Jump to content
Chapala.com Webboard

Top 3 Pros & Cons of Lake Chapala


RedSwan

Recommended Posts

I've lived a lot of different places over the years, and visited even more, and I've learned that *every* place has its pros and cons.

Here's what I'm guessing will be mine, having not yet visited:

PROS:  Weather (duh!), cost of living, friendly and active community

CONS:  "Manana", creepy crawlies (scorpions - ack!), poor internet, theft

What are your PROS and CONS?

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Replies 51
  • Created
  • Last Reply

Mañana always has various meanings: Maybe-Never–Not today-I dare not say No, etc.

Scorpions do exist. I saw three in 13 years. Stepped on them. Problem solved.

Internet seldom failed in either Ajijic or Chapala centro. First years were on dial-up!

Weather was always pleasant. Even when it occasionally rained in the daytime!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

3 hours ago, RedSwan said:

I've lived a lot of different places over the years, and visited even more, and I've learned that *every* place has its pros and cons.

Here's what I'm guessing will be mine, having not yet visited:

PROS:  Weather (duh!), cost of living, friendly and active community

CONS:  "Manana", creepy crawlies (scorpions - ack!), poor internet, theft

What are your PROS and CONS?

 

I pretty much agree. Although "manana" doesn't really bother me much anymore.  I've gotten used to the slower pace and like it.  Scorpions depend on where you live.  I live up on the hill.  We fumigate regularly to keep them down, but we've had times of the year when we have 5-6 a week.  Now, if we keep on top of the regular fumigation, we keep them down to about one or two a month, and they are usually toes up or almost dead.

I would say my top Pros are weather, slower pace of life, and the engaging and friendly Mexican people.  Cost of living differences depend on where you came from.  We came from an area that was not that high COL already, so we see only a small difference there.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Pros: The lake itself.  Quaint cobblestone streets and colorful buildings; great walking-around town (Ajijic).  Proximity to GDL airport.  

Cons: US treatment of expats with regard to financial accounts and banking.  The legally required employee-employer relationship with maids and gardeners (we use Spring Clean which negates that for maids, but haven't found a gardening service solution yet).  

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Pros:  Great weather, big selection of restaurants, excellent air service north, involved community, vibrant arts scene, beautiful scenery, great touring within a few hours, amazing local businesses given the size of the place, very friendly and helpful locals, affordable and competent domestic help, decent and reasonably priced medical and dental services, quick access to GDL for everything that isn't here.

Cons:  Lousy roads and sidewalks, those damned topes, very poor municipal services, lots of traffic, very wet rainy season, lots of loose dogs and dog crap, can be noisy and trashy.

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Pros: 1. Weather of course. 

          2.Never been made to feel unwanted, or unwelcome by the Mexican people.

         3.The hundreds of 'Gringo volunteers who give unstintingly of their time to the many 'causes'

Con:  The treacherous so-called cobbled streets.

         Reluctance to allow workers inside my house...after several thieving incidents.

        Nocturnal insects that I can't get rid of.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Ah yes, bugs. Do move to an area where there are no gnats--low-lying areas can have swarms of gnats. Outside patio fans are some help. Then there are cutter ants, which will destroy all the beautiful plants you just bought; we were out spraying for them tonight. Plus there are disease carrying mosquitoes in the summer. And then there are spiders: my best advice is to ALWAYS check the shower before you get in--just saying from experience that it is NOT funny (well, maybe it IS funny!) slapping at a spider when you are nude and wet. And then there are roaches--well, the less said about this the better--but, it is a good idea to get an exterminator in once a year, or more often depending on where you live. I have a deal: the bugs get the outdoors and I get the indoors and any bug that steps across the threshold is a dead bug. Including scorpions, which I persist in thinking are kinda cute, sort of like a forklift steaming along--why they come under the threshold and turn left for the master bedroom is beyond me to comprehend. The good news is that they are rare here in beautiful La Canacinta.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Dear Bisbee Gal:  This is off topic but I was recently in Bisbee for the weekend and met spa nice couple who said their neighbors/friends had sold their Bisbee home to move to Ajijic.  (It was one of those fun, serendipitous Bisbee conversations.)  Might you be that friend?  I am hpreturning to Ajijic for 5 months with an eye to a permanent move.  Currently living in Tucson.  

