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Lakeside increased population?


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Funny, I don't know a single person who has said  they don't want to move to Mexico because they are afraid of anything. Most wish they could do what we have done but the most common reasons for staying put are family ,friends and healthcare (Medicare or Obamacare). We must travel in different circles, as you pointed out earlier. Viva la difference, Viva Mexico. But many have also made the move.

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1 hour ago, Mainecoons said:

I do know a few like this but I think people in general either are OK with living in a foreign country or they are not regardless of which country.  Expats IMO are more adventurous than the general population. 

I agree and all the Expats I have run into seem to be the adventurous type. It seems to have been a prerequisite to pack up and move away from your comfort zone and fit into another World not similar to where you have been most of your life and adapt. I couldn´t be more content to find new things to discover here and even after all these decades of dealing with Mexico and Mexicans Mexico itself still surprises me on occasion. ;)

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to move to Lakeside.. I would not call that very adventurous at all..  Move to a place where no one speak your language where you do not have access to the amenities you are used to, where the stores do not carry what you used to get back home, where you do not have shaw and I do not know what else.. No I would not call the expats to areas where there are lots of expat especially adventurous.

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So a bit of additional perspective for the few hanging on this late into what has become one of the more epic threads in forum history. Just the fact that that we're closing in on 200 posts here says a great deal about just how volatile the scene here has become, though I am certainly not drawing any conclusions.
 
Bisbee Gal and gringal are both people I greatly admire, and as I respect and admire them both  I have to point out that they have the wherewithal to live in a very small and exclusive area of central Ajijic that is indeed entirely negotiable on foot, reasonably quiet and very close to the lake. That area is the living definition of "the exception that proves the rule" when it comes to romantic notions of living at Lakeside, and it comes at a huge cost premium relative to the other 90% of the area. 


IF you can afford to buy or rent housing on the south side of the carretera in Ajijic from 5th de Febrero on the east to Paseo de la Pesca in La Floresta on the West and encompassing the northermost boundaries of Las Selvias and La Villita then you can indeed enjoy the "walk everywhere'" lifestyle described in these posts - provided you have the money and never need to go to Super Lake or Guadalajara. And if you have THAT kind of money, there are hundreds of places with fine climates you can live in in the U.S. that have functional infrastructure, rule of law, trash pickup, internet service faster than 5MB, clean air, hiking and biking trails and weather that while perhaps not as mild as Lakeside on a year-round basis is more comfortable overall because of the ability to slightly modify it with a thermostat - something that doesn't exist here. And bear in mind that the endlessly touted "walk everywhere" schtick here assumes you're able to negotiate cobblestones, endless dog poop, heavy traffic, gaping holes in the sidewalk, etc. into your 80's or 90's. No wonder that illegal golf carts and/or gringos driving when they ought to have had their keys taken away decades ago are such endemic parts of life here.

Those who tout the “ideal” climate at Lakeside, in my experience, are usually the very ones who spend May and June visiting family N.O.B. and a month or two in the winter escaping Lakeside’s cabiñuelas at a $1200 a month rental in La Manzanilla. Add up the costs and many who live here could in fact choose to live almost anywhere if they only bothered to add up all that they spend saving money living in paradise. 

 

 

 

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2 hours ago, Tiny said:

Sorry, that makes me laugh.

Actually, it seems to me that those who have chosen this lifestyle have less of a need for family times and grandchildren than most people who treasure the experiences of seeing grandchildren growing up and being at their activities. I would say that family closeness is not(and probably has never been) one of the strong suits of this group. Each to his own. Family is still very important to many NOB, and that is a major factor why many do not choose to live out their days away from what makes them happy.

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!0 years ago or 20 years ago or even before that you could move here, did not have t speak the language , LCS was here and there were plenty of foreigners living here. Yes you had to go to Guadalajara to go to bigger stores but it still was very friendly to foreigners... nothing adventurous about the place.

The climate is not eternal spring to say the least.. April and May are way hotter than spring weather and December and January are way colder than spring weather as well.. But the weather at Lakeside beats the weather in a lot of other places.. I was checking out nurseries yesterday in Berriozabal near Tuxtla and it was 38.. miserable.. I was happy to go back to San Cristobal where it was something like 18 by the time we got back.. I know may gets hot up there  but it does not last that long and with fans it is fine as the nights cool off unlike many other places.

