Gerald y Derek, unos ñaños generosos originalmente de Chicago, nos abrieron las puertas de su chévere departamento en Cuenca para un recorrido por la propiedad. También aprovechamos la oportunidad para entrevistarlos sobre su experiencia mudándose a Cuenca. Un enorme agradecimiento a los dos. Esperamos que vos puedas aprender de su experiencia.
Recorrido por el Departamento
Esta vivienda captura la esencia de la vida moderna, mostrando vistas impresionantes, un ingenioso aprovechamiento del espacio y una combinación de comodidad y estilo.
Una Experiencia Gastronómica Panorámica
Al entrar por la puerta, nos recibe un amplio comedor. El espacio irradia grandiosidad con sus amplias dimensiones y vistas impresionantes. Con el majestuoso río y las montañas a lo lejos como telón de fondo, el balcón se convierte en un rincón ideal para el desayuno, perfecto para mañanas tranquilas o conversaciones al atardecer.
Una Sala de Estar con un Encanto Inigualable
Junto al comedor, la sala de estar se despliega de manera natural, ofreciendo un espacio acogedor y cálido. Un segundo balcón amplía las posibilidades, permitiendo reuniones entre el interior y el exterior. Aunque hay planes para seguir embelleciendo el espacio, su estado actual ya irradia un aire de elegancia y calidez.
Refugio Felino y Delicias Culinarias
El departamento de Gerald y Derek no solo acoge a personas sino también a sus gatos. La instalación de mallas especiales garantiza que los queridos gatos estén seguros mientras disfrutan del aire fresco. La cocina, un verdadero paraíso culinario, cuenta con un diseño abierto que facilita la organización eficiente con bastante espacio sobre los muebles para sus diferentes electrodomésticos. La luz natural entra a raudales, iluminando la vibrante vida de la ciudad y creando un ambiente acogedor.
Magia Multiusos
Nos encontramos con un descubrimiento inesperado al adentrarnos en el llamado "cuarto de servicio". Esta habitación se transforma en un espacio versátil para huéspedes, trabajo y descanso. Una cama plegable, un escritorio listo para trabajar y una distribución bien pensada convierten el cuarto en un oasis de posibilidades.
Subiendo a lo Más Alto
Al subir por las seguras escaleras, encontramos un espacio bañado de luz natural, un rincón que encapsula comodidad y creatividad. Aquí, las colecciones personales y un pequeño refrigerador convierten esta área en un centro de relajación.
La Suite Principal y Más Allá
El dormitorio principal nos invita con su suave luz matutina y una vista que cautiva los sentidos. Tres gatos encuentran sosiego en la tranquilidad del cuarto, mientras que un vestidor adjunto agrega un toque de lujo. El amplio baño, decorado con una tina jacuzzi y elegantes baldosas, es un refugio dentro de un refugio.
Una Terraza de Maravillas
Si el departamento ya era encantador, la terraza panorámica es una extensión que cautiva aún más. La vista panorámica, que va desde el coliseo deportivo hasta las montañas a lo lejos, se despliega como una obra maestra. Este espacio, con sus planes para asados y reuniones al aire libre, promete ser un lugar de recuerdos inolvidables.
Conclusión: El Capítulo Perfecto
El departamento de Gerald y Derek en Cuenca es un testimonio del poder de la transformación y la adaptabilidad. Lo que comenzó como un espacio sin amueblar ha florecido en una vivienda vibrante, funcional y con estilo. Cada rincón cuenta una historia de profundo aprecio por los placeres sencillos de la vida. A través de este recorrido, hemos sido testigos de la magia que se puede crear cuando una casa se convierte en un hogar.
Entrevista con Expatriados: Gerald y Derek
Mudarse a un país extranjero es una decisión que cambia la vida y conlleva numerosas consideraciones. Cuenca, Ecuador, se ha convertido en un destino popular para los expatriados gracias a su favorable costo de vida, su agradable clima y su rica oferta cultural. En esta entrevista, nos adentramos en una conversación reveladora con dos expats, Gerald y Derek, quienes comparten con total sinceridad sus experiencias, reflexiones y valiosos consejos para quienes están pensando en emprender un camino similar.
La Ventaja Económica
Gerald y Derek inician su conversación destacando los beneficios económicos de vivir en Cuenca en comparación con los Estados Unidos. Derek señala que una fracción de lo que gastaban antes en los EE.UU. les permite disfrutar de una mejor calidad de vida en Cuenca. Esta revelación subraya la viabilidad financiera de prosperar en Cuenca y la posibilidad de mejorar el nivel de vida al relocalizarse.
Elegir el Arriendo Ideal
Los dos se adentran en la importancia de la ubicación al momento de elegir un lugar donde vivir. La cercanía a servicios esenciales, transporte público y comodidades fue crucial para sus necesidades. Optar por una residencia cerca del centro de la ciudad les proporcionó fácil acceso a tiendas, restaurantes y opciones de entretenimiento, manteniendo al mismo tiempo una distancia tranquila del bullicio de la ciudad.
Comodidad y Conectividad en el Transporte
Gerald y Derek destacan la comodidad del sistema de tranvía de Cuenca, conocido localmente como el "tranvía". Estar a poca distancia a pie del tranvía permite desplazamientos diarios eficientes y conecta zonas vitales de la ciudad, incluidos el aeropuerto y el terminal de buses.
Rutinas Diarias y Pasiones
Gerald y Derek comparten detalles de sus rutinas diarias, destacando su deseo de explorar la ciudad, participar en eventos culturales y disfrutar de cines con películas en inglés. Involucrarse en estas actividades no solo los expone a la vibrante escena cultural de Cuenca, sino que también refleja el compromiso de la ciudad con los intereses de los expats y el fomento de las iniciativas artísticas locales. Su participación en eventos culturales subraya su adaptabilidad y apertura a nuevas experiencias.
