You don’t need money to start a business.

You need balls.

It’s true, for the right idea, the money seems to appear.

I arrived in Ecuador a little over a year and a half ago… a few thousand in debt from years of travel abroad.

Upon arrival I rented a hole-of-a-room in Quito with a shared bath for $60/month.

So how’d I get the money for my first venture, an intermediate-priced hostal in Guayaquil?

I used the good credit I had established to that point in my life to apply for several low-interest credit cards.  About 6 of them. I then paid a friend to their PayPal account to turn the money on the cards to cash.  It cost 2.2% in fees but cash advances had much higher interest rates than purchases.

Then I got a personal unsecured line of credit from my bank in the US for $15k.  If you’ve been a bank customer for a while just ask and you’ll probably get one too.

And I picked up a partner.  Not just anyone, but an Ecuadorian friend of mine who also happened to be a hotelier.

And off I went.

Then I sold that business after a little over a year, and started a new hotel near the airport in Quito.  

To buy the furniture, I pre-sold my product before I was open… in the form of coupons for future stays at a discounted rate.

It worked.

So well in fact my long time payment processor closed my account without prior notice cause they didn’t understand the spike in sales.  Big pain.

Then I bought most of my expensive furniture in the same places, giving me leverage to negotiate discounts and payment plans.

I looked into business loans for foreigners in Ecuador.

But the options were slim to none for a new arrival.  The big banks require you spend a certain amount of time in the country AND that you have your residency before they will even touch you.

Ultimately, I did find one institution that would lend a foreigner money for a business start up… my Ecuadorian credit union… Coopera Ltda.  The Coopera typically loans money to small businesses and if you have at least a few months of deposit history with them they don’t care much that you are a foreigner, they’ll lend you money.

Plus, I mean lets face it, your buck goes a lot farther down here in Ecuador.  In the US at my age I would probably be fetching coffee for somebody spending my days in a cubicle surfing sites while planning my next vacation to Latin America.
So there you have it.  You can’t use money as an excuse anymore!  The security you feel as an employee is only an illusion.  Don’t climb the corporate ladder to an $80k a year job or whatever… start multiple income streams that co-exist without you even being there.

And Ecuador is a great place for that!

Like to keep reading more like this? For that please subscribe to my weekly Ecuador Insiders Newsletter below, you can unsubscribe at any time:

Follow @dombuonamici

Want to get pumped for an upcoming trip (or move) to Latin America?

Sometimes there’s nothing better than a good movie to do the trick.

Here are 12 of my top picks to really get you in the mood for Ecuador (or anywhere south of the border).

12. Yuniol - This hilarious Dominican film is based in Santo Domingo and really does a great job showing the cultural divide that separates the rich and poor in a typical Latin American culture and how the two sides interact and in this case how two college kids interact.  Very entertaining.

11. Man on Fire - This Denzel Washington film gives a great look into one of Latin Americas less attractive sides, the kidnapping trade in Mexico.  Still a great movie for the shots of Mexico.

10.  Soñar no cuesta nada - This Colombian film gives an outstanding look into the corrupt side of Latin America (Colombia in particular) when a group of soldiers finds millions buried in the jungle.  Good movie, a great peek into Colombian culture.

9. Get the Gringo - This newer Mel Gibson movie is a flick that shows the not-so-commonly-seen side of Mexico from the viewpoint of a gringo inside a jail in Mexico.  Very good movie, highly recommend.

8.  Rosario Tejeras - This classic Colombian film is an outstanding gander into the everyday life of a typical, beautiful, young woman in certain circles in Medellin, Colombia.  Very interesting.

7.  The Motorcycle Diaries - Hard not to get excited about South America when watching this film based on a trip Che Guevara took on motorcycle through South America in his youth.  Played by one of the best, Gael Garcia, this film is another must.

6. María Llena Eres de Gracia - Another excellent Colombian film, this spot gives a very real, unique look into the world of a female drug runner in Colombia.  No mistake about it, drugs have impacted Latin American culture and this film is a great preview.

5. Amores y perros - A Mexican film that is too graphic for most, this movie depicts the underground world of less affluent youth and dogfighting in Mexico.  Still gives an interesting look into mexico Hollywood could never duplicate.

4. Once upon a time in Mexico - OK, now the Hollywood action-movie version of Mexico, this film is still a fun look into what we all dream Mexico to be (and it usually doesn’t dissappoint).

3. El Cantante - A captivating film based on the real life of Salsa singer Héctor Lavoe.  I like this movie mainly for the shots of Puerto Rico and the lively Salsa scene in the Caribbean.

2. Captain Ron - Sincethis movie first came out 20 years ago, every time I watch it gets me excited for my next Latin American adventure.  Based on a typical Chicago family caught in the rat-race who drop everythig to go sail the Caribbean in a crappy boat the father inherited from a little known uncle.

1. Blow - My all-time favorite movie with a Latin American connection.  This Johny Depp movie is about an ambitious, North American entrepreneur and how he gets neck deep in the drug trade with Latin America.  OK, so he chose the wrong product (drugs), but it’s still an entertaining and almost motivating flick for entrepreneurs going south of the border.

Like to keep reading more like this? For that please subscribe to my weekly Ecuador Insiders Newsletter below, you can unsubscribe at any time:

Follow @dombuonamici

Sometimes you just have to play the cards you were dealt.

You have to accept the negatives to being a foreigner in Ecuador (one is that you will NEVER get the same prices for most things that the locals get, no matter how long you live here nor how well you speak Spanish. It is what it is.)

And the positives… like that Ecuadorians tend to trust “gringos” more than they do even other Ecuadorians.

Especially in business dealings.

For me, the biggest benefit of this can be translated to rental deals.

Ecuadorians love to rent to foreigners, particularly North American or European ones, much more than they like renting to other Ecuadorians.

We’re known for taking better care of places and paying more promptly and being more serious about the relationship in general.

And we can use that as a good bargaining chip.

I can often get locals to rent to me without even asking a deposit guarantee, when they normally would ask that. I can get other locals who normally are not interested in renting, to rent to me. Others simply lower their rent price.

Really it works. They want you as a tenant. You have leverage. Use it, ask for discounts, perks, late night massages.

Ok maybe not that last one.

So where would I invest on the coast right now in 2013? Which areas are moving and which aren’t? For that see my full 2013 guide to Property Flipping in Ecuador here (now back online).

To continue reading please subscribe to my weekly Ecuador Insiders Newsletter below, you can unsubscribe at any time:

Follow @dombuonamici

“So, they got me for $2000.” My friend said upon recently entering Ecuador 30 minutes earlier.

“Mother f##kers man,” I responded shaking my head with disgust.

You see, he and his friend just came into Ecuador with $13k in cash each, the limit according to the Ecuador customs official was $10k per person.

The official made them put all their cash on the table, count it, and when it added up to more than $10k, they told them that according to the law they would have to forfeit 30% of the total amount, or in other words about $8k.

My friends freaked out, and the official said “Ok, just pay me $1k cash for each of you and I’ll let you through.”

They paid the bribe. And now are out $2k.

Just like that.

There probably is not even a law that states you can’t bring in a certain amount of cash. If you do, its cool, you just have to declare it.

There’s certainly no tax on money entering Ecuador.

The officials lied, and they pryed on easy foreign bait.

When in this situation its best not to bribe, and just let them do what they are theatening to do.

Don’t get visibly rattled. And meanwhile tell them to ‘go f##k yourself’.

OK, maybe not that last part, but force is good… weakness is not. At least down here.

Soon, you’ll find out they got nothing and will simply let you pass after they put on a bit of a show with the purpose of scaring you into giving over a bribe.

Be sure to get their name, so you can file a complaint later, you have rights, but they think you don’t know them, and that being in a foreign country you won’t do nothing, That’s why they try to pull this crap.

Obviously the best way to handle this situation is prevent it, by not bringing in so much cash, a simple wire can cost $45 or so and you can transfer down hundreds of thousands at once.

Here are a few other of the easiest, quickest ways you could get robbed in Ecuador…

1. By putting your bag with valuables in it next to you in a bus, or below your seat, then falling asleep. Low and behold, when you wake up your bag will either be gone or have a hole in it where some slimy dude reached in and grabbed your computer/tablet/iphone.

2. Using an ATM to withdraw money in a secluded area or late night, then have someone else use the machine after you who may look like they are withdrawing money but actually they are inserting a machine that can copy the card details of the last person to use the ATM in order to make a mold of your card and use it online before you catch them. To prevent use ATMs in front of banks that most likely have cameras in the daytime at well-frequented ATMs.

3. Paying for a bus fare with a large bill like a $20, the tenant will probably take your money and conveniently forget to give you your change. Be sure to have exact change before boarding.

