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Yesterday I posted a thread about Panama vs. Manila. However, after doing some more research I have found that I am eligible to move to Colombia.
I am a tall, single white man if that makes any difference.
Anyway.
Here are my questions about Colombia:
1. Is it safe to live there for a "gringo"? If not, then maybe there are at least one or two areas where it is safe? I know crime is everywhere of course. But as long as it's not worse than a major American city than I'm fine.
2. Do people in general understand English or must I improve my Spanish abilities?
3. Is it possible to get high speed internet for a reasonable amount of money? ($100 for 20mbit, is it possible?)
4. Which city is best? I have looked into Cartagena since it's by the beach. How is this town, can I walk outside when its dark without getting robbed/shot at?
Since I work via the internet, having a high speed internet service is an absolute must.
It would also be nice if the city had some good hospitals as well, just in case something goes wrong.
Would appreciate any help (will rep+).
Cheers
1) It is safe in the major cities and many of the towns if you are not a flashy person and use your head.
2)You absolutely must know Spanish. The only place where you could probably get by with just english and living there long term is San Andres. Not only that in certain regions not knowing the dialects will make you stick out and make things harder for you in terms of communicating. Not that you won't stick out, lol, you will regardless but knowing the dialects/local lingo helps a lot. Colombia is extremely regional.
3)Not sure about this. My wife's family has fairly high speed cable internet in bogota. I'm not sure of the exact speed though.
4) Cartagena from what I've heard is very safe but it wears on people because it's a tourism heavy city. A lot of people who like the coast prefer Barranquilla.
I know a lot about Bogota but I'm not sure that is the best fit for you. For one you mentioned you like a warmer climate and the weather in Bogota is okay at best. Bogota is huge and would probably provide the most Western comforts and most economic opportunities but it is also can be a very frenetic stressful place. I would look more into the other major cities i.e. Barranquilla, Medellin, Cali, and Bucaramanga.
If you're not a former gangster and lack Spanish skills, you might want to check out Panama again. Colombia has one of the highest murder and kidnap rates in the world and there's both paramilitary rebel guerrillas and drug cartels out there. The crime has been dropping and the situation's improving, but the major cities have a extremely high crime rate.
I would be very careful of making hasty decisions. Check out the embassy rather than C-D...
The rebels and all that are actual much more of a problem in the interiors of the country not the major cities.
Very few people in Colombia speak English, however Colombian Spanish is pretty easy to learn since it tends to be more accent neutral compared with other countries. That being said though people tend to be pretty friendly overall compared with other places.
Anyways regarding safety I visited the country four years ago and I never had any problems with crime, and unless you are involved with drugs and stay out of the border areas and/or remote jungle areas (which probably won't hold any appeal to you as an expat) you are unlikely to be murdered or kidnapped.
There is not one "Colombian Spanish." People in Cali have a particular way of talking, so do people in the Antioquia Region. Coastal Colombian Spanish is completely different and is similar somewhat to how Carribean Latinos speak (Dominicans, Cubans, etc). The closest thing to a "neutral" spanish is what is spoken in Bogota but even then they have many colloquialisms.
If you're not a former gangster and lack Spanish skills, you might want to check out Panama again. Colombia has one of the highest murder and kidnap rates in the world and there's both paramilitary rebel guerrillas and drug cartels out there. The crime has been dropping and the situation's improving, but the major cities have a extremely high crime rate.
I would be very careful of making hasty decisions. Check out the embassy rather than C-D...
There is not one "Colombian Spanish." People in Cali have a particular way of talking, so do people in the Antioquia Region. Coastal Colombian Spanish is completely different and is similar somewhat to how Carribean Latinos speak (Dominicans, Cubans, etc). The closest thing to a "neutral" spanish is what is spoken in Bogota but even then they have many colloquialisms.
There is not one "Colombian Spanish." People in Cali have a particular way of talking, so do people in the Antioquia Region. Coastal Colombian Spanish is completely different and is similar somewhat to how Carribean Latinos speak (Dominicans, Cubans, etc). The closest thing to a "neutral" spanish is what is spoken in Bogota but even then they have many colloquialisms.
Actually what most people think of Colombian Spanish is the Spanish spoke in the interior cities(Bogota, Medellin, Cali) While they have a few different words, it sounds quite similar and most of the vocabulary is shared. People from the coastal regions sound closer to other Colombians than to people from Cuba or PR.
The only people I confuse with Colombians are people from Costa Rica. I cannot even tell the difference when I watch the Costa Rican TV channel.
If you're not a former gangster and lack Spanish skills, you might want to check out Panama again. Colombia has one of the highest murder and kidnap rates in the world and there's both paramilitary rebel guerrillas and drug cartels out there. The crime has been dropping and the situation's improving, but the major cities have a extremely high crime rate.
I would be very careful of making hasty decisions. Check out the embassy rather than C-D...
Seriously, you are way off. Have you even been to Colombia recently?
Because when reading online 99% of the people that have actually been there claim its safe. They say "don't walk around with your smart phone in the street"...but other than that, it seems OK.
I have lived in Colombