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Mexico: HIV Med Costs/Health Insurance:
Not all HIV meds in the US are available in Mexico. I know Complera and some of the more recent blends are not. As you likely know it is not a good idea to be changing the combo you use, so that would be my first step - is it available or will I need to keep US insurance and plan trips to get refills.
You might look at this website: http://censida.salud.gob.mx/interior/diamundial.html
Mexico: high speed internet in chapala:
We have high speed internet through TelMex bundled with our phone. You can see their plans here: http://telmex.com/web/hogar/aumenta-tu-velocidad
Notice that it also includes Clarovideo which gives online streaming of TV shows and movies (similar to Netflix).
Mexico: Ajijic Questions:
I really do hope these are the most important questions you have to ask. If so then you are not going to last in Mexico. Even in the gringo influenced area of Ajijic you are doomed to a life of frustration and daily irritation.
Yes, you can find imported processed foods that you'll find in the U.S. grocery stores but you'll pay two or even four times as much for them here as you would in the U.S.
You really should be coming TO something that excites and enlivens you instead of trying to bring an experience you have now into another country. You will face many, many, many challenging differences and if you can't accept them and learn to adapt then you will be another angry, irritated gringo yelling at Mexicans for the way they live their life and have built their society.
Mexico: Does anyone bank with USAA?:
Schwab High Yield is my main checkingredients account. They are great, great. I would look into the and transition all your processes (direct deposit, monthly payments) very soon.
I have been saved many times by Charles Schwab checking as it can be used at any ATM in the world. So wherever we are, we go to the ATM that is more secure and better laid out for entering PIN. Also at Home Depot in Guadalajara we made a larger purchase than planned and in was able to walk over and get more cash instead of hunting down a specific bank.
You will find few opportunities to use credit cards and will pay more when you do..
Mexico: Bringing a cat on the plane from NY to PVT:
There is no doubt you will need the health certificate if you are flying. The option is that your pet will be quarantined since you are not bringing in verification of health. This was our experience flying with our two cats. The airline needed to see the health certificate for the cats. They were young and had never traveled so we asked at airport security to have a private screening so they took us into a small room where we removed the cats from the carrying cases and then ran the cases through the scanners and brought them back to us. When we eventually got to Customs in Mexico we had to present our paperwork to the animal health department and they did a fairly full exam of both cats including temperature, weight, eye and ear exam, etc.
If you bring your pet in via car it is possible (maybe even likely) that they don't care if you have the paperwork or not. I've heard so many stories about being waved through while the pet owner is waving their paperwork thinking "I went to all that trouble to get this and you don't even want to look at it!!"
Mexico: Attending retire in Mexico seminar:
I know many people who have done this. We did not and most people do not. You will get a map and a lot of information that is readily available. The main advantage I hear from my friends who have done it is connections and quick friendships of other new arrivals. But we have found it incredibly easy to make friendships. Regarding the connections I will caution you NOT to buy through anyone they introduce you to. That is how the make their money by charging you more for everything. If that is not important to you then pay more than you need too. A friend bought her house and paid 50,000 or more USD because she didn't shop outside their referrals.
Mexico: Cat food high quality in SMDA?:
Decent cat food has been our biggest challenge since moving here a year ago. There is a Petco in SMdA. We have ended up at Petco https://www.petco.com.mx/, a local shelter that has a retail element, and bringing from the U.S.
The brands of wet food we use are Pride (made in US and sold at Petco) and Advancers (the best Mexico made food we have found). Dry food is easier but we still bring our kitty's favorite back from the U.S.
Mexico: SSA Benefits, deposit on USA bank?:
I had to wire money here to purchase our house and it was not cheap. It helped that the agency had a U.S. bank account so we got the U.S. Domestic fee rather than the International fee for the wire transfer. Unless there are other options, I'd avoid it because of the hassle and expense.
Before moving to Mexico, for many years we've traveled to Europe and Mexico. We found that Charles Schwab's High Yield Checking Account is the best way to get money out in a local currency. This has been our main source of getting money from the U.S. to us here and it has been a dream. To open the account you will need to also open an Investment Account with Schwab but we did this with $700 that we've since dropped to $250 which we've invested in an safe fund.
Our direct deposits go into the Schwab Checking and we go to any ATM in the world and withdraw money. If there is a fee (there always is) we get a reimbursement of that fee on the last day of the month.
Yesterday, I withdrew 14.000 MXN at an HSB ATM and 664 USD was taken from my account. I've checked over the years and found the exchange rate is about 1% less than the rate the banks get. You will not find that anywhere else.
Even if you calculate in the $250 I have invested as a total loss (although it is actually growing) I don't think you'll find an easier way to get money (any ATM will do) or a cheaper way (fees reimbursed and a very good exchange rate).
Mexico: Cost of Electricity in Mexico:
After living in Mexico for a year, I'd like to share perspective on the issue of electricity cost.
Today I paid our electric bill. It was 308 MXN for the two months (Oct/Nov). For all but one week we had house sitters here. This is a little more than when we are here. The two months (Aug/Sep) when we were here except for three weeks of the billing period when the house was empty our bill was 206 MXN. That means that our electricity cost for Aug/Sep was equivalent to around $10 USD for the two months and in Oct/Nov it was $16.50 for a total of just over $26 for four month.
I am posting this because I had heard before we came down that the cost of electricity in Mexico was very high. I want to show that it does not have to be. The reason, I think, why people say that it is high is that many of the gringos that come here are energy hogs and get caught in the multi-tied billing system.
Let me illustrate by the bill I paid today. We used 297 kWh. We were billed for the first 150 kWh at 0.793 for a charge of 118.95. The next 130 kWh were billed at 0.956 per kWh for a charge of 124.28. We only got into the third tier for 17 kWh which were billed at 2.802 per kWh for a charge of 47.63. There is another tier after this and we've not gotten there so I am not sure what the charge is but I don't want to find out.
Please notice that the tiers go from 0.793 to 0.956 to 2.802. So there is a jump of almost tripling once you get into the third tier. This makes people who are very poor and/or frugal pay less for their usage and therefore makes it possible for lower income individuals to have some lights or appliances that use electricity and not have to pay too much money to run them. But gringos who leave lights on and run fountains and pumps and other "luxury" items have to pay quite a bit more if they consume a large amount of electricity. Buddy and I have a water pump to run our water filter and get water to the tank on the roof and we have a jacuzzi that has jets and heater. But the fridge is an energy star and we don't run the electric dryer. Other than lights, electric gate, computers and such we don't use much electricity.
So my point is that it really pays to conserve and it really costs to be unaware and careless in your energy usage.
My last point is that a lot of people around Lake Chapala have installed solar panels. We just don't find that cost effective. It would take us the rest of our lives to get a return on such an investment. We have friends who have eight solar panels on their house and still pay the equivalent of $2 a month.
I welcome you sharing your story and perspective.
Mexico: Saw another dead body tonight.:
Please stop this thread.
If I had the option to delete it and get others I would.
If I get another nasty message I will remove myself from the Forum since this is my only option.
I don't need more spit and bitterness in my life.
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