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While we enjoy the amenities available here that may not be available to expats elsewhere in MX, we also travel around MX to other areas.  We have been to pretty much every city in Mexico that has a non-stop flight out of GDL and others with easy one-stops.  Where flights don't go, we take a couple of road trips a year.  

For us it is a good compromise.  Quick access to GDL was a major factor in choosing Ajijic over SMA for our home base.  

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11 hours ago, Kevin K said:

So a bit of additional perspective for the few hanging on this late into what has become one of the more epic threads in forum history. Just the fact that that we're closing in on 200 posts here says a great deal about just how volatile the scene here has become, though I am certainly not drawing any conclusions.
 
Bisbee Gal and gringal are both people I greatly admire, and as I respect and admire them both  I have to point out that they have the wherewithal to live in a very small and exclusive area of central Ajijic that is indeed entirely negotiable on foot, reasonably quiet and very close to the lake. That area is the living definition of "the exception that proves the rule" when it comes to romantic notions of living at Lakeside, and it comes at a huge cost premium relative to the other 90% of the area. 


IF you can afford to buy or rent housing on the south side of the carretera in Ajijic from 5th de Febrero on the east to Paseo de la Pesca in La Floresta on the West and encompassing the northermost boundaries of Las Selvias and La Villita then you can indeed enjoy the "walk everywhere'" lifestyle described in these posts - provided you have the money and never need to go to Super Lake or Guadalajara. And if you have THAT kind of money, there are hundreds of places with fine climates you can live in in the U.S. that have functional infrastructure, rule of law, trash pickup, internet service faster than 5MB, clean air, hiking and biking trails and weather that while perhaps not as mild as Lakeside on a year-round basis is more comfortable overall because of the ability to slightly modify it with a thermostat - something that doesn't exist here. And bear in mind that the endlessly touted "walk everywhere" schtick here assumes you're able to negotiate cobblestones, endless dog poop, heavy traffic, gaping holes in the sidewalk, etc. into your 80's or 90's. No wonder that illegal golf carts and/or gringos driving when they ought to have had their keys taken away decades ago are such endemic parts of life here.

Those who tout the “ideal” climate at Lakeside, in my experience, are usually the very ones who spend May and June visiting family N.O.B. and a month or two in the winter escaping Lakeside’s cabiñuelas at a $1200 a month rental in La Manzanilla. Add up the costs and many who live here could in fact choose to live almost anywhere if they only bothered to add up all that they spend saving money living in paradise. 

 

 

 

Oh Kevin....where did you get the idea that I am possessed of mucho wherewithal and could live anywhere?  That gave me the coffee spilling laugh of the week.  People who make a lot of assumptions without the facts often create fantasies about others.

Yes, I live in Ajijic near the lake. That is a fact, but the rest is mostly fantasy.

I'm not going to tell you what I paid for my house, but I will tell you that the only reason I could afford it ten years ago was: (1) 2008 was a bad year for real estate and (2) it is over a hundred years old and was assessed as a "tear down" by a local contractor. The lot is small and made smaller by illegal lot splits done by former owners.  To put it kindly, it has a LOT of "character".  When we were house hunting, we would have been glad to live in any of the lakeside towns, but we liked the location of the lot. Also, the house was large enough for our vocational activities.  However, it's been a real PITA at times.

There are some very nice places nearby with lavish grounds and beautiful homes, but that is not really typical of Ajijic. Most of my Mexican neighbors on this street have modest dwellings, and you'll see this more often than otherwise. 

If others are so unhappy with the problems and would prefer returning NOB, they are doing the right thing by leaving, and I wish them the best.  If the newcomers are bringing delusions in their suitcases, they won't stay long and won't mess up the traffic...much.

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With respect to the ‘walk everywhere’ comments that have been made in this thread.....

Ever since I started coming to Lakeside in 1997, I’ve LOVED to walk the villages. If I go out to breakfast I generally walk instead of driving. I walk for the health of it, sure, but probably more for the ‘culture’ of it.... it’s a very good way to observe life here. But I have to say that of all the folks I know or “know of” at Lakeside, Bisbee Gal is about the only one who either says they walk or that I have observed walking. I’m sure there must be some, other than those who go ‘walk the malecon’, but when it comes time to ‘go out’, it’s “in the car” 98% of the time. 

Now I’m not criticizing them but it’s more to the thought that Lakeside is desireable because it is a walkable town. One really has to want to walk to walk this town, and most can’t or don’t. 