Integrándose al Tejido Local
La asimilación cultural juega un papel fundamental en el proceso de un expat. Gerald y Derek destacan la importancia de forjar conexiones con otros expatriados y locales. Resaltan la naturaleza abierta y amigable de la comunidad, que brinda numerosas oportunidades de participación a través de eventos y reuniones. Derek comparte cómo su creciente red de contactos fue facilitada por conocidos en común, dando como resultado una red de amigos y conexiones. Esta profunda participación en la comunidad local permite a los expats sumergirse genuinamente en la cultura de Cuenca.
Salud en Cuenca
La salud es una preocupación fundamental para los expatriados. Gerald y Derek destacan la calidad y accesibilidad de los servicios de salud en Cuenca. Cuentan sus experiencias con médicos, dentistas y doctores que hablan inglés y ofrecen altos estándares de atención. La garantía de contar con servicios de salud confiables y cercanos fortalece la seguridad y el bienestar de los expats, un factor crucial para quienes pueden necesitar atención médica. Este aspecto de la vida en Cuenca contribuye a una experiencia expat completa y gratificante.
Consejos para Futuros Expats
Aceptar el Cambio y las Concesiones
Gerald y Derek ofrecen consejos muy valiosos para los futuros expats. Subrayan la necesidad de aceptar el cambio y reconocer las concesiones inherentes a cualquier decisión importante en la vida. Mudarse a un país extranjero implica dejar atrás ciertas comodidades y familiaridades, pero las numerosas ventajas de dicho cambio suelen superar los desafíos, lo que lleva al crecimiento personal y a una perspectiva más amplia.
Aprovechar al Máximo el Período Inicial de Visa
Derek brinda valiosos consejos sobre cómo sacar el máximo provecho del período inicial de visa de turista. Esta ventana de tiempo representa una oportunidad única para aclimatarse a la ciudad, familiarizarse con los productos y servicios locales, y planificar meticulosamente el proceso de reubicación. Al aprovechar al máximo este período, los expats pueden tomar decisiones informadas sobre qué pertenencias traer y cuáles dejar atrás. Derek subraya la importancia de realizar una investigación exhaustiva y una planificación cuidadosa durante las etapas iniciales de la vida como expat.
Explorar a Fondo las Diferentes Regiones
La conversación avanza hacia la importancia de investigar a fondo las distintas regiones del Ecuador. Si bien Cuenca es una opción popular, es fundamental explorar otras zonas para determinar cuál se adapta mejor a las preferencias y necesidades personales. Factores como el clima, las comodidades y los servicios de salud varían entre regiones. Gerald y Derek destacan la necesidad de alinear estos factores con las prioridades individuales antes de tomar una decisión final.
Conclusión
El intercambio sincero de Gerald y Derek ofrece una visión completa de la experiencia expat en Cuenca, Ecuador. Sus perspectivas, sabiduría y experiencias brindan una guía valiosa para quienes consideran una aventura similar. Desde consideraciones financieras y decisiones de vivienda hasta integración cultural y acceso a la salud, sus relatos arrojan luz sobre la naturaleza multifacética de la vida expat. En última instancia, su experiencia anima a los aspirantes a expats a embarcarse en el viaje con una mente abierta, flexibilidad y disposición para abrazar tanto los desafíos como los triunfos.
Enlaces mencionados en el video
El libro de Gerald, Krampus & Friends. Compralo en Amazon:https://amzn.to/3qebZA4
Carpintero para modificaciones para gatos. CatServicesEcuador:https://bit.ly/3q8zTNo
Contactá a Gerald y Derek
Para más información:
Recorrido por Departamento Expat en Cuenca y Entrevista con Gerald y Derek - Transcripción
Jason00:00
Bienvenido de vuelta al canal, soy Jason de Yapa Tree Properties. Tenemos una agencia de bienes raíces muy activa en Cuenca, Ecuador, que vende y arrienda a expats y locales. El video de hoy es un recorrido por un departamento y una entrevista con los arrendatarios. Vamos.
Gerald00:14
Hola, soy Gerald, de Chicago, y hoy les voy a dar un tour de mi departamento aquí en Cuenca, Ecuador.
Jason00:21
Estamos muy agradecidos con Gerald por su generosidad al abrirnos las puertas, y esperamos que al ver este video hasta el final, vos tengas una idea mucho más clara de la calidad de los departamentos disponibles en Cuenca, Ecuador. Vení conmigo.
Gerald00:34
Bienvenidos, déjenme mostrarles todo. Aquí mismo al entrar, lo primero que tenemos es el comedor, que es absolutamente enorme y tiene una vista increíble. Miramos justo hacia el río que pasa por aquí. Tenemos las montañas de fondo. La vista simplemente es impresionante desde este balcón. Cuando llegamos aquí estábamos tan emocionados porque teníamos esta enorme mesa de comedor que ni siquiera podíamos extender completamente, y cuando llegamos aquí el espacio es tan grande que pudimos poner la mesa del comedor con las extensiones. Es un departamento sin amueblar y dejamos las sillas en casa, así que compramos sillas nuevas aquí. Hay buenas ofertas y unas sillas chéveres y cosas por el estilo que comprar aquí, es maravilloso. Por aquí, solo para apreciar la vista, pudimos tomar este balcón, ponerle unos muebles muy bonitos y esto es un rincón de desayuno como ningún otro. El clima es casi siempre perfecto; si está un poco lluvioso o nublado, hay algo agradable y refrescante en eso, así que es una ubicación genial, genial.
Gerald01:47
Por este lado, aquí está nuestro comedor, perdón, nuestra sala de estar. Estábamos muy emocionados porque encontramos un juego que quedó perfecto y creo que toda esta área simplemente funciona muy bien como sala de estar, como área de living. Tenemos otro balcón con más vistas. Más lugares donde podemos poner sillas y si tenemos una reunión, tenemos gente aquí, en el comedor, en el balcón. Es bacán. Todavía necesitamos hacer más cosas aquí. Queremos un mueble para el televisor, queremos una vitrina, pero hemos encontrado personas muy, muy buenas para hacer algo de trabajo y construir algunas de nuestras cosas.