4. By getting in a taxi without negotiating beforehand what the fare will be, you will then have a very unpleasent surprise when they tell you the price at the end of your trip. If you didn’t listen to me on this one and this happens to you, just pay what you know the fare should be and walk away, they might yell at you but they won’t block your path (from my experience.)

5. By putting a valuable in one of the outer pockets of a bag, then proceeding to check it under the bus. Yes, I’ve seen bus employees in Ecuador rumaging through bags under the bus, if they know where it is and can get to it quickly you’ll have a problem. Better carry on important stuff.

6. By walking alone on a secluded beach at night, in a small group you are OK but there is a reason Ecuadorians don’t do this. This also applies to getting drunk at the beach and going into a dark area to pee repeatedly, not smart.

7. By paying a lawyer in Ecuador up-front for services rendered, hah, need I say more, that is the last time you will ever see that lawyer again. Pay 20% up front, the rest when the task is complete.

8. By entering into those wierd Ecuadorian low interest car payment plans like at those islands booths in the malls in Ecuador… what they dont tell you is that you are actually entering a raffle and it could be months before you are awarded your car,. And that there is a bunch of extra hidden fees the salesmen didn’t tell you when you signed.

9. By trusting someone just because they are from your home country… bad reason. Make ‘em earn it.

10. By commiting a minor traffic violation like not wearing your seat belt in the front seat and getting pulled over by the traffic cops in Ecuador who look for a naive foreigner willing to pay a quick bribe. Act like you don’t speak a lick of Spanish and chances are they will get frustrated and just let you go. If they insist just ask them to write you a ticket. Chances are when they see they aren’t going to get any quick cash in their pocket they’ll not bother writing the ticket.

11. By giving a landlord a rental security deposit equal to 2 months rent. Try to pay a deposit equal to just one month rent or less. Anyone asking for 2 months or more is probably not planning on ever paying you back that money. Just sayin’.

12. By buying any big ticket item from a distance in Ecuador. Chances are you will get took. Best to be present. Again, just sayin’.

13. By leaving your nice cell phone on your table while you eat in a mall. A kid will come up to you begging, then when you look again your phone will be gone. Can you tell this happened to me? You can’t just make this stuff up.

14. Walking through a crowded area with valuables in your back pockets or dangling out of your front pockets or even worse, having an SLR camera hangin around your neck.

But hey, while petty theft may be more common in Ecuador, violent crime is far less common and that you could easily live years here without any incidents.

And to learn how to avoid the most common property scams in Ecuador try my weekly Ecuador Insiders Newsletter below, you can unsubscribe at any time:

Follow @dombuonamici

Recently, I completed my first export from Ecuador. 

Ecuador-themed 2013 wall calendars. 

A big 9 kilo box of them. 

What did I learn? 

Well, it’s not as easy as just taking them to DHL and “chao”. 

1. First, you have to check to see if the product you’re shipping will have to pay import tariffs upon entrance to the country you are shipping to.  To do that, you’ll need to find out the HS Code, every product has one.  The fastest way to find it is to “Google it”.  For instance, “HS Code calendars”.  Or in Spanish “partida arancelaria calendarios”.  Or you can go to this link from the Ecuadorian Customs and search it by the name of the product (in Spanish)… http://sice1.aduana.gob.ec/ied/arancel/index.jsp

2. Then, you can use the handy free tool online at macmap.org after free registration to see if the product you are exporting will incur an import duty to the country you are exporting to based on the country you are exporting from.  Register than follow the link that says “Market Access Map” and fill in the blanks with the HS code of your product. 

3. (If applicable) In the Mac Map tool from the last step, if it appears that the product you are exporting would incur a duty yet doesn’t because it falls under a special bi-lateral treaty then in order to take advantage of the benefit you will need to get a Certificate of Origen (Certificado de Origen).  It’s not as hard as it sounds, to get one in Ecuador you will need to register in the website of the Ecuapass, portal.aduana.gob.ec .  Choose the option “Solicitud de uso”.  In the menu choose “Ventanilla Unica” then fill in the form at “Elaboracion de DJO”.  Then choose “Elaboracion de CO” and fill in that form completely, but you will need to pick it up physically at the local offices of MIPRO where you reside in Ecuador.  The cost is minimal.  But my wall calendars according to Mac Map enter the US at 0% duty so I could skip this step. 

4. Then choose your shipping carrier.  For important documents I recommend DHL, you can get items from Ecuador to the USA quick, usually in about 2 days (for about $60).  But for a box that weighs 9 kilos like mine it would cost $350 to ship, while with the general post of Ecuador CORREOS ECUADOR it only cost me $150.  Correos Ecuador does give you a tracking number where you can check the shipping status online and works with the government post services of other nations. 

However, if I register as an exporter at ExportaFacil.gob.ec I can ship internationally with Correos Ecuador at about half the price of the normal shipment of $150.  For me, it cost just $72 to ship the box.  You will need to obtain an Ecuadorian tax ID number (RUC) from the SRI to sign up for the discount program. 

5. Once your goods make it to the final destination the easy way is to pay a friend or relative to ship them off one by one to their final destinations or if exporting to the USA, you could use a service like Webgistix.com.  They receive, unpack, warehouse and ship products to their final destination for a fee. 

My calendars arrived. 

They sold.  All good. 

But I underestimated how long they would take to arrive. 

Allow 4 days to arrive in Miami from Ecuador with Correos Ecuador.  Then allow another 2 days for the package to clear customs, more if your package hits the US on a weekend when offices are closed.  Then another 2 days for it to get to its final destination in the USA.  Then give it 2-4 more days when mailing the items within the US unless you’d like to pay more to overnight them. 

…To keep reading this article, sign up for my list below, you can unsubscribe at any time:

Follow @dombuonamici

“I’d love to offer my marketing service to Ecuador businesses, but what would they pay me?” A friend told me recently over a coffee in Ecuador.

He was right.

Did Ecuadorian businesses need his service, just like businesses in the US do?

Yes.

But were they willing to pay him what the service is worth?

No.

After a year and a half in Ecuador, I feel like I got a bird’s eye view of this s-h-i-t.

Like in most ‘third world’ countries, in order to make money in Ecuador you have to sell a product.

Your own product.

So stop thinking like an American, or someone from a service-based economy, and stop trying to sell services.

I mean…

Don’t start a travel agency… build your own specialty tour and sell it through the travel agencies.

Don’t become a real estate agent… flip your own properties.

Don’t become an ESL English teacher (it doesn’t pay like it does in Asia)… start your own English school.

Don’t offer a service to exporters… export something.

Don’t be a financial advisor… sell shares of your own niche investment fund.

Don’t offer your service as an electrician, plumber or builder… start your own specialty lighting business.

Don’t offer your service as a professional video editor… make your own videos.

Don’t look for someone else to hire you (employees start out making $318USD a month)… start your own business.

I can’t stress this enough, you need your own ‘thang’.

My first few months in Ecuador I spun my wheels trying to sell a marketing service to Ecuador businesses, I learned the hard way, now you don’t have to.

…To keep reading this article, sign up for my list below, you can unsubscribe at any time:

Follow @dombuonamici

There´s a few things in Ecuador that will straight shock you when you see them…

…like when…

1.You see Ecuadorian males drown their French fries in Mayonnaise.

2. You see milk in unrefrigerated boxes on the shelves of grocery stores.

3. You pay $1 for a taxi ride in Quito, Cuenca or many of the small towns in Ecuador.

4. You see resumes in Ecuador with people´s picture, birth date, marital status and more.

5. That 100% of Ecuadorian grade schools require their kids to use uniforms.

6. The price tag of Levis Jeans, iPhones or Apple Computers in Ecuador (about triple that of the USA).

7. The sheer number of policemen in the streets, it may seem as though Ecuador tries to employ their entire male population as police or taxi drivers.

8. How Ecuadorians can drive while simultaneously leaning on their horns.

9. How Chicken soup in Ecuador will often have a chicken foot floating in it.

10. The mysterious lack of automatic cars.

11. You see the Ecuador delicacy of Bulls Penis soup (Caldo de Tronquito).

12. That in the Amazon there actually aren´t that many mosquitos at all.

13. That gas prices are still around $1.50 a gallon and water bills for a small house can be as low as $4.

14. Things like pay phones and internet computer centers in the street still exist and thrive.

15. How cars retain value. Seriously, you can buy a used car, use it for a few years and sell it for about what you paid for it!

