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Showing content with the highest reputation on 12/01/2019 in all areas

  1. Dude, clean up your language and make your point without any F bombs.
    5 points
  2. Because many wont let go, they want this to be lala land usa, and not a small working village in Mexico . Always refer to how it is back home, prices, standards, services, law enforcement, currency, wages, tipping etc. Its mexico. Forget the states till you go back.this is a totally different culture and country. There are many who totally get involved with local charities and integrate into the culture and get to understand it, instead of being rude ungrateful and expect mexico to be like usa. I know of quite a few folk who have been here 5 years or more who have had to move back to usa, getting too expensive here. Just more evidence of over paying and thus forcing prices higher and higher for everyone !
    5 points
  3. You can have the same climate and much lower prices just by moving to the south side of the lake. But hardly anybody does it, it's more fun to complain about prices going up. Human nature, nothing more, nothing less.
    4 points
  4. Do you always get this "excited" when someone disagrees with you ? LOL
    4 points
  5. I think restaurants here are pricing themselves out of business. The snowbirds will pay the prices but in the slow season the restaurants will suffer especially with all competition popping up. Rent has gone crazy! Landlords want the same amount they get from snowbirds from a full time long term tenant. Locals find it very hard to find a rental they can afford and they can not afford to buy. The gringos are making it very hard for the working Mexican to afford to live here. Don't want this to become a town of mostly gringos and we only see Mexicans doing labor but not able to live in the community. Part of the love of living here is being able to live next door to our wonderful Mexican friends
    4 points
  6. Mexjerry I do not think you have a clue about wages in Mexico.. I know a young woman who works in a store in a small town in Mexico she makes 40 pesos a day and I am being cheap at paying an unskilled woman 60 pesos an hour for cleaning or cooking.. ??? I have been here 19 years .. and I do not compare prices here with the US.. and I am not even from the US.. We at Lakeside way overpay the help and you want to pay even more.... 500 pesos for 3 hours so you are going to pay what for the day 1200 1300 pesos?? are you insane? than teacher or engineers?
    4 points
  7. CBS News - Sunday Morning just aired a 10 minute "special" about Shriners Hospitals for Children featuring our spokesperson, Alec Cabacungan. View it here... keep the kleenex handy ! CBS News - Shriners Hospitals for Children
    3 points
  8. Avoid them and their clubs and organizations, make more Mexican friendships. I see what looks like new people from the north but rarely ever have contact with them as they seem to huddle together. If you want to absorb the Mexican culture then you have to immerse yourself into it. Forget about where you came from and start thinking and acting like a Mexican. Fairly soon "them" will become "us" and what used to be "us" will become "them".
    3 points
  9. Experience counts for something. BTW, why are all cost converted to $US, other expats live here from other countries, and last I looked I'm living in Mexico.
    3 points
  10. Most of the new people I run into, are dumb as a post, over paying for things is only part of it...Very few have taken the time to learn the language, the customs, they walk around in a trance, no eye contact, no hello how are you today, just nothing people...Lived in Latin America for many years, and have never seen anything like it....I live in Chapala, and no so crazy here, although the economic refugees are thick here....I am embarrased for my countryman...Just brain dead ZOMBIES...
    3 points
  11. The problem of rising costs is ...too many yenkees with too much money to throw around
    3 points
  12. Haha, if she won't ask for a figure she is hoping you will be the one to name it and that it will be higher than from a fellow Mexican. Ask her what she wants and say yes to it. Things don't need to be that complicated.
    3 points
  13. I have lived in numerous countries in my time and never encountered this ridiculous problem anywhere. There were no American expats in these places.
    3 points
  14. Too many expats just wont listen, and compare things back to their home country. This is mexico. Theres a recent thread about cost of living has shot up here recently, its stuff like this thats part of the problem,especially ajijic Totally excessive tipping, saying how cheap services are, etc etc. All just ruins it for the locals and long term expats. Unfortunately this area is a bubble to most, and never see the real parts of mexico and will blindly go along living in la la land.
    3 points
  15. Kyle, when Mexico's current president took office on December 1, 2018, one of the very first things he did was raise the minimum wage, which at the end of 2018, was 80 pesos per day, everywhere in Mexico. Up until AMLO took office, annual raises in the minimum wage had been approximately 4 pesos. In the area near the USA border, AMLO doubled the minimum wage, to 176 pesos. In other parts of the country, the raise was about 25 pesos.