 

 

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I see a lot of reasoning here that is out of perspective. 20 years ago it was much more adventurous. 40 years ago it was completely a beat or hippie thing to do. Today, much less so, obviously. So you can't put down anyone based on the "adventurous" line of thought.

To say that "most" can't or don't whatever is painting us with far too broad a brush. If you have intereviewed the thousands who live here either full- or part-time, okay then. Otherwise, don't lay your trip on me without knowing me.

To disparage people who say the weather is ideal is just unfair in the extreme. Come on, take me on: I come from Ottawa, where summer lasts two seconds and is made for frying eggs on concrete while the sweat pours off your forehead. May gets "hot", sure, but it all depends on where you come from. After 20 years, I am acclimated. No longer do I wear shorts in January in the morning. And the cool breezes of the Pacific beaches beckon me. Four hours away: who wouldn't take a break? A few tolls and some gas, compared to being up north and having to pay fro flights and hotels. No furnaces or air conditioners needed here.

The new crowd arriving truly has no idea: all they see is what it is now, and that is their touchstone. 20 years ago, I was the new crowd, but my girlfriend had already been here almost 20 by that point, and still snickers about trying to get a doctor, or the awful single-lane highway to Guadalajara, when I complain.

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8 minutes ago, ComputerGuy said:

I see a lot of reasoning here that is out of perspective. 20 years ago it was much more adventurous. 40 years ago it was completely a beat or hippie thing to do. Today, much less so, obviously. So you can't put down anyone based on the "adventurous" line of thought.

To say that "most" can't or don't whatever is painting us with far too broad a brush. If you have intereviewed the thousands who live here either full- or part-time, okay then. Otherwise, don't lay your trip on me without knowing me.

To disparage people who say the weather is ideal is just unfair in the extreme. Come on, take me on: I come from Ottawa, where summer lasts two seconds and is made for frying eggs on concrete while the sweat pours off your forehead. May gets "hot", sure, but it all depends on where you come from. After 20 years, I am acclimated. No longer do I wear shorts in January in the morning. And the cool breezes of the Pacific beaches beckon me. Four hours away: who wouldn't take a break? A few tolls and some gas, compared to being up north and having to pay fro flights and hotels. No furnaces or air conditioners needed here.

The new crowd arriving truly has no idea: all they see is what it is now, and that is their touchstone. 20 years ago, I was the new crowd, but my girlfriend had already been here almost 20 by that point, and still snickers about trying to get a doctor, or the awful single-lane highway to Guadalajara, when I complain.

Good points, but haven't you noticed the tendency of a number of posters to pounce on others for any excuse at all, just for the pleasure of it?  People are getting pretty desperate when they start nitpicking about whether the weather here is better than most other places.  Please!

"Walkability" is another one.  When I first moved here, yeah, I walked: town, malecon and all. Now I'm ten years older and lamer.  However, for those in good shape who can, this is a still a good walking town except on weekends, when it turns into an obstacle course.  And yeah, 98% of the time, it's the car for me.  No shame.  Just life, doing its thing on me and others like me.

 

 

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I am with you Gringal. the southern part of Ajijic is not all mansions , actually there are lot of very modest  houses.. People come and people go. Right now the people who are complaining about the place being overcrowded can help the situation by leaving and finding a place more to their liking. There are lots of places in Jalisco where foreigners are not present and where  rent is cheap.. Good luck to them. 

If people are not happy here it is easy enough to move. We are all retired and do not all have to leave at the same time and we can arrange our schedule according to the traffic, the traffic is light before 10 and after that it is heavy so bear with it or do not go out after 10.

This week I saw my dream house near Teopisca , Chiapas, beautiful lot in he woods, I can assure you it is not crowded there but you may have to learn Spanish and Tzeltal and you cannot buy because it is ejido, the climate is similar to the climate in Ajijic and there is no Walmart, no doctor nearby, no hospital no Super Lake, only fresh produce and free range chicken and turkeys..No internet , no phone, no crowds..I bet you you can rent the place for a song..

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Just now, gringal said:

Good points, but haven't you noticed the tendency of a number of posters to pounce on others for any excuse at all, just for the pleasure of it?  People are getting pretty desperate when they start nitpicking about whether the weather here is better than most other places.  Please!

Oh, yeah. Yup. Yes indeed. My feelings exactly. I'm reading this and thinking "What?! Complaining about the weather not being perfect?" Yes, far too easy to pounce.