16. How Ecuadorians love to drink beer, I mean a lot of beer, on the beach.

17. The sight of magazines with nude girls on the streets.

18. When you see the Ecuadorian remedy for hangovers… fish soup early in the morning (encebollado).

19. When you see the free public hospitals and free public universities. Like it should be, right?

20. How many Ecuadorian guys believe with every fiber of their being that it’s OK to be unfaithful but it’s a horrible, unforgiveable sin if their woman is unfaithful to them.This is not just an Ecuador thing, but actually more of a belief present throughout Latin America. Not that I mind double standards that benefit me.

21. How getting the internet is not a given if living deep in the Ecuador countryside.

22. How the streets are lined with pirated DVD shops. Want a new copy of Windows 7, sure, $5 please.

…To keep reading this article, sign up for my list below, you can unsubscribe at any time:

Follow @dombuonamici

The first thing people ask me when they meet me is…

So why’d you choose Ecuador?  

Good question. 

Well, here’s how Ecuador compares to the other countries where I’ve lived or spent significant time over the last 10 years.

Here’s my take based on my own experiences, despite my critique i really did enjoy each place listed below…

Spain:  Lived in Madrid for 8 months studying abroad.  In this part of Spain the climate swings from dreadfully cold in winter to scorchingly hot in the summer.  Ecuador has much more mild and steady weather.  Also, quite a few, not all, of the locals in Spain were a bit xenophobic, or rascist towards foreigners, specfically gringos like me, not so in Ecuador.

Hawaii:  Studied and worked here for 1 year.  Hawaii IS paradise, but it is expensive too and this is another place where the locals don’t think too kindly of white “howleys” (people not from Hawaii).  Hawaii is small and I think most can get burned out quick.  Ecuador has more variety like the Andes, Amazon and coast plus it has more things to do.  

San Diego, California:  Lived and worked here for 4 months.  Nice weather, beautiful city, tons to do, friendly people, good tex mex food.  Great place with lots of money to make, really no complaints but real estate and rental prices are really high meaning I would have to take on a job I really don’t like just to keep spinning my hamster wheel just to make it.  I prefer being able to have the time to do what i really want to do in a place like Ecuador.  

Lithuania:  Lived and worked in Vilnius for 1 month.  Too cold for me, if I’m going to be sitting through a snowy winter I better have some mountains to ski nearby.  

Italy: Lived in Ascoli for 1 month. Stunning little town on the Adriatic coast where I spent time with long lost relatives, but how would I make a living and the high prices scare me.  The Ecuador economy seems to be moving faster and i see more opportunities in Ecuador.  

Mexico:   Lived in Chihuahua  for 1 month.  If I weren’t in Ecuador I would probably be in Mexico, I love the place, the food, the culture, the people but I rarely felt “at ease” in most parts of this country. 

Peru:  Lived in Lima for 1 month. The coastline of Peru is akin to the Sahara Desert.  Seriously, all the way down!  I’m talking sand dunes and trash blowing in the wind, cool to visit, but Ill stick with living in Ecuador.  

Bolivia:  Lived in Santa Cruz for about 1 month. Nice place with a lot of variety like Ecuador but with no beach.  Economy particularly bad, don’t think I could make a living here like Im doing in Ecuador unless I worked online.  Ecuador wins.  

Brazil:   Lived in Rio and Porto Alegre for about 1 month.  Beautiful place, really high prices, even more costly than the USA these days, it kind of squeezes the fun out of everything.  I’ll stick with the low costs of Ecuador for now.  

Uruguay:   Lived in Montevideo for 1 month.  In my month living in Montevideo I coudn’t figure out why anyone would want to live there?  The beaches are not tropical like most northern US beaches, and you’re really far from the States.  More organized than Ecuador yes, but Ecuador is more “latin” which to me makes it more interesting.  

Argentina:   Lived in Buenos Aires for 1 month.  Never saw people party until daylight… regularly.  And the beef is as good as advertised, so is the wine, and the country is incredibly diverse but the increased cost of living over the last few years and hyper-inflation is a concern for me here.  

Colombia:   Lived, worked and studied here for 1 year.  Colombia may seduce you at first sight as it did me but the culture struck me as simply “wierd” and “tense” after years and years of violence, the drug trade, and being closed off from the rest of the world.  I’ll stick to the more laid back Ecuadorians any day.  

Philippines:  Lived and worked online here for 5 months.  Dirty.  Poor.  Usually i don’t mind it but this place is on another level.  Hot and flat.  Didn’t like the food.  Nice people though who really like foreigners and try to make them comfortable.  Far away from US.  Makes Ecuador look like Beverly Hills, Ecuador much more developed.  Like in most Asian countries there are restrictions against foreign ownership of land limiting possibilities.

Thailand:   Lived and traveled here in Krabi area for 1 month.  Too on-the-beaten-track for me, just hoards and hoards of travelers.  Beaches are amazing, but language is too difficult, Spanish is easier making it easier to integrate with the locals of Ecuador.  

Malaysia:   Lived in KL for 1 month.  About the next blandest place I’ve seen after my hometown of Cleveland, Ohio.  For me, Ecuador has better food, weather, lower prices and more things to do.  

Dominican Republic:   Lived in Santo Domingo for 6 months.  Beautiful beaches and people, vibrant culture and lively music but the public transport was deficient, food was nasty and there were too many guns.  It seemed as though literally every male member of society had one tucked in his pants.  Didn’t make me feel very safe.  Ecuador outlaws guns which for me makes me feel more comfortable than the other extreme which is the DR.  

Vietnam:   Lived in Mui Ne and Hanoi for about 1 month.  Great food!  But here I really felt like a walking dollar sign most of the time, the locals really try to grossly overcharge you whenever they can.  In Ecuador it is not so in-your-face.  

China:   Worked in Shenzhen and Guangzhou for 5 months.  Dont live in southern China in the winter!  You see, the Chinese government outlaws heat in homes below a certain point but trust me, you need heat, its cold, freezing cold inside the apartments in the winter.  I found China hard to get a grip on, I’ve never been more lost, more often as I was there.  Overall I found it good for westerners to make money, but I bet few would consider it a better place to live than their home countries.  

India:  Worked in Bhopal for 1 month.  I’ve never seen so many guys just standing around in the streets all day.  Like most foreigners working in India, one moment I loved india, the next I hated it.  Generally, I felt like a walking dollar sign here while many locals tried to hussle me.  Others were incredily nice inviting me into their home upon meeting them.  Too much of a challenge for me, and too hot, I’ll stick to Ecuador for now.  

Egypt/Israel:   Lived here for almost 1 month.  Countries of extremes and it starts with the people.  Met some incredibly friendly people and the exact opposite, usually within the same day, would not consider this place as one to live in near future.  Politically and socially unstable making me weary about investing.

…To keep reading this article, sign up for my list below, you can unsubscribe at any time:

Follow @dombuonamici

I couldn’t even dream about living abroad without the following list of (mostly free) online tools I personally use on a daily basis here in Ecuador…

1. Magic Jack App. for iPhone:  I wouldn’t suggest ever living abroad without a Magic Jack, a little apparatus you plug into your computer that not only gives you a US phone number people can reach you at (VoIP) wherever in the world you are free but also allows you to call for free to any number in the US and Canada.  Cost is a one-time fee just under $100 found in most electronic stores.  But if you have an iPhone you can download the free MAGIC JACK app and have a US number people can reach you at that you can answer from your phone, free.  You can also make calls to US numbers via the app free as well, but you need to be connected to the internet.  VERY useful when staying in touch with friends and family but also in business if you plan on selling to Americans & Canadians from abroad. 

2. Teamviewer: Teamviewer is a free software you can use to “screenshare” or share what you’re seeing on your computer with someone anywhere else in the world, for free.  You can also take control of someones computer mouse and control their computer if they give you permission through the program or give permission for them to take control of your PC.  VERY useful for online working, I used it when developing a software with a guy in India showing him detail by detail what I needed. 

3. Toll free forwarding:  Toll free forwarding is great for small business owners abroad who want to appear bigger than they really are by having a 1-800 number that forwards to their local number, anywhere on the globe.  Very useful. 

4. Webgistix:  If you’ve been wondering, “jeeze, I’d love to begin exporting to the US little by little but who would receive my goods, unpack them, and reship them to my final customers?” Then Webgistix is for you because they do just that!  A game-changer indeed. 

5. Virtual Post Mail: As more and more people flock to greener pastures abroad several companies like this one have begun to offer this important service to anyone living abroad.  They offer you a US address you can have things mailed to, they open your mail and scan it if you request it, or they can shred it if you request that too.   They can also forward your mail upon request to anywhere on the globe. 

6. Skype:  Skype is not a new thing but is still a must for anyone living abroad.  It’s a free way to not only make and receive calls, anywhere, but also it’s a great way to make free video conference calls with up to 12 team members at once.  Great if you live abroad and work online with a team scattered throughout the world. 

