First Step to a Better Future.

MrMark1972 · Post by **MrMark1972** » April 18th, 2014, 1:09 pm

Hi Guys...my name is Mark and I'm 42yo and recently divorced(12 years married).I am not willing to go back to the old toxic nightclub/bar scene in the major Canadian metropolis in which I live.When it comes to dating,and meeting girls,Canada and the US are the same.I hope you don't find it boring but I'd like to share a bit about my past and then you might understand what brings me to this forum.My first serious relationship was with a local Canadian girl and that lasted five years.After that I was single for about three years,during which I had a few one night stands and dated a couple of girls.I ended up getting introduced through friends,to an attractive woman ten years older than me,and she ended up my wife.Our first six years together were great because money was flowing in nicely.However,all that changed in 2008 when the stock markets collapsed and so did we.We went through years of financial hell and the damage to our relationship was irreversible.To make a long story short she recently re-connected with an old boyfriend(from her teen years) on Facebook and she is set to marry him this summer.
I've been through my rollercoaster of sadness/anger for the past few months and I can now accept what has happened and still treat her as a friend.Now I must focus on myself and what I want for my future.I am very attracted to Latino girls.I should mention that I am of mixed descent(half Caucasian half Trinidadian) and thus have brownish skin.Most girls assume that I'm Egyptian,East Indian or Brazilian,so I think that I might fit in nicely in South America.I'm interested in Costa Rica,Colombia and maybe Panama as well.My ultimate goal would be to live most of the year,with my girlfriend/wife in her country and never bring her to live in Canada.I'm self employed,in real-estate,with no kids so I'm free to do this.
I'd be happy to connect with experienced people and share ideas and stories and lots of questions

sfexcellence · Post by **sfexcellence** » April 18th, 2014, 2:02 pm

Not to be arrogant, but check out my post at viewtopic.php?t=22768

Go to Chile, very friendly and approachable people from what I've heard, best to work on your Spanish though beforehand. Try Michel Thomas or Pimsleur (you can download them for free off the internet - bittorrent) and/or take classes at your local language school, try the International House in your city, I'm in Vancouver so there should be others throughout the country. Columbia is great too, Brazil is good, I've heard that Rio is full of attractive women, there is a trip report on Rio on this forum check it out. So Chile + Columbia + Brazil, and avoid Argentina like the plague, very pretentious and depressing people in Buenos Aires.

I've heard a lot about how real estate can be very lucrative and profitable, and one person's crisis is always another person's opportunity, so build your business base to where it can support your travel adventures, then take a reconnaissance trip to South America, visiting the above three countries but also others, avoiding Argentina, then decide where your base will be, settle there and go for the expatriate experience.

MrMark1972 · Post by **MrMark1972** » April 18th, 2014, 2:10 pm

Thanks sfexcellence...I was leaning toward Columbia but the amount of info on it is overwhelming...some guys say it's paradise and others say the girls are all scammers and finding a cute sincere girl is impossible.Chile is worth a look...never thought about it.Brazil is probably awesome but I think the main language there is Portuguese...Lots to read/lots to learn and I'm just starting.

sfexcellence · Post by **sfexcellence** » April 18th, 2014, 2:23 pm

Only way to know about Columbia is to go there and see for yourself

.

Post by **fschmidt** » April 18th, 2014, 9:54 pm

Everyone has their own impressions. Chile is my least favorite country in Latin America. It seemed feminist and the food is horrible. (Bad food seems to correlate with bad women.) Argentina isn't bad. The people there are intelligent, but corruption ruins the place. Uruguay is similar to Argentina. I visited Venezuela long ago and the women were friendlier than in any other country I have been to. I didn't care much for Costa Rica. I visited Brazil but I don't speak Portuguese (I speak Spanish), so I couldn't judge the country well. But I much preferred the rural areas to the big cities. My wife is from Mexico. I like Mexico and I don't understand why it isn't more popular for finding wives. We have been married for 23 years and lived mostly in America. I think this can work if one clearly rejects modern culture and encourages one's wife to do the same. A good traditional religion can help with this.

Post by **jamesbond** » April 19th, 2014, 2:06 am

Welcome to the forum MrMark1972. It's interesting how many guys we have here from Canada. I guess that country is just as horrible for dating as the USA is (and the UK).

Welcome to Happier Abroad.

MrMark1972 · Post by **MrMark1972** » April 19th, 2014, 6:21 am

Thanks Mr.Bond and you better believe that Canada is just as bad as the the good ol' USA when it comes to finding a hot loyal young girlfriend/wife...just a typical date night(including supper,drinks,taxi and maybe a hotel) can run you and easy $500 to $600 and she may not even call you ever again as there is so much competition for hot girls...for 600 bucks I'm better off buying a plane ticket to Medeillin...LOL
Thanks for the input fschmidt...countries like Chile,Uruguay,Venezuala were never on my radar...but I am interested in Mexico.I guess Mexico got a bad rap,over the last few years,due to all the drug related violence.Also I'm guessing that the chicks down there might not be as humble,as the other countries,due to the huge American influence....My list is as follows.
Costa Rica and Panama,Colombia and Mexico...maybe Brazil someday if I'm not hitched after visiting the prior four countries

sfexcellence · Post by **sfexcellence** » April 20th, 2014, 12:15 pm

Mexico is a great option, I also don't understand why more people don't go there, Falcon on this forum had awesome experiences that anyone else could have there, and what with the Philippines being so dirty and third-world, Mexico looks and feels like a better option to me and to others.

