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First time visiting Ajijic


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Hello, I'm planning a field trip later this month to see what Ajijic is all about. I've read articles, watched videos and want to experience the place in person. Real Estate seems very reasonable to a San Francisco area person and the lake side weather is also appealing. Can't say if I want to settle into Ajijic long term or just make it a getaway place to visit.

So far I've found the best flights to be with Interjet and picked a hotel at random, "La Nueva Posada" Plan on spending 4 nights in town and exploring while I'm there. 

Is there a place or places I can go to that would have other Expat's that might be willing to chat about life in Ajijic?

And is this forum the best way to look for this information?

I do appreciate any and all feedback.

Regards, Pat

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When I first started coming to Ajijic I stayed at the Posada and enjoyed it.  They also have a very good restaurant.  Look on Tripadvisor and you can get a feel for the restaurants here.  The LCHS is a good place to chat but I find the food only so so.  There are several good restaurants near there including Cocinart and Tango. 

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The LCS Cafe has some good menu items. They also have coffee and desserts. The grounds are lovely to wander. You will meet lots of people there. Two other expat hot spots are ElJardin restaurant and Black and White Coffee both on the plaza. Great spots to hang out and meet people happy to chat with you. 

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Since Ajijic is on the north shore, as are the communities of Chapala, Riberas del Pilar, San Antonio de Tlayacapan, San Juan and Jocotepec, there is an awful lot to see here. And these communities have much better Internet, restaurants and stores than the south side... for the time being.

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By all means, visit the other pueblos.  I picked a spot ten years ago in Ajijic because it was conveniently located for my purposes, but the latest hype is not justified by the reality. Having spent years in the S.F.Bay area myself, I know the prices here are low in comparison, but bear in mind that many of the very attractive older homes never saw a building code, and an inspection won't get behind the walls or under the floors.  No disclosures in the purchase process like in the U.S. Many pitfalls. Zoning regs. are meaningless. That's why the common advice to newbies is to rent first and get acquainted with the neighborhoods, the nuisances (noise) and the sewer system.😎

I'm trying to imagine going over to LCS as a visitor and approaching a person or a group cold, looking for information. Can't; but maybe that's just me.  They do have a person stationed under a canopy near the walkway who is a volunteer and will provide answers to many questions about LCS. The little restaurant there has some good desserts.  The Ajijic Plaza is a good place for people watching and the restaurants in and surrounding it are alright.

Do visit Chapala itself.  Go west and check out Jocotepec.  The drive there will give you an idea of how it would be to live in the countryside. If you get hungry, stop at Arileo's past the Jocotepec road sign. You won't be disappointed.

Welcome and good luck!

 

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“I'm trying to imagine going over to LCS as a visitor and approaching a person or a group cold, looking for information. Can't; but maybe that's just me.” 

I have never gone to the LCS without someone or several someone’s starting up a chat. And, that’s with me not being a smiling, welcoming “talk to me” person. Sit down, smile, make eye contact and you’re off. 

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16 minutes ago, Xena said:

“I'm trying to imagine going over to LCS as a visitor and approaching a person or a group cold, looking for information. Can't; but maybe that's just me.” 

I have never gone to the LCS without someone or several someone’s starting up a chat. And, that’s with me not being a smiling, welcoming “talk to me” person. Sit down, smile, make eye contact and you’re off. 

Different strokes, obviously.  Even if I found it easier to approach strangers, I don't think that a visitor can count on getting good information that way. People who commit to living somewhere tend to ignore the warts when describing their hometown to others. 

Another possible method would be to become a "client" of an active realtor and do a little brain picking about the area.

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The biggest decision one has to make here is choosing what type of environment you will live in.  Village/centro walk everywhere but be prepared for significant noise and traffic on many streets?  More suburban like fraccs requiring a car for most errands?  Country living with the associated longer drives?

The standard advice is to rent before you buy, that is getting more difficult these days as the supply of rentals is tight.  Should be no problem however if you can swing a more expensive rental.  Rents and property prices are highest in and immediately adjacent to Ajijic.  

Obviously this choice is also dictated by budget.  Someone coming from the Bay area may find prices here moderate but by comparison to most of Mexico this place is pretty pricey these days.  LCS is certainly a good source of information and it also has a very large English language library plus Spanish courses based on Warren Hardy are offered regularly there.

They've been doing an "Introduction to Lakeside" course at LCS, you might want to check the schedule of these.  Realtors are a good source of information but not always the most accurate as their agenda is to sell or rent you something.

 

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On 10/10/2018 at 7:38 PM, pwebster198 said:

Hello, I'm planning a field trip later this month to see what Ajijic is all about. I've read articles, watched videos and want to experience the place in person. Real Estate seems very reasonable to a San Francisco area person and the lake side weather is also appealing. Can't say if I want to settle into Ajijic long term or just make it a getaway place to visit.

So far I've found the best flights to be with Interjet and picked a hotel at random, "La Nueva Posada" Plan on spending 4 nights in town and exploring while I'm there. 

Is there a place or places I can go to that would have other Expat's that might be willing to chat about life in Ajijic?

And is this forum the best way to look for this information?

I do appreciate any and all feedback.

Regards, Pat

Check out Facebook for various groups about Lakeside.

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Why do people making coming to Lakeside sound like its going to the moon🤔🤔🤔

Treat coming here like going to a new town in the USA or Canada. We have many of the same or similar organizations....look up your favourite church  or temple...check out one of the real estate company's and work with a real estate person you feel co fortable with...good luck

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The OP said: “Hello, I'm planning a field trip later this month to see what Ajijic is all about. I've read articles, watched videos and want to experience the place in person.”

The person has four nights here and wants to “see what the place is all about” and “experience it in person.” They will not do that by “working with a real estate person.”

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I think any intelligent person realizes that a real estate agent has an agenda when dealing with a potential buyer.

In any case, I don't think the OP can learn much from any source in four nights' time.  I'd suggest trying to extend that visit.

In answer to another question: yes, this is a good source of general information since it has a large number of contributing members.

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2 hours ago, gringal said:

I think any intelligent person realizes that a real estate agent has an agenda when dealing with a potential buyer.

In any case, I don't think the OP can learn much from any source in four nights' time.  I'd suggest trying to extend that visit.

In answer to another question: yes, this is a good source of general information since it has a large number of contributing members.

Agree.  Insufficient time to really base decisions.  Long enough to decide if you want to investigate further.  Two weeks is required to really dig into things IMO.  Things just don't move as fast here.  Like many of us  :D

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39 minutes ago, ComputerGuy said:

That must have been interesting for Canadian Thanksgiving, since they started serving dinner at 5pm...

That was a special event.  See their ad in the new Ojo re: new hours are 8am until 6pm.  Or do what we did 2 weeks ago...show up at 6:30 and read the sign outside the closed restaurant :rolleyes:

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Everyone approaches things in their own way. I came down here for a one-week vacation. I had no intention of retiring or moving to Mexico. Six weeks later I was back with car, dog, cat, and whatever I thought I needed (and had room for). Still did not intend to live here forever but planned a one-year extended vacation. Ten years later here I still am and still happy. 

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