7. Pamela.biz:  Pamela is a complement plug in for Skype that allows you to record calls you make or receive via Skype.  Great for doing international business or simply recording something important. 

8. Club Correos:  I had to throw at least one tool in here that specifically helps expats IN ECUADOR.  This service is run through the Ecuador post office and once you sign up you can order stuff online in the US and have it delivered to their PO Box in Miami, once there they will forward your items to you in Ecuador.  Great if you don’t have a mother or relative in the States that can provide the same service.  Thanks mom. 

9. Vocaroo:  If you’re on my newsletter I’m sure you’ve received and sent emails.  But have you ever sent a voice email to someone?  Yes, one where they receive an email from you, open it, then listen to your message (not read it).  With vocaroo you can send free voice email messages great if you better selling verbally than via written text or also if you’d like to break up with someon from a distance but don’t know actually what to write.  “Really baby, it’s not you it’s me… “  I’ve never done this I swear.

10. Faxzero:  I know fax is a thing of the past but every once in a while you will have to send a fax maybe when applying for something or to an old timer who doesn’t use email yet, faxzero.com lets you send the fax for free online to US and Canada numbers.  For sending fax to the rest of the world I use sendfreefax.net. 

11. Dreaminder:  Dreamminder is great to send yourself or anyone else an email at some point in the future.  In other words, you can schedule an email.  Great for reminders but also business tasks. 

12. Gmail canned responses:  I love this one!  Canned responses for gmail is a new feature you have to activate in the LABS section of your email, but once activated you can set fixed responses you can click on and they automatically appear in your email, you can then modify the message as you need and send, no copy and paste necessary, plus you have the saved standard meesages available to you from any PC anywhere if in a jam.  Huge time-saver, I use it in all my businesses! 

13. Boomerang for gmail:  This little complement plug in for Gmail is great for doing the task I enjoy least in business… bill collection.  That’s right, when my Italian-American forefathers might grab a baseball bat to collect an outstanding debt, I use Boomerang with Gmail, a simple app that lets you send a recurring email, once every day to a certain recipient until you decide to cancel it (once they’ve paid).  Its also great for cyber-stocking that special someone. 

14. Drop box:  Yes, I have actually spilled a wine glass clear across the keyboard of my lap top.  My lap top survived but if it hadn’t I wouldn’t have cried for the machine, but for the info I would have lost.  Now, with a free service like DropBox you can automatically back up important files you’d like to back up securely online. That way you have access to them from anywhere and can download them in the case of a PC crash.  Useful if traveling a lot and living abroad. 

15. Wetransfer:  Sometimes when living and working abroad you will need to send a file that is TOO BIG to attach normally to an email.  In those cases, I use WeTransfer, the free service works great for file transfers.  Important when working online or from abroad. 

Breaking the language barrier-
16. Google translator:  Still the most accurate tool online to quickly translate sentences or paragraphs of text from one of dozens of different languages. 

17. http://www.verbix.com/languages:  Anyone who has studying languages knows the backbone to any language is VERBS.  This handy tool online will give you the full verb conjugations of any verb in several dozen different languages. 

18. Forvo:  Is a great online dictionary of PRONOUNCED WORDS.  Just search the word and listen to the pronunciation.  Very handy. 

19. Wordreference.com:  When the word is so technical that Google Translator fails you, I use WordReference, similar to one of those fat Webster dictionaries but available for free online, works with English to French and Spanish.

20. livemocha.com:  A great, free program for studying languages online and having pen pals in forwign countries that help you along the way. 

21. Google Chrome:  The official free internet browser of Google that allows you to automatically translate entire websites in foreign languages to the language of your choice.  You may have to activate this feature in the settings.

22. Google alerts:  Are you a news junky?  Or just want to stay informed on a specific topic while abroad?  Then sign up for a free Google alert.  Every time your topic of interest is mentioned somewhere online Google will email you the exact link so you can check it out.  For instance, a lot of people use it to monitor the rep of their business name. 

23. timeanddate.com/worldclock:  When living abroad it’s great to know the time of another point in the world almost instantly, great tool.  Specifically good for when you’d like to watch sporting events in your home country and need to know when you need to tune in. 

24. XE.com:  Great free online tool updated every few minutes that allows you to convert any currency to any other instantly.  Important when living or doing business abroad. 

25. USTVNOW  / FirstRowSports.eu:  First Row Sports is a free service that streams live sporting events from around the world, don’t miss your favorite sporting events just cause you live in a country that lives and dies the mindless sport of soccer.  USTVNOW is great for watching live American TV shows online. 

Can you tell I’ve lived abroad a while now? 

To receive part 2 of this article, sign up for my list below, you can unsubscribe at any time:

Follow @dombuonamici

I hear it all the time.

“I don’t like the heat and humidity of the coast of Ecuador but frankly, Cuenca is too damn cold.”

I know, I understand.

I usually respond just like I did in my last email… “A lot of people try to push Cuenca as “eternal spring” but actually it’s more like eternal ‘late fall’ “.

Now, I’ve lived in places with true eternal spring-like weather.

Example, Hawaii and Medellin, Colombia.

You know, places that have constant year-round weather where you can walk outside with a t-shirt and shorts and not even think about the temperature cause you are neither hot nor cold.

The problem with Medellin? It rains too much.

The problem with Hawaii? Not much, but if you press me I’d say it’s too expensive and many locals really don’t like “outsiders” or people not from Hawaii even though the ones that work in tourism well try to hide it.

In fact, Ecuador does have places with eternal spring-like weather.

Places just high enough to avoid the muggyness, mosquitos and humidity of the coast while not being as high as Cuenca or Quito.

One such place is one you’ve never heard mentioned before.

Zaruma.

Zaruma is a cozy town of about 20,000 folks built into a cliffside with a wooden-spanish-colonial style old town surrounded by lush slopes of coffee plantations in southern Ecuador about 3 hours from Machala, 4 hours from Loja and 6 hours from Guayaquil.

The town was founded hundreds of years ago by ambitious miners in search of gold.

Further downstream the mines still run rich, but up in Zaruma the mining has stopped.

All that’s left is a stunning, little, undiscovered place to live.

The town is perched at an elevation of 1200 meters (3937 feet(about half the elevation of Cuenca)) and the year round temperature hovers around 22 degrees C (72 F) and drops just a bit cooler than that at night so you can sleep comfortably with a blanket over you (no AC or heat needed!).

The nearest airport is Santa Rosa, about 1 1/2 to 2 hours by car away.

Most the locals shop in the fresh produce market right in the middle of town and get their bare necessities from the little street stores that dot the town.

The town has a free, public hospital that is known for having good service.

The locals are friendly and quick to strike up a conversation with one of the few foreigners in town.

Within Ecuador, Zaruma has a great rep for it’s amazing coffee, particularly beautiful people and sweets.

Rents for a 2 bedroom house/apartment just outside the old town start around $150-300/month and plate lunches start around $2.

A local specialty is the TIGRILLO, a breakfast dish made of mashed plantanes, cheese and eggs.

A cool thing many visitors do is take a guided tour of the town gold mine, now extinct, it was an actual mine for hundreds of years and the tour is done by an actual miner and is very informative (and free!).

I’d stay in the Cerro de Oro Hotel in the town center, nice, clean rooms for only $10 per person. Ask for a room on the top floor for some spectacular mountain views but watch your head on the way up the stairs. Any taxi in town knows where it is and can take you for $1.

Buy your coffee at the local distributor, an 80+ year old man with a great sense of humor, Don Marcelo Valverde, he has his shop in the town center, just ask around for the “tienda de Don Marcelo” and folks can point you the way.

The only negatives of the town I see at this point for expats wanting to take residence are the distance to a major city and the fairly steep town roads.

Foreigners? Not many, yet.

There you have it, one mountain town in Ecuador with a steady, warm-yet-comfortable climate year-round.

But before you make any investment in Ecuador, you’re going to want to sign up for my Ecuador Insiders weekly newsletter filing in the blanks below, youll learn everything you need to know before you invest to Ecuador:

Follow @dombuonamici

Here are a few pics from a recent trip I made to Zaruma Ecuador.

The Tigrillo in Zaruma

To learn more about Zaruma fill in the blanks below:

Follow @dombuonamici

Opps.

I let the cat out the bag on this one.

Don’t get me wrong.

I like Cuenca. It’s a nice place that’s attracting a lot of expats.

But…the world’s top retirement destination?

Child, please.

Are you outta your freakin’ mind?

It’s not even the top destination for retirees in Ecuador.

It was obviously chosen by people who’ve visited maybe a couple spots in Ecuador and who are interested in primarily selling seminars.

