Chile

[pinkboy]

Ive been to Chile plenty of times in the last 5 years.

You are are spot in in regards to your research.

I do think Australia has much better career opportunities in general however it doesn't seem you are migrating there for that reason.

location is key to the lifestyle you want. Living in regional nsw vs rose bay sydney would give you a totally different lifestyle and the same applies in chile.

chile is economically stable however just being out and about you do realize they arent as "wealthy" as Australia. for example, not as much unnecessary spending like maintenance in parks, or side walks, graffiti removal etc.. plenty of stray dogs on the street. not as much of a cafe/fine dining culture as most Chileans are more frugal with their money.

one thing that did bother me was a lack of grass and trees in most areas(apart from the south of chile). for some reason it was one of the things i was so glad to see when i came back to sydney.

The positives are as you mentioned. i myself would like to live in chile for 6 months - 1 year and work remotely ( i did this for 3 months back in 2008). its also a excellent gateway to visit other parts of SA

Thanks Benvolio.

I guess a small part of my reasoning to post was to draw out anyone who had been there and comment, as you have done.

I have been networking with expats and Chileans on Facebook and signing up to all things related to Chile and Santiago, so I get plenty of emails every day. I liken it to when I started boarding school; its what you make of it that counts.

There is very little in the way of negatives so far. The 6.6 earthquake near Antofagasta this week didnt help!


pinkboy

 

[pinkboy]

Congrats, can I ask if your wife has always been onboard with this?

Also any resistance from your daughter? Not sure how old but what about her future tertiary education or job prospects?

Liz is on board to the fact I will be forced home. My work has taken an incredible toll on my physically and mentally. I now cannot even hardly drive out to mines to see clients, and I dare not work on site anymore. This is an exercise to reduce stress as much as quit work. Liz will be homesick the most, as she is highly connected with her family. I guess it will be a special month when she travels home every December. I on the other hand will probably be able to hold out a lot longer.

Kona's future is compromsed by our decisions for sure. I guess there must be no expense spared on education and tuition, because we should not stand in the way of whatever she decides to do.

Even if she's on board now, you may find widely differing views when you start living there. Be prepared to both make many compromises.

Btw your Spanish doesn't need to be great to survive there. If you can say hello, thank you, count, order a meal or tell a taxi where to go, you have many situations covered. In fact, after my course in Guatemala I was a bit disappointed that I had such few chances to practice conversations. It was only in non tourist situations that I had to dust off the conversational skills.

We are very concious that this will be a challenge. As part of our plan, we are coming up with coping mechanisms that should help us through. As above, Im sure Liz and Kona will love that month back home in Australia. Gives me a month to explore on my bike by myself, or have a boys trip over to ride with!

Im looking forward to the challenges that lie ahead in regards to language barrier. Immersion is key.



pinkboy

 

[pinkboy]

Can I ask - have you considered your tax situation in Australia? Presumably your income is still sourced within Australia, but you will be a non-resident. The impact of this could be substantial! Just a thought, and maybe worth considering early on so that you can structure things appropriately from the outset.

Yes, my accountant has been working me through it, and structuring appropriately. It seems all I have done the past couple of years is spend, spend, spend - but all for a good future cause.

Great news PB, I am surprised more people dont retire overseas where things are cheaper and where new adventures await.

Terry, you bring up a great point - Adventure. Life is far too short to worry about something as common as money. You cant buy memories.

pinkboy

 

[property_girl]

Kona's future is compromsed by our decisions for sure. I guess there must be no expense spared on education and tuition, because we should not stand in the way of whatever she decides to do.

Don't underestimate what an rich experience this will be for Kona. It will open her eyes to another culture. She will learn the language in no time and make friends for life. She will be bi-cultural and able to see the world through different eyes. It will broaden her outlook and stand her in good stead for the rest of her life.

 

[joeExpat]

*Cost of living cheaper than Australia (1/3).
*Kona able to go to an English speaking school still.
*Safe, healthy.

^^ These really sorted the chaff from the hay. Basically cuts all of S. E. Asia off, all of Europe

I wouldn?t have ruled out all of Europe. Spain matches these criteria (well maybe cost of living is 1/2 not 1/3), & it has one of the best health systems in the world. I semi-retired here & it?s pretty good despite the crisis (if you?ve got some money). But Chile sounds good too.

 

[Highlygeared]

Wow what a bold move. Congrats and well wishes are in order.

Know you've done some research but I could think of a handful of countries that almost meet your criteria and are a tad less left field. Ones that come to mind include Malaysia, Portugal, Spain, parts of Canada and the US, Czech Republic, Slovenia, Estonia,
etc and even Japan (seriously...with the AUD strong against the Yen and everything about 20-30% cheaper if you know where to look).

Caveat: I've never been to Chile

 

[Doncossack]

I wouldn?t have ruled out all of Europe. Spain matches these criteria (well maybe cost of living is 1/2 not 1/3), & it has one of the best health systems in the world. I semi-retired here & it?s pretty good despite the crisis (if you?ve got some money). But Chile sounds good too.