    2 points
  16. And the average laborer Mexican's wage has not gone up
    2 points
  17. And when the mexicans only have pesos?? This is real inflation.
    2 points
  18. You are way over reacting to the situation. Relax, the market will always sort things out.
    2 points
  19. Actually the brick quality comes from the clay the sand they are made of.. in Chiapas they use manure as well in the mixture and the way and temperature at which they are fired. You can hear by knocking on them if they are properly fired. We make kiln so we test them for refraction and that varies widely according to the region they come from . The most refractory we have found so far are in Chiapas in a small town called Teopisca.The remain intact until 1300 degrees and they only cost 2.5 pesos. They are way better than many of the expensive ones..
    2 points
  20. @bmh is not being cheap. She is accurately pointing out what real wages are here. Paying 500p for 3 hours work is 167p per hour. As loathe as I am to compare Mexican prices to US prices, 167p is $8.60 USD per hour. The US federal minimum wage is $7.25 per hour. While you *think* you are being generous, you are in fact creating resentment among the locals who know the value of their work and the value of their neighbors' work. When an expat starts paying 3 times the going rate they are dissing the majority of workers who are being paid a normal wage. Such "generosity" will also create resentment towards the entire expat community. When in Rome (or Chapala), better to live by local rules and mores.
    2 points
  21. Well I watched this and didn't identify much with this couple, particularly when it comes to food. Having lived here for nearly 12 years, this has been our experience. This is based on our experience of living in NM, updated with our frequent trips there. Car expense: More actual maintenance required, more frequent tire replacement but cost other than tires generally less. Car insurance considerably less. Gasoline considerably more but use considerably less of it. Tolls and gas prices make auto touring in this country much more expensive. On balance, a wash. Energy and utilities: Considerably more but offset by using considerably less. No need to heat or cool. When cost of treating municipal water included, water is considerably more expensive. On balance, a wash. Property taxes: Much less but little received for what is paid out. Food: Using markets and shopping Mexican, considerably less, particularly for fresh fruits. Go to Costco for the American stuff. Significantly higher particularly when you include the two hour round trip to get there. Keep that expense down by only going every 2-3 months. Still definitely cheaper here. Eating out: Not nearly as cheap as it used to be. Can be a bargain but often just a wash. Eating out has gone up here percentage wise far more than in NM. Housing: Was pretty moderate when we moved here, has gone up a lot. Rents in NM are less than they are here. But you are paying for the "resort" location with superb weather. Buying in a premium location here more than it is in NM now. Internet, cell phones, land lines, MUCH cheaper. We are shocked at what our U.S. and Canadian friends spend for cell phones. Very easy to cheaply stream the U.S. TV you want to watch, no real need for cable or satellite IMO. Household help: Basically unaffordable in the U.S. and Canada, still affordable here. House maintenance labor: Far, far cheaper here. Variable quality, you really have to do your homework to get good work. Year round outdoor living and mild climate: Priceless! YMMV
    2 points
  22. What a disgusting thing to say about people who selflessly give. What have you done for humanity?
    2 points
  23. 2018 minumum daily wage was $88.68 until Dec. 18, 2018. ALMO raised it to $102.68. $14.00 pesos more. 13.5 percent. In the free zone of the border it was $88.68 and he doubled it to $176.72.
    1 point
  24. I hear ya jillin'. Did lots of renovating with hubby over many houses and many years both here and in Canada. My favourite trick was to wait until he went on a golf vacation or was in the hospital and then just do what I wanted. All done and finished by the time he got back. My absolute favourite was when he was consulting in the city from Monday to Thursday and only came home for the three day weekend. He kept telling me that he'd called and I wasn't home. Well, I was helping build new kitchen cabinets for the farmhouse... sanding, staining and scut work with the carpenter. He came home early one Thursday just as I was cleaning up after the installation. His jaw dropped when he walked in and he stammered "I thought I'd come home and find you with another man and I found you with... a kitchen." The house finally sold shortly thereafter.
    1 point
  25. Of course, the saying goes, "Can you afford the remodel AND the divorce?"
    1 point
  26. True, I wasn't referring to Santa Fe, which many New Mexicans don't consider to be part of the state at all since it is full of New Yorkers and Californians. I was comparing to Albuquerque where we lived or Las Cruces where we would go if we have to move back. When I compare costs here to similar resort type locations in the U.S., such as the CA or east coast beach towns we are vastly less expensive. As for the restaurant prices sometimes I wonder if the Tapatios are influencing that more than we are since my experience of GDL is restaurants tend to be pretty pricey there. Interestingly, I've had Mexicans from Mexico City comment on how pricey restaurants are in GDL. On the other hand, where our artisan family lives just south of Oaxaca the cost of living is astoundingly low in comparison to here. If you didn't live in Oaxaca centro I would guess it would be easy to live there on a Social Security check.