Gerald02:35
Una de nuestras mayores preocupaciones eran los gatos. Tenemos tres gatos y no queríamos que esos gatos se escaparan. Este es Derek. No queríamos que los gatos se escaparan y saltaran a su muerte desde los balcones. Así que el tipo que nos hace los Catios también hizo estas mallas; se nos ocurrió que podemos simplemente deslizarlas. Tenemos el aire fresco y la tranquilidad de saber que los gatos van a estar bien.
Gerald03:04
Por aquí. Una cocina chévere. Lo que más me encanta de la cocina aquí es que tenés tu pequeño rincón para el desayuno listo para eso, y luego tenés un espacio muy abierto. Así que pudimos hacer algo que siempre quisimos, que es tomar todos nuestros utensilios pequeños de cocina y electrodomésticos pequeños y colocarlos de manera que sea fácil encontrar todo. Y si necesitás una olla a presión, ahí la tenés. La cocina es increíble y, de nuevo, una vista increíble. Así que la luz siempre está entrando. Podés ver lo que está pasando en la ciudad a nuestro alrededor, es absolutamente maravilloso.
Gerald03:53
Lo interesante de Cuenca que hemos descubierto es que cuando un departamento no está amueblado, eso quiere decir que no está amueblado incluyendo los electrodomésticos grandes. Así que tuvimos que conseguir el refrigerador, el microondas, la cocina, incluso un lavaplatos, para el cual buscamos y encontramos uno que era del tamaño perfecto. Así que eso fue algo que pudimos hacer. Por este lado. Cuarto de lavandería con bastante espacio en los muebles, mucho almacenamiento; pudimos traer nuestras propias repisas, así que tenemos bastantes lugares para poner más cosas. La lavadora secadora también la tuvimos que conseguir e instalar, pero lo hicimos sin problema.
Gerald04:40
Nos dijeron que era un departamento de 2 dormitorios y nosotros pensábamos que no queríamos eso, que necesitábamos tres dormitorios por nuestras oficinas. Este es el cuarto de servicio. Es una habitación. Es un ambiente completo. Si tenemos visitas, tenemos un sofá que se convierte en cama para que nuestros huéspedes puedan quedarse cómodamente. Tienen su propio baño con ducha. Instalamos esta especie de escritorio para que Derek pueda trabajar aquí abajo, o yo puedo trabajar aquí abajo, y podemos sacarlos fácilmente y aun así tener un cuarto cómodo para nuestros huéspedes. Entonces, vamos arriba.
Gerald05:22
Lo que me encanta de estas escaleras es que son extremadamente seguras porque no están abiertas como muchas de las escaleras que he visto. Tienen un pasamanos muy bonito. Nuestro arrendador fue muy gracioso, nos contó la historia de cómo en un momento hubo un resbalón accidental y se dio cuenta de que eran absolutamente necesarias, así que estamos muy contentos de que sea tan seguro.
Derek05:44
Y justo después de que nos contó eso, nos enteramos de que ese vidrio es más grueso que el mismo vidrio de seguridad del aeropuerto O'Hare.
Gerald05:51
Sí, así que no tenemos que preocuparnos de que los aviones se estrellen contra nosotros. Será bacán. Esta área de aquí es uno de mis lugares favoritos de toda la casa. Aquí es donde pasamos la mayor parte del tiempo. Es como un rincón, pero tenemos un sofá que cabe perfectamente, tenemos estanterías donde podemos poner no solo los libros, sino toda mi colección de Doctor Who, que es muy importante, había que tenerla. Entonces, este es un área muy bonita; pusimos un pequeño refrigerador para estar lo más cómodos posible. Por aquí le pedimos a nuestro carpintero que nos hiciera un catio porque de nuevo, los gatos son muy importantes. Y queríamos que tuvieran un espacio al aire libre, así que pudimos poner esto y simplemente disponible para nosotros, muy divertido, pero es solo un área cómoda y agradable.
Gerald06:43
Pero luego todavía tenemos aquí, por ejemplo, un lindo rincón para el desayuno o simplemente un rincón de lectura si ese es el caso. Así que todo esto es absolutamente maravilloso.
Gerald06:56
Por este lado tenemos el segundo dormitorio o la oficina principal, porque es una habitación más grande y está algo desordenada porque tenemos muchas cosas aquí, pero tengo un teclado que quería tener, más libros que eran necesarios, más almacenamiento para cosas. Y luego, por supuesto, el escritorio. Así que hay mucho aquí. Pero mientras estás sentado trabajando, tenés esta vista increíble para la que mandamos a hacer cortinas porque aquí no había cortinas. Y mandamos a hacer esto, lo cual es maravilloso; tenemos tanto control sobre la luz como necesitamos mientras trabajás; es simplemente una ciudad increíble y un área increíble.
Gerald07:46
Y el dormitorio principal, donde están los gatos, que lo establecimos como su espacio. Y ha funcionado muy bien porque son muy asustadizos. Podés ver los bultos en la cama. Esos son los gatos. Pero de nuevo, ventanas enormes, así que la luz de la mañana entra y es tan cómodo y relajado, una experiencia realmente muy chévere. Luego tenemos aquí otro cuarto. Es el vestidor, pero es tan grande como casi cualquier habitación que he visto. Siempre hay un lugar en la casa donde tenés las cosas desordenadas con las que siempre estás trabajando. Este es ese lugar. Pero es un vestidor increíble que lleva directamente a un baño grande y cómodo con ducha, baldosas bonitas, la tina jacuzzi, que es realmente muy buena en esos días en que hace un poco de frío o cuando te has ejercitado de más. Pero esto es todo lo que tenemos.
