# Great forum



## mikrobkirk (Jul 23, 2010)

RV ****** - Great Job as a Moderator. I have been looking on the web, researching and speaking to any expat or person that has knowledge on retiring in Mexico. Have read a couple books 1) The Best How To Book on Moving to Mexico by Carol Schmidt/ Norma Hair / Rolly Brook copywrite 2009. 2) Choose Mexico for Retirement TENTH Edition by John Howells Don Merwin copywrite 2007 so it is a little older. Couldn't really find a whole lot about RV travel / camp grounds / etc. Sounds as if you may have experience in that area. Could you share a quick paragraph or 2 of any places or information in this area? 
While I have your attention - Either I have lost my mental edge or my skeptism has risen to a state of a paranoid distrust of what I am reading on almost every other site about Lake Chapalla Area. Seems like almost everyone that has web sites regarding the area seems to have a sincere motive of how great the place is and everyone needs to come see for themselves. What I am seeing seems to be that most of these websites are geared toward selling some property or real estate to you - or finding you (expates) as place to stay / rent / B&B / lodging. Please correct me if I'm wrong - From the prices for casitas to haciendas to racket clubs seem to be as high as they are in my area, for a much smaller place. Seems to me that if I found such a heavenly place to live, I would not want all the American influence / money / society / culture in town to ruin it. I tell everyone when they find out my intentions of retiring in Mexico "ohhh - thats not wise is not safe there" - I always reply "You are exactly correct - very unsafe there - you really need to stay away - something bad could really happen if you go there"  But if they stay here they could get taxed out of their home - have to pay outrageous health insurance premiums, and keep eating food that is bad for you run around like a chicken with their head cut off to keep up with the neighbors. Guess its all up to them. Most people here in this lifestyle and social settings don't even think that there could be an alternative. For them it may be unsafe to venture out of their box. Sorry - rambled on to much - need to get back to my rosetta stone spanish lessons. Hope to hear back soon. :focus:


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## RVGRINGO (May 16, 2007)

Thanks for the kind comments. Volunteer moderators need that once in a while.
The 'RV' in my monicker does indicate that we had a motor home and retired in it for some years. However, we sold it and bought a home at Lake Chapala in 2001. We do miss the RV lifestyle and, now that age and infirmity are catching up, we're seriously considering selling the house & casita and getting another motor home. We now know of some very nice RV parks near here (Roca Azul at Jocotopec and another nearby at Villa Corona) where we could spend part of the year, while going to the Pacific Coast for a month or so in the winter. The mobility would also allow the wife to drop me off at the San Antonio VA Hospital once in a while.
Rentals may be a bit higher here, than other parts of Mexico, but there must be some pretty good reasons why there are more expats at Lake Chapala than anywhere else. We even have an American Legion and some English publications, etc. Frankly, it is the very best of both worlds and the climate is incomparable this side of Nairobi. I've been there too, but wouldn't want to stay permanently. So, as a popular spot, there are real estate agencies and they do advertise. There are also several expat folks with interests in the arts and other activities here, including a very active Little Theater, Music Societies, etc. Many of us have casitas on our property and they're great for visitors or short term rentals for those who want to come for an exploratory visit. As such, Chapala and Ajijic, especially, are very well known on the internet. Of course, if you have your own RV, you might want to explore that way. If it is a 40' Tiffin, we could talk.


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## elchante (Dec 22, 2008)

mikrob: you are finding so many postings about the lake chapala area (northshore in particular) because so many ex-pats are here. the number of ex-pats varies greatly from town to town on the northshore. in ajijic, a lot. in chapala, quite a few. in jocotepec, fewer. on the south shore of the lake, VERY few. where you like/belong depends on what you are interested in. 

whatever the motive of the posters to whom you refer, they are right in this respect: you need to come visit before making a final decision. and you need to rent before you buy. prices are high on the northshore of the lake because landlords/owners can often get that amount. on the southshore (where i live), prices are lower. 

but, again, i would like to stress that you need to know what you want, as opposed to what you actually NEED. if you are willing to live closer to the mexican style of living, it's pretty cheap. if you want and need a more american lifestyle, then it's going to cost you more. 

as to rv'ing in mexico, google "rving in mexico" and you'll get a lot of hits. it certainly can be done in mexico, but don't expect a KOA-equivalent here, where you run into all sorts of camping sites. 

i think there is this perception in the US (and possibly Canada) that things are SO much cheaper down here. the things that ARE actually cheaper are government health insurance, fruits and vegetables, and labor. but some things are actually more expensive (i.e. electronics and specialty food items). again, it comes down to what you are willing to live with and without. 

and, as RVGringo has repeatedly said, don't expect to move into some mexican neighborhood and become immediately assimilated. it ain't gonna happen! the better your spanish is, the better off you'll be. but cultural assimilation is something different. it may take you a long time to "fit in" or it may never happen.