    1 point
  27. Wow! Judging the character of people about whom one knows literally nothing. Interesting to say the least.
    1 point
  28. Yet another case of newbies throwing their cash around willy nilly. They just dont understand what negative impact they are having on the local economy. Whatever happened to common sense?
    1 point
  29. My rent was 1000 a month until an American offered 13000 a month a 30% increase
    1 point
  30. In the eight years I've lived down here I would guess; (and I mean guess) - gasoline and propane have doubled in cost - restaurant meals are up 60 to 70% - groceries are up 50% - I don't know about rents. I own but electricity and water are probably up 50% - property taxes up 20 to 30 %. and as tycobb said all of this offset by the peso decline SunFan
    1 point
  31. For sure the cell phone deals are amazing. My Canadian friends are blown away that I pay the equivalent of about $10 Canadian for 3 weeks of unlimited calling and texting to anywhere in North America. I call my friends and family and yak for an hour but they can't even receive a text from me without being charged for it.
    1 point
  32. So how does that explain the rising cost of living in GDL with 5 million people in the Metropolitan area and not that many foreigners to affect any thing. COL is going up everywhere and restaurants of the same type of foods and degree of quality or more expensive in GDL than the Chapala area. Most all the horde of Tapatios that come here on the weekends, holidays, and fiestas think this place is a real bargain. Even the real estate prices are lower, if you compare apples to apples and not apples to oranges. 10,000 vehicles that come here just about every weekend from the big city, are not coming because it´s too expensive.
    1 point
  33. Boy, did that bring a tear to my eye. I´´ve drank many a pint at O´donoghues on the northeast corner of St. Stephen´s Green in Dublin where The Dubliners were first formed. The last I heard, Paddy Reilly had retired to South Florida and owned or had interest in a pub there. you should hear him sing Athenry in Japanese. LOL They, The Dubliners and Paddy. were a huge success in Tokyo, sold out every performance on their tour of Japan. A little tip of the hat to the lady in Chula Vista, who i know that "Fields" is her favorite Irish song. I hope she reads your post Pappy.
    1 point
  34. Expect time and cost overruns. Allow for it in your budget. Any change you make during construction is the golden opportunity for the contractor to make extra on you. Be aware of it, don't fear it and go ahead and make those changes. You may live the rest of your life there so have some reserve money and pay more attention to the finished product than to your budget. We built one right behind our BnB while running that business and we learned a lot. You can pay by the week for labor or pay by the square meter. They know how to maximize their payment whichever way you choose. Remain friendly with them whatever you do and NEVER pitch a fit on the job site. There are so many ways they can retaliate that you will never notice until after the last payment is made. Go with the flow, smile when you visit the job site, send pozole for lunch once in a while and it may be one of the most memorable projects you ever take on. It was for us!
    1 point
  35. You said a mouthful Angus. Doubt message was received however.
    1 point
  36. My wife and I were in China for 2 weeks while she was working. We were in Shenzhen and dined frequently with the co-workers in the office she was working with. We experienced everything I referenced plus much more that I will not graphically describe. Good for you that you must have been in areas catering to tourists. I'm sure a guided tour group would steer clear of those places. How about"Wild dog". 85 rmb "Best parts of wild dog". 120 rmb But you were expected to select your dog from the cages in front. You're the one who doesn't know what you are talking about. I was the only one slack jawed. My wife had spent 2 years in the Peace Corps in the Phillipines in the 60's. Nothing new here she said.
    1 point
  37. 60 pesos is a decent wage when one is living on the Mexican economy and not the US or Canadian. This kind of thinking has really messed up things for the Mexicans who wish to hire someone to do a job and cannot afford to pay NOB wages. It still is, "When in Rome, do as the Romans do", in this case Mexico. This is something Mexicans often complain about when speaking of the Gringos, how they have been forced from their homes when the houses are bought and the rents become NOB rents instead of Mexican.
    1 point
  38. 1 point
  39. Take her to the vet to find out if she is sick. If not, release her or get her fixed and release her. She may belong to someone in the neighborhood.
    1 point
  40. 500 pesos . the price of a mason for one full day of work?? My cleaning lady cooks for us and she makes 60 pesos an hour.. Five hundred pesos is a large amount of money for someone who is not a professional chef to prepare food.