Gerald08:59
Además de todo lo demás, tenemos una terraza panorámica que nos da una vista de 360 grados de la ciudad. Así que al salir aquí, tenés unas vistas simplemente hermosas. Podemos ver muchísimo de lo que está pasando en la ciudad. Tenemos aquí el coliseo deportivo y a menudo podemos escuchar los aplausos y los gritos. No es molesto, así que no sentimos que estamos demasiado cerca del ruido. Pero es interesante escuchar los partidos de fútbol; podés saber cuándo alguien mete un gol. Es chévere. De nuevo, las montañas a lo lejos. Cuenca es básicamente un cuenco con montañas a su alrededor y lo encuentro tan diferente. Chicago es muy plano, así que esto es muy bonito. Abrimos aquí y tenemos una enorme cantidad de espacio en esta terraza que eventualmente vamos a amueblar con bonitos juegos de asado y muebles de exterior y organizar reuniones aquí; tenemos suficiente espacio para eso. ¡Todavía estamos dando la vuelta! Tenemos otra área aquí. Esta pared termina aquí y no nos da un círculo completo, pero simplemente vas por el otro lado y tenés todo el camino hasta allá. Tenemos este hermoso conjunto de montañas. Lo que me encanta de esto es que si está lloviendo, podés ver la lluvia llegando. Y llamamos al río "bravo" porque cuando llueve fuerte ese río simplemente ruge. Podés ver lo que va a pasar si está lloviendo allá arriba; sabemos que tenemos que ponernos un buen abrigo caliente, un impermeable cuando salgamos. Si está despejado probablemente estamos bien. Aunque es Cuenca, puede llover en cualquier momento. Podemos ver la construcción de otros edificios. Así que hay mucho pasando en esta zona y ha sido interesante verlo todo progresar.
Derek11:05
Debo decir que esos edificios, una vez que estén construidos, van a estar bien chéveres. Creo que son de 1 a 3 dormitorios.
Gerald11:13
De uno a tres dormitorios y es simplemente una zona muy bonita donde podés ver tanto. Las montañas, los edificios, ves cómo los vecinos están tan relajados y tranquilos, el ambiente, el clima. Esto no es Chicago para nada. Una de las cosas que más odiábamos era dejar una casa que amábamos y que habíamos construido durante casi 2 décadas en Chicago. No querés perder eso. Llegamos aquí y no nos arrepentimos para nada. No hubo ni un momento en que pensáramos: ¿por qué estamos aquí? Esto ha sido simplemente fantástico.
Jason11:53
Básicamente esto va a ser una sesión de preguntas y respuestas informal. Así que tengo algunas preguntas para ustedes. Empezando desde el principio, ¿por qué decidieron mudarse a Cuenca?
Gerald12:06
Bien, ¿vos querés responder esa, Derek?
Derek12:08
Sí, ¿por qué decidimos mudarnos a Cuenca? Todo comenzó al inicio de la pandemia. De repente me apareció un video, "Retírate a Ajijic, México", que es como... la gente se jubila en el extranjero. Yo no sabía esto y aparentemente es algo que se puede hacer de manera asequible. Eso tampoco lo sabía. Teníamos un par de amigos que en 2016 se mudaron a Costa Rica. Vendieron todo, pero eran personas que estaban en el rango de ganar 1,000,000 de dólares al año. Así que pensé que era solo para gente con mucha plata. Pero al investigar más, descubrí que podíamos vivir muy bien con su pensión viviendo justo al sur de nuestra frontera incluso. Así que mientras buscábamos, Ecuador seguía apareciendo. Cuenca era una ciudad hermosa. Vinimos a visitar Quito, visitamos Cuenca y visitamos Manta, y nos decidimos por Cuenca para mudarnos.
Gerald12:58
También fue interesante. Él investigó mucho sobre ciudades alrededor del mundo: Filipinas, Tailandia, México, Costa Rica, me encanta Costa Rica. Y de todo lo que miramos, Cuenca fue la ciudad que parecía ser la mejor. Me preocupa mucho el clima y el cambio climático, y el clima de Cuenca va a sobrevivir eso muy bien. Me gusta el ritmo de vida. Me gusta que es una ciudad activa, pero no tan grande como Quito. Quito era demasiado grande para mí. Lo cual es gracioso porque veníamos de Chicago, así que...
Derek13:36
Sí, Quito era en realidad mi primera opción.
Jason13:38
Nos pasa igual. Viví en Quito por un año antes de venir aquí y tuvimos exactamente la misma sensación. Tenía más comodidades en ciertas áreas, pero la naturaleza caótica muchas veces me costaba asimilar al final del día.
Gerald13:52
Me jubilé en 2019 y lo que quería hacer era seguir escribiendo. Y Quito es simplemente un poco demasiado activo. Mientras que Cuenca era simplemente tranquila y calmada. Puedo escribir y al mismo tiempo podemos salir a comer. Podemos salir y hacer actividades. Es muy chévere.
Jason14:10
Bacán. Entonces el costo de vida fue claramente un factor para ustedes. En comparación con algunos de esos otros países que consideraron, ¿fue el costo de vida lo que finalmente los trajo a Cuenca? ¿O fue una combinación de otros factores?
Gerald14:23
El costo de vida era similar en todos esos países. Sin embargo, mi factor más importante, y creo que Derek estuvo de acuerdo conmigo, es que en Tailandia o en Filipinas, de ninguna manera vamos a aprender esos idiomas. Mientras que los dos tenemos una base básica en español, así que era algo con lo que al menos podíamos trabajar.
Jason14:42
Es un punto muy válido; yo mismo pasé algunos años en Tailandia y me fui exactamente por esa razón. Es como: quiero pasar mucho tiempo en algún lugar, pero quiero realmente poder hablar con los locales, integrarme un poco más, y sabía que sin el idioma simplemente no iba a suceder. Así que tiene mucho sentido.
Jason15:00
Y en cuanto a este departamento en sí, sé que ustedes tenían algunos requisitos muy particulares. Este es interesante porque a primera vista no parecía que iba a cumplir sus requisitos y simplemente dijeron que igual iban a ir a verlo. ¿Podés contarme sobre el proceso de búsqueda de arriendo y las decisiones detrás de él?
Gerald15:22
Necesitábamos tres dormitorios porque necesitábamos espacio para oficina. Era muy importante tener ese espacio disponible.