Great thread..

Also the roads in Spain and neighbouring France would be first class and probably a bit safer.. What are the roads in Chile like for cycling?

I have been living abroad for the last 13 years and have so many amazing memories and experiences. Also you will appreciate Australia so much more if you ever return. You will love it!!!

 

[seismic]

Very interesting..

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Santiago
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/arc...end-at-escondida/story-e6frg9dx-1226686170652

 

[heiding]

what a great adventure! South America is pretty cool from what i've seen so far, although I haven't done much travel yet - will happen a bit more this year.

you will definitely have to plan a trip to Buenos Aires, wonderful place, loads of parks and things to do. The economy is very bad though, inflation is 38%!! Still, there'll be elections in October and there is a lot of hope that things will improve. Your mining expertise will be useful in Chile (and Argentina)

Chile has had a dark (fairly recent) past - Pinochet, etc.

I would really emphasise learning Spanish - yes, you can get by, but people I know who live in Chile say that without Spanish it can be a bit hard.

Best of luck!

 

[geoffw]

Most countries in South and Central America have some sort of dark past. Mostly it goes back a lot of years. Most are stable today- Venezuela being an exception.

The Spanish in Chile is spoken with a rather different accent than Spanish in the northern parts of South America. My wife, who is Mexican, finds it very hard to understand. I Gather that it's a combination of speaking rapidly, using lots of slang, with a tendency towards shortening words.

 

[travelbug]

Good on you. You have certainly done your research and sounds like a wonderful plan.
Education can be tricky but you can tackle that as you go. It's not like you are selling everything and burning bridges. Even if you were unsure you could give it a go with no long term negative consequences.

Whenever I read posts like this I can't help but think "why don''t I just quit work and do that?" One day I'll take the leap.

I hope you keep us posted on your adventure.

 

[Jaggannath]

I loved Argentina and Peru (though I didn't spend time in Lima), but didn't have such happy memories of my time in Santiago. People smoke everywhere, there is a decent amount of smog hanging over the city, and there were plenty of protests that the police were putting down with water cannons (we donated the equivalent of $5 towards their protest at uni fees, and in return the guy warned us when the water cannon fires cover your eyes with your hands to protect them). They were protesting because their uni costs the same as it does in Australia, as it transpires. I hope your experience is better, as you'll be living there, and I wish you luck. English is pretty good in most of LatAm (with the notable exception of Bolivia), and as long as you try people are really helpful in that regard.

I look forwards to hearing your impressions after you visit.

 

[Blacky]

Kona's future is compromsed by our decisions for sure.

I disagree PB. Provided that she gains an education level sufficient to enter a 'western' university (if she chooses). Most international level schools are sufficient for this.

I place very little value in the schooling system - especially in Australia. She will gain a far greater depth of experience by leaving.

I don't believe it compromises her opportunities at all - in fact - I believe it will open her eyes to more possibilities than she could ever have imagined by staying in Aus.

Blacky

 

[MTR]

I disagree PB. Provided that she gains an education level sufficient to enter a 'western' university (if she chooses). Most international level schools are sufficient for this.

I place very little value in the schooling system - especially in Australia. She will gain a far greater depth of experience by leaving.

I don't believe it compromises her opportunities at all - in fact - I believe it will open her eyes to more possibilities than she could ever have imagined by staying in Aus.

Blacky

I agree with this as well.

I lived abroad for a number of years best thing I ever did, great experience and still enjoy telling my children about the various adventures I had, now I have daughter number 1 travelling/studying and now working o/seas.

PB
All the best on taking a chance and opening your mind to some great possibilities.
Of course I am biased but Australia is still number 1 place to live the good thing is you can always come back home whenever you want and you are welcome back

 

[WattleIdo]

Me too. I left a snobby girls school in Sydney and went to a much more relaxed International school in PNG (!) and my marks improved dramatically and stayed that way. First time I ever did my homework because there were less distractions.

 

[jim1964]

Saw this http://listverse.com/2010/07/07/10-...e=cbpicks&utm_medium=link&utm_campaign=direct

 

[nighteyes]

I think this is a fantastic move. I have worked in Santiago for about 8 weeks in two stints. Both times I thought it was a great place that I would love to spend more time in.

Please keep us up to date on the goings on.

 

[Mindmaster]

Hey PB, Awesome plan and well done on making the decision to relocate.

Your family and you are bound to have a fantastic time and experience. How old is your daughter? If she is young enough, she will take to her new environment like a fish to water and quickly end up flient in Spanish and working as your translator

Damn, hate threads like this. Gives me itchy feet

 

[cu@thetop]

Fascinating to hear PB. Please keep us updates with regular postings once you've settled in.

 

[The Falcon]

Pinkboy, will be following with great interest mate. Exciting times!