Advice on Being an Expat in Belize
April 10th, 2007There’s some great general information about Belize here, but I found the parts about how he’s helping to improve the situation in the village to be most interesting.
Via: Joe Bagent:
Well, Tom, I hate like hell to give advice about settling in Belize. After all, though I’ve been there several times and now have settled there, I am a newcomer and like all writers, I am prone to run my mouth because because we like to hear ourselves talk. Lately though, I’ve come to know a lot of expats in my area, which is the poorer Garifuna villages along the coast.
Belize has many different cultures and types of terrain, ranging from mountain jungle, savannah, beach etc. Most Americans are set on buying and owning property because of their cultural economic indoctrination. But land can also be leased for very long periods of time there.
I should say in all honesty that, though it appears cheap to an American at first, Belize is the most expensive country in all of Central America. This becomes quite apparent after a while as you try to stretch your money and function economically for the long haul, especially for Americans who attempt to recreate the American lifestyle there. Plenty do it but that sort of life costs the same as in America.
Belize is attractive to English-only speakers in the US since Belize is officially an English speaking country. And masses in the US in general are still under the orchestrated illusion that US dollars are worth something and in fact are worth a lot out side of the US. I appreciate what you’ve published here because it’s indeed an eye opener. If someone from the US intends to live in Belize for an indefinite period of time and bring the trappings of his/her US lifestyle with him/her, then it indeed is going to cost because they are bring and maintain in what is essentially foreign to Belize and which cannot be supported by the exiting infrastucture.
Kevin, do you have any idea if US citizens could move themselves or expatriate their money to the sovereign Indian nations within the United States?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tribal_sovereignty
Does it seem like they should be able to form their own banks and currency?
http://cgi.ebay.com/INDIAN-TRIBAL-SERIES-COMMEMERATIVE-MEDAL-IN-FINE-SILVER_W0QQitemZ180010644600QQcmdZViewItem#ebayphotohosting
Imagine if people had to convert their $14 billion a year in USD gambling money to silver-backed Tribal Indian money…
http://www.state.ia.us/government/dia/Winnebago%20Gaming%20Compact.pdf
They could take back their homeland once the ship hits the span if they got organized.