Central / South America Community

EZ Bake

EZ Bake

Joined
Mar 5, 2009
Messages
1,752
Just curious - didn't see a sub-forum and couldn't find anything in a search. I've actually been considering a move down that way in the semi-distant future and was curious about the knife-community (and just the folks in general) in the various countries.

I'm looking in a few places in Central America and a few further South. Any South America members (or members with any experience down that way) care to weigh in?
 
I have traveled two times to Paraguay, not an expert in things Sur America but they get along real well there with knives and edged tools from what I could tell. I didn't get the impression that their view of the world was as collector focused as those in the north tend to be, much more utilitarian if you will. Great people there but they live a lot closer to the blunt edge economically by and large. Maybe those who live in or have traveled in Brazil, Argentina, Chile or other nations in SA could give their views.
 
willseeyalater said:
I have traveled two times to Paraguay, not an expert in things Sur America but they get along real well there with knives and edged tools from what I could tell. I didn't get the impression that their view of the world was as collector focused as those in the north tend to be, much more utilitarian if you will. Great people there but they live a lot closer to the blunt edge economically by and large. Maybe those who live in or have traveled in Brazil, Argentina, Chile or other nations in SA could give their views.
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I lived in Argentina for three years, 27 years ago, and as far as I can remember, the knives were confined to the country. The gaucho (think cowboys), usually carried the traditional knife of that country, the facón, but it was mostly a tool. In he past (19th. century), it was also a weapon. I used to carry a small lockback folding knife and sometimes it drawed unwanted attention in the hospital were I was doing my residency training. As you just said: collecting knives (or swords, firearms, etc.) it's not as common as in the USA, both for economic and cultural reasons. But things may have changed.
 
Well - for a while now I've put some semi-serious thought into moving to South America in the distant-future (like, say, 10 or so years). Nothing immediate or urgent, but I am honestly enamored with some of the culture/atmosphere/terrain/sights down there (I seriously think I could live next a mountain/beach and spend like 90% of my time in the ocean or hiking well into my senior years).

I've looked into a number of different places, but the few that seem to come up again and again are in Central America (which honestly scares me due to the drug-lord crime stigma that I hear, but to be honest I don't know if any of it is true/valid for that region), or way, way down south (like Southern Argentina or Southern Chile). Central America has a few places that seem to cater to retired Americans (and a few areas that specifically cater to retired Vets/former military), but I don't know a lot about crime, government corruption, quality of the area for goods/services, etc.

Peru also fascinates me to some extent but I don't really want to have to learn both Spanish and Portuguese so I'm pretty sure Brazil is out unless it is really worth it to live there (I may want to travel between countries and I think I can get by with broken Portuguese or a translator on occasion - should I venture into Brazil, but all of the rest of the countries speak Spanish, which I already have a solid base in so I think I could get by).

My two biggest hangups right now are giving up some of the freedoms I have here in the states (i.e. guns and knives primarily), and the fact that my wife is a Red-Head and burns under a 60-watt bulb (but like me, she is very out-doorsy and enjoys the hot climate / mountains / ocean as much as I do - she already has a basic grasp of Spanish). My kids should be through both High-School and College by that point, so it will just be my wife and I.

What about the crime-rates (I've looked a lot of this up, but there seems to be a lot of conflicting info out there), economy, quality of life, gun/knife-laws (any countries down that way more gun-friendly than others?), etc.?

Anyone traveled down to anywhere specifically in South or Central America (recently) that cares to share their experiences? Recommendations as to where to go (Northern? Southern? East/West coast?)?
 
I would look at Chile' and Argentina if I was thinking of living in SA. Argentina is more euro-centered, Chile' seems less so...maybe more casual or comfortable. The economy of Chile' has been stronger than AR historically. Politically both have histories of being autocratically/junta ruled with some sad impacts on the countries but try to find any country that does not have a period in their history that would be nice to forget but should be remembered so as to not be repeated. For nearby regional travel you have Bolivia, Uruguay, Paraguay and Brazil with many things to see and do. Flights back to the US from Chile' and Argentina are daily and nonstop to major US hubs.
 
EZ Bake said:
Well - for a while now I've put some semi-serious thought into moving to South America in the distant-future (like, say, 10 or so years). Nothing immediate or urgent, but I am honestly enamored with some of the culture/atmosphere/terrain/sights down there (I seriously think I could live next a mountain/beach and spend like 90% of my time in the ocean or hiking well into my senior years).

I've looked into a number of different places, but the few that seem to come up again and again are in Central America (which honestly scares me due to the drug-lord crime stigma that I hear, but to be honest I don't know if any of it is true/valid for that region), or way, way down south (like Southern Argentina or Southern Chile). Central America has a few places that seem to cater to retired Americans (and a few areas that specifically cater to retired Vets/former military), but I don't know a lot about crime, government corruption, quality of the area for goods/services, etc.

Peru also fascinates me to some extent but I don't really want to have to learn both Spanish and Portuguese so I'm pretty sure Brazil is out unless it is really worth it to live there (I may want to travel between countries and I think I can get by with broken Portuguese or a translator on occasion - should I venture into Brazil, but all of the rest of the countries speak Spanish, which I already have a solid base in so I think I could get by).

My two biggest hangups right now are giving up some of the freedoms I have here in the states (i.e. guns and knives primarily), and the fact that my wife is a Red-Head and burns under a 60-watt bulb (but like me, she is very out-doorsy and enjoys the hot climate / mountains / ocean as much as I do - she already has a basic grasp of Spanish). My kids should be through both High-School and College by that point, so it will just be my wife and I.

