Our Mexico adventure! Intro and contact info

Dear friends and family,

You may know that Rick and I are considering a move to Mexico, probably to San Miguel de Allende. We are concerned about our retirement resources and would like to find a less expensive place to live. I in particular have discovered that rural life here on Camano Island, while beautiful, is leaving me culturally starved. And of course we’re ready for an adventure!

San Miguel is a town in the Central Highlands of Mexico, about 200 miles north of Mexico City at an elevation of 6,400 feet. In 2008 it was designated a World Heritage site by UNESCO for its historical significance and colonial architecture. Not being close to the border, it’s a safe place. The weather, we’re told, is moderate: not too hot in the summer, not too cold in the winter. It has a population of about 100,000 people, of whom 10% are part-time or full-time expats, primarily Americans and Canadians. There is a lively cultural and artistic life there, including an international annual chamber music festival. A good YouTube video about San Miguel is at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p5m_vTc7tFk . You can see more about San Miguel at http://www.smaliving.com and http://www.portalsanmiguel.com.

Our plan is to spend three months in San Miguel this summer from July through September. You can see photos of the house we’re renting, the “Casa d’Avignon,” at http://www.tirkot.com/sanmiguelrental.htm   Our main job will be to meet, talk to and learn from as many people as we can about as much as possible.  If we like it there, we will empty out our Camano Island house, rent it out for a year, and live the entire year in San Miguel.  Only if we still like it after that would we make the move permanent.  We have been taking Spanish lessons!

TO CONTACT US THIS SUMMER

San Miguel is in the Central Time Zone, the same as Dallas and Chicago. We’ll have four ways of connecting.

1. Email Jo: jo@josanders.com
Rick: rick@josanders.com

2. Skype josara72

3. Home phone (206) 414-3290
We’ve arranged unlimited free U.S./Mexico calls via a Magic Jack, which plugs in between our laptop and the phone in the rental house. The phone number becomes a new U.S. number so it will be like calling Seattle, not an international call.

4. Cell phone (206) 227-5884 (for both of us)

We’ll leave Camano Island on July 2 and will be in San Miguel about a week later; we’ll leave San Miguel a week before the end of September. A house-sitter, Elizabeth Freundorfer, will be here to take care of Mella the dog, Lila Tov the cat, the house and the yard. If you’re local, you might want to call to ask if she needs anything: 387-1021.

So bookmark this blog address; we hope you enjoy it!

Love,

Jo and Rick