Episode Summary
In this episode of The Expat Files, Johnny Mueller reflects on a recent 6-day seminar, sharing insights on the attendees' motivations and the challenges of relocating to Latin America. He acknowledges the low startup costs of business ideas and the active steps many attendees are taking toward relocation, such as checking apartments and setting up legal structures. Johnny admits to not completing his full presentation due to his storytelling and rambling, but he believes the seminar was valuable and plans to share feedback through interviews in a few weeks.
Johnny also discusses the appeal of Belize for older expats due to the English language, but warns against basing relocation decisions solely on this factor. He highlights the country's poor infrastructure, expensive internet, and lack of medical facilities, suggesting that these factors make Belize unsuitable for long-term living. He shares a story about Robert Culpepper, a friend from England, who was robbed at gunpoint in Belize, though he didn't mention it in his blog. Johnny emphasizes the importance of being cautious and avoiding areas with high crime rates, suggesting that expats should consider other countries in Latin America where they can live safely and access better healthcare.
In another segment, Johnny discusses the challenges of living in Belize, particularly focusing on the country's underdeveloped medical system and high crime rates. He argues that Belize is not a suitable place for expats due to the lack of adequate healthcare and the risk of robbery. He contrasts Belize with other Latin American countries, noting that while crime is a problem in the region, it is not as widespread as in Belize and tends to be concentrated in specific areas like slums or favelas. Johnny advises expats to avoid areas with high crime rates and to be cautious about their appearance, such as wearing Bermuda shorts, which can make them stand out as targets.
Johnny also touches on the importance of understanding zones and neighborhoods in Latin cities to avoid crime-prone areas like Fableas and Ascentamientos. He advises expats to rent for at least six months before buying property to get a better sense of the area. He references the documentary 'What in the World Are They Spraying?' and mentions Edward Griffin's credibility due to his book 'The Creature from Jekyll Island.' Johnny shares his personal observations on the lack of chemtrails in Latin America and the general skepticism of expats and alternative media. He also addresses allergies in Latin America, noting the absence of common allergy medications and the low dairy consumption, which he links to lower allergy rates.
In a humorous yet insightful segment, Johnny discusses the relationship between dairy consumption and allergies, suggesting that the ingestion of dairy products is the number one cause of allergies in humans. He notes that in some regions, allergies are referred to as 'allerhias,' and people often don't take medication for them, even among the wealthy. He advises those with severe allergies to consider moving to smaller towns or countries like Chile or Argentina to avoid pollution and find relief from their symptoms. He shares personal experiences of living in coffee fields and encountering pollen, and notes that his sister, who had severe allergies, experienced no issues when visiting these regions. Finally, he touches on the topic of pollution and the regulation of used vehicle imports in Latin countries, highlighting the ongoing debate over this issue.
In the final segment, Johnny discusses the practice of importing junked cars from the US to Latin America, where they can be imported with minimal taxes. He explains how these cars are often repaired to look like new, though their functionality may be compromised. He outlines the new 10-year rule that restricts the import of cars over 10 years old, requiring temporary permits and posing challenges for long-term ownership. Owners can move the car to adjacent countries to extend the 90-day permit period, but this is inconvenient.