Derek15:31
Y también cuartos para huéspedes. Entonces cada habitación tiene un sofá que se convierte en cama para que cuando la g
Gerald 15:38
So we wanted a place it that was that way and Derek was very insistent he wanted a balcony. He wanted to be up high. He wanted to be able to see the views. I wasn't as insistent upon that until we got here. And then, Oh my God, I'm so glad that we made that choice. And one of our bigger fears, too, was the cats. All the windows and doors open there's nothing you could do so we were...
Derek 16:03
And there's no screens in any of them.
Gerald 16:05
So we were just fortunate, yeah we were fortunate to find a way to make that work and now that we've made that work and got rid of my one big fear, it was great. But yeah the when he said this is a 2 bedroom, we thought no, there's no way.
Jason 16:20
Not going to work.
Gerald 16:20
No.
Jason 16:21
But then, did you realize it had a maids room at the time?
Gerald 16:25
No.
Derek 16:25
It was mentioned, but what we were used to seeing like some friends were rented in a building down the street, another penthouse unit. I think they rented through one of the Estebans of Yapatree - I don't know if it was you or the other Esteban. But yeah, so their maid's quarters off the kitchen was like a cement block. Even the shower was just cement, cement, cement for the ledge and stuff, so they used it as a pantry. That's what I was expecting here, even kind of seeing the video, cuz there's only it's like, OK, it looks fine in the video, but no, there's an actual picture window there. It's tiled throughout. The bathroom's pretty much finished. It's not the same thing. This is a usable guest suite.
Jason 17:03
So that really made you think, "OK, this is not really a two-bedroom. It's kind of like 2, and a half", that sort of scenario?
Derek 17:09
I would call it a three and in the in the States a bedroom even that size would be considered a third bedroom.
Jason 17:14
That's really cool.
Gerald 17:15
And and they pointed out another area, the one that we use for our main living area, they said we could wall this off and make that another bedroom too and we said no cuz it's it works out well that way.
Derek 17:29
And I think that's part of the reason why they liked us as much as they did, because we kind of were like, no, really minimal changes. It's gonna look the same.
Jason 17:36
And you guys did have some changes though, like we look around and all the cat modifications. What do you call the area upstairs?
Gerald 17:44
The catio.
Jason 17:44
The catio, si. That is fantastic and look dealing with pets and especially when you have multiple pets, that's when owners ears tend to really sort of prick up and be like: "OK, let's just slow down, let's think about it." How was that conversation with the landlord and especially with having some of these modifications made?
Derek 18:03
Well, the conversation them is very easy actually. The landlord's already had, they had a cat at one point - I don't know if they still do, but they do have a dog or two that was in this unit already. And actually, in your original video you can see the dog scattering through. When you're walking up the stairs there. So they were fine with the number of cats that we were bringing in, but we also looked at another unit before this that we nearly rented, but the landlord was not very responsive so, you know, ultimately I'm like this is probably going to be going forward. We're not going to get responses...
Jason 18:38
Relationship with the landlord is super important, so I'm really glad that you trusted your gut on that one.
Derek 18:44
Yeah, but but that one also they had no issues with us having pets. I think there was the first one that Esteban showed us which was on the south end of El Centro. It was a first floor unit, very, very nice, fully furnished. That was a pet friendly unit as well. And you know, the furniture, you could tell, yeah, cats have been here before, you know. Not a bad way it's just, you know, you could see some claw marks. So, yeah, we would have been able to bring them in there as well.
Gerald 19:12
A dapting for the cats was key for my mental health if nothing else. One of the things that we did is we came here an exploratory trip. Derek had already been in contact with some people and that expanded it, so in actuality before we even moved to Cuenca, we already had a group of friends and a group of people we knew and they had many contacts with different things. One was getting somebody who could do cat trees, and from there we had Catios made. From there we had furniture made. The guy we've got working this is phenomenal.
Jason 19:45
And with the cat stuff, would you recommend that guy?
Derek 19:49
Yeah absolutely, hands down.
Jason 19:50
So we're happy to we'll include a link to his details in the description as well.
Derek 19:54
Yeah, he also built those TV tray tables that we have and in the third bedroom that desk that's against the wall. That actually folds into the wall. So yeah, he was able to build that for us. We just pretty much tell him what we want and he's able to do it.
Jason 20:10
That's great. I mean, I love that aspect of living in Cuenca. If you want something made, go check out some designs online, take it to the local guy. Definitely remove the prices if they are available because they will tend to see that and say OK this is...
Derek 20:27
This is the going rate.
Jason 20:28
Si,si. Cuencanos have a very, very strong negotiat ing culture so you can bet your bottom dollar that's probably where they're going to start at and hope that you bring them down a little bit.
Jason 20:38
So in terms of some of the differences in the renting process between Cuenca and the US, I'd like to dig into that a little bit. What are the main differences that you guys experienced just throughout the process in general?
Derek 20:50
Well, for me, I only rented once in my life and that was for an 8 month stint before I bought my first home. But that was at an apartment complex, so I pretty much walked in, filled out an application. They had like probably 20 units available and they're like, OK, that's for you. That was kind of it for me.
Gerald 21:05
I probably had more experience in renting. I rented in New York a couple times and I had gone through a lot of process and I'll be honest, I think it's similar. I think it's always dependent upon if you can get somebody that you trust and that is competent at knowing what you're saying and showing you what happened. I've had experiences in Chicago and in New York where you get that I've also seen experiences where it's not quite that they just want to show you something... .
Jason 21:35
Just want to show you what's going to benefit them...
Gerald 21:37
But but in all honesty, when when we worked with YapaTree, we were heard and what we were looking for was was shown. I think it's interesting too, we said no two bedrooms and we were shown a two bedroom. But I feel like again, what we wanted was listened to and...
Jason 22:01
Just like: "Hey guys, this is a 2 bedroom, but just hear me out, hear me out".
