way, wealthy Latins with bodyguards and more money than brains sometimes get nuts like that too… especially at World Cup time.
-More great examples of your "Gringo Advantage" in business.
-Great insider tips on learning Spanish... from a loyal listener in the thick of it along with some odd Latin homespun household customs and remedies.
-A "boots on the ground" discussion of vaccines in Latin America and the Latin public's complete lack of awareness.
JULY 2015 -LATIN AMERICAN SEMINAR NOTICE: Make your plans today for the next Latin American Expat Wisdom seminar. Just go to thewww.ExpatWisdom.com main page and click on the Latin Seminar link for full details. The seminar will take place from Saturday, July 11th through Thursday July 16th, 2015.
-CONSULT WITH JOHNNY- SCHEDULE A CELL OR SKYPE CALL: Follow the consult link on the main page at www.ExpatWisdom.com and Johnny will help you sort out your Latin American plans.
Friday Jun 12, 2015
Friday Jun 12, 2015
A few pointed gringo/expat stories of how they’ve been ripped off or gouged by their own Latin lawyers. Sometimes clueless gringo schmucks never find out they've been scammed and sometimes they do, but only when they try to sell or mortgage that little piece of paradise.
-Did you know that many Latin country land border crossings (the ones out in the boonies) allow the local foot traffic to cross back and forth –from country to country- without a passport, ID card or even a second look from the guards or immigration control?
-A new hi-tech scam comes to Latin America, and it’s just starting to affect the local import/export business community. Here’s the story of a long term Expat gringo who got snared in the trap…. with a surprise ending!
-Three easy steps you can perform to make your computer and your web searches virtually data collection proof. How to vastly minimize outside tracking and hacking of your searches as well as sharing and stealing of your personal online data
JULY 2015 -LATIN AMERICAN SEMINAR NOTICE: Make your plans today for the next Latin American Expat Wisdom seminar. Just go to thewww.ExpatWisdom.com main page and click on the Latin Seminar link for full details. The seminar will take place from Saturday, July 11th through Thursday July 16th, 2015.
-CONSULT WITH JOHNNY- SCHEDULE A CELL OR SKYPE CALL: Follow the consult link on the main page at www.ExpatWisdom.com and Johnny will help you sort out your Latin American plans.
Sunday Jun 07, 2015
Sunday Jun 07, 2015
-Slowly but surely Latins are becoming more and more security conscious and with the usual lag time they are taking baby steps. For example, many guard shacks checkpoints at upscale exclusive neighborhoods will demand a visitor’s driver’s license upon entering, photograph it and often hold it till your stay is done and you drive out. To me that’s too intrusive. Why should one have to give personal dats to rent-a-cops with 8th grade educations? But wait, there are some simple steps an expat can take to foil them. The point is that you should always try to keep a very small footprint and a low profile. Never give out your real info if you can help it…
-More examples on how “off the tourist trail”, doors automatically open for you. The “gringo advantage” is alive and well
-Most career people and professionals in the states work for the man and have never had their own business. Even though Expats in Latin America often start their own business and have great success, career people (who’ve worked for someone else all their lives) may be a bit put off at the prospect of a brand new scary venture like being the owner "boss" for once. That said, many such listeners send emails wanting to know their chances of landing a job in their chosen professions to avoid that prospect altogether. They want to know how easy or hard it is to find a nice safe job down here and what tips might come in handy.
JULY 2015 -LATIN AMERICAN SEMINAR NOTICE: Make your plans today for the next Latin American Expat Wisdom seminar. Just go to thewww.ExpatWisdom.com main page and click on the Latin Seminar link for full details. The seminar will take place from Saturday, July 11th through Thursday July 16th, 2015.
-CONSULT WITH JOHNNY- SCHEDULE A CELL OR SKYPE CALL: Follow the consult link on the main page at www.ExpatWisdom.com and Johnny will help you sort out your Latin A
Friday Jun 05, 2015
Friday Jun 05, 2015
-As promised, you can now send an email and get a free copy of the new e-book, “Fast Spanish” written by a faithful listener and Expat Wisdom seminar attendee. Better hurry though, the free offer is only good for a week or so.
-Every day enlightened first world people are getting a plan “B” lined up as they see more and more examples of why the USA is heading down the tubes. Realists know there’s not a chance of the US ever recovering its former glory. Meanwhile, unenlightened, superficial people still buy the usual spoon fed media crap believing the fantasy that the US is somehow “special” and in times of trouble will always have an ace in the hole. Now more fuel for the fire…
-Today we discuss unknown ways your tax dollar is being used to fund, get this, mindless Latin American soap opera productions! Unbelievable but true. US taxpayers are actually subsidizing Spanish speaking soap operas that are then distributed outside the USA.