    1 point
  41. I have been at the cabrito cafe on the east side of Jocotepec plaza when people have requested the goat brains in their birria. The man got a goat skull and knocked on it several times and the brains came out into the persons birria. Forget the name of the cafe but their is usually an older man the owner sitting there supervising things. I go there quite often for birria.
    1 point
  42. First of all chillin, why is it important to you to call me ignorant? Make you feel good? Make you feel superior. Second, you are correct that I do NOT know how legal systems work around the world! Never claimed I did. Most don't but you seem to claim that knowledge. Also I don't know how that is relevant to this discussion. Good for you if you do but por favor refrain from calling those of us who do not, ignorant. Por favor. Thirdly, all of this is about a gringa here who is probably already in over her head and has an ill husband to boot. Now some want her to step off into the legal world of Mexico needing 'connections' and hope for the best. I am NOT among those who would wish that upon her in a hundred years and would hope that she can get a resolution without all of that hocus pocus. She seemingly also needs some help understanding the situation with a motorhome that has not moved in 9 years but I'm betting it would be best for her to remove it 'legally'.
    1 point
  43. In the interest of being completely honest, and full disclosure... happyjillin is correct. The children are sent to the Shriners Hospital that can best look after the child. At the moment, the family that own Focaccia Restaurant east of Vista del Lago is in Montreal Shriners hospital getting a replacement cochlear implant to replace the one the hospital put in a few years ago. As Shriners, we are always aware of the costs involved, but the child's treatment is our primary concern. Our Mexico City hospital is currently looking at installing a Telemedicine unit at the new San Antonio Hospital. When completed, it will mean that we can provide our services to evenmore local children at a reduced cost. Important...... ALL of the funds raised at ALL of our fundraisers goes to the treatment of children. There are NO administration costs.
    1 point
  44. I'm a member of the Lake Chapala Shrine Club and a member of the Oshawa Shrine Club in Ontario. There are 22 Shriners Hospitals.... 20 the the USA and 1 in Canada (Montreal) and one in Mexico (Mexico City). Here is the web page for our Mexico City Hospital: Shriners Hospital for Children - Mexico City. Every Shrine Club worldwide raises funds to send eligible children to our hospitals for treatment, regardless of their ability to pay. LAKE CHAPALA SHRINE CLUB WHAT HAPPENS TO THE MONEY? The Lake Chapala Shrine Club is relatively small but very active. The Club’s biggest activity is helping Lakeside children with medical problems, either at the Shriners Hospital in Mexico City or locally at Lakeside or in Guadalajara. STATISTICS FOR OUR SHRINE CLUB IN 2018 Trips to Shriners Hospital in Mexico City 71 Local Treatments Lakeside and Guadalajara 80 Total....... 151 Shrine Club Funds spent.....................$402,040* *Includes $39,328 contributed by Niños Incapacitados STATISTICS FROM 2006-2018: Trips to the Shriners Hospital in Mexico City 1125 Local treatments Lakeside and Guadalajara 851 Total.....1,976 Shrine Club Funds spent................. $3,932,962
    1 point
  45. Solution of one cup white vinegar half cup baking soda dash If dish soap mixed in 4 cups water it works
    1 point
  46. yes there are differnces but the system s still broke so good luck on certain things...
    1 point
  47. You are outnumbered by those that say it is excellent, including myself. Could you explain further?
    1 point
  48. To me , it is a mistake to take high school graduates directly into medical school. It takes a certain maturity that an 18-20 year old lacks to be able to handle face-to-face patients with understanding and compassion. They need more maturity that a college education and age will hopefully give them.
    1 point
  49. For clarification, we never used the public health care systems nor did we ever have insurance. I'm also pretty good at spotting B.S. when I see and hear it... like the time when the Oncologist said there were NO side effects from chemo. We just looked at one another with eyebrows raised and left shortly after. Unfortunately, as with all professions, 50% of the Doctors graduated in the bottom half of their class. Do your due diligence. Our experiences (many) were 95% good and far superior to anything that we experienced in Canada. YMMV.
    1 point
  50. No, not at all. BUT Pedro was tired of seeing all that business go to the French bakery beside him every morning. He had given permission to use his outdoor tables, and thought he'd reap some of the benefits. I don't know if it has occurred to him that hot, fresh, steamy, buttery smelling, chocolatey pastries are a far cry from bacon and yeggs.
    1 point
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