Episode Summary
In this episode of The Expat Files, Johnny Mueller provides an unfiltered look at life in Latin America, contrasting it with the idealized portrayals found in travel magazines and websites. He announces an upcoming expat wisdom seminar in Latin America, limited to 24 participants, and encourages interested listeners to email him for updates. Johnny reflects on the success of the previous seminar and the demand for another one, emphasizing that there is no sales pitch involved and that he offers a money-back guarantee if the Mayan prophecy comes true. He also mentions that the interviews featured in recent episodes are from attendees of the previous seminar, highlighting the authenticity of the content and the importance of maintaining a low profile as an expat.
In this segment, Johnny Mueller discusses the challenges of maintaining privacy in the modern digital age, comparing the situation in 'up north' (likely referring to countries with stricter privacy laws) to the relative privacy available in Latin America. He emphasizes that in many Western countries, it's nearly impossible to become anonymous due to pervasive digital tracking and government surveillance. In contrast, in Latin America, individuals have more freedom to maintain a low public profile or choose a high one. Johnny also acknowledges the emotional and psychological challenges expats face, especially single women, when considering moving to Latin America. He highlights the importance of encouragement from others who have recently moved there, as it helps alleviate fears and provides a sense of community. The segment concludes with a listener's message expressing appreciation for the show and its role in motivating potential expats.
Johnny Mueller discusses the challenges of becoming an expat, particularly focusing on the differences in logistics for single individuals versus those with families. He highlights the importance of courage, confidence, and fortitude to overcome societal and personal doubts. He also addresses common obstacles such as language barriers and financial concerns, noting that while money is often perceived as a major obstacle, it's not always the biggest issue. Johnny concludes by mentioning his upcoming interviews and the story of a married couple who are moving to Latin America, starting with Guatemala, to explore the expat lifestyle.
Johnny Mueller discusses his reasons for leaving the United States and moving to Costa Rica, citing the difficulty of starting a business in the U.S. and the cost-effectiveness of raising children in a third-world country. He also talks about the resistance he faced from friends and family, the benefits of raising children in Latin America, and his positive experience with the Expat Wisdom seminar, which he found informative and helpful compared to other seminars.
In this segment, Johnny Mueller discusses his experience attending a seminar for expats in Central America. He highlights the value of meeting like-minded individuals, the practical information gained about starting businesses in the region, and the cost advantages compared to the United States. He also mentions the connections made with other attendees and the potential for future business partnerships. Johnny emphasizes that the seminar was short but impactful, with attendees already generating business ideas. He concludes by addressing the common excuse of not knowing enough Spanish, arguing that language barriers should not deter expats from moving to Central America, citing examples of successful expats who managed without fluency.
In this segment, Johnny Mueller recounts the story of a successful expat business owner in Latin America who managed to thrive without knowing much Spanish. The owner, who is described as a bright and capable individual, relied on hiring a competent manager who could run the business effectively. The manager, who is paid significantly less than the owner, is noted as the highest-paid employee in the company. Johnny highlights how the owner's lack of Spanish proficiency, which persisted for four years, was due to the polite and often misleading nature of Spanish culture. He explains that locals may give incorrect directions to expats out of politeness, and this can lead to misunderstandings and challenges for expats trying to navigate daily life and business operations.
Topics
Introduction to The Expat Files podcast, Upcoming expat wisdom seminar, Reflections on the previous seminar's success, Authenticity of content through interviews, Importance of maintaining a low profile as an expat, Privacy in the digital age, Expatriate life in Latin America, Psychological challenges of expat life, Community and support for expats, Expat lifestyle, Challenges of relocation, Language barriers and financial considerations for expats and families moving abroad
Chapters
00:00:00 Opening 00:00:33 Announcement of Upcoming Expat Wisdom Seminar 00:01:54 Reflections on the Previous Seminar's Success 00:03:25 Authenticity of Content Through Interviews 00:04:14 Importance of Maintaining a Low Profile as an Expat 00:04:59 The Inevitability of Losing Privacy Battles in the Digital Age 00:05:58 The Relative Freedom of Privacy in Latin America 00:06:32 The Impact of Expatriate Interviews on Listeners 00:09:52 Acknowledging the Complexity of Relocation for Families and Single Parents 00:10:41 Language as a Common Obstacle in Expat Relocation 00:11:24 Money as a Perceived Obstacle, Not Always the Biggest One 00:15:10 Reasons for Leaving the United States 00:16:11 Cost of Raising Children in Third-World Countries 00:16:32 Benefits of Raising Children in Latin America 00:17:13 Resistance from Friends and Family 00:18:20 Experience with the Expat Wisdom Seminar 00:20:24 Recommendation of the Seminar 00:20:42 Content of the Seminar 00:22:32 Conclusion and Reflection on the Experience 00:25:27 How Much Spanish Do You Need to Start a Business in Latin America? 00:26:52 The Role of Polite Spanish Culture in Miscommunication
Transcript
Automatically transcribed from the original recording; names and wording may contain errors.