Topics
Introduction to The Expat Files podcast, Reflection on a recent 6-day seminar, Attendees' motivations for moving to Latin America, Business ideas and relocation steps taken by attendees, Johnny's experience with the seminar and his presentation, Unexpected attendees and their impact, Plans for future feedback sharing, Seminar feedback, Robert Culpepper's experience in Belize, Belize's appeal for expats, Belize's infrastructure and medical system issues, Medical system in Belize
Chapters
00:00:00 Opening 00:00:33 Reflection on the Seminar Experience 00:01:35 Attendees' Motivations for Moving to Latin America 00:02:53 Unexpected Attendees and Their Impact 00:03:48 Relocation Steps Taken by Attendees 00:04:07 Johnny's Presentation and Seminar Experience 00:05:16 Plans for Future Feedback Sharing 00:05:30 Positive Seminar Feedback and Robert Culpepper's Robbery Experience 00:08:27 Belize's Poor Infrastructure and Expensive Internet 00:09:59 Belize's Medical System Issues and Lack of Doctors 00:10:25 Introduction to the topic of medical care in Belize 00:10:29 Johnny's opinion on the backwardness of Belize's medical system 00:10:32 Johnny's advice for young expats considering Belize 00:10:36 Johnny's recommendation for young, adventurous expats 00:10:42 Johnny's suggestion for expats prioritizing healthcare 00:10:43 Johnny's warning about the importance of healthcare for expats 00:10:48 Johnny's advice for expats who are not independently wealthy 00:10:50 Johnny's suggestion for expats to avoid Belize due to healthcare limitations 00:15:35 Avoiding Crime-Prone Areas in Latin Cities 00:16:23 Chemtrails and Contrails: A Skeptical View 00:19:52 Allergies in Latin America: A Surprising Absence 00:20:30 Dairy and Allergies: A Possible Link 00:20:44 A Thesis on Allergies and Dairy 00:20:52 Allergies in the Region: A Different Term 00:21:16 Advice for Allergy Sufferers 00:21:37 Pollution and Environmental Regulations 00:24:20 Allergy Relief in the Tropics 00:25:10 Used Vehicle Imports and Environmental Regulation 00:25:28 Importing Junked Cars from the US to Latin America 00:26:26 The 10-Year Rule and Its Implications
Transcript
Automatically transcribed from the original recording; names and wording may contain errors.
[00:14] Hello there all you expat wannabes, I'm Johnny Mueller and you're listening to the Expat Files, living in Latin America. The show that tells you just what it's like to live, work, play and or retire down here in Latin America. It's a mix of the good, the bad, the ugly and the great, and it's all right here so let's get started. Alright, I'm recording this just a day or two after my last seminar. As you can probably tell, my voice is shot. And you know, this always happens when I do a seminar, in fact sometimes it starts getting ragged around the edges just after the first or second day, and I can always make it through. But this time, remember, this seminar was 6 full days, the longest one I've ever done. And it's not just about the fact that almost every day I'm blabbering away at least in the morning, but it's the fact that not only at breakfast, lunch and dinner am I blathering
[01:04] away with whomever is unlucky enough to be sitting next to me, but also in the afternoons when we have our boots on the ground portion of the seminar, I'm nearly always in one of our two buses, either trying to entertain folks with jokes they haven't heard before and trying to answer questions rapid fire as fast as the crowd can feed them to me. So you just try doing that for 6 days and see how your voice holds out. Anyway, I had to say it was a very excellent group this time, and a bit different than most of the other groups I've had, in so much as way over half of these guys and gals were dead serious about getting out of Dodge, because like most of them said, they just about had enough of Big Brother and a hundred other things that were really getting on their nerves living up in the States. And most of them related to me that they wanted to get out of Dodge permanently.
[01:50] No part time expat stuff for them, and most of them deciding on Latin America already before they even came down, and basically attending the seminar in the hopes of picking up business ideas, getting their boots on the ground and narrowing down their prospects. Well I can tell you, they sure did that. After just a few days down here with boots on the ground, the business ideas were flowing like gushers from these guys, and by the end of the seminar, I listened to so many cool, interesting, and even innovative business ideas coming from so many different angles that I wonder why I hadn't thought of them myself, and I've been down here over 20 years, you know? Have you heard of calcified brain syndrome? Well I might be the poster child for that. Time will tell. Oh and by the way, I don't have to tell you that nearly every single business idea the seminar folks came up with had ridiculously low startup costs.
[02:39] And none of those ideas, by the way, involved restaurants, bars, discos, or mom and pop bed and breakfast. Which means they've been paying attention to my show, haven't they? And you know, the first shock that I got with this new seminar group was that there was a representative here from Notharland, you're not going to believe this, Cleveland. A towering midwestern pyramid of a guy who made such an impression on folks that most people said, at night at least, he held his own with one or two others as the life of the party. And at first you know, when I met him at the airport and he said he was from Cleveland, I started looking for cover because I thought he was going to let me have it in the kisser. Because after all, you can't say I've been all that kind to Ohio in general. But nonetheless he came, made his presence known, and didn't lay a finger on me.
