TheExpatJournals.com

My first two weeks here have been a bit overwhelming primarily because I brought my 75 pound Belgian Shepherd with me. First, Copa (and the travel agent at Viajes David in Panama) made the mistake of telling me I had no choice but to send her cargo due to her weight. WRONG, WRONG, WRONG!!

No matter what you’re told and no matter where your origin, if you are bringing a pet to Ecuador, ONLY CHECK THEM IN AT THE TICKET COUNTER essentially as excess luggage. Unless you’re bringing a small pony and really don’t have an option…and my crate for her is the Petmate Deluxe VariKennel XL, feel free to google that size…your pet can and will be accommodated as excess baggage. If you listen to their cargo suggestion, and apparently I was the second soul sick pet owner in Guayaquil in a matter of a few days with the other coming in from Los Angeles, you will land with a nightmare to deal with. Shipping cargo equals needing to clear customs when you arrive and Guayaquil Aduana seems to have just about the worst reputation in the world as far as clearances go. If you check your pet as excess baggage, it will come out on the luggage carousel with the rest of your bags. And off you go. Sure, the Aduana counter inside the terminal might (or might not) request your documentation, but obviously, you would have that in order. But Cargo? Well, go here for (link) for that detailed experience.

So we end up arriving in Cuenca on Friday night after arriving in Guayaquil on Wednesday afternoon. The furnished apartment I lined up was unattended on the weekend, so I could not check in. I had no choice but to lug the dog, her kennel, and about 250 pounds of luggage into a hostal. No single room could possible be comfortable so overcrowded and no dog accustomed to the outdoors likes to have the option of going outside at will removed. And no owner of a big dog is going to enjoy trying to meet their exercise demands on a daily basis. In short, I’m walking her about 3 hours a day. And since I can’t trust her not to damage something indoors while I’m out, that means my time out is very limited due to needing to leave her inside the kennel while I’m gone. Yes, my life is completely revolving around my dog right now.

Still, I have managed to move twice, shop for food and some practical essentials like plasticware, towels, etc. I have managed to complete all the paperwork for my Visa, have two dinners out, discover one of the most beautiful valleys I’ve seen anywhere so close to town, get my laundry done, get my dry cleaning done and most miraculously of all, find a beautiful apartment in a beautiful house with 2 acres of beautiful gardens on a riverfront in town. Finding any outdoor space at all is challenging. Finding 2 acres would fall into the impossible category. And I didn’t even go looking for it. It was ‘delivered’ to me.

Now, I’ve always had a knack for finding the impossible, but I was really concerned about finding what I needed here. Last trip, I walked 2-6 hours a day, hired taxis to drive me around to look, talked with everyone, scoured real estate companies and even placed a wanted ad in the local paper…all to no avail. I did find one house with a bit of a yard in the front and back in a fairly quiet convenient location. However, my dog is big and that small yard was not enough room for her to run in. So I changed my mind about committing to it.

At this point, I’m reminded of a line I heard long ago, “Good is often the enemy of the best.” I assumed I would have to go outside town and that came with it’s own set of problems, like access to broadband, a mandatory item for me. I did discover Alegro’s wireless, roaming option and while it may be a bit pricier than other options, at least it’s available and it’s very nice to think that I could roam around the country and take it with me, always have it available.

After the kind of packing an international move demands, (during which time I developed a really nasty cold that sapped my strength, though I had to press on as there was literally no time to rest no matter how much I needed to) yard sales, closing up various loose ends and playing lifeboat with my possessions, FINALLY several weeks later and 11 days into Ecuador after Aduana hell and two moves, I was able to just lay in bed for 6 hours, watch DVD’s and rest. It was the day I decided to do nothing that everything fell into place.

After resting, I went out to walk the dog in a field I had spotted across the river free of roads, therefore traffic…a safe place to let her off leash to run and expend some of her pent up energy. We passed the front of a beautiful home I had been admiring from the back. The German Shepherd did his ferocious best, but for some reason, my dog was non-plussed. As we returned the same way, I stopped to let the dogs mingle and it was then the owners just happened to come out. We chatted a bit and it turned out they had an available apartment in their incredible home. After informing me they had never advertised it in the paper and after they offered to show me and I looked, I took it on the spot. I know magic when I see it and I know this is a one in a million shot at perfect for my needs. The apartment is nice with tall ceilings, large windows looking out over the beautiful gardens on the river and best of all, the windows are good enough so that when closed, it’s actually quiet inside, a rarity inside the city limits of Cuenca. It is furnished which is helpful since my things won’t be here for awhile. And of course, two acres and a playmate for my dog? I could not have dreamed of finding anything this right for my needs.

I’m quite certain the reason they offered it to me is because I’m a foreigner. I have found landlords will even advertise in the paper that foreigners are preferred. The house I had found previously I found just by walking around and because the neighbor happened to walk out while I was standing in front and was able to give me the owner’s number. As per logic, I had an Ecuadorian make the call to the owner in order to avoid ‘gringo pricing’, but the Ecuadorian was dismissed by the owner who said he was not interested in renting, only selling. Well, nearing the end of my trip of which finding a place to live was one of the major goals, I decided to take a shot with my lacking Spanish and called the guy myself the next day. Now that a foreigner was on the phone, he changed his mind quickly and was willing to rent to me. That was an unfurnished 3 br, study, 2.5 baths, living room with a fireplace, dining room, outdoor bodega and maid’s room with a mini yard in front and back for $350 a month. It was about a block away from the river and walking distance to the SuperMaxi grocery store and the edge of the historic center. He’s willing to sell it for $80K and was willing to give me an option to buy it in the rental contract. But again, my life revolves around my dog’s needs and the yard wasn’t big enough. And now? 2 acres with a playmate. Good is often the enemy of the best.

Everyone always said just look in the paper, they’re are plenty of rentals. Buying here is not something I’m either in the position to do nor want to do until I know this is ‘home.’ It’s one thing to move to another country as a couple, but it’s a completely different ballgame when you live alone. And the classifieds are not online, unfortunately. And what does exist online (as in the early days of Panama a few years back) is pretty much the most expensive stuff. And gringo pricing is definitely a reality here, too. So if you’re looking for an apartment, there are certainly plenty in the local classifieds in print with El Mercurio being the most abundant and El Tiempo only printing a few, relatively speaking. So I hit the pavement and spoke to locals and found what one expat architect called, ‘the impossible to find’. I don’t know why I’ve always had this happen to me, but it does seem to be a pattern in my life. One thing I will say about walking around is that so many have windows that are non-glare, houses that appear empty aren’t due to those windows. Still, talking to locals is great as particularly store owners seem to always know of things and since you are a foreigner, they offer up what they know.

One thing I have learned is that the market here is very, very slow, so if you do buy, you can’t necessarily sell very quickly at all. That may change, but that’s the way it is currently. So KNOW you want a property and KNOW it’s built well enough to last before plopping down. I understand mortgages here are difficult, but I do find many, many sellers will offer seller financing.

Okay, my lawyer just called to inform me I needed to rush in to sign something he needed me to sign before he presents it today. Why there’s no checklist so everything isn’t piecemeal as you go along is beyond me, but he’s making this very painless and he is a very trustworthy guy, so I’m certainly jumping if he says jump. Hasta pronto.