-More concrete examples why any notion of a rigid Big Brother police state is a distant fantasy in Latin America. Why? For one, there are just too many overfed, underpaid, fat-ass, clock watching government slugs with zero discipline and work ethic. What’s not to like about that?
-Many expats and gringos want to know if they can get some of the same specialty organic items and brands they buy back in the old hometown health food store. If so, where can one get that kind of stuff in a typical Latin America town and what’s the availability?
-The real story on NGO’s (Non-Governmental Organizations) operating in Latin America and the 3rd and 4th world. You may have heard that NGO’s are set up strictly as “do go good” charitable arms of first world philanthropists and foundations but the truth is that in the conglomerate they have done absolutely nothing but harm in the 60 years of their existence. Here’s a bit of eye-witness proof.
JULY 2015 -LATIN AMERICAN SEMINAR NOTICE: Make your plans today for the next Latin American Expat Wisdom seminar. Just go to thewww.ExpatWisdom.com main page and click on the Latin Seminar link for full details. The seminar will take place from Saturday, July 11th through Thursday July 16th, 2015.
-CONSULT WITH JOHNNY- SCHEDULE A CELL OR SKYPE CALL: Follow the consult link on the main page at www.ExpatWisdom.com and Johnny will help you sort out your Latin American plans.
Sunday May 31, 2015
Sunday May 31, 2015
-Is Spain a good starting place for would be expats? Today some comparisons between living in Spain versus Latin America.
-Get ready for another chapter in the crazy life of Expat Eddie. This time he’s got the maid and her 14year-old daughter living at his house. You’ll be a be surprised and perhaps shocked at the circumstances… and how its all been unfolding.
-Have you ever heard of a bruja? Every middle and lower middle class Latin neighborhood has one. It means “witch” in Spanish and also the name given to the neighborhood fortune teller/soothsayer, potion mixer/spell caster.
Yup, Latins are very, very superstitious. When all else fails in the love, romance, health and money departments the person makes a date with the local bruja and pays a fee- whether she gets the desired results or not; note the bruja clients are nearly always women! By the way, the word “brujaria” describes the acts and spells the brujas’ perform.
-Latins most commonly visit brujas, #1- to either make someone fall in love or regain a love interest that’s strayed, #2- to fix money problems, #3- to cure physical ills the doctor can’t.
So do brujas really work? I doubt it, but they say it beats Obamacare.
JULY 2015 -LATIN AMERICAN SEMINAR NOTICE: Make your plans today for the next Latin American Expat Wisdom seminar. Just go to thewww.ExpatWisdom.com main page and click on the Latin Seminar link for full details. The seminar will take place from Saturday, July 11th through Thursday July 16th, 2015.
-CONSULT WITH JOHNNY- SCHEDULE A CELL OR SKYPE CALL: Follow the consult link on the main page at www.ExpatWisdom.com and Johnny will help you sort out your Latin American plans.
Friday May 29, 2015
Friday May 29, 2015
-More on safely moving your gold, silver and precious metals across borders and how to stay as anonymous as possible while doing so.
-A word on bank safety deposit boxes: their availability and use in Latin America
-If you’ve been watching the international news over the last few weeks you may have noticed a rather big top level political shakeup going down in Guatemala. It’s just the most recent billion dollar corruption scandal collapsing the present government. Along with the country’s first female vice president, dozens of high level politicos are in jail or under house arrest and a dozen politicians now fugitives on the run from Interpol.
That said, how does all this political turmoil and unrest affect the expats and gringos living in Guatemala? What do long term expats have to say about the situation? Are they nervous, frightened and ready to pack up and leave? You’ll be surprised to hear that talk of corruption and scandal rarely comes up in casual conversation amongst gringos and expats. Why? Because every administration is thoroughly corrupt. Fortunately (or unfortunately) the only ones really affected by such massive corruption and thievery are the common people, the 80% who must ride the chicken buses, attend horrible free public schools (no desks or running water). Its the poor people who must go to the pitiful but free public hospitals (with not enough beds, gloves, medicines or syringes to go around). They're the ones that suffer- while expats and gringos continue to live like first world people no matter which corrupt leaders are in office.