[00:03] Hi everybody, I'm Johnny Mueller and you're listening to the expat files living in Latin America. The show that tells you what it's really like to live, work, play and or retire in Latin America. I tell it just like it is, not the version they give you in those glossy travel magazines or the picture they paint for you in those international traveler websites where they're only trying to sell you something. What's it really like for expats living in Latin America? Well if you stick around a while you'll find out. So let's get started. Before I get going on today's show, I want to remind you that I am doing another expat wisdom seminar down in Latin America. Very much like the one I did a few months ago that sold out in about 7 days and was limited to only 24 people. The fact is I've been getting so many emails since that seminar about doing another one
[00:51] that it didn't take much to twist my arm. And again I'm only going to have 24 spots and that's it. Not one more. And I've tentatively picked the date of January 15 through the 21st so it won't interfere with Christmas, New Year's Hanukkah or the Mayan end of the world, which will have taken place about 3 weeks earlier on December 21st so get out your crystals, drink some Hiawasca and get ready for that. Anyway I'm just putting the details together now on the upcoming seminar and I expect it to fill up fast so any of you who are interested out there just email me at the expat files at gmail.com so I can put you on my private mailing list and get things going. I figure sometime later next week I'll have a lot more info. So if you send me an email at the expat files at gmail.com I'll send you the updates as
[01:41] they come. Now I have to mention that I wasn't intending on doing another seminar, thinking that it was going to be too much like real work. And I have vague memories of real work back 20 or so years ago when I lived up in the States and was on my own treadmill. But like I said since the last seminar turned out to be so much fun for me and everyone concerned it turned out it was nothing like work at all but a real cool all round experience. That mixed with the fact that I'm getting so many inquiries from people who couldn't make it to the last one because it was sold out. I figure why not? International living and those guys could use some real competition from folks who've actually lived down here a very long time. People who don't pitch $250,000 condos in Gringo subdivisions. Because the fact is, you see, at my seminar I sell zero, nothing.
[02:29] I've got nothing to sell so there's no sales pitch at all. Oh and somebody asked me about a money back guarantee. Sure, there's definitely that. And better yet, I'll give you triple your money back if the Mayan prophecy comes true. Okay, enough about that. Let's get on to the good stuff. Now in my last couple of shows, I've broken away from my usual pattern of just blabbering on by myself. In fact, for the first time in over 180 shows, I've actually interviewed some of the daring folks that have bothered to come down to Latin America in spite of the fact that the US State Department has virtually blacklisted the very places that these folks have been speaking so highly of. So are these guys the brave and the bad? The daring Indiana Jones types? I don't think so. Brave maybe, but only for taking that first step.
[03:17] Once they got here, like me, they found out what it was really like. But you see, there I go talking again. You gotta hear it from them, not me. That's the point of doing these interviews. And I've been getting a lot of emails asking me to do more one-on-ones like this. Now the interviews I've been doing lately are from the people that attended the Expat Wisdom Seminar in Guatemala. And naturally they're kind of a self-selecting sample. And even with that bias and everyone coming down expecting the unexpected, nearly every one of the 24 attendees pulled me aside at one time or another during the seminar and said they'd love to do an interview if I ever felt like doing that kind of thing. In other words, I didn't have to twist anyone's arm to get some honest opinions of what's really going on down here. Though most people said they'd want to do the interview anonymously, which is perfectly
[04:06] alright with me. And exactly the right thing to say if you plan on becoming a permanent expat. And they're right about that. Keeping a low profile is an unwritten law with most expats I know. So that's a good place to start. After all, one of the big reasons people become expats in the first place is because they want to get out from under the thumb of Big Brother. And that 24-7 surveillance state you all live under, whether you want to face up to the reality of it or not. You probably don't think about this much, but you should put some effort into reducing your personal and internet footprint as soon as you can. Or I should say, if you can. That's if your goal is to live a calm, peaceful, happy life. And down here in Latin America, you really can reduce your public footprint to practically
[04:54] that of a mosquito. But you'll never be able to do that up in the first world. You've already lost that battle, and it's going to get much worse. Most of us can't even remember what it was like to have almost no public presence, no footprint so to speak. Like back in the 60s and 70s, way before the internet. Up north it would be impossible to become anonymous these days, even if you had dropped out of society completely. The fact is, if you actually try to become anonymous, just the act of eliminating yourself from the lists, like Facebook and LinkedIn, and dropping your Google and Twitter and Yahoo accounts, well even just doing that could get you on some government subversive list. After all, to the government, just the act of wanting to become anonymous is suspicious if not subversive in itself.