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None of us are getting any younger :o

My walks are getting shorter too.  In 2008-2012 I walked 1x a week from LCS to HandyMail.  Nowadays my longest walks are from 5 de Feb to the tianguis, El Torito, TelMex, but I try to go 2x or 3x a week.  

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It sounds like many people used to refer to the old Lakeside as "Hootervile" - but the it all changed when they actually opened a "Hooters" here (not really, but you catch my drift!). Still lots of rentals and vacant house up here in the hills, a lot of splitting big lots into smaller ones. But then you have to drive 10 minutes to Soriana just to get milk or ice. Nightime on the Carretera is scary, so we seldom go out in evenings, luckily we both love cooking, and most people have circles of friends up here.

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57 minutes ago, Bisbee Gal said:

None of us are getting any younger :o

My walks are getting shorter too.  In 2008-2012 I walked 1x a week from LCS to HandyMail.  Nowadays my longest walks are from 5 de Feb to the tianguis, El Torito, TelMex, but I try to go 2x or 3x a week.  

Look up "aqua jogging" - good workout, good stretching, zero impact on joints. An unheated pool will require a tropical weight wetsuit, if you like walking/jogging in the mornings.

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After 17 years here we are in our 70s. Dec/ Jan we are using our rolling propane heaters more. Fans keep April and may comfortable and the backup AC only gets used a few afternoons. The cobblestones and the lack of enforcement of sidewalk repair has cut way down on our walking which is now pretty much limited to the malecon.

What keeps us here is the mexican people. They are happy, generous, mostly honest, etc. I have a friend who lives in a sun city in jacksonville FL and loves it. She has her golf cart a cute house and fun activities. But, I'm assuming all she sees are old people? I love the children, the young men who help me,  the maid who sings through her daily chores, the flowers we grow, the gardener who comes instantly if I have an emergency. And yet we can't to seem to spend all of our SS. Our pensions go to investments for our future bequests. We do have medical coverage , so don't worry about that. Viva Mexico!

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I greatly appreciated the perceptive comments of Michael2595, but I empathize most strongly with the comments of RVGRINGO, whose situation is similar to mine.

I spent every winter in Mexico in my motorhome from 1993-94 to 2015-16.  Having traveled in every Mexican state in my motorhome, and having enjoyed several winters in Acapulco and then Puerto Vallarta, I began to stay year-round in San Antonio Tlayacapan in 2003.  (It saddens me to see videos of people pulling up on jet skis and shooting people on the Acapulco beach where I used to spend most afternoons.)   I acquired FM3, now Residente Temporal, status in 2002 (in Acapulco) and, with three five-year renewals, would have had it until 2017, had Mexico not changed its immigration law.  With the change, Residente Temporal became limited to one four-year term, and not renewable in Mexico.  Continuing as a Residente Temporal now requires one to leave Mexico after four years and apply for a new four-year term at a Mexican consulate in the country of which one is a citizen.  Most of my Residente Temporal friends converted to Residente Permanente, as the Mexican government apparently preferred them to do.  But Residente Permanentes may not drive foreign-plated vehicles; their vehicles must have Mexican plates, and I could not register my Honda CR-V in Mexico ("nationalize" it), because its VIN begins with "J," indicating that, although I bought it in the U.S., it was made in Japan.

Therefore, I had to remove my Honda from Mexico before the expiration of my Residente Temporal status on May 2, 2016.  I did not know what the nationalization status of my motorhome might be, but I was afraid to leave it in Mexico while I took my car to the U.S., so I also took it to Texas in April 2016.

Had the law not been changed, I would likely still be in San Antonio Tlayacapan.  But an incident encountered by a friend at a hospital in Puerto Vallarta made me think that once in the U.S., I might better stay there.  Awaiting surgery that physicians said was urgently needed, in a condition that, they said, prevented him from flying to the U.S. for it, the hospital refused to permit the waiting surgeons to perform the operation on my friend until more money was produced to pay for it.  In the U.S,, presentation of his Medicare card would have resulted in his receiving the surgery he needed, with no demand for any payment in advance.

Having just driven down from Texas for a visit at Lakeside, I experienced the unmaintained highways and the appalling congestion at Lakeside that is much worse than I remember from 2016.  I feel much more "at home" at Lakeside than I do in far-right-wing, anti-immigrant, anti-LGBT, and theocratic Texas, where Trump supporters predominate.  But I am not sure that I could tolerate the congestion now, and, becoming a nonagenarian in May, I am concerned about what might happen to me here should I need emergency medical care.

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