What about the crime-rates (I've looked a lot of this up, but there seems to be a lot of conflicting info out there), economy, quality of life, gun/knife-laws (any countries down that way more gun-friendly than others?), etc.?

Anyone traveled down to anywhere specifically in South or Central America (recently) that cares to share their experiences? Recommendations as to where to go (Northern? Southern? East/West coast?)?
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Well, here in the Republic of Panamá, there are certain things that you may want to consider (as I mentioned in another post): first: The US dollar is legal currency (we don`t have "balboas" bills); second: where I live (in the province of Chiriquí -if you look in the maps, is on the Pacific Ocean side, on the border with Costa Rica-), we have a sizable community of americans, canadians, europeans, etc., who have moved into the highlands (look Boquete and Volcán); we have a pretty good medical care (specially in the private clinics, where we have doctors, nurses, secretaries, etc., fluent in English). Although we do have crime and drug problems, it is no nearly so severe as in Guatemala, Honduras, etc. (we don`t have "maras"); the government corruption exists, yes, but not worst than any other country iin the area and a lot better than many. No body here is crying "yankees go home" or anything like that.
To the risk of sounding like a tourist brochure, in Chiriquí you can be in the beach in the morning, and in the highlands in the evening, wtih a 20-17º Celsius temp. The only thing is that the rainy season last for about 7-8 months. You can have your knives (I myself have a few) and the guns, provided you have them registered, also (of course, there are certain kinds of guns that are "verbotten" to civilians: full auto, for instance). Maybe it's no like say, Texas, but yes guns can be had -the registration period is about 6 months). Now, how it's going to be 10 years from now, is anybody's guess.
I'd suggest that if you know of somebody already living here, drop him/her a e-mail, letter, etc.
 
Definitely appreciate the info man. Don't worry at all about sounding like a tourist brochure, I'm looking for all the info I can get.
 
EZ Bake said:
Definitely appreciate the info man. Don't worry at all about sounding like a tourist brochure, I'm looking for all the info I can get.
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Forgot to tell you that you can Google Panamá or Republic of Panamá, and find plenty of information.
 
I've done a fair amount of googling and forum-searching as well as talking to folks who have lived in a few different countries.

I appreciate any and all info and am doing quite a bit of research before making any sort of decision though.
 
I live in Costa Rica in a climate similar to Alvaro.Boquete Panama is in the seventies every day and "down the hill" is the town of David where you can get most things you need.
I live on lake Arenal (1700 ft elevation) and "down the hill" is Canas which is much like David, Panama. Our gun laws mimic Clinton's policies. I've bought a P38, a stainless Mossberg 500 ss marine 8 rounds, a Marlin ss .22 and have a concealed carry permit. The tradesman and farmers have no problem unloading $1000 for a gun or a couple hundred for a knife ( mostly multi-tools) and "good" flashlights.

Don't be deceived by the "land of the free" BS bleated at you in the falling Empire. It's all been a lie.
It aint perfect down here but we have a blast down this way. Ecuador is awesome too.

I'm headed to Patagonia in a few weeks and going to hit Buenos Aires and see if I can hook up with some knife makers and share stories and down some Yerba Mate.
I have a little Kiwi grove in Puerto Varas Chile I need to check on too. I have a fetish for lakes and volcanoes.

YouTube is a great way to "travel" a bit.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=086MN-mOxgc
My Hood-- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_CxY4wrN-H8
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZfgP9u6E33o
 
I'll be honest, Costa Rica is starting to sound more and more like it might be on the top of my list. I'm looking to do a short visit, and then possibly a longer visit (month or so) sometime in the next couple of years.

I work in IT and we outsourced a lot of the work to various countries and one happens to be CR, so I speak to my co-workers down that way a lot and they're selling it to me pretty hard.
 
Costa Rica is a very nice country. Of course I like mine better, especially where I live. I wouldn´t live in Panama City, unless by dire necessity.
 
I spent a few years in both in Costa Rica and Panama .. many years ago and on the US Govt's dime. I've always wanted to move back and live there permanent. Never ventured too far into the interior of Panama (City of David) - stayed in/around the CZ. Both sides only had extreme different neighborhoods .. rich and poor and. No middle class. Not very pleasant in my opinion. Costa Rica was much nicer, San Jose is typical big city, but I spent all my time in rural areas where the people were real and the crime was petty. Spent time in Honduras, Boliva, and Columbia as well .. but I have no real opinion on those countries.
 
bonafide said:
I spent a few years in both in Costa Rica and Panama .. many years ago and on the US Govt's dime. I've always wanted to move back and live there permanent. Never ventured too far into the interior of Panama (City of David) - stayed in/around the CZ. Both sides only had extreme different neighborhoods .. rich and poor and. No middle class. Not very pleasant in my opinion. Costa Rica was much nicer, San Jose is typical big city, but I spent all my time in rural areas where the people were real and the crime was petty. Spent time in Honduras, Boliva, and Columbia as well .. but I have no real opinion on those countries.
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Then you lived in Panamá a LOOONG time ago. In Panamá City, it's the same. You see very modern skyscrapers, banks, posh residential areas and across the streets, slums, and rigth now with the construction of the new metrorail, the city is a mess. As I said before, wouldn't live there.
 
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