COULD YOU? WOULD YOU? RETIRE ABROAD?

Boy, oh, boy, am I ever excited. As I'd mentioned in my last post, I'm on my way to a new adventure creating a website for those who aspire to retire abroad. My greatest hope is that you'll come along, too!

Our first home in Ojochal, Costa Rica

For us, the idea of retiring overseas started out with one seemingly innocuous question: "Where can we go for a simpler life??" 
Jeff posed it one night after we'd spent hours hashing out all the frustrations and pressures of our respective jobs. At that point we didn't know how much more we could - or wanted - to take. Maxed out and suffocated, it didn't look like  there was any hope of our situations getting any better. We were on that proverbial treadmill, and retirement seemed only a distant dream, most especially financially.
Unless...

The more we composted the idea in our minds, though, the more we realized we had to make it happen. Distant lands were teasing us, and so was the appeal of not having to work forever if only to survive. But where to, and how? And the most daunting question of all, what if it didn't work out? Then what?

The more excited we became as we tried to put it all together, the more overwhelming it seemed as well. In essence we needed to wrap up one life and prepare thoroughly and well to create another. The details kept piling up and yes, a few times we came close to giving up on the idea. Those moments were very real, but thankfully also fleeting. Something in our guts told us it was right. 

Sunset from our new home in Ecuador. From sea to mountains,
living abroad has brought great joy, and yes, challenges sometimes,
to our lives.

But gut feelings aren't enough. We had to get real answers to real questions about the  what if's and how to's. And if we had those qualms, I imagine you do too, if you're considering the great leap to the other side of the pond. You see, no one was talking online about the possible challenges and wonderings of retiring abroad when we did it in 2007. We could access a lot of the positive "on your way to paradise" information (mostly presented by real estate sites), but we couldn't find any real clarity about what life would truly be like. 

So, here's where you come in. I'd like to know YOUR most pressing questions and concerns about moving abroad so that I can address them in future blog posts & on the new, upcoming website. Or, if you're already retired overseas, can you share some of the most poignant issues or questions you had, or perhaps the challenges you've faced along the way.

Muchas gracias, amigos. I look forward to hearing from you so that I can make my blog site the best it can be!