[03:25] But I suspected there could be a sneak attack at any time. So I did remain on my guard for the first day or so. But not to worry, he turned out to be a good old boy in all respects. And in the end, gave me blanket permission to continue to pick on Cleveland as is my habit. Now like I said, this group was very serious about getting on a dodge. In fact, by the time that six days was up, a lot of these guys and gals were running around checking out apartments, bank accounts, hospital insurance plans, setting up SA corporations, and even taking those first legal steps on the way to getting permanent residency. And again, as you might have figured, because it's so very hard for me to stick to the point, I only really got through about three quarters of my presentation. I mean, this time I did have 700 slides.
[04:12] And yes, some people might say, isn't that cruel and unusual punishment? Even death by PowerPoint? And yes, I admit, I had two dozers. And one of them, you know who you are, is a three-time repeat offender. And speaking of repeat offenders, this time two people who've become good friends of mine were previous attendees who came back for more. And I don't think it's because they like my jokes, it's because they know Latin America is where they're destined to be. And what about those 160 or so PowerPoint slides I never did get to because of my stories and frequent ramblings? Well if you don't bring it up, I won't, okay? So in the end, the question is, how did the people like the seminar? Was it worth it? Did everyone get at least something substantial out of it?
[04:59] Well I got some really good feedback to my face, but you know, it's like when a minister asks you how you liked his sermon, you never tell him what you really think. You know what I mean? So not to blow my own horn and sound like a timeshare salesman, I think I'll put together a few random short interviews and you can hear for yourself. And that'll probably happen in a couple of weeks. So I'll finish my blathering on this now by just saying two things. One, I packed so many things into that seminar that I wore the group to a frazzle. You know, that old drinking from a fire hose cliché again. And second, no one asked for their money back, which is always a good sign, right? Oh, and I forgot to mention, my buddy Robert Culpepper from England came in for the seminar. You remember him, he's the brains behind the Expat Wisdom website. Of course it's my website too, but he does the grunt work because I'm a slug about websites,
[05:48] blogs and emails and other such things. You know, when you're down here long enough, that manana mentality does rub off a little bit in some ways. Anyway, as you know, we promoted that seminar on the website, but this was the first time he ever came to one himself. Now he came from England by way of Mexico through Belize and down through Guatemala. And you might have caught some of his blogs reporting on the trip on expatwisdom.com. And if you've been keeping up with him, you might have noticed that when he reported on his trip to Belize, mixed in with his reviews and critiques on the hotels and the beaches and the diving and the restaurants, you'll notice that he got robbed at gunpoint. Well, he didn't actually see the gun, but it looked like one of the two bad guys was sticking one through his pocket.
[06:34] And what I don't think he mentioned was that he got robbed on his very first night in Belize, just 50 feet from his hotel, walking alone on the beach at night. Which unfortunately fits the pattern that I've been saying all along. Now what I always say is that it's perfectly fine to go to Belize for some sun and fun on a nice vacation package deal. But believe me, you wouldn't want to live there. Now I know a lot of people say, Belize just might be the place for me because, well, I'm 50 or 60 years old and hell, they speak English there. Very cool. And they really believe that old saying, that you can't teach an old dog new tricks. Which seems to make Belize the ideal place for many older, more conservative gringos. Or so they think.