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## b. curran (Mar 3, 2010)

RV, I second the poster's comments. You have been very helpful to me, before and after my trip to Lakeside. I'm curious about your mention of the San Antonio VA hospital. Was that a joke, or is there really one there? My husband is a Korean vet and that would be of much interest to us. Many thanks, again,
Barb C.


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## RVGRINGO (May 16, 2007)

Thanks Barb, and welcome to the forum.
If you are thinking of San Antonio Tlayacapan, between Chapala and Ajijic, no, there isn't any hospital there. However, there are VA hospitals two days north, in San Antonio and Houston, Texas.
Hope you enjoyed your visit and will come back soon. We're having a record rainy season, so far, and the lake is likely to reach levels not seen since the 1970s.


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## mikrobkirk (Jul 23, 2010)

elchante - Thank You for your response. You are in the area of the Lake that I am very interested in. Any more information on your side will be greatly appreciated. I have many questions about houses, LAND (would like a little hectors for some small farming) and is it very fertile earth? I like getting away from the traffic and noise. How long of a drive is it to Chapala from some of the small towns on your side? Any areas that you may suggest? What about driving down with a pop-up camper - RV ****** says there is a couple nice camp grounds around Chapala.


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## elchante (Dec 22, 2008)

mikrobkirk: i have never owned a house or land in my life, so i can't give you much information about the topics you say you are interested in. (couldn't give it to you about the USA and definitely can't give it to you about mexico.) 

what i CAN tell you (and little it is) is that here on the southshore of lake chapala there are definitely subsistence farmers, but relatvely large tracts of land (by jalisco standards) are used for the growing of berries (of many kinds) and other fruits and vegetables. lots of folks from my little pueblo are employed at the berry farms. 

the soil is evidently fertile, because lots of people are growing lots of things. the small farmers grow some things for sale and some things for food. for example, when i buy onions at the local tienda (small shop) or weekly tianguis (outdoor market), i get vegetables with soil still on them, so i know they are from local growers who sell them. i also see on the highway from here to jocotepec lots of pickups with bags and stacks of fruits or vegetables. 

from my house to jocotepec is about a 20-minute drive (that includes the 5-minutes that it takes me to get out of my house and gate that encloses my pickup and onto the highway to joco). from joco to chapala is about another 30-40 minute drive, depending on traffic in ajijic and chapala. 

there is a nice "trailer park" in roca azul just a ways outside of jocotepec as you start around the southside of the lake from its western end. i don't know the specifics of the rental fees for sites, but they're fairly expensive based on what some friends of mine say they pay. other than the roca site, i'm not aware of any other RV sites on the south shore. (of course, i might not know about them since i don't have an RV. i will PM you with a couple of blogsites written by people who live and/or travel in RVs in mexico.) 

just to iterate one more time: before you sell everything and pull up stakes to move to mexico, you need to visiit for a week or two, and then rent a place to stay for longer. and you need, ideally, to visit during the seasons (i.e. the rainy season, which generally goes from mid-june to early october; the colder season, which goes from perhaps december through march; and the dry season which generally lasts from early april to mid-june). 

things grow here year-round, but different things grow at different times, of course, and some things never grow at all. so in addition to being here for the different seasons to experience the change in temps, you also need to see what is growing when. also, and you would need to check on this, you might need to get a different type of visa if you were to actually go into the growing and selling of fruits and/or vegetables. that might (and i suspect does) require a visa that allows you to "work" in mexico. and because so many mexicans farm you might find yourself denied such a visa. mexican immigration does not want expats to be taking work away from locals. 

sorry that this isn't an "answer" as such, but it's about all i can tell you!


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