Gerald 22:05
Yeah and and we've experienced that before and it it has usually been: "Why are you even showing me this?" Whereas in this case it really turned out to be the best.
Derek 22:15
The real estate agent that we had before Esteban proceeded to show us - it was going to be 3 units. The first unit was way too small. It was not the number of bedrooms we wanted, not the number of bathrooms that we wanted, didn't have any outdoor space. The second unit was getting warmer, but not quite that. Then the third unit was a giant penthouse and it was like: "I'm being International House Hunted aren't I, right?"
Gerald 22:40
But again, it's the way we were treated with someone else was wonderful, but it just we didn't quite hit the beats.
Jason 22:51
It can be really tough too with the agents and the way that it works here. There's no MLS that you can just jump into and be like okay, let's pick up all these listings. Esteban does an incredible job of literally knocking on the doors and getting all those listings so it hard and to expect agents to have a lot of different properties - I do think that is a little bit unrealistic. A lot of expats come here with that and it's like: "No, show me all these other ones." And it's like: "OK, we're going to try, but it works in a very, very different way to what you're used to". And so that can be a big difference that we've found with the with the expats and those expectation gap. But I'm very glad that you guys had a wonderful experience with Esteban, but it sounds like you had a reasonable experience as well with another agent, which is really good to know.
Gerald 23:36
I can't complain about the experiences we've had and it's limited because we only had a couple weeks to look for a place.
Derek 23:45
And we wanted to get that nailed down. Once we decided to move, we wanted to have the place ready to go so that we had a place move to and so they [the cats] only had to adjust to one new home.
Gerald 23:53
I can't complain cuz the options I think that are there. I liked thefact that no one gave up. We kept looking. And again, in Chicago, I've been on tours where I've seen a lot of places and some are good, some are not so good, some are too perfect and that's because it's way out of our price range. But in this case, it all worked out well.
Jason 24:19
Awesome. In terms of pricing, are you guys comfortable talking about that in terms of how much you pay for rent and the deposit?
Gerald 24:25
I think so, yeah. Unless cuz we did negotiat e down with the landlords. I think they were asking for fifteen hundred and we went to thirteen hundred for this place.
Jason 24:33
Great.
Gerald 24:33
So I don't know if that's something that we should, maybe we should just stick to what the asking price was.
Jason 24:39
No, like I think for me it's completely fine. The negotiat ing culture for me is very big here. That's certainly not to say that every landlord is going to negotiat e, but obviously it depends on the market too, depends on the place. So that's great in terms of you negotiat e it down 15 to 13 hundred. And was that because of any particular reason? Obviously everyone wants to pay less and I completely get that, but was it like something in the house, it would be like: "OK, no, it's not quite perfect for us therefore, we would only pay this amount".
Gerald 25:09
No, no.
Derek 25:09
We just offered twelve hundred which was the going rate for the other penthouse in Puertas del Sol which we nearly went with and Esteban was our go between. I think the landlord just said, "I just want to make this minimum amount per month for rent." I was like that's fine. So we went to thirteen hundred.
Gerald 25:29
I think the thing to to be aware of is that we can get nice places and I've seen a lot of people that we know get nice places for four hundred, five hundred dollars. Wonderful, big huge places too. Maybe a little further out of the city limits, but you get some really, really wonderful places. We were thinking maybe around 700hundred would be our max and that would probably get us a really, really nice place. When we got here and we saw what this was and we we knew that it was more money. We were still in the 700 maybe a thousand would be like an upper echelon, so that was why we were kind of more to negotiat e. That and the fact that being unfurnished. We were gonna have to spend money getting things in and so some of the negotiat ion was because we wanted to be able to still have money too.
Jason 26:24
And so this is definitely on the higher end of the scale, it's very central located, it's huge, it's got the wrap around balcony, it's really on that more luxury side of the market. And yeah we we have the same conversation with people like, "Yeah this is our budget and this is what we want" and that's great. But the location is really, really going to matter and depending on the type of lifestyle that you want. Do you want to own a car? That sort of thing. So if you don't want to have a car, or if you want to own a car, sorry, then yeah, you have a lot more options and you can get somewhere that's little bit more on the periphery and potentially save money on rent. But then you've got the car cost to worry about too so itcan be a little bit of a balancing act as to really what works for you guys and that's the important thing.
Gerald 27:12
And I want to speak a little bit on the location too, because that was major important. We're about a block or two away from the train, which takes us right down to centro. We like the idea of living in the central area, but it it's going to be more noisy, it's going to be more hectic. We're a few minutes away from it with an easy walk so we don't have to have a car, which we really wanted to avoid. We are close to shopping.
Derek 27:42
We do have two parking spots if we decide...
Gerald 27:43
We do have two parking spots..
Jason 27:44
You can potentially rent those by the way, if you wanted to. To someone in the building.
Gerald 27:49
Yeah, yeah. We will keep our ears open, I'll tell you. But the shopping is accessible. From this point, it's a mile, mile and a half walk. One of the things we wanted to do was walk a lot, so that's good to get to almost any place we really want.
Jason 28:06
And walking along the river is is just lovely.
Gerald 28:10
The fact that we've got the river right outside our window and then the river walk is like you said, amazing. The mountains - we are so central to seeing everything. The location was was ideal. The place was just big enough and nice enough. So yeah, it was more money, but tt was worth it.
Derek 28:31
Yeah, and going back to the location being right off the tranvia. The fact that the tranvia feeds the airport and the bus terminal. As well as all along El Centro. That's something that most cities in the in the in the world seem to get wrong, at least in the USA. Like New York, to get from the airports into the city you're still taking shuttle buses. Chicago had the L feeding both major airports there. And I'm just surprised at how many cities don't do their light rail that way.
Jason 28:58
Yeah, we'll start to notice that's more of a, I guess, selling feature for certain neighborhoods. In particular, it's opened up that whole Misicata area which traditionally is a little bit far for expats. But now with the tram just there, like a 5 minute walk and jump on the tram and then into town and in some 10 minutes. It's a really good option instead of the two or three dollar taxis every single day. So that's really good to know i'm glad you brought up the tranvia.