[07:20] A lot of middle aged folks, especially men, say they aren't big on studying. They're in their so called golden years or approaching them fast. And the last thing they want to do is go to Spanish school. Or anything remotely connected to school or school books. Many middle aged men I know say they simply don't think they can do it. Like one newly retired gringo friend of mine said, it's like playing the piano, isn't it? And I don't think I have the time or the patience or the willpower to try to master anything like that. Hell, I'm retired. I want to get up at 9, lay on a hammock and suck pina coladas all day. Or so they think. Even though it never turns out that way, you always find something to do and you get busy doing it. And you know, I talk to lots of expats who say that and I get a lot of emails in that
[08:07] regard too. Well, here's a bit of advice. You shouldn't base your moving preference simply on the fact that they speak English in a country. Because for example, a country like Belize, though they speak English, wants you go to actually live there, not just for a week vacation on the barrier reef. Sure, they speak English, but there's a lot not to like about that country. For one, it's got a very poor infrastructure and terrible internet connections. In fact, one of my expat friends who makes his living from the internet said he'd never consider living in Belize because he said a high speed internet connection could cost around $450 a month. More than five times as much as a similar high speed connection in the adjacent countries of Honduras, Guatemala or Mexico.
[08:53] And this guy's recently been there and has checked it all out. For infrastructure, Belize is just hopelessly behind the times and the reason for that is big international companies do not want to come into Belize to make the investment to bring it up to first world speed because simply it's a very poor country much poorer than its surrounding neighbors Guatemala, Honduras and Mexico. And with such a small population, there's not enough subscribers to merit wiring the whole country. So, halfway decent internet only exists in and around the towns and villages. And when you can get it, it's spotty and very expensive. And even if you're marketing to the 1 to 5% of the cream of the crop of Belize, since they've got far less than a half a million people in the whole country, the simple fact
[09:41] of wiring up the place for a high speed internet is nothing but a losing proposition. And that's why it's just not getting done. And remember, like I said in a past show, for expats there's another huge stumbling block to moving there. Belize does not have its own medical school, which means of course it's not turning out doctors and nurses either. They have to be imported or come of their own volition from adjacent countries. And the doctors from adjacent countries do not want to go to Belize because they can make about twice as much money straight out of medical school working in a big city in Mexico, Honduras or Guatemala. In fact, like I reported in a previous show, they do not have one permanent oncologist in the whole country. Not that I'm a fan of chemotherapy or nuclear medicine, I'm not.
[10:29] But that's just an example of how backward their medical system is. So what I always tell people is, if you're 20 or 25, you know, the age when you think you're invincible, and you love to surf and swim and snorkel and dive, Belize is a pretty good choice. But if you're like most expats and expat wannabes I know, one of the big things on your agenda is health care. So just for that reason, you have to scratch Belize off your list, unless of course you're independently wealthy and have your own Learjet. Then you could basically have your own private flight for life. So not to worry, if you have chest pains or a hangnail or whatever, you could if you feel like it, pop off to a fully equipped hospital in an adjacent country. However, don't forget you'll need a nurse, an EMT and a medical support staff too. And don't think because there are little expat colonies throughout Belize, you're going
[11:18] to get any kind of first world medical assistance. Because remember, a lot of towns and villages where you find the expats, where they have those really spectacular beaches, they've only got between 3 and maybe 8,000 people. So then if you get chest pains or something serious happens, who are you going to call and where are you going to go? Now even if they ship you off to Belize City, which is the largest city in the whole country, it's only got about 50,000 people and it's vastly underserved medically. Because remember, about 90% of that population is extremely poor and could never afford a private hospital, the place you and I want to go. So that leaves about 5,000 people in the whole city, the biggest city in the country, the top 10% if that, can actually afford private health care.
[12:04] Even though by first world standards it's dirt cheap, about a sixth of our cost up north. And a pool of 5,000 people can barely support a mediocre first world style hospital. What I mean is, imagine a town up in Cleveland with only 5,000 people. It would surely have one small hospital if that. And maybe just a decent sized clinic. Now you don't go to a hospital or a clinic like that for a brain aneurysm or a stroke or a massive heart attack, do you? You go to the nearest big city hospital with all the facilities and all the gadgets. Just know that in Belize there's no such thing. You'll get 1970s or 1980s medical care and that's about it. And on top of that, there's a chance you'll get a double dose of bad luck and along with
[12:53] that heart attack, on the way to the hospital you'll get robbed too. Like what happened to Robert? Now remember what I said, that was his first night there. Meanwhile I've held 4 seminars in places on the US State Department's black list. I'm talking around 100 people total. And they've all been down here at least 5 days and many of them elected to stay permanently. And so far, knock on wood, none of them's been robbed. And sure the time will come when someone or another is going to get robbed, hell, when I first got down to Latin America I got robbed twice, the last time being about 18 years ago. When I was wide eyed and innocent and still learning the ropes too. Remember back then there was no prattling expat giving out information like the expat files.