[05:41] Man, what kind of world do we live in? Or I should say, do you live in? And according to statistics, even street bombs in big cities get captured on camera at least 200 times a day. So, privacy up there where you live, forget about it. But down here, we've got that lag time thing going for us. So it is in a lot of ways like the 60s and 70s, regarding privacy and the lack of a public profile. The fact is, down here it's ridiculously easy to have practically no profile at all. Or you can have as high a profile as you like, which is not recommended of course. But at least you have a choice when you're down here. Up north you've got no choice at all. You are public property, whether you like it or not. That horse has already left the barn. Anyway, as it turns out, among my regular listening audience, I seem to have struck
[06:32] a nerve with these first few interviews. Turns out those interviews were something that expat wannabe listeners really appreciated. Like one of my female expat wannabe listeners said in her email, Johnny, I don't know how many thousands or hundreds of thousands of us there are sitting on the fence about this. We certainly intend at some time in the future to come down to Latin America and live the good life. In fact, after a few glasses of wine, I'm always pretty gung ho myself. Then the next morning the alarm goes off, I wake up, get back on that treadmill, and becoming a real life expat seems just like a pipe dream. And that's what I like about your show. It really charges me up when I need it. Whether I've got a bottle of wine in the cupboard or not. And then your show is over and another few days or a week goes by and then I fall back
[07:21] into my routine again. Then I hear your show or Richard Martin's show and I get charged right back up again. And unfortunately that's what happens every week. It's something like making a New Year's resolution to go on a diet. You get all jacked up about it, then you fall off the wagon. And sure, like I said, I do really get charged up by your show. But you've been down there 20 years, you've already done it, you know Spanish, and I don't. And by the way, how does a 42 year old female learn Spanish? I was always told that music and languages have to be learned when you're a kid. If I took off to Central or South America on my own, I'd feel like such a tenderfoot. Like a Girl Scout lost in a jungle with just a box of cookies. I think me and 100,000 other people would agree, especially your single women listeners,
[08:09] that doing what you and expat Eddie and a lot of male expats have done, takes confidence. Like you said, it may not take a lot of money at all, but it does take confidence. And that's something that many guys have, and well, I don't. Obviously men have balls. They're born with them, and well, we're not. And that's why I really appreciate that you're doing those interviews with some real people. People that have only been down a short while. New arrivals. Tenderfoots like all expat wannabes are when they first get down. At least that's how I would feel. And you're interviewing women too. I have to say it's a nice contrast from the seasoned opinion of a guy like you who's been down there some 20 years. And really, both kinds of opinions and experiences are very valuable to us expat wannabes.
[08:57] But to let you in on a little secret, no matter how jacked up we get, deep down we're scared to death. Especially those of us who don't know any Spanish at all. What we need is a little more encouragement from people who've been down there just a short time. That helps a lot. It's no fun being the only one in the life raft, if you know what I mean. Anyway Johnny, keep up the good work. Even if I never make it down there, I'm still listening. Jane from Montreal. Well thanks for that Jane. I'm glad to see that there are some single women out there who are contemplating becoming expats. And believe me Jane, at first when new expats get down here, we're all scared. So was I. In those first few months? A lot of nights? After a few glasses of wine of course. You really do wonder if it was the right thing to do.