Gerald 29:24
Oh yeah and that was one of my requirements was we wanted to be close to things, but barring that, so long as we're off the tranvia, I'm happy.
Jason 29:33
And what about just general lifestyle side of things in Cuenca? How do you guys spend your day? I know that you both have different creative pursuits that you spend your time on.
Gerald 29:44
It's relaxing and he had a very high stress job. I had a high stress job as a teacher, but having retired it was still nice to relax. So the first process is we want to be able to relax. But then we want to be able to walk a lot. We want to get the our exercises by walking around to get to places and that's nice. Tonight, we're going to go see a movie in the theater that's English speaking. Which is nice to have that option.
Jason 30:16
Barbie?
Derek 30:17
Of course.
Jason 30:17
I want to say that one too.
Gerald 30:21
Got to see it soon and it's nice to be able to do that.
Derek 30:25
And also to be able to utilize their VIP seating. The standard seats are six fifty, the VIP seats are twelve dollars and they recline, you can get food service to your seat.
Jason 30:36
Are they the 4D ones?
Derek 30:38
No, no not the 4D ones. They are still 2D. I think from what I could see the only theater in the area that's doing English showings. the Multicines in Millennium Plaza and it's subtitled English in 2D. I haven't seen them do 4D for that yet, but that might happen if more expats start going to the movies.
Jason 30:55
I've seen some local in 4D but yeah, I haven't seen any of the English.
Derek 30:58
There was an event to see The Avengers at the Multicines to benefit one of the charities around here. And I think a lot of expats don't realize that there are English showings regularly of movies over there.
Jason 31:17
I think there's other ones, they tend to be different time slots.
Gerald 31:20
Right.
Jason 31:20
I think that's the appeal. Sort of more during the day. I think the English movies at Multicines are later.
Derek 31:25
Yes, they're seven pm and later yeah.
Gerald 31:28
That's gringo midnight. So and the other thing is that we also have been to the ballet, we've been to music concerts. We saw an amazing production of The Greatest Showman, which was done sort of live. It had all been prerecorded. It was students learning English and so they were doing it in English, although they've been prerecorded. But it was, really amazingly well done. There's at least two theater companies here now, so our ability to still be engaged in culture is really, really nice.
Derek 32:08
And that's kind of a killed Manta for us. We didn't see any of that going on, whereas Cuenca had it in spades.
Jason 32:14
I understand. We have event calendars for Cuenca. We tried to create one for Manta and it was just really hard to actually find events that to fill it with. No joke and look, Ecuadorians in general when it comes to advertising, they tend to do it very late, so that doesn't help the situation. But still, it was really, really difficult.
Jason 32:33
In terms of the events and integrating into the local culture, have you found the events to be the best way to do that or what sort of effort have you made to integrate? You know, meet some different locals or just meet whoever you want to meet but how does that look in your scenario?
Gerald 32:50
I think that mostly it's connections. Derek had one connection and that connection introduced us to several other people, who are introducing us to several other people. And we've seen some musicians perform and we're starting to see the same people over and over again. It means you've got to be kind of careful what you say sometimes because it'll come back to haunt you again.
Jason 33:16
It's a pretty small community when you actually get down to it. .
Gerald 33:18
It is, it is. But it's a community that is open and receptive. And if there's something that you're interested in, there's generally speaking, a way to get connected to it.
Jason 33:30
Yeah, absolutely. That's really good. And just before we go, any last minute tips for people that are considering doing something similar? Maybe they're considering Cuenca, they're on the exploratory trip, or something like that.
Gerald 33:41
I've got to say that I think that everything is a sacrifice. You're going to get a lot of great things moving to Cuenca, but you're also going to lose a lot of things and you have to be prepared to say it's okay.
Derek 33:57
Yeah, I would say use your tourist visa for all it's worth. Take your time. Especially if you're planning to ship things down. Use that tourist visa, stay down here for a few months, kind of get to know the city. Get to know all those different stores, what products are available, what are not - before you get your residency visa and before you decide to fill that container because you may find that you don't want to take a lot of things. Some of the wisdom is to bring appliances down, which I had an issue with from the from the get go. You know, because it's like, well, OK, these are USA standard appliances if they break. Where do I get parts?
Jason 34:33
Yeah, Good luck.
Derek 34:34
Yeah, exactly. So at that point, we went looking around the different appliance stores. RCA which is a very reliable brand in the USA, they're here, they're not expensive. We got a new stovetop for about 200 bucks. Meanwhile in our Chicago house, we bought an off brand stovetop to replace it before the sale from a brand called Impava. And it was stainless steel, but it was so thin. It was just not near the stove top that we got here for 200 bucks and it was two fifty or 300 something like that.
Jason 35:06
I think that's really good advice to do as much research as you can on those first 90 days or if you extend and get the extension for another 90 days, so you're effectively here for 6 months. That's a long period of time for you to really understand is Cuenca or even outside of Cuenca, maybe you want to go to Loya, Vilcabamba, the coastal areas, Quito, wherever you want to go. That's six months. That's a good amount of time before you actually need to make any sort of real commitment to the country.
Derek 35:38
Yeah, and you can save some money on shipping or decide, "Okay, I don't need this, but I can bring a huge amount of this. Mac and cheese or whatever makes me happy."
Gerald 35:47
I think there are two. I think there are two options that are to me the best. Either you sell everything and go very minimal to take a few suitcases. Or you decide you have a lot of stuff you want to bring with you and you get a 20 foot shipping container and you do that. In either way, we went and shipping container route and I don't regret it at all.
Derek 36:09
Yeah overall, I'm happy that we shipped as much as we did.
Gerald 36:11
And so either, or...
Jason 36:14
It's just not cost effective for those smaller amounts?
Gerald 36:18
To me, really the options are either get rid of it all or take a lot. Just anything in between is not necessarily necessary. Although I'm not dismissing it really...