[13:38] And it's not all about luck, but you know that. And of course it could happen to anyone, but as we know now there are ways to dress and ways not to dress in places we should and shouldn't be. And by the way, a bad guy can spot a gringo tourist a mile away by this giveaway, Bermuda Shorts. And don't tell me that when you're at the beach it's necessary to wear shorts. At the beach it's necessary to wear a bathing suit, not shorts. So go ahead if there's a lot of gringos around, wear your Bermuda Shorts. But if you're the lone gringo in the area, you don't want to stick out like a sore thumb. But I'll tell you, it doesn't bode well for Belize. When you land in the country and on the first day you get robbed 30 feet from your hotel. But what it really boils down to is this.
[14:25] If you decide to become an expat, it's best not to locate in a place where the wealth disparity is severe, like in Belize. A place where they've got just the wealthy and the gringos. Making up about 5% of the population and almost no middle class with more than half of the rest of the folks in dire poverty. Well that's why that little country has so much crime per capita. Mostly stick ups, robberies and home invasions by the way. It's the haves and the have nots, you know? And generalized throughout the whole country. There's really no way to escape that, unless you're in a protected subdivision. And as far as the other countries in Latin America, sure they've got a big crime problem, but it's not generalized. You can figure about 90 to 95% of all the crimes that you hear about.
[15:12] They occur in the medium and large cities in what you might call the Latin American ghettos. Which go by a number of names, sometimes called Fableas, like in Brazil, and other times called Ascentamientos. Which are basically squatter settlements that have grown up in and around medium and large sized cities. And of course, expats are never going to be living in those places, but you don't want to live too close to them either. You never want to be within easy walking distance of one of those places. And that's why, like I said, if you live in any Latin city, you have to know your zones and your neighborhoods. Which is why you should always rent for at least six months before you ever buy anything. Just to get the lay of the land. And believe me, there are some very nice properties, and very nice guarded developments too.
[15:57] Far far away from any of these densely populated, notoriously crime ridden Fableas and Ascentamientos. But you see, in a country like Belize, with a population so small, yet with such severe economic class division, it really doesn't matter where you are, there's going to be a lot of crime. Since it's very hard to isolate yourself from the poorest of the poor. They're everywhere. Well okay, enough about that. Maybe I should talk about something interesting for your change, huh? Anyway, I've been getting emails over the years, even more so this year, asking me about air quality in Latin America. And I've been getting emails occasionally asking me about chemtrails and contrails. In fact, one of my seminar attendees pulled me aside and asked me about that very thing.
[16:43] And you guys know me by now, and you know I've got an opinion on everything, so here's what I have to say about that. First of all, even though I've been out in the States a long time, I know about chemtrails and contrails. And yes, I saw that documentary, What in the World Are They Spraying? And I'm sure most of you have seen that too. And I wouldn't have been half as keen to believe all that stuff. Except for the fact that one of the guys heavily involved in making that movie was Edward Griffin, the guy who wrote The Creature from Jekyll Island, and I'm sure a lot of you have read that book too. Really the first book to expose the evils of the U.S. Federal Reserve. And if you haven't read that one, I highly recommend it. Again, that's The Creature from Jekyll Island. So this Griffith guy has a lot of credibility. Anyway, now if it's true, and these planes are really spraying things like aluminum and
[17:31] magnesium and who knows what else, well they certainly weren't spraying that stuff 20 some years ago when I was back up in the States, so I never got to see it myself. And I'll tell you, since I've been down here in Latin America, I've been a great skywatcher, since sunrises and sunsets are so spectacular, and the night skies away from the cities anyway are so crystal clear. So I have to say, as far as my observations, I can't say that I've seen any recognizable patterns of so-called chemtrails, which are supposed to hang in the sky for sometimes hours at a time, though I've seen contrails a lot, which would be just the plane exhaust coming off a regular jet, which dissipates in a couple of minutes. And you know, since it's been kind of a hot topic with the alternative media, with people like Jesse Ventura and Alex Jones and people on Coast to Coast AM, and easily a hundred
[18:19] plus alternative websites, including being mentioned occasionally on Gary Null's show, I have to say, if you're truly worried about it, that's another reason to come down to Latin America, because atmospheric spraying like that just does not seem to be happening, at least not yet. And of course, when I'm at parties talking to gringos and expats, sometimes I'll slip in that subject of chemtrails just to gauge by the eye-rolling what kind of response I'm getting from these guys. And to tell you the truth, most gringos and expats do know what you're talking about, but most of them really can't quite believe it. So when confronted with a crowd like that, it's sometimes best just to leave it alone lest they think you're a nutcase. However, if you bring up chemtrails with an educated Latin crowd, none of them will know what the hell you're talking about.
