Well EnronX, when I found out that I could not live in the USA and live the "lifestyle" I was used to on the amount of my retirement pay (50% of highest earned salary) without continuing to work to supplement my retirement, I got on the internet and looked at other places to retire to. But I soon found that the popular places where Americans retire to are also almost just as expensive as the USA. So, I started looking further south, and I stumbled on some websites about Margarita Island. We decided to check it out, and never left. To live here you need a visa. We have a Transeunte visa which is good for one year at a time and needs to be renewed every year. After you have renewed the Transeunte visa 4 times you can apply for a 5 year Residencia Visa. A couple can live here on $2400 dollars (US) and live like royalty. Margarita is also a tax and duty free island. We live in a large beach/oceanfront apartment located on the 4th floor of a 5 story very modern apartment building which has an unrestricted panoramic view of the Caribbean for $600 a month. This place would cost $3500 to $5000 a month in California or Florida. Gasoline for your car is about 10 cents a gallon (95 octane), food is also very affordable, restaurants are very cheap compared to the USA, we have large modern supermarkets, we have malls that equal any mall in the USA, casinos to lose your money in, multi screen movie theatres, a world class wind and kite surfing beach, very nice regular beaches, horse back riding stables, Directv with 90 out of the 100 channels in English, and of course scuba diving. Diving here I would rate as 6 or 7 on a worldwide scale of 10. Visibility ranges from 7 to 40 meter or more depending on the time of year, water temperature ranges from 25 to 28 degrees celsius, average depth is about 15 meter with the maximum depth around the islands about 27 meters. So it is not very deep, but it is very relaxing and gives you more time to enjoy all the Caribbean fish, reefs and corals that we have. Diving at Margarita is mainly done at Los Frailes Islands (1 hour boat ride), El Farallon Island (15 minute boat ride), or Cubagua Island (1 hour boat ride). Around the beaches of Margarita Island there is nothing to see but sand. The cost of a 1 day, 2 tank dive trip cost $85.00 US and that includes pick up and return to your hotel, full quality rental equipment, lunch and refreshments. My suggestion is that since there is so much confusion here about the "official" and "unofficial" exchange rate (sometimes it changes 3 times a day), you bring dollars in cash or travellers checks. I would not suggest using credit cards unless it is an emergency or in a very reputable place, and you may end up paying more money than if you pay in cash. The people here are much like everywhere in the world, they treat you as you treat them and are for the most part very warm, open and friendly. My wife and I feel very safe here and 99% of the Venezuelan people that we know all wish they would have another president. So for us every day is a holiday, especially for me as I dive 3 days a week, every week of every month for free no less! Come visit us if you have a chance.
And just in case anyone hasn't heard, Kim Jong Il is a bad guy, too. I hope I haven't offended any of our North Korean ScubaBoard members. We know how important 'correctness' is here.