Let’s examine Cuenca further:

Climate: Forget eternal spring, I’d call Cuenca weather more like “eternal late fall”. It’s chilly, especially at night with lows in the mid 40s F, yet its just warm enough so that most dwellings don’t have heat, making many places indoors downright …cold! And it rains a lot too, and it’s more humid than the high elevation (8400 ft above sea level) would predict.

Cost of living/ Real estate: Yes, food is cheap like all over Ecuador with multi-course lunches starting around $2, taxi rides start at $1-3, bus rides $.25, 2 bedroom condo rentals start around $250/month, BUT due to several factors real estate in Cuenca is notably more expensive than most other places in Ecuador.

Food: Whenever “guinea pig” is a local staple, you know you’re in trouble. Hands down the variety of seafood and even the BBQ meats on the coast of Ecuador beat the local eats in Cuenca… any day of the week!

Local people: The local “Cuencanos” are friendly to foreigners, no doubt about it, but with so many foreigners around, most locals are de-sensitized and are really quite neutral to the sight of a foreigner. Being a foreigner alone won’t win you any brownie points like it does in other areas of Ecuador and the world where foreigners are a rare sight. But at least foreigners aren’t frowned upon. Ecuadorians as a whole are friendly, laid back people.

Old town/ Spanish colonial architecture: The Cuenca old town is OK, but it can’t compete when compared to the old towns I’ve seen in Cartagena (CO), Guanajuanto (MX), Colonia (Uruguay), Santo Domingo (DR), or even Quito.

Health care: Its a bit more pricey than the healthcare service in nearby Loja, and the variety of services offered is better in Guayaquil or Quito.

For singles: For single guys, its hard to beat Guayaquil, it just is, trust me on that one. For single women (and gay men), I’ve heard Manta, Guayaquil and Machala have some of the countries best looking and most enjoyable men.

Crime: While notably more safe than the other two big cities in Ecuador (Quito and Guayaquil), it’s still not quite as safe as the smaller towns in Ecuador if this is really important to you. Remember Ecuador outlaws guns so gun violence is a rare sight anywhere.

Cultural events/nightlife: For cultural events like classic music concerts and plays, Loja beats Cuenca. For pure raucous nightlife, Quito and Guayaquil beat Cuenca once again any day of the week.

Expat community: If you’d like to be around a lot of other expats, Cuenca has built the largest expat community in Ecuador (rumored to be between 3-5,000 permanent residents) but there are also significant expat communities in Salinas, Manta, Cotacachi and Quito. But none are yet to the levels of hot spots in Mexico like in San Miguel.

Business opportunity: For businesses focused on selling products or services to expats it’s hard to beat Cuenca due to the large flow currently coming to the area on a daily basis, heck, I might even put a business there soon, but overall, coastal Ecuadorians are known to be more “free-spenders” than their highland counterparts and boy does the coast still need about, well… everything.

Overall: Unless you’re looking for a larger, established expat scene, Cuenca can easily be beat in all the categories listed above by other spots in Ecuador.

It’s overrated.

In fact, in my next letter I’ll share one unknown, alternative destination in Ecuador that has most of the benefits Cuenca has but with a true warmer-yet-not-too-warm eternal-spring like climate. To get it sign up for my list below, you can unsubscribe at any time:

Follow @dombuonamici

Most expats in Ecuador don’t own cars. 

It’s just a fact that with all the cheap/frequent public transport having a car is not a “necessity” just merely a “luxury”. 

But several expats, maybe you too, shy away from buying a car cause they don’t really understand the process of both purchasing a vehicle and what’s needed to drive in Ecuador. 

But it’s nothing to fear and actually not that complicated. 

The process to buy a car in Ecuador: 

After agreeing to terms with the seller, you’re going to want to check their registration card (Matricula).  On it there will be the name of the owner and the VIN of the car.  Verify the vin by popping the hod of the car and physically checking and verify the owner by having him show you his Ecuadorian ID card (cedula) or passport. 

Many in Ecuador buy and sell cars and thus are selling a car that is not in their name, all they have is an open contract from the previous owner that they are waiting to put the new buyer’s name on and a copy of the previous owners “cedula”. 

I recommend only buying a car from the person that is the registered owner.

You can then run a check to see if the car has any unpaid leins against it or outstanding fines through the website of the DMV of Ecuador called the ANT, http://www.ant.gob.ec/index.php/consulta-de-multas AND through the website of the National Police http://www.policiaecuador.gob.ec/index.php?id=infracciones_de_transito . 

All you need is the plate number of the car to do the search. 

To double check you can also go to the office of the JEFATURA DE TRANSITO in your town and verify the car is really owned by the person appearing as the owner on the matricula they are showing. 

With the plate number you can also check to see if the car is stolen online here.  http://www.policiaecuador.gob.ec/index.php?id=vehiculos_robados 

If everything checks out and you’d like to continue with the purchase the next step is to write up the sales contract and get it notarized.  Notaries usually charge around $50 for this service.

Once you have the notarized bill of sale you can take it to the nearest SRI office (the Ecuadorian IRS) and pay the 1% transfer tax based on the value of the vehicle to put it in your name on both a national and police level. 

The last step would be to go and register the car in your name in the DMV of Ecuador (ANT or COMISION DE TRANSITO).  But if the car still has a bit of time left on the current registration (you need to renew once a year) you can drive with your license (from any country), the notarized bill of sale and the registration (matricula) which is not yet in your name but still current just fine until the current registration expires, according to the Ecuadorian police.  Registration costs around $150 annually. 

You will also need to make sure the car has the basic liability insurance paid required by law (the SOAT).  The SOAT insures all the medical costs people involved in a car accident may have. 

What it does not cover are the cars involved.  For example, the cost of the SOAT for an $11,000 car in 2013 is $27 for one year of coverage. 

Private companies like Generali also provide more comprehensive car insurance in Ecuador.  For example, to insure an $11,000 car full coverage runs about $450 annually. 

So to recap, whenever you drive in Ecuador you will need to bring your license from any country, your matricula card of the car you are driving (registration), and have the SOAT card on hand.  And if the matricula is not in your name you’ll want to have the notarized bill of sale or the rental contract in the car as well. 

Now, to learn the buying process of a house or property in Ecuador be sure to sign up below now:

Follow @dombuonamici

“This country never ceases to amaze me.”

I thought when I saw a 2009 model of a vehicle just $1000 less than the 2012 version as I used-car-shopped earlier this week.

Due to the high import tariffs and restrictions on vehicles, cars are not only more expensive than they are in the US, they also retain their value.

It’s true.

It’s not uncommon for folks to buy a used car, use it for a year or two and sell it for about what they paid for it (especially if they got a bit of a deal).

Based on the advice of several locals and my own experience in Ecuador, here’s what I did to find the best deal on the car purchase made this week.

1. Establish what make, model and year you are looking for and browse a few of the most popular websites in Ecuador to determine market value of the car in Ecuador. The most popular sites in Ecuador to find used cars for sale (and where I found the best deals) are:

PatioTuerca.com – Website dedicated to the sale of cars nationwide in Ecuador. Vendors must pay to advertise.
PatiodeAutos.com – Website dedicated to the sale of cars nationwide in Ecuador. Vendors must pay to advertise.
MercadoLibre.com.ec – The eBay of Ecuador.

2. Go to Quito. Here you’ll find the largest selection and the highland people in Ecuador are renowned locally for taking better care of their cars (and belongings in general) than the coastal people in Ecuador. Plus, it helps that the car hasn’t been eroded by the salty, ocean air.

3. Skip the used car lots. I went to about 10 and they were an enormous waste of time if you are looking for something very specific. Chances are they won’t have it, or if they do, the deal isn’t that great or the car is not in very good condition.

4. Visit the car fairs. In Ecuador, these fairs are open to not only dealers but the public too. The most popular ones are in POMASQUI near Quito on the road to the Mitad del Mundo and GUAMANI exiting the south of Quito on the Panamericana on Saturdays and Sundays from 9a-5p.

5. Check the El Comercio Quito paper on Sundays. The other days will have very thin car listings at best.

6. If a deal still hasn’t been found continue searching on the net on the sites mentioned above and always be sure to ask “Cual es lo ultimo?” (What’s your best price?) All the cars I found in Ecuador were negotiable by about $200-1500 off their asking price on cash purchases.

7. Remember it’s a common practice in Ecuador to fiddle with or set back the mileage on a car. Focus on things like the wear on the tires and brakes or have a mechanic check the car to determine true mileage.

Using the above strategy I helped find, and pull the trigger on a 2011 Chevrolet Aveo with AC in ‘like new’ condition with under 30,000 km for $11,000 after a friend and I had determined the average market value of the same car with AC in Ecuador to be $11500-13000.

