A lot of retirees like Costa Rica. Temperate climate above 3000 ft. Easy to reach. Neither developed nor backward. America circa 1960 if you liked that era.
…on the subject of violent crime many of us here grew up when the US was much more violent than it is today. Films like “Escape from New York” seemed plausible. Charles Bronson got famous playing a vigilante. Things are much safer now so it’s all relative. And in most places crime is confined to small areas. Oakland can be a great place to live. So can Baltimore. So can the Windy City. Just stay out of the bad areas. If you change locations find out where the bad areas are and avoid them no matter what the stats say about the place.
Here’s US violent crime figures, 1990 to present.
But that is the beauty of say Singapore and Malaysia, NO GUNS ALLOWED!!! Right there, you essentially have a fighting chance, always. Yeah, they carry machetes and knives but no AR-15s!!!
OMG, are all Singaporean males like this??? LOL
I saw a Texas guy wanting to retire in Portugal. Apparently it’s quite a popular thing. Portugal’s weather is Mediterranean like the good’o California, living expenses and medical care is very affordable, English widely spoken. Best thing is, there’s a path to getting permanent residency after 5 years.
Europe is an extremely fun place for retiree if you like travel.
The Portuguese government allows U.S. citizens to easily establish residency. The most common way is the 120-day stay visa. This visa requires the applicant to provide proof of income, showing at least $1,070 per month available throughout the stay. If you like what you see and you would like to extend the stay, then the Portugal government allows you to apply for a one-year residence permit. It can then be renewed for two-year permits successively. Once you spend five years of temporary residence, you can then apply for permanent residency status.
Come on, no chinese food there!!!
The food in Portugal is very good. Pork and clams is their national dish. Lots of seafood. Great wine. Best beaches in Europe. Reminds me of California climate.
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Commenting on Chinese food from Texas?
But seriously I’d love to experiment with other cuisines. Spanish and Portugal food is pretty great actually. The good thing about Europe is you just travel 100 miles or so in any direction and you will be in a complete different culture. Will never get bored.
Unlike in places with shitty weather people can walk outside and enjoy the outdoors. Versus in Malaysia, Singapore or Texas, you don’t need to drive an hour to a shopping mall to walk 30 minutes. What kind of sad life is that?
I am typing this in a sunny park in San Francisco. Weather has been awesome here.
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No need to go so far…
Drive a hour? That would be into Malaysia.
In Cedar Park, shopping mall is only 5 mins drive.
Mexico and Brazil have much tougher gun laws than the US.
That doesn’t mean you’re safe in either place.
Switzerland has much more lax gun laws and is very safe.
You know what I mean. It has nothing to do with the laws, just whether there are guns out on the street or not.
Mexico is not even a remote consideration for me. I value my life way more than that…
There’s guns all over the place in AZ. I guy talking to a teller at the local bank was standing just in front of me with one on his hip. No one feels unsafe here.
It’s all about the culture. There’s either a strong social contract or there isn’t. I’ve never felt unsafe anywhere I’ve lived or traveled. Well, maybe, briefly, in Braulio Carillo forest in Costa Rica; was known for a time as a hotspot for crime. We took our car’s distributor cap into the jungle with us. Every place has sketchy areas, even the safest countries. You just have to do your homework and know where they are so you can avoid them.
Oh absolutely. I ain’t gonna be wearing my Rolex down some dark street in Penang…
But honestly think about it, what if you literally took away a lethal weapon that is pretty hard to defend against? It’s a game changer, no question. Like I said before, a young female Grab driver picked me up past midnight to take me back to my Penang condo last year when I was there. Can that happen here? Hell no!!!
No country is able to take guns away from criminals no matter what the laws unless it’s an island. Societies are safe when the criminal element is minimal. There’s plenty of violent crime in places like London; gun control is near absolute in England. Raising kids right is a cornerstone. In the US we have too many crappy schools and single parent households.
Yes, but if you really read up on Singapore’s history it sounds like Singapore literally transformed itself from an ugly duckling to a Ms. Universe. I believe guns were everywhere, but they essentially banned them and over time got rid of most of it from society. Yeah, one can argue that the way Lee Kuan Yew “fixed” Singapore was too extreme, but again the proof is in the pudding.
See, my fear is that the gun lobby is too strong in the US that we will never ever see gun violence go away. In fact, we are seeing more mass shootings with each passing day. For such an advanced country, why do we allow this? People keep mentioning the Constitution. Well, like many things, perhaps it needs updating at some point. A single lunatic should not have the ability to wipe out a whole classroom of children. Not now, not ever.
In fact, we are seeing more mass shootings with each passing day.
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Mass shootings can be defined any which way but as the chart I posted above shows the US has been getting safer for decades. Much safer. The recent reversal in that trend (slight as it is by historic standards) can be tied to the war on the police.
It’s the obsession with violent crime I don’t understand. When I was growing up crime was much more prevalent. And also more high profile. For some reason CA in the 70’s produced psycho-killers like the Renaissance produced painters and composers. The Dating Game Killer, the Zodiac Killer, the Trailside Strangler, Charles Manson and oodles more the names of which I can’t even remember. Did my mom keep us kids inside? No. If my brother and I watched too much TV she would literally throw us out of the house and tell us to go do something.
Billionaires and founders of startups migrating to Singapore.
Outside SV, Singapore is the number one choice for startups 
Yes, no Hong Kong, Hong Kong 
Hong Kong is forever ruined by the communists, just like they have been ruining China.
Singapore needs to watch out for the Chinese influence. Money isn’t everything. LKY set English as the national language for a reason.
Where is Michael Zuber?
FIFY.