[09:44] But one thing's for sure, in those times of uncertainty, you can get a lot more wine for a lot less money down here. But seriously, I can see her point exactly. I mean think of it, if you're a single male and have no kids, the logistics for you would be pretty simple. But if you're married, have kids, mortgages, property, pets and stuff, well that's a different story altogether. And if you're a single parent, that could make things even more complicated. I mean think about having to get the legal permission to take your kid out of the country permanently. That could be a terrible headache in itself. Then there's single women like Jane that really want to leave. Now she didn't say if she had any kids or not, but it does take a certain amount of balls for a single woman to make a leap like that. I don't see a 42 year old checkout lady at Costco in Cleveland packing it all in and
[10:31] moving down to Managua Nicaragua by herself. But then again, who knows? Aside from that and other particular individual problems, it's all about gathering up the courage, the confidence, the fortitude, whatever you want to call it. Pretty much to overcome all the negatives you're going to get from your friends and family. That seems to be the number one obstacle. The second barrier in most people's minds is the language. That's why everybody likes to run off to Costa Rica because they hear everybody speaks English down there. And they do. Practically. Again, Costa Rica is no place to learn your Spanish. In fact, you could probably learn your Spanish 10 times faster by just hanging out in Miami. But then again, you have to live down in Costa Rica for a while before you begin to believe that. Anyway, the third most common obstacle to becoming an expat is the money.
[11:19] Or rather, the lack of it. Though it could be obstacle number one, two, and three combined for some people. I always say, and as hard as it is to believe, money is not the big obstacle we all make it out to be. But it usually takes living down here a while before you begin to realize that. Anyway, here's how I look at it. I look at it as part of my job to tell you that you're not the only one in that boat. You're not the only one who wants to make the leap, but you've got those natural doubts popping in and out of your mind all the time. You know, years ago as I got ready to leave the States, those exact same doubts flooded my mind too. And as it turns out, those last two interviews I did encouraged a lot of expat wannabes to write in asking for more. Bottom line, they want more than my word for what really goes on down here.
[12:05] And I can't blame them at all. So anyway, by popular demand, I'll do a few more interviews. And I'll also give you guys out there who've been asking about my seminar a little bit more of a personal perspective on how that went too. So now we're going to talk to the other half of that married couple who came down to my seminar and decided to arrange it so that it coordinated with their total 100% move down to Latin America. So let's hear what Kyle, a brand new expat to Guatemala, has to say. And by the way, his name's not really Kyle. Hi, my name is Kyle. I come from the northeast part of the United States. And my background is in internet consulting, internet marketing, and mini storage warehousing.
[12:52] So Kyle, what made you look into Latin America as a possible place to relocate, retire, work, have a second home, start a new business, or just as a place to become a permanent expat? My wife and I were down in Costa Rica for about four months, about five years ago. And at that point in our lives, we became interested in the expat lifestyle because we've met quite a few expats that seem to be living a very carefree life. We were always trying to figure out a way to become expats ourselves. So we came back to the States. And over the past five years, the time was not right for us. Finally, everything aligned and we had a chance to go back to Central or South America. At which point last February, we discovered expatwisdom.com site and we started listening
[13:41] to the expat files. We were planning on going back to Costa Rica because we did like Costa Rica. But after listening to Johnny's podcast, we became aware of the downfalls of going to countries such as Costa Rica or Panama. Guatemala, Nicaragua, Colombia, and Ecuador are the top four countries that are on our list. So we're using Guatemala as our break in country to learn Spanish and just to get a feel for the whole Latin America lifestyle in general. So I take it Latin America was your first choice then? Well, we decided on Latin America because of its proximity. I still have family in the United States, which I do, of course, want to come back and visit. And I want to make it an easily accessible place for them to come visit me if they want
[14:28] to. So two months or so ago, when you first got down here, how was your Spanish? I only knew about 10 words of Spanish before actually coming here. I've only been in country now for two months. I've probably picked up 156 words at this point. There's the little computer program that I'm actually learning Spanish from is telling me that I am now proficient with. That certainly is enough to get by when it comes to ordering food and finding the bathroom and finding directions and giving my address out to delivery drivers for our new home. So besides liking the expat lifestyle that you saw down in Costa Rica, what other reasons did you have for leaving the states? All the regulations in the United States make it basically impossible to start a new business
[15:16] or actually pretty much do anything anymore in the United States. So there's a lot of reasons why I wanted to reside in another country. What kind of resistance did you get from friends and family back home when you told them you were going to make the move? I'm very lucky because my wife and I both agreed that this was a good move to make. I understand a lot of other couples aren't so lucky because one wants to stay and one wants to go. Yeah, that's true and that can be a real problem. I remember you and your wife mentioning to me about having kids in a family outside the states. And I know you don't have any kids right now, but I know there's a lot of expat wannabes out there who are interested in having a family life if and when they plan on moving to Latin America themselves. Why don't you talk a little bit about that?