That’s how you find a used car deal in Ecuador.

Now, to find a deal on a home? Fill in the blanks below to learn more:

Follow @dombuonamici

A lake just south of Quito near the Ilinizas National Park.

It’s the end of the year.

You’re probably making your New Year’s resolutions and planning what you’d like ot do, be and have in 2013.

I know sometimes it can be hard to find the time, but you never know how long you’ll live, and I’d make a case that Ecuador is one of those few countries in the world that is really worth seeing.

So stop putting it off.

Hard to find such variety in a country the size of Nevada.

Below is my personal Ecuador bucket list for 2013.

Things I just got to do.

1. Watch the Tungurahua Volcano erupt at night from the look out over Banos. Tours can be arranged in one of the many agencies in Baños. Cost $20 per person.

2. Visit the gold mine in Zaruma where resident Spaniards found a 2 and ½ pound piece of gold and gifted it to King Felipe II several hundred years ago, causing the king such joy he decided to lower the taxes for everyone living in Ecuador. The mine is called “El Sexmo” and is now open to tourists with guided tours from actual nearby miners. Free.

3. Observe the amazing Pink river dolphins as they frollic in the unique flooded rainforest of Cuyabeño in northern Ecuador. Tours can be arranged once on the ground out of Quito or Lago Agrio. Canoe Tours start from $40 per person.

4. Scuba dive in the crystalline waters of Galapagos off Floreana Island with hammerheads and whale sharks. 2 Dives start from around $130. Best arranged once on the ground in Santa Cruz Island near the port in Puerto Ayora with local dive shops.

5. Snorkel with the worlds smallest penguin, gigantic manta rays, big marine iguanas and (friendly) reef sharks off las Tintoreras on the picturesque snow-white sands and turqoise waters off Isabela Island in the Galapagos. Day tours to Isabela arranged in Santa Cruz start around $65/person.

6. Eat two buckets of the locally-famous garlic crab at one of the best crabhouses (Manny’s Crangrejal) in Guayaquil, a city known for its numerous crabhouses. Near San Marino Mall any taxi will know where it is. $12.

7. Hunt for fossils along the banks of the Nangaritza River, the only river that connects the Amazon to the Pacific Ocean, high in the Condor Mountain Ridge (Cordillera del Condor). For more try lindoecuadortours.com $25-50 /person.

8. Deep-sea fish for Marlin and Whale-watch in August off the calm shores of Salinas. Trips can be arranged in one of the several agencies along the boardwalk. Cost: Whalewatching from $20 per person, deep sea fishing price varies depending on amount of people.

9. Bike on a rented bicycle from the city of Puerto Ayora in the Galapagos to the deserted, idyllic beach of El Garrapatero while passing through over a dozen micro-climates and witnessing the giant Galapagos tortoises grazing in their natural habitat. Cost: $5.

10. Visit a chocolate farm near Guayaquil and learn the whole process of how to make chocolate from harvest to belly. Get more info here.

11. Hummingbird watch and observe thousands of butterflies in the cloud rainforests of Mindo. Tours can be arranged once in Mindo. Start from $20/person.

12. Climb Cotopaxi, one of the worlds highest active volcanoes at 19347ft / 5897m with a guide arranged in Quito, I’ve been told even beginners can do it!

13. Explore the massive, underground lava tunnels on Santa Cruz Island in the Galapagos. Free.

14. Trout fish in one of the surreal apline lakes in the barren Cajas National Park near Cuenca. Tours can be arranged with Terra Diversa in Cuenca.

15. Go way off the beaten path and discover the Lost City (Ciudad Perdida) of Ecuador’s Amazon. Extreme adventure available through local guides only out of Nangaritza. Cost: Highly negotiable.

16. Pamper myself with a the natural mud bath in the mud pools in the dry rainforest of Machalilla National Park and spend the night playing volleyball with the local indigenous and later sleeping in one of their tiki huts. From Puerto Lopez hire a motorcycle taxi and pay a few bucks from them to take you to the indigenous community of Aguas Blancas in the park. Cost: $10 for the day tour to the mud baths and $10/person for the night.

17. View the thousands of Orchid species growing wild along the well-kept trails of the Podocarpus National Park easily reached in a $4 taxi ride from the town of Zamora. Free entrance to park.

18. Hike the 10km trek from El Tambo to Ingapirca, ancient Incan ruins and effectively Ecuador’s own “Machu Picchu”. You can also take a train, taxi or bus which can be arranged out of Canar. Ruins Entrance fee $6.

19. Get certified as a glider plane pilot in Ibarra through a one month course with a local flight instructor. They say if you can fly a plane without an engine you can fly a plane with one. Course starts around $1300. 2013 prices yet to be released. For more info write me here.

20. Visit the worlds only birds that live in a cave, in the only cave they live in at the CUEVA DE LOS TAYOS. Tours arranged out of Macas. Prices vary.

21. Tailgate, then enter a game in Quitos rowdy Atahaulpa Stadium as the National Soccer team attempts to qualify for the next World Cup in Brazil. The cheap seats start around $10.

22. Learn to kite surf with an instructor against the strangly barren cliff landscapes of Santa Marianita near Manta. Classes can be arranged on site. Prices vary.

23. Party with fun locals along the infamous Plaza Foch in Quito during Quitos Festival Week “Fiestas de Quito” the first week of December. Free if you can find a sugar-momma/pappa to buy you drinks.

24. Take a tour of a Banana plantation in Machala and learn all the ins and outs of the interesting business with CristyViajes. Tours start around $20 per person.

25. Fish for Pirana in Laguna Pañacocha, a beautiful black wáter lake backed by cloud forests. To get there, hire a local canoe where the Rio Panacayu meets the Rio Napo, to get there you’ll need to take a Nuevo Rocafuerte Canoe hired in the town of Coca. Price varies depending on season.

26. Bike the wonderful 7 hour (60km) downhill ride from the high Andes to the mouth of the Amazon in Puyo and witness the furious waterfall of Baños “Pilon de Diablo”. Bike can easily be rented in Banos. Cost: $5

27. Soak in the odd street water-wars during Carnaval in February in Cuenca where everyone goes around throwing water balloons and soaking random strangers with water guns. Free.

28. Hike the Quillotoa Volcano and witness the majestic, stunning turquoise-colored lake in the volcano’s crater. Can be done solo by taking a bus from Latacunga and getting off near the base. Cost: $4 bus fare from Latacunga.

29. Experience the naughty, packed, full-moon-style New Year’s Eve party in Montanita. Free if you sleep on the beach in a tent (doable), just don’t bring valuables.

30. Mingle with sexy locals dressed to the tilt during the 2 hour river-boat cruise on the all-you-can-drink boat ‘Morgans’ which leaves every night from the boardwalk (Malecon) of Guayaquil. Can be arranged out of my B&B in Guayaquil. $15 per person includes all you can drink.

31. Follow the rarely-visited path of the world-famous indigenous Shuar who were the ones that originated the practice of shrinking the heads of their conquered enemies. Tours now available with local guides through Macas or Zamora. Prices vary.

32. Learn to kayak in the lazy to fierce Andean rivers around the city of Ibarra with Natural Adventures. Prices vary.

33. Devour delicious seafood at the locally-famous “Parque de Mariscos” along the beach in Manta heading towards the airport. Specifically I want to eat a ‘Cazuela’ Soup, an amazing nut-based fish soup truly unique to Ecuador. Cost: $6.

34. Have a 10 minute long conversation in Spanish with a local after a month long Spanish crash course at the highly recommended Galapagos Spanish School in Quito. Cost: one-on-one classes with real teachers start around $6/hr.

35. Dance salsa to afro-latino beats on the white-sand beaches at moonlight in a beach bar near Esmeraldas after eating the local delicacy of Shrimp cooked in spiced coconut milk (encocado de camaron). I’m sure I’ll feel like I’m in the Caribbean. Cost: $5-6.

36. Visit the perplexing, friendly afro-ecuadorian community of Chota in the middle of the Andes near Otavalo and have a local Shaman (witch doctor) cleanse away my worries. Cost: $5 bus fare from Quito.

To discover the 37th absolute must do in Ecuador in 2013 fill in the blanks below:

Follow @dombuonamici

Until December 23 there is a flight special on Tame to the Galapagos roundtrip from Guayaquil for a total of $176 for anyone with an Ecuadorian Cedula… you can be a foreigner, you just need to be a legal resident of Ecuador with a cedula to qualify.

You must travel before the end of March 2013.

I’ve never seen a special this cheap to go to Galapagos!

To receive other alerts of Ecuador flight specials fill in the blanks below to register now, thanks:

Follow @dombuonamici

I’m done. Six weeks, 3 tiki huts built with oceanviews near Montanita.