-TAKE PART IN ONE OF MY LIVE “WEBINARS”:
Check out www.Expatwisdom.com and sign up for one of my free one hour live “webinars”. They will take place about every two weeks for a very limited time so sign up now to listen in live and contribute your own thoughts and questions about Latin America.
JULY 2015 -LATIN AMERICAN SEMINAR NOTICE: Make your plans today for the next Latin American Expat Wisdom seminar. Just go to the www.ExpatWisdom.com main page and click on the Latin Seminar link for full details. The seminar will take place from Saturday, July 11th through Thursday July 16th, 2015.
-CONSULT WITH JOHNNY- SCHEDULE A CELL OR SKYPE CALL: Follow the consult link on the main page at www.ExpatWisdom.com and Johnny will help you sort out your Latin American plans.
Sunday May 24, 2015
Sunday May 24, 2015
-In the last two years nearly all Latin American countries have adopted their own sort of local Craig’s list clones… as well as many free classified ad websites. Of course there’s been the usual lag time of a few years but suddenly these sites are springing up and becoming quite popular- fast displacing the traditional newspaper classifieds which can be too pricy for the average Latin selling low-priced stuff. That said, wannabees and gonnabees should take advantage of such sites as much as they can; not only to find good cheap stuff but also as a nice side effect, pick up bits of commonly used Spanish terms along the way.
-Some real life examples demonstrating how one of the surest ways to get a Latin business going is to purchase one that’s barely chugging long (from its less than mediocre Latin owner/operator).
-A discussion and some tips on gold ownership, bank accounts and money transfers between foreign banks
-Mostly because of the “gringo advantage”, when you’re off the tourist trail you’ll be considered a bit of a VIP. For example there are many perks your Latin lawyer will arrange for you that he wouldn’t offer to his regular Latin clients
-TAKE PART IN ONE OF MY LIVE “WEBINARS”:
Check out www.Expatwisdom.com and sign up for one of my free one hour live “webinars”. They will take place about every two weeks for a very limited time so sign up now to listen in live and contribute your own thoughts and questions about Latin America.
JULY 2015 -LATIN AMERICAN SEMINAR NOTICE: Make your plans today for the next Latin American Expat Wisdom seminar. Just go to the www.ExpatWisdom.com main page and click on the Latin Seminar link for full details. The seminar will take place from Saturday, July 11th through Thursday July 16th, 2015.
-CONSULT WITH JOHNNY- SCHEDULE A CELL OR SKYPE CALL: Follow the consult link on the main page at www.ExpatWisdom.com and Johnny will help you sort out your Latin American plans.
Friday May 22, 2015
Friday May 22, 2015
- If you live in Latin America long enough and as your Spanish skills improve, soon enough you’ll start to understand there’s a very odd subservient classist relationship between Latin Americans and their so called “mother-country” Spain. Do remember that it was the Spanish conquistadors that came over to rape, pillage, kill pagan priests and extract gold and silver at any cost. And do remember that, most of today’s present Latin Americans have a high percentage of the local indigenous blood (unlike the long term residents in the USA and Canada) …. which is why the majority of Latins are short and brown- not white and tall like their Spanish conquerors. In short, real Spaniards fro Europe believe their Latin cousins to be lower-class rabble who will never pull themselves from the muck they have created.
-So many stateside people with limited finances are now facing the terrible prospect of sending off a stricken loved one to some stinky, depressing state run nursing home. Latin America provides an infinitely better, vastly more humane and much much less expensive alternative. The solution is easy, just rent an apartment in a decent area and hire a full time live-in nurse. But how does one go about it? Can the arrangements be done by long distance? Today we have some news from a gringo in the states who is managing a loved one in that situation. He has already begun the first step in the process- which is finding the proper nurse in Latin America …
-TAKE PART IN ONE OF MY LIVE “WEBINARS”:
Check out www.Expatwisdom.com and sign up for one of my free one hour live “webinars”. They will take place about every two weeks for a very limited time so sign up now to listen in live and contribute your own thoughts and questions about Latin America.
JULY 2015 -LATIN AMERICAN SEMINAR NOTICE: Make your plans today for the next Latin American Expat Wisdom seminar. Just go to the www.ExpatWisdom.com main page and click on the Latin Seminar link for full details. The seminar will take place from Saturday, July 11th through Thursday July 16th, 2015.
-CONSULT WITH JOHNNY- SCHEDULE A CELL OR SKYPE CALL: Follow the consult link on the main page at www.ExpatWisdom.com and Johnny will help you sort out your Latin American plans.