Derek 36:29
You might want to get rid of everything, buy all new stuff when you get here, but there's probably a bunch of sentimental items. Photo albums and stuff like that, it's difficult to bring on a checked bag.
Derek 36:40
Exactly.
Gerald 36:40
The other thing I want to say though, cuz you had mentioned other places to live, the healthcare system here in Cuenca is amazing. It's affordable and reasonable and it's high quality. Some of the other locations... This is one of the reasons we like Cuenca. So the other locations are amazing, but they don't have the healthcare set up.
Jason 37:03
That's a really good point have you had any experience with the healthcare system here so far? I know you mentioned before that you have some travel related illnesses.
Gerald 37:13
Just a little bit. For example, we found a dentist. Apparently a lot of dentists in Cuenca are not doing full cleaning like you would get in the United States. We found a dentist who does that. We went to an optometrist. Got some glasses made and repaired and that was good. And we found a doctor who speaks English, which... I find it extremely important to learn the language and be able to communicate, but when it comes to medical...
Jason 37:49
When it comes to those emergencies.
Derek 37:51
You're gonna lose all the Spanish. .
Jason 37:53
Exactly in those pressure situations, it's really difficult.
Gerald 37:56
And we found a doctor who was just absolutely incredible. So the healthcare system, from what we've experienced so far, it looks like it's going to be amazing. That's a big thing. I'm a little more advanced in years and so I have to be a little bit more cautious where I live.
Derek 38:15
Yeah.
Gerald 38:15
Because who knows what's going to happen.
Jason 38:16
There are a bunch of hospitals here, like there's four private hospitals that are really good, good quality. The difference does tend to be a lot of the personalized care. Something that surprised me when I came here was that doctors are available to WhatsApp at nine pm at night. That was unheard of to me. And to see my partner doing that, I was like, "What are you doing? You're gonna destroy our relationship with the doctor. They're gonna hate us they're never gonna wanna see us again." She was like, "What are you talking about? We do this all the time, it's completely fine."
Gerald 38:49
And the idea that you could make an appointment and be there that afternoon. Yeah, it's not like Chicago.
Derek 38:56
But that why I limited my research to Quito, Cuenca and Manta. There is a lot being said about Olon, Montanita, Salinas, but they didn't seem to have full service hospitals within a close distance so that was immediate no for me. But I'm sure the areas are very nice, but we have not checked them out for anything yet because now...
Jason 39:15
It's definitely a big consideration and that's why a lot of the people on the coast tend to gravitate towards that sort of Manta area.
Gerald 39:20
Yeah.
Jason 39:21
Because of the hospitals and all that.
Derek 39:23
And that's also why too I think eventually Manta is going to completely pop off and it's gonna be a better destination than it is when we looked. But yeah, right now it's the lack of culture...
Jason 39:35
They're very, very different.
Derek 39:36
They really are.
Jason 39:37
If you're considering Ecuador at all and you're thinking mountains or beach, you really have to visit.
Gerald 39:43
Yes.
Jason 39:44
All the videos you watch in the world... It's good don't get me wrong, that's great. Obviously we're doing videos for that reason. But you guys really need to come spend a few months, up to six months in Ecuador is what you get. And if you do that, what's the worst case scenario? You don't like Ecuador when you go home? But you've got six months to make that decision. So you know exactly why not make the most of it?
Derek 40:06
Yeah and that was the thing. I was pretty sure, and we were both pretty sure seeing the videos on Manta that we were going to pick Manta. So that that trip we were here for probably 2 and a half weeks. We spent two days in Cuenca. Quito was kind of our waypoint, so flew back all that other stuff so we probably spent a total of four or five days in Quito. Manta we spent, a week and a half and within two days we're like, this is not for us.
Jason 40:33
It's not for everybody. I completely understand and I'm a coastal guy as well.
Derek 40:36
Oh yeah, exactly. I have family that lives in Naples, Florida and areas like that where they love the coast, even if the town doesn't have much to do. There's nothing wrong with that, but that's just not what we enjoy.
Jason 40:47
I understand. Well, that's very good guys thank you very much, Derek, Gerald, for your time today. It's been very helpful for me and hopefully helpful for the audience as well. So thank you and we'll catch you in the next video.
Gerald 40:59
Thank you.
Jason 41:01
Thanks a million to our lovely tenants for allowing us to take up some of their time to shoot this video. And thank you for watching - I do truly appreciate it. And if you've enjoyed this video, please do consider giving it a cheeky "Like" as it really does help our message reach more people. And of course the YapaTree Properties team is here to help you find your next property to buy or rent in Cuenca. If you're in the market, do check out the listings at yapatree.com. You can also send us your property requirements and we do the searching for you. Or we also offer real estate trips designed primarily to educate buyers and renters. These are perfect for those on the exploratory trips, as the core outcome is for you to understand whether Cuenca's property market will work for you. I'll leave links to these services in the description below.
Jason 41:45
Lastly, I do also find myself spending a lot of time just conducting what I call "mini consultations" on all areas of moving and living in Cuenca. I don't have a formal booking process for this right now, but if you would like to discuss this, do feel free to hit me up, jason at yapatree dot com. Thanks again for watching and I will catch you in the next video. Ciao.
Gerald 42:10
Here comes Santa Claus, here comes Santa Claus. Here comes Santa Claus. Christmas, a time of joy and happiness. Unless you were bad this year. And then you might meet one of Santa's more sinister helpers, Krampus, a feigned monster who enjoys beating and eating wicked children. La Bofana, who flies in the chimney on her broomstick, eats Christmas. Icelandic trolls who fetch the naughty ones back to their hungry mother, Gryla..
Gerald 42:46
13 monsters in 13 stories from Christmas legends as old as time Itself. Krampus and Friends: Tales of Terrifying Christmas Monsters from Around the world. Available now on Kindle and at Amazon or wherever books are sold.
Gerald 43:02 Get Krampus and Friends by Gerald Cole and pray that you were good enough this year, muuuhhhhaaaahhh.