Link to comment
Share on other sites

3 hours ago, El Saltos said:

Cons: Marginal infrastructure, Useless police and "legal system," Burglary/theft

I can definitely see where the infrastructure would be an issue.
Can you say more about "useless police and legal system"?
Any tips other than the usual common sense stuff (don't leave things unlocked, no valuables in site) regarding burglary/theft?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

17 hours ago, JayBearII said:

Ah yes, bugs. Do move to an area where there are no gnats--low-lying areas can have swarms of gnats. Outside patio fans are some help. Then there are cutter ants, which will destroy all the beautiful plants you just bought; we were out spraying for them tonight. Plus there are disease carrying mosquitoes in the summer. And then there are spiders: my best advice is to ALWAYS check the shower before you get in--just saying from experience that it is NOT funny (well, maybe it IS funny!) slapping at a spider when you are nude and wet. And then there are roaches--well, the less said about this the better--but, it is a good idea to get an exterminator in once a year, or more often depending on where you live. I have a deal: the bugs get the outdoors and I get the indoors and any bug that steps across the threshold is a dead bug. Including scorpions, which I persist in thinking are kinda cute, sort of like a forklift steaming along--why they come under the threshold and turn left for the master bedroom is beyond me to comprehend. The good news is that they are rare here in beautiful La Canacinta.

::shudder::  This is the part I"m least looking forward to. Other than exterminators and keeping food secured, any other tips for minimizing indoor crawlies?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

22 minutes ago, RedSwan said:

::shudder::  This is the part I"m least looking forward to. Other than exterminators and keeping food secured, any other tips for minimizing indoor crawlies?

A lot of the windows and doors here are not properly sealed, baby bugs can crawl underneath. This is the area exterminators concentrate on. It is very easy to apply your own powders and sprays, there are pet friendly brands.You can buy door sweeps and weather stripping, but no one seems to use them here. The dangerous mosquitoes are small, and do not like wind. If you are working on your desk, especially in the morning, keep a small fan running around your lower legs and ankles.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

24 minutes ago, R2D2 said:

Pros: weather,friends and food

Cons: Crime,government / police corruption and lack of a big hospital in lakeside.

Good grief! A whole bunch of BIG hospitals are 30-40 minutes away in Guadalajara,pop. 6 1/2 million same as any city NOB. No more crime here than anywhere with the same demographics and pop. NOB,probably less. The vast majority of us are not  affected by this alleged corruption now are we? Don't some of you get tired of constantly mumbling about this? I think I'll go on my patio now and contemplate my navel and the birds and bees while enjoying a bit of tequila and watch the neighbourhood kids actually playing real games on the safe street other than diddling with electronics in their basement.

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, CHILLIN said:

A lot of the windows and doors here are not properly sealed, baby bugs can crawl underneath. This is the area exterminators concentrate on. It is very easy to apply your own powders and sprays, there are pet friendly brands.You can buy door sweeps and weather stripping, but no one seems to use them here. The dangerous mosquitoes are small, and do not like wind. If you are working on your desk, especially in the morning, keep a small fan running around your lower legs and ankles.

Your post brought back many memories. Especially needing a fan under your desk to keep the mosquitos away. That's very true and good advice.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

A ceiling fan on low will deter most of the mosquitoes, many people use mosquito nets on their beds.  We live downtown Chapala and have a decent sized garden.  I might spot one scorpion a year.  Once we put rubber strips under all the doors to our house, in the past 5 years we haven't had any scorpions get in our house (knock on wood).  For us, spiders aren't a problem in the house, the house geckos keep their populations almost nonexistant.  Outside their are some, but nothing extreme.  Black widows get pretty large down here, I just step on them when I see them.  If you have every lived in the country in the south east US, there is no comparison.  Compared to our lives in NC, their are much fewer bugs here than there.  And also, bees are rare and usually not agressive and rarely will chase you.  In NC the bees were so many and so agressive we could barely us our porches.  The German hornets and wasps in NC were terrifying, here I almost never see them.  If you live further out of town or live in a newly developed area the scorpions could be bad.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

My gardener goes around with something and spays the exterior walls with something 1-2 times a year.  The only scorpion I've seen in 8 years came in on a box from the grocery store.  

Mosquitoes vary with the year.  Some years they are horrible, some years, non existent.

The people and the weather are always great.

 

 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.




×
×
  • Create New...