Check out skyscanner.ca for cheap flights. If you want to go through the states you can get from Vancouver to Mexico City for $262 one way, and the Volaris airline (volaris.com) for flights within Mexico, or you could take the bus all over the country if you want, bus travel in Mexico is much better + more efficient than Greyhound and they show great movies with Spanish subtitles. I think it costs $116-$132 for first class bus travel from Merida to Mexico City, check it out online.

argaluza · Post by **argaluza** » April 23rd, 2014, 3:32 pm

sfexcellence wrote:Not to be arrogant, but check out my post at viewtopic.php?t=22768

Go to Chile, very friendly and approachable people from what I've heard, best to work on your Spanish though beforehand. Try Michel Thomas or Pimsleur (you can download them for free off the internet - bittorrent) and/or take classes at your local language school, try the International House in your city, I'm in Vancouver so there should be others throughout the country. Columbia is great too, Brazil is good, I've heard that Rio is full of attractive women, there is a trip report on Rio on this forum check it out. So Chile + Columbia + Brazil, and avoid Argentina like the plague, very pretentious and depressing people in Buenos Aires.

Have you heard about Argentina or have you actually been?

I have actually lived there and find Argentines and especially Porteno's to be extremely nice people. Seek as you find but at least let it be on personal experience and not what you have read on some website.

I've heard a lot about how real estate can be very lucrative and profitable, and one person's crisis is always another person's opportunity, so build your business base to where it can support your travel adventures, then take a reconnaissance trip to South America, visiting the above three countries but also others, avoiding Argentina, then decide where your base will be, settle there and go for the expatriate experience.

The trouble with this site seems to be too many armchair explorers who have never been anywhere dishing out advice.

sfexcellence · Post by **sfexcellence** » April 23rd, 2014, 5:27 pm

argaluza:

You're talking out of your ass, obviously. You are pretentious, narrow-minded, and not qualified to judge me, as for starters you're assumptions about me are dead wrong. I am not an armchair traveler, and making judgements abour someone without knowing them is the first tell tale sign of cowardice, which is where you're at.

I very very much enjoy taking down cowards, I get off it, so if you want it, then continue.

argaluza · Post by **argaluza** » April 23rd, 2014, 10:38 pm

sfexcellence wrote:argaluza:

You're talking out of your a**, obviously. You are pretentious, narrow-minded, and not qualified to judge me, as for starters you're assumptions about me are dead wrong. I am not an armchair traveler, and making judgements abour someone without knowing them is the first tell tale sign of cowardice, which is where you're at.

I very very much enjoy taking down cowards, I get off it, so if you want it, then continue.

Have you been to Argentina?

No, you have not.

What you 'heard' does not qualify you as an expert on that particular country. Stick to what you know.

Yohan · Post by **Yohan** » April 24th, 2014, 7:16 am

argaluza wrote: The trouble with this site seems to be too many armchair explorers who have never been anywhere dishing out advice.

Are you looking in a mirror just now?

argaluza · Post by **argaluza** » April 24th, 2014, 7:29 am

Yohan wrote:
argaluza wrote: The trouble with this site seems to be too many armchair explorers who have never been anywhere dishing out advice.
Are you looking in a mirror just now?

Oh no, you are so butt hurt, you going to stalk me around the forum now?

At least I have been to Argentina - been to more countries than you Yohan, lived in more countries too.

SFExcellence has never been to Argentina despite trying to give advice on the place and he has the gall to say 'not being arrogant' I mean, that is a comment full of LOL!

Devil Dog · Post by **Devil Dog** » April 24th, 2014, 9:10 am

sfexcellence wrote:
Go to Chile, very friendly and approachable people from what I've heard, best to work on your Spanish though beforehand. Try Michel Thomas or Pimsleur (you can download them for free off the internet - bittorrent) and/or take classes at your local language school, try the International House in your city, I'm in Vancouver so there should be others throughout the country. Columbia is great too, Brazil is good, I've heard that Rio is full of attractive women, there is a trip report on Rio on this forum check it out. So Chile + Columbia + Brazil, and avoid Argentina like the plague, very pretentious and depressing people in Buenos Aires.

I've heard a lot about how real estate can be very lucrative and profitable, and one person's crisis is always another person's opportunity, so build your business base to where it can support your travel adventures, then take a reconnaissance trip to South America, visiting the above three countries but also others, avoiding Argentina, then decide where your base will be, settle there and go for the expatriate experience.

lol. I'm with argaluza on this one. Your are giving someone advice on where to travel and how to make money in a complex and risky field... based upon what you have "heard"?

Seriously?

gsjackson · Post by **gsjackson** » April 25th, 2014, 12:10 pm

fschmidt wrote:Everyone has their own impressions. Chile is my least favorite country in Latin America. It seemed feminist and the food is horrible. (Bad food seems to correlate with bad women.) Argentina isn't bad. The people there are intelligent, but corruption ruins the place. Uruguay is similar to Argentina. I visited Venezuela long ago and the women were friendlier than in any other country I have been to. I didn't care much for Costa Rica. I visited Brazil but I don't speak Portuguese (I speak Spanish), so I couldn't judge the country well. But I much preferred the rural areas to the big cities. My wife is from Mexico. I like Mexico and I don't understand why it isn't more popular for finding wives. We have been married for 23 years and lived mostly in America. I think this can work if one clearly rejects modern culture and encourages one's wife to do the same. A good traditional religion can help with this.

I thought in that long post you did several years ago assessing several Latin American countries you'd been to, you sized up Uruguay as the best place you'd visited to find a wife.