3 VERY different styles.

Non are luxury, but two of the three are nice for the middle-end or middle-higher-end traveler while one without much of a view is for the budget backpacker/surfer type.

Remember when I got quoted $3000-3500 for each tiki hut? And when I said I knew of others in the area that pull in around $50 a night on the weekends and $20 or so a night on weekdays?

Well, I built mine with kitchenette, balcony, 1 bedroom, 1 bath ensuite with WIFI for new arrival expats and travelers looking to rent anywhere from 3 days to one month, maybe while they search for something else long-term.

Well, here are the exact FINAL COSTS of the construction of each…

Tiki Hut 1, The budget option with little ocean-view built with a cement floor and cement block with the “Sing” metal sheet roofing so common in this area of Ecuador. It has WIFI and a mini-stove and bathroom (all in the same room) while the shower is behind a curtain out back. I hope to rent it to a surfer or backpacker for around $100 a month or $5 a day for shorter time periods. It’s good enough for me and someone not very picky, I could live there if I needed to live somewhere rent-free. It is very soviet-esque but comes furnished with bed, table, chair, Wifi internet, electric cooker, sink, and a half bath with the shower around back which does have a curtain. Currently its listed for rent at $85 a month.

Total build time = 6 days. (One Ecuador workweek).
Total size = 16 m2 or 172 ft2

FINAL COSTS

Floor and mini-support columns
-8 sacks of cement at $6.65 = $53.20
- 1/2 m2 of sand = $9.15
- 1/2 m2 of rock = $10.20
- 6 Rebar of 8mm = $31.86
total= $104.41

Walls
Cement block (250 units) = $77.50
6 Sacks of cement = $39.90
Door = $45
Lock and door knob = $12
No glass windows installed, only cement block windows with mosquito screens.
=$174.40

Roofing
7 sheets of metal “Sing” = $77
4 wooden support cross beams = $36
Mosquito netting = $25
= $138

Installations
Toilet and sink = $95
Shower head = $8
Electricity installation of one light = $24
3 points of water and plumbing installation (toilet, sink, outside shower) = $60
Random plastic tubing, wiring and electric/plumbing accessories = $34.68
Electric stove = $14
= $235.68

Labor = 2 men, one lead builder (maestro $150) and an assistant (oficial $90) for one week, total = $240

TOTAL COST $892.49

Tiki Hut 2, I bought this All-wooden hut pre-built from a builder I know from the Ecuadorian Amazon, Tena region. It took 3 days for them to install it on my location elevated a few feet above the ground. It has a wooden balcony, wooden floor, wooden walls, a “sing”roof, a beautiful oceanview, one bedroom, one bathroom, a sink, kitchenette, mini-refrigerator, WIFI, one queen bed, closet, one full bathroom with a hot electric-powered shower with a tile floor and vinyl-covered walls.

I had to tile the floor myself first laying a small web or rebar, then laying a 5 cm layer of cement, then laying the tile… and then I had to stick vinyl on the bathroom walls with rubber cement as well as install the water and electricity outlets and hook up. For rent (based on market prices) at $20/ night, $95/week or $230/month, the price is the same for one or two people.

Total build time = 7 days.
Total size = 24 m2 or 258 ft2

Total cost of pre-fabricated wooden hut installed on site= $3200.

Total cost of bathroom supplies, tile for floor = $56
Vinyl for bathroom walls = $72
Installation of plumbing (4 points) = $84
Installation of electricity (4 points) = $48
Toilet and bathroom sink set = $85
Electric shower head = $24
Sink for kitchenette with accessories = $56
Electric wiring, plastic tubes and other plumbing and electric accessories = $78
Labor (2 days to install bathroom floor, lead maestro) = $50

Total cost = $3753

Tiki Hut 3, This was my baby, and boy I had no idea what i was getting myself into. By far the most labor intensive and time consuming, I designed the hut myself based off similar “mixed” models in the area. Due to inexperience building these types of huts (it was my first time) I made mistakes all along the way that caused me to go about $2k over budget (see the end of this email for details).

By “mixed construction” I mean a building that uses a mix of both eco-materials like bamboo and normal construction materials like cement and brick. My idea was to build an elevated structure a few feet off the ground with a cement, tiled floor and walls made partially of brick and bamboo.

The roof would have bamboo cross beams and a typical-for-the-area grass roof with a hidden layer of heavy-duty plastic and mosquito netting to keep the bugs out. The hut would have a balcony, one bedroom, one full bathroom with electric-powered hot shower and a kitchenette area complete with a countertop, sink, mini-refrigerator, one queen bed, closet, WIFI and a dining table for two. I did it, and it looks great, but not without learning a lot along the way. For rent (based on market prices) at $20/ night, $95/week or $250/month, the price is the same for one or two people.

Total build time = 5 weeks
Total size = 30 m2 or 322 ft2

TOTAL COSTS

Labor costs
4 laborers for 3 weeks (2 lead builders, 2 assistants), 3 laborers for additional 2 weeks (2 lead builders, 1 assistant)
Lead builders (maestros) I paid one $150 a week and the other $140 a week.
Assistants (oficiales) I paid $90 a week
Extra $80 for extra men the day we poured the floor
Total= $2250

Material costs unit cost total cost
5.5 m3 of rock for construction $20.35 111.93
3 m3 of fine sand for construction $12 36
5 m3 of large-grained sand for construction $18.30 91.50
72 Sacks of cement $6.65 478.80
1 screwdriver $1.34 $1.34
11 Material transport cost $7 77
25 Rebar of 12mm $11.77 294.25
39 Rebar of 8 mm $5.31 207.09
18 Rebar of 10 mm $8.19 147.42
31 steel wire for tying rebar $.88 27.28
1 Wire #14 100m $27.50 $27.50
2 Paintbrushes $1.87 3.74
2 Pairs of rubber gloves $1.60 $3.20
1 Flex meter $3.03 $3.03
1 Net to filter sand $3.16 $3.16
45 4-meter boards of low quality wood for construction purposes $3.40 $153
28 m2 large floor tiles for bedroom and kitchen 5.18 $145.04
1 SIKA 4kg Acelerante $5.37 $5.37
2 Red Teflon Paolo $.41 $.82
2 drain piece for shower $2.25 $4.50
10 nails for cement 2.5” .08 $.80
20 nails for wood 2.5” .84 $16.80
1 Tube Connector $2.09 $2.09
1 Tube 110 mm $10.04 $10.04
10 Viruta #8 $.60 $6
10 lbs of 2” nails $1.63 $10.63
3 lbs of 3” nails $1.63 $10.63
Tubes for plumbing $2.65
34 Bamboo thin 4 meter stalks for construction purposes $3 $102
3 4×4 wood cuartones $6.35 $19.05
1 mangle (wood beam) 5 meter $13
2 doors nicely finished $70 $140
2 Door lock $12 $24
6 Caja Rectangular Plastigama Plumbing accessories $.76 $4.56
1 Caja Octagonal .76
5 Tomac 1228 2.37 $11.85
1 Tomac P-68 2.14
2 Interruptor 1100 1.79 $3.58
8 Perfiles 4x4x2.3 2.61 $20.88
2 Brushes for wire 1.60 $3.20
2 Viruta #8 .58 $1.16
2 Windows with wood frames nicely finished $100 $200
25 stalks of diced Bamboo $3.50 $87.50
15 m2 of Beige tile $9.06 $135.90
7 m2 of Sabina Beige tile $7.81 $54.67
30 units of designer bathroom tiles $.76 $22.80
4 Bags of Porcelain, grout $1.73 $6.92
16 Sacks of Bondex Titania 20kg cement $4.24 $67.84
4 Sacks of Bondex Premium 20kg cement $12.41 $49.64
Varios Tubes and plumbing/electrical accessories $478.89
2 Electric saw blade $4.50 $9
10 Cabo ¼ $.22 $2.20
1 metal sink $28.57
30 m2 Black heavy-duty plastic for roofing $1.56 $46.80
3 units Maderol 1000cc $10.26 $30.78
2 Piola Nylon Ponte Selva #6 $1.87 $3.74
8 Sack Granite pebbles $2 $16
1 Codo 50×90 Plastigama 1.20
1 Sifon 50mm Plastigama $4.01
2 llave de pared for kitchen plumbing $21.87 $43.74
3 Tubes for toilet 1/2×7/8 2.36 $7.08
16 screws 8×2” .05 $.80
1 6” brush Wilson 9.55
8 Rosetron Bakelina .58 $4.64
1 Connectors for bathroom sink $9.82
8 Tiras (wood for construction) 1.56 $12.48
10 Cuartones (wood for construction) 2.93 $29.30 744.5
6 units sandpaper #120 .35 $2.10
3 units sandpaper #80 1.35 $4.05
3 units sandpaper #180 .35 $4.05
1 unit handicraft wood for balcony $60
6 bundles palm frowns for finishing roof $25 $125
Other wood costs for construction not calculated above $100
2000 Bricks .21 $420

Total material cost: $ 4306.86

Total cost = $6557.36

Final conclusions, lessons learned, notes to self + you:

- Buy pre-fabricated if you can find a design you like! It will save you time, hassle and money!

