Retire
Mexico Mazatlan Retirement
From The People's Guide To Retiring In Mexico
I traveled
extensively in Mexico, Belize, Honduras, Guatemala and Costa Rica
for about a year before I settled in Mazatlan. I first came here
because my son was in grad school in Tempe, Arizona. Mazatlan was
convenient for him to make short visits on his school breaks. I
guess I stayed here because of the Centro Historico. The old port
of Mazatlan is absolutely enchanting. It is almost like living in
a small port village. It is very easy to forget that we are surrounded
by a fairly large city. It has a kinda Mediterranean feeling.
As
a young man, I spent three years in Italy, the South of France and
Spain. Naturally I have wonderful memories of those years, so when
I arrived here, those old Med feelins and memories just naturally
flooded back in on me. Another reason, of course is that Maz is
still relatively affordable. We were fortunate enough to rent a
3 bedroom , 2 bath home w/ servants quarters, on El Cerro de Vigia,
about 100 meters from El Colegio del Pacifico , with a view from
the Colegio all the way to The Zona Dorada plus a view of the city
-- for 450 dollars per month. Granted, we were extremely lucky --
but they are out there.
The
other attraction here is services. There are around 500,000 people
in Mazatlan... we have a !!!! SAM,s CLUB!!! hoo rah!! Also several
big Tienda Leys, a Gigante supermercado and any number of other
real nifty places to get necessities and much more... I mean I really
love Puerto Angel, but if you want or need something... well, you
know what I mean.
Health
services are great here. We have the Sharps Hospital that most of
the Gringos are crazy about and we also have a General Hospital
of excellent quality, plus all the related stuff... Dentists?...
have we got dental care here? I'll tell ya how good the care is
-- my dentist was so concerned about me that she now gives me free
dental care for life! Of course I had to marry her to qualify for
that plan, but it was my pleasure, as she is as beautiful as she
is competent.
My
wife is a dentist and her brother is a general practice doctor and
orthroscopic surgeon. My sister in law is a chemist and owns her
own Analysis lab. I let my sky-hi U.S. med insurance lapse as I've
got that pretty well covered. If you know anyone with medical probs
that aren't being attended, in the U.S. or Canada, please feel free
to give them my e mail address, as I have real strong ties to the
whole medical community here in Mazatlan. My family, at least, charges
Gringos the same as they charge Mexicans -- that is a fraction of
what one has to pay in the States.
I have
been wanting to get out the word about the Med/Dental care available
here in Mazatlan. Not only can folks get fixed up cheap but, depending
on the shape they are in, can probably have a good time doing it.
Movin
right along , the weather is great about 8 months outta the year,
but because of the heat in July, August, Sept, and part of October,
it is better to be somewhere else. Fortunately you don't have to
go far. Even one hour away in Copala, it is real comfortable in
those months.
Notes
on Mazatlan
As
I mentioned earlier, the Centro Historico was the big attraction
for me when choosing a home base in Mexico. There are only two Mazatlans
as far as most Gringos are concerned, the Zona Dorada or el Centro
Historico. Of course there are many sides to Mazatlan, as all Mexican
cities that I know are made up of many, if not scores of colonias,
each with its own small business center.
The
Zona Dorada contains virtually all the comforts of Southern California:
North American style homes, Burger King and Baskin Robbins. That's
about all I know about the Zona. Except that it's located on the
northern extremity of Mazatlan -- on the beach, of course. El Centro
Historico is located at the southern extremity of the city (also
on the beach) about 14 kilometers from the Zona Dorada, where the
peninsula comes to a point . We live on El Cerro de Vigia (Lookout
Hill), on the southern tip of the peninsula just a few hundred meters
short of El Faro, the highest lighthouse on the Pacific Coast.
The
two Mazatlans attract very different types of resident Gringos.
The Zona types rarely come to el Centro, and el Centro types wouldn't
be caught dead in the Zona. I guess you get the picture. I would
guess, however, that the vast majority of vacation visitors and
a majority of resident Gringos spend their time in the Zona. (and
then they go home and tell their friends about their" Mexican
experience ".)
El
Centro Historico is not only on the beach it is, well, it's "Historical",
(hysterical sometimes too). The homes and most of the other buildings
are from the Spanish colonial period, the streets are narrow, and
the way it is situated along the cliffs and hollows, along the coast,
make it very easy to forget that you are in the city. As I said
earlier, it has a feelin of a small port town about it.
Although
more resident Gringos live in the Zona Dorada up north, in the past
couple of years el Centro has been experiencing a "renacimiento"
of sorts. Gringos are buying and refurbishing the old buildings
at an ever accelerating rate. This process is still in the early
stages as compared to the more touristed coastal towns such as Puerto
Vallarta, but there are already an American owned La Jolla Mazatlan
and a Canadian owned B&B, as well as a couple of American owned
restaurants.
Like
many private homes, so far these businesses are all charming and
completely in character with their surroundings. The city has some
pretty strict laws concerning the preservation of el Centro, gracias
a Dios.
We
have a most wonderful feature here called el malecon. The malecon
is like a sidewalk but much wider than than most and it runs about
14 kilometers, from the southernmost end of el Centro all the way
to the Zona Dorada. Most mornings and evenings the malecon is the
natural habitat of walkers, runners, strollers (w/baby), in line
skaters, and bikers (bicycles are a no-no but they do it) as well
as just plain sun worshipers and viewers of the immense beauty of
the place.
Mazatlan
is a place to be healthy, with miles and miles of beautiful beaches
on which to sun and be seen, the malecon to stroll, hills (one with
a lighthouse) and mountains to climb only an hour away. And there
are any variety of Gyms, Judo dojos, Karate dojos and on and on.
Not to mention the beautiful weather and beautiful people. Everybody
wants to look and feel their very best.
Ok,
I admit it, I am a health nut! with the emphasis on nut. I eat 4
or 5 small meals a day, I walk, run and go to the gym 4 or 5 times
a week. Later in life I came to the realization that if my body
was shot to hell, all the other accomplishments such as financial
security, social standing, etc. weren't worth an old peso, in a
word ...nothin.
Then
there's the climate. I lived in Alaska for 25 years before coming
to Mexico, and I can tell you from experience that these warm tropical
brisas are much healthier than the icy blast of snow-filled wind
"up north".
Is
there a downside to living in Mazatlan? Sure, there's always a downside,
but I can't think of it right now. I feel so good sharing this info/opinion
with you that nothing negative comes to mind.
For
more information please visit The
People's Guide to Mexico home page.