[19:05] Hmm. As for me, I don't doubt that it's happening. I mean, I wouldn't put anything past governments. Like I said, I've yet to see any of the proof of it down here yet. And I might add, neither have any of my long-term expat friends. So if you believe governments or clandestine organizations are spraying that kind of stuff, surely looks like it's not happening down here. Not yet, anyway. Now, along with the occasional email I get about chemtrails, I get people asking me questions about allergies. Because like many emails point out, most of Latin America never sees frost, snow, or ice. Which means the trees and the flowers and the plants are always budding and pollinating. Which logically would tend to promote a lot of allergies in people who are susceptible. But the funny thing is, with all the people I know and all the people I come in contact
[19:52] with, I've yet to see one Latin person with an inhaler. Or in fact, any local person who's ever complained to me about allergy problems at all. And like I said, snoop that I am. When I look into Latin American bathroom medicine cabinets, I can't resist, you know? I can't ever remember coming across a bottle of Benadryl or Sudafed. Or any of the over-the-counter allergy medicine so common up in the states. Now if you want to get strictly scientific about it, down to possible causality. If you remember from a recent past show, I mentioned that Latin Americans use only about a quarter as much milk as first world people do. And you might remember that I did mention that the number one cause of allergies in humans is the ingestion of dairy products.
[20:38] So it seems to me that that would explain why we see so few severe allergies down here. Hey, now there's an idea for another completely original master's thesis, huh? But I don't think you're going to get a grant from the American Dairy Association on that. Anyway, down here, allergies are called allerhias. And on occasion, when someone has a runny nose or the sniffles, they'll say tango allerhias, which means I have allergies. But they never seem to take anything for it. Even that wealthy upper class two to five percent, those really dedicated gringo wannabes, they don't seem to have any allergy drugs in their medicine cabinets either. I know, I've checked. So what can I advise for all you wannabes up north who have severe allergies? What's the pollen situation like? If you come down here, will they be worse?
[21:25] Will they get better? Will you be able to find your drugs? Well, I can tell you one thing, if you live in the city, there's bound to be quite a bit of air pollution. And that, of course, bothers everyone. Allergies or not. And yes, even though all first world air pollution regulations do exist all throughout Latin America, there's zero enforcement. In fact, that's why a lot of big first world industries, including mining, come down to the third world and set up shop in the first place, because they know they can pollute the hell out of the place. And if they get caught in the act or the neighbors get sick or complain, they could just pick up and move to another location or pay off some more politicians. And don't believe anyone that tells you that that's not happening. I've seen it in action myself. And if that's not enough, there's all those old cars and smoke vouching chicken buses.