- Build on the ground, not with an elevated floor to save costs on rebar and time. This error cost me a bit over a $1000 and caused me to go over-budget!

- Build with cement block and the typical metal-sheet roofing when feasible to economize, use brick for decorating and highlighting only. Bricks are very time-consuming to build with.

- Shop around for doors and windows prices range greatly.

- When building an elevated floor or multiple floors find someone to rent you their construction wood planks, the ones they use to hold up the cement.

- Have your own pick-up truck type vehicle during construction and save greatly on transport costs.

- Once your floor and support columns are in most of the heavy lifting is done and you can reduce personnel.

- Always be prepared for construction projects in new countries to cost 50-75% more than you planned for if managing yourself.

- Although feasible and even a bit fun, if you aren’t a builder it’s really not a good idea to manage a construction project yourself.

- There is a reason Ecuadorians build like they do, and like I followed with TIKI HUT #1, don’t reinvent the wheel, try to build as they do to economize but maybe while adding a few “perks” that add value to your place and make it somewhere you’d like to live.

-Building with eco-products like Bamboo actually is MORE expensive than building with cement and cement block.

- Buy as many fixtures, furniture and materials as possible in the nearest big city to save costs, on the southern coast that would mean buying in Guayaquil.

-Buy all the rock, sand and cement bags you will need for the project beforehand to save time and costs considering you have a place to put it.

- If building on your own get at least a couple “expert” opinions beforehand, I only got one, wasn’t enough, wish someone would have told me at least what I just told you, it would have saved me thousands!

>To read the next article in this series you need to sign up for my weekly, Ecuador Insider’s Newsletter below (You can unsubscribe at ANY time):

Follow @dombuonamici

“Jeeze, that was some crazy sh*t.” I thought as I sat in an ambulance on the coast of Ecuador this week.

I started to recollect what happened as I sat next to the nurse looking down at my friend as the ambulance sped along.

Moments earlier we were on the construction site of where I was in the last day or two of completing 3 tiki huts or “cabañas” on the southern coast of Ecuador.

In the final moments of the day, the lead builder was cutting a piece of wood for the balcony of one of the huts with an electric saw when… “zip” it kicked back and caught him in the shirt.

I was about 30 feet away so I saw it all go down.

At first, his look was of shock, then relief as he thought he missed getting knicked, then as he checked his shirt he realized there was a hole in it.

He lifted up his shirt and … wow… he saw the 6 inch slice in the side of his belly exposing his fat and underneath, different color things that I confirmed later were in fact his intestines.

I had never seen a cut like that.

He waved me over and grabbed my shoulder while another worker took his other shoulder and we walked quickly to the nearby clinic while he held his side. It was conveniently only 1 block or so away.

Once inside we went to the emergency room where he quickly got taped up. The small clinic had to ambulance him to the nearest hospital with surgeons that could stitch him up.

Once we finished the almost hour long ambulance ride he went into surgery, where he stayed for the next 3 hours.

He had to spend the night in the hospital but by the next day he could walk out of there.

He will have to stay off his feet for a couple weeks but the docs said he didn’t cut anything vital, so he should be OK soon.

The total bill from the hospital stay, surgery and ambulance ride = $0 (It was a public, free hospital.)

A few things I learned from the incident:

- Ecuadorian construction sites are VERY hazardous places, don’t just meander through them like you would a park. Proceed with caution, heads up!

- When hiring workers off the street and managing a project yourself you not only have to police them to be sure they’re working, but also to be sure they’re working safely. For instance my worker (and friend) was cutting a board horizontally in the air when he shouldn’t have AND he was looking away from where he was cutting. As well, the nurse at the hospital said construction accidents are quite common but the most common is when workers fall great distances.

- Most public, free hospitals in Ecuador are in fact pretty good and can be relied upon in time of need. Just be sure someone is there that can run to a nearby farmacy and buy you medicines as the doctors ask for them.

- The tool he was using wasn’t mine, but don’t lend Ecuadorian workers your fancy power tools that you may have brought from the US, they will probably say they know how to use them when they really don’t. Let them build how they know how to build.

- I knew this already listening to stories from other people in Ecuador, that’s why I had one of the workers stay back at the job site when the accident happened. But in time of emergency don’t abandon valuables, some sly locals will seize the opportunity to rob you, it’s sad but it’s how it works in poor countries sometimes.

And remember, as always, before you make any investment in Ecuador, you’re going to want to sign up for my weekly, Ecuador Insider’s Newsletter below where I spill all the beans on investing in Ecuador (You can unsubscribe at ANY time):

Follow @dombuonamici

It’s cool to look at a patch of dirt…

…point at it…

…and start building a home.

A few weeks ago I did just that for the first time in Ecuador as I began my project on the coast building from scratch.

And here are 20 of the most important (and costly!) lessons I learned the hard way so you don’t have to:

1. If you can’t be present, pay someone one price for the whole project.  If you can be present and have the time find a few local workers and pay by the week.

2. It’ll always not only cost more but take longer than you think it will.

3. Bricks look nice but are very labor-intensive and eat up a lot of time when building with them.

4. After the first few weeks of the project most of the heavy lifting is done and to save money you can go with just the specialized lead builders (maestros) and lay off the helpers and assistants (oficiales).

5. Yes, Bamboo is cheap but building with it eats up even more time than brick lying does if you want it to look nice.

6. Buy the larger ceramic tiles to speed up construction time, plus they look more elegant.

7. Only have your builders lay ceramic on the shower walls and the bathroom floor.  No need to tile the whole bathroom, you can save costs and time.

8. Install the doors and windows at the very end of the project so they don’t get scratched and botched up.

9. Pay for the materials in cash, in Ecuador most stores will charge an extra 4-12% when paying with a credit OR debit card.

10. Plan a few days ahead so your builders never have to pause with their arms crossed during the construction process because you went to buy materials at the last minute and the local stores were out of stock (common!).

11. For simple constructions, blueprints drawn up by an architect aren’t really necessary but they will help to get a building approval in the local Municipal.

12. To save money if building on the coast buy most of your building materials in the nearest FERRISARIATO big box store, on the southern coast the only ones are in La Libertad near Salinas or in Guayaquil.

13. Get at least a couple quotes for things like doors and windows, turned out I overpaid I discovered asking around after the fact.

14. After the doors and windows are installed check to be sure they close and lock correctly, mine didn’t cause the guys were rushing.

15. Don’t start the construction project the same week as an Ecuadorian national holiday, you will have to pay the same weekly stipend but you will actually lose almost 2 days of work because many of your workers will skip out early the day before a long weekend or work half-a$$.

16. If feasible buy all your materials one time at the start of the project to avoid having to make frequent runs to the hardware stores and pay hefty transport fees.

17. Buy pre-fabricated if possible and save yourself the hassle of building (unless you like it)!

18. Understand the standard Ecuadorian construction work-week, Monday through Friday 8a-4p plus Saturday 8a-12p.  Laborers will try to negotiate to work only Monday through Friday but that is not the norm here for construction projects.

19. Buy your laborers lunch and for the extra $2 it cost you you can get them to stay and work an extra hour at the end of their shift.

20. Cash, Cash, Cash!  Getting cash is a big problem when building in the small towns on the coast of Ecuador.  All your workers will expect cash payments and there is NO WHERE to take out cash.  Plus the few ATM machines that do exist usually have daily limits of $300 you can take out of any one card.  Have a plan or even better a local bank account you can withdraw from on a weekly basis, especially at the end of the week.

But first you need to find the land, and to learn how I find it… cheap…by signing up for my weekly Ecuador Insiders Newsletter…

Follow @dombuonamici

As you may know if you’re signed up for my Insider’s newsletter, I’m currently building a few beach “Tiki-style” huts on the southern coast of Ecuador in the typical local style.

You know the ones I said you could build for around $3500 (at least that’s what i got quoted, we’ll see how much it actually comes to later this week).

So what is the “local” Ecuadorian-style?

Think bamboo. It’s cheap here, precisely $4 a stalk.

But there’s more to it than that, better, let me show you a few examples.

To sign up for my Ecuador Insider’s newsletter and stay in the know as this story develops fill in the blanks below, you can unsubscribe at any time:

Follow @dombuonamici