[16:03] Seeing that we are in our 30s, my wife and I have planned on having kids for quite some time, but the time never seemed to be correct for us. One of the reasons I guess you could say we moved to a third world country is the cost of even having a child is remarkably less expensive in these countries. Good medical care is here if you want to have a child. So then what do you think the advantages are to bringing a child up in Latin America? Besides the obvious cost benefits. Well, yes, to bring up a child that's bilingual, also in a society that's more family oriented, there is not an amazing amount of divorced couples here like there is in the United States. Also, having a child outside the United States means that they're not going to be instantly
[16:49] vaccinated within a few hours after being born. So that's another motivating factor. Of course, the child would have dual citizenship. I don't see how that could possibly not be a benefit to have dual citizenship. Considering the way the economy of the world is now headed. So when your plans to become an expert became known, what kind of resistance did you get from your friends and family? My parents, of course, instantly assume that this is just a completely crime ridden country. And, you know, you're going to be shot the first day you're here because if you look up on the Internet, of course, the only thing you see is negative information coming up at the top of the search engines. A few friends told us that we were nuts for doing this, but now they are the exact same friends that are interested in coming to visit because we're having such a great time here.
[17:38] And once we show them our actual budget, what we're spending here compared to what we were spending in our last home in the United States, it's an obvious smart decision to cut your budget back a fifth of what it was. OK, let's back up a little bit and talk about the seminar. Since you did arrange, you're leaving the United States to coordinate with it. For example, in your opinion, how did the expat wisdom seminar compare with the other offerings out there? You know, the ones I'm talking about Doug Casey, Sovereign Man, International Living, those kind of offerings. I have checked out some of the other seminars. Seems like most of these seminars are all run by real estate gurus or in some way want to pull you into selling you something. And I didn't get that feel from the expat wisdom seminar at all.
[18:26] We did go to a seminar in Costa Rica originally, but at the end of the seminar, it was basically more of a push to sell us a piece of property. It really felt like kind of a rushed seminar. He rushed us through a lot of things. It was not very comfortable. I did not feel that with the expat wisdom seminar. Everything I've experienced so far has been exactly right on point with how Johnny Mueller has explained it. I've already feel like I've been here a lot longer than two months because of the information I learned at the seminar. It makes me more comfortable understanding how Latin Americans think and how they act. And without that kind of information, I'd be kind of confused. But you did come down here intent on starting a business, I presume. What's your take on that so far?
[19:12] I've only been here two months already. I have a lot of ideas and possible business ideas that could easily work. Of course, the cost of business here is what, just a sixth of what it is in the United States to get started. So another great reason for heading to a third world country. So let's get back to the seminar again. What would you say was the best thing about it for you or was there a best thing? There were so much great things about the seminar. It's really hard to break it down to any exact couple things. The amount of information coming at me from the seminar was overwhelming to some degree. At the same time, everything that I did remember to pick up certainly has paid off so far. I mean, the financial tips alone have made the cost of the seminar not even matter.
[19:59] So was there anything that surprised you about the seminar that you could tell us about? It was great to meet so many like-minded people. Part of the reason I actually went to the seminar is I knew that I would be meeting other people that had the same point of view when it came to possibly exiting the United States on a full-time basis. So I can assume you'd recommend the seminar to anyone looking to be an expat then, right? Or not? Oh, I would surely recommend this seminar to a friend, associate, or a relative. I would definitely recommend the seminar. I'm currently attempting to get my own brother to come to the next seminar. So what would you say to someone who asked you at a party, let's say, what the seminar was all about? Well, the seminar gave the good and the bad about third world living.
[20:46] We had an attorney that gave us details about starting businesses and how you can be protected from being sued compared to the United States where you get sued for looking the wrong way. We also had an IT person come in and give us a rundown on what kind of IT operations are actually happening at a price. It's just a fraction of what you could get done in the United States. I had some experience in the United States with internet development and websites and IT type businesses. And when I compare the type of work coming out of this country, there really appears to be no difference in the quality level, but the cost is just a fraction. So it makes complete sense to utilize this type of market. I noticed that you hooked up with some of the other seminar attendees.
[21:35] Can I assume you were putting your heads together to come up with some business ideas? Well, I made some great connections, friendship and business connections for the future. Some other people that came to the seminar have indicated that they also are going to be coming back on a partial time basis. Few are, I just heard, are coming down full time also. So we have an ongoing relationship with new friends and new business partners for possible future deals. Now, I have to stop this interview for a second to point this out. The seminar itself was only about five days long. And as you've heard, people are already generating their own business ideas. Imagine that. You visit a place for less than a week, a place you've never met before, a place where you don't even speak the language. And already you're making real solid plans to come back down and start a business.