[22:14] And if you happen to get behind one of them, you feel like jumping out, dragging the guy out of the cab and slapping the crap out of them. But remember, the guys that own those bus companies and do zero maintenance on those pieces of crap, well, a lot of those guys are members of Congress. Who do you think has the inside track on the contracts and the bus lines? But that's another story. So again, my advice to all you folks up there who've got bad allergies, don't let that stop you from coming down here and at least giving it a try. That means come down, check it out and rent. But avoid the big and medium sized cities because you're forever going to be in a cloud of pollution. Instead, fix your sights on a town of 50,000 or smaller, then rent there for a couple of months. Though you can always do what wealthy people do live just outside the big city where the
[23:03] air is fresh and clean. Or you could go to Chile or Argentina or southern Brazil and get all your four seasons back since those places do get snow and an occasional hard frost. Now I must report that living occasionally in the coffee fields myself, about twice a year I wake up to a pretty good dusting of pollen. You can see it everywhere. It's on the windowsills, the roofs, on the streets, everywhere. And in fact it's like nothing I've ever seen back up in the states in Chicago. It can look like a very light dusting of snow. And yes, up there, back in the states, I did get the occasional sneezing jag, I'm talking allergies, where maybe once every three or four months, once I started sneezing I couldn't stop till I'd done 15 or so in a row.
[23:49] No fun for me and definitely no fun for the poor slob in front of me. And you know back then up in Chicago, I never took any medicine for it. But my sister, she really had allergies. So much so that she'd go to the allergist every week and get shot up with certain allergens as was the custom back in the 60s. And whether that helped her, I don't know. She says no. But I can tell you this, I shipped her down here on vacation a number of times, mostly to Mexico and Central America but to various countries. And she never once complained of her allergies acting up, which I have to say is a pretty good test case, wouldn't you think? Strangely enough, in the tropics and semi-tropics, even with all the flowers and vegetation and pollen, she seems not to notice. And even me, with my occasional sneezing jags, and I still get them a couple times a year,
[24:40] they're no worse down here even when the pollen is in full force and you can see it everywhere. For me, there's pretty much no difference at all. Oh, and regarding the state of pollution down here, I've been noticing that various Latin countries have been passing laws regarding the importation of used vehicles, which of course are coming from the states, right? It's getting to be pretty much standard practice now, that you cannot import a vehicle into any Latin country if the vehicle is over 10 years old, which of course looks very good on a surface, ostensibly because older cars are junks and they pollute a lot, right? And that's why it would seem easy for Latin legislatures to get a law like that passed. I mean, who would oppose such a law? Well there has been strong opposition from, of course, the car importers.
[25:28] Because you see, like I mentioned in a past show, it's a huge business down here to import junked cars from the US. Cars that have been deemed totaled out wrecks by insurance companies in the states. That way, savvy importers in Latin America can bring those cars in as junks and pay almost no taxes on them, since generally a 30% or more tax is levied on the value of the vehicle. And often a totaled vehicle can be bought for next to nothing. And since down here in Latin America you can pay a terrific body man about $300 a month, they can make just about any car, no matter how damaged, look as good as new. Now that doesn't mean of course that the car is going to run as good as new. If the wiring or the engine or the electronics have been damaged, but they can really make
[26:15] these things look nice. Anyway, it was the importers of these wrecked cars that were so opposed to the 10 year rule. But in the end, they weren't powerful enough and nearly all Latin American countries now will not let a car or truck in that's over 10 years old. And sure, you can drive one down here that's more than 10 years old, but you'll only get 90 days permission in each country to drive it around. And after that, you'll have to drive it out or park it because you won't be able to get the car or truck permanently registered in the country you're in and get a set of that country's plates. So if you do get pulled over, you'll get a little fine for every day that you're in that country over 90 days. And the way around that of course is to drive it into an adjacent country after that 90 days and get 90 days in that country. And you can keep on doing that indefinitely, but it is a pain in the ass.
[27:04] For example, you can drive a car in that's nine years old and then get it registered and licensed. After that, you could drive it as long as you want or sell it. That way it will become the smoke belching piece of crap, which is the ultimate fate of any car that has multiple Latin owners. Now we're close to the end, so let me remind you to go to expatwisdom.com and check out the blogs and the free reports. And soon I'll be putting up a very special Latin American health care report, for free of course. 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,
[27:50] at gmail.com. See you next time, most famous.