About wyatt4500

Status:

Expatriate  

Gender:

Male

Currently Lives:

Uruguay

Citizen Of:

United States

Some Forum Posts:

Uruguay: Looking to travel to Uruguay:

Hi, I'm an American living in Montevideo. There are a lot of apartment rentals here in Uruguay as it's a very popular regional vacation spot. One question to ask if if you'd like the advantages of a capital city~restaurants, cultural activities, music, etc..or simply want peace and quiet. Montevideo combines the best elements of a cosmopolitcan city with a small town feel. Atlantida, Piriopolis and Punta del Este are the principal coastal vacation spots. Try Searching for place specific apartment rentals, living in Montevideo, etc. Good luck. Feel free to email me if you'd like.

Uruguay: Adjusting to Expat Life in Uruguay:

I'm an American who has lived the last 4 years in Argentina and (now) Uruguay. When moving abroad you not only have to know that it will be different but allow (or force yourself) to be excited about that very prospect. How much culture shock you'll have depends a lot on how much you've lived abroad, if you're with someone or alone, etc...but I would highly recommend that you study the language before you come and plan to take an immersion language course when you get here as part of your acclimation/orientation plan. There are 3 or 4 good Spanish language schools here in Montevideo where you can take 2-4 hours a day/5 days a week from U$80-200 dollars. Not only will a course like this help you get a good working foundation under you...but it will give you something constructive to do, and allow you to meet others~local people and visitors like yourself, which will mitigate the effects of feeling at a loss/culture shock. Go out and explore. (Use your Spanish.) Montevideo is a European-style capital city with a lot to do...cafes, great restaurants, beach front walks IN the city, music, dance (tango), theater...etc...all for half of what you'd spend in the U.S. or Western Europe. Learning some of the language is the single best way to turn what is unfamiliar and disorienting into something exciting and fun. The most complex and, at first, the most troublesome part of moving to Uruguay was simply assembling all the necessary paperwork to open bank accounts, arrange an apartment 'guarantee', etc., but by doing your homework before you come (contact some people who live here) these minor hassles are easily surmounted.

Uruguay: Uruguay -vs- Argentina:

I'm an American living in Montevideo, and I have also lived recently (3.5 yrs) in Argentina. I would HIGHLY recommend Uruguay over Argentina on almost any measure. Uruguay is a friendly, relaxed, politically stable, relatively safe and enjoyable place to live. Montevideo is a wonderful coastal city with a small town feel. This means you'll have a wide range of restaurants and cultural activities availabe year round...but it's a place where everyone knows everyone else...which pays extraordinary benefits once you've paid a few dues and gotten to know who is who, who to trust, and who not to. The coastal areas offer fairly good beaches and there are expat communities but offer much less to do. You will have to have a car anywhere outside of Montevideo, whereas in the city you won't need one. (Frankly...I wouldn't DRIVE in Argentina, much less own a car. I've lived in Mediteranean Europe, Mexico, etc...and Argentina is BY FAR the most dangerous place to drive I have ever seen. Noone stops...EVER. Uruguay by contrast is simply 'sort of bad', comparable to many other places outside the U.S. The crime and corruption issue in Argentina cannot be overstated. Buenos Aires is a huge city and very vibrant (I lived there for a year.) but street crime is bad and getting worse as the Argentine economy slips into the abyss once again. Uruguay isn't perfect but it's MUCH safer, especially in any of the places where you'll likely choose to live. Banking, healthcare, retirement living...are slam dunks in favor of Uruguay. Good luck. Email me if you'd like.

Date Joined:

7/30/2009

Total Posts:

3

Posts/Day:

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