[22:24] Now, tell me opportunity like that exists up in the first world, maybe 30 or 40 years ago, but these days, forget about it. So Kyle, I want to thank you for sharing those experiences with us. And I want to comment on the fact that you say you've learned about 120 words in Spanish so far. And with that, you say you get along just fine. And come to think of it, it's a pretty good lesson for all you expat wannabes up there who always like to use the excuse of not knowing enough Spanish for not actually taking that step to come down here yourself. Just remember this, more than half of all successful gringos in business down here arrived with knowing only enough Spanish to order at Taco Bell. The fact is you should never let your perceived language barrier stop you from coming down.
[23:11] Look at me, Kyle and Expat Eddie. All of us started at ground zero and more than half of the other expats I know did too. And here's a little aside, my brother, who took three years of Spanish in high school, still has trouble ordering a Taco Bell. The so much for learning your Spanish from first world gringo teachers. And just one more thing, I don't know if I've ever told you this story before, but I'm friends with a Canadian expat who's been down here some 15 years now and he owns a very successful clothing Makila. In fact, at one time he had over 2,000 employees and he came down to Central America without knowing a lick of Spanish either. In fact, after he'd been down here for some four years and had a big manufacturing operation in place, one day his shop manager, a native Latin American who spoke
[23:59] English, pulled his boss aside and told him some startling news. He said, boss, I hate to tell you this, but no one, not anyone on the shop floor. None of your workers understands your Spanish and they never did. Then my friend, the expat gringo looked at him in astonishment and he said, well, how come the business is so successful? How come it's growing? How come everything runs so smoothly? You're joking, right? I mean, every morning right before we get started, I walk through the shop and give individual orders to every station. You know how I do that. And his shop manager said, yeah, I know you give those orders in Spanish, don't you? Well, guess what? After you go back into your office or take off in your car, I walk through the plant again and give all those orders once again, incomprehensible Spanish.
[24:49] So all that time for four years, my friend, the successful Makila operator actually thought he was speaking intelligible Spanish and Latins being a very, very polite culture, not to mention hearing those unintelligible words coming out of their boss's mouth. Well, they just nod and smile and act as if they understood every word he was saying. And all the while his shop manager was covering for him. Needless to say, when he found that out, he gave the guy a big raise. Wouldn't you? And after that incident, my friend told me sometimes he wonders just who is the brains of the outfit after all. So bottom line, how much Spanish do you need to know to start a successful business down here? Not much. And how much Spanish do you need to know to run a colossal business with a few thousand
[25:38] employees? Apparently even less. According to my friend, all you really need to do is hire the right manager. In his case, that was his key to success. Oh, and by the way, his manager, who is eminently capable of running the whole damn operation, and he often does for weeks at a time, since my friend's often gone, jet setting between his luxury beach house and Caribbean resort islands. Anyway, the manager, who's been with him many years now, is making about $700 a month. And in fact, that makes him the highest paid employee in the plant, everyone else making less than half of that. Except, of course, you guessed it, my friend, the owner. And his earnings from that business are in the stratosphere. Even by first world standards.
[26:25] So let me ask you this. How's that for an expat business owner whose employees didn't even understand him for the first four years he was in business? And worse yet, he didn't even know it himself. And yes, guys, I hear stories like that all the time, believe me. Now, let me explain something here. My friend's no dummy at all. He's a very bright guy. So then you got to wonder, how did it happen? How did four years slip by like that without him knowing? Well, it really is that polite Spanish culture. And I'll give you another example of that. Suppose you're driving along anywhere in Latin America and you're looking for a building or a house. After all, street signs, roads, neighborhoods, they're marked like crap down here or not marked at all. You pull over to someone and ask for directions. And of course, Latins are very polite and helpful and they'll give you directions to the
[27:13] place, whether they know where it is or not. They just want to be nice and friendly and obliging to a gringo. After all, off the tourist track, they don't see many of us at all. Chances are you're the first and only gringo they've spoken to in their whole lives. They don't want to make a bad impression by appearing stupid, so they'll give you wrong directions and with a smile. You've been listening to The Expat Files, living in Latin America, coming to you each week from somewhere south of the border. And don't forget, you can email me on anything at all about Latin America. The Expat Files at gmail.com. Once again, The Expat Files at gmail.com. See you next time. Nos vemos.