Feedback: Expatriate Destinations

I’ve got 14 years left of raising kids and working for the man. I’m fortunate, in that I’ll be able to retire at a relatively young 56, hopefully before I’m all used up. More and more my thoughts about what that life will be like have switched from a quiet, pastoral rural retirement, with the occasional vacation thrown in to break up the monotony, to the prospect of starting a brand new adventure in the twilight of my years and retiring overseas as an expatriate American.

I have always been a hedonist. I love good food and spirits. The problem is that I am also obsessive-compulsive, as evidenced by my 13+ years abstaining from strong drink. They better have a good bottle of Scotch waiting for me at the pearly gates, because I have missed it dearly. I am 42 haven’t gotten (too) fat yet, and love food. No, food is more of an obsession. I drive 34 miles to eat at my favorite Chinese restaurant, when there is a Chinese restaurant 3 blocks from my house. I drive 164 miles to Kansas City to have real barbeque instead of eating at the barbeque joint 3 blocks from where I work. To me a vacation destination is more about the food than the sights. If you’re anything like me and think that Anthony Bourdain has the world’s best job, I don’t need to say another word.

So, I started looking into the whole expatriate retirement thing. Obviously the goals are to find a locale that is friendly to non-citizens, one where urban amenities aren’t too terribly far away, and one that isn’t going to be completely impossible for you until you master the native tongue. Of prime importance, locations with a cost of living that is going to make your fixed income seem like a great deal more than it would be where you used to live. There are some good resources on the web to research this, and I’ve gotten some ideas I am going to explore deeper.

I would like to hear from Connected readers that have retired overseas, or even just those of you who have travelled. Share your thoughts about where you’ve been and how friendly an expatriate locale you think it would be.

Morocco? Singapore? The Phillipines? Chile? Tell me why or why not.

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