Sunday May 17, 2015
Sunday May 17, 2015
- On the other side of the globe, the Philippine islands have the closest thing to a Latin American culture. They were once conquered and colonized by Spain so they have many of the same traditions… with some important differences…
-When you come to Latin America, for all of you who enjoy walking and exploring, note that there are different categories of “safe”. For example there are, #1, safe places to walk through day and night, #2 safe places to walk in the daytime only (questionable at night), #3 places that are considered unsafe to walk in both day and night. Then there's the question- what if you're walking alone or with two or more in your group?
-In Latin America the cars and trucks do not respect pedestrians at all. That’s why so many thousands of peopel on foot are killed or maimed with impunity each year. You also know for many reasons the chicken buses and most other public transportation methods are not recommended. Today we’ll be mentioning another generally unsafe place you don’t want to walk on, or through. Its called a “paserela” (pedestrian bridge or catwalk). There are many such useful but ugly monstrosities in every Latin city. They’re constructed to allow pedestrians to safely cross over large heavily traveled highways ,yet ironically sometimes it’s much safer to just take your chances and dodge the cars. You’ll hear why…
Fresh new expats are always intimidated when they first get behind the wheel in Latin America. Though, after a few months one does inevitably get used to the organized chaos of it all since the traffic does sort of move along in its own meandering way. But note, soon enough you’ll be bending and breaking a lot of traffic laws you’d never dreamed of flaunting back in Cleveland. Sometimes following the crazy moves of the guy in front of you is the only way to go with the flow. If you want to prevent a hemorrhoid flare-up you must adapt and be flexible. Besides, cops almost never ticket for moving violations… not to mention, most cops actually like gringos and just love to BS with you about Miami and Disneyland when you break a traffic law.
-TAKE PART IN ONE OF MY LIVE “WEBINARS”:
Check out www.Expatwisdom.com and sign up for one of my free one hour live “webinars”. They will take place about every two weeks for a very limited time so sign up now to listen in live and contribute your own thoughts and questions about Latin America.
JULY 2015 -LATIN AMERICAN SEMINAR NOTICE: Make your plans today for the next Latin American Expat Wisdom seminar. Just go to the www.ExpatWisdom.com main page and click on the Latin Seminar link for full details. The seminar will take place from Saturday, July 11th through Thursday July 16th, 2015.
-CONSULT WITH JOHNNY- SCHEDULE A CELL OR SKYPE CALL: Follow the consult link on the main page at www.ExpatWisdom.com and Johnny will help you sort out your Latin American plans.
Friday May 15, 2015
Friday May 15, 2015
-Would you like to take part in on one of my live “webinars?
Check out www.Expatwisdom.com and sign up for one of my free one hour live “webinars”. They will take place about every two weeks and free for a limited time so sign up now to listen in live and contribute your own thoughts and questions about Latin America.
-Some Latins, especially upscale Latins, don’t like the term “3rd world”. They much prefer the more PC term “developing nation”. In fact, to call someone a “trecer mundista” (a 3rd worlder) south of the border can be a harsh insult to some of the more sensitive educated Latins- though its often mouthed by Latin bosses to employees who have made errors on the job or have done something the chief bottle washer considers stupid. Use the 3rd world thing at your own risk...
-Latin Employees, their work ethic and what expats can expect from them as employers:
Expats, wannabees and gonnabees are always hiring Latin employees. You probably will too- and your first hiring experience almost always begins with a cleaning lady, gardener or maintenance man. There are certain cultural things you should know in general about your new employees before you get mad, angry, disappointed or even blow up at them. Yes, impatient, wound-up, “type A” gringos (used to certain standards and often cracking the whip on the job back in the states) have been known to boil and rage at some of the work habits of their Latin employees. Nope, it doesn’t have to be that way. Just knowing and understanding a few subtle and not so subtle Latin social and cultural differences can make all the difference. The key words are train, monitor and adapt...
-What about Latin professionals and their work ethic? Here’s the skinny on that often sore subject…
JULY 2015 -LATIN AMERICAN SEMINAR NOTICE: Make your plans today for the next Latin American Expat Wisdom seminar. Just go to the www.ExpatWisdom.com main page and click on the Latin Seminar link for full details. The seminar will take place from Saturday, July 11th through Thursday July 16th, 2015.
-CONSULT WITH JOHNNY- SCHEDULE A CELL OR SKYPE CALL: Follow the consult link on the main page at www.ExpatWisdom.com and Johnny will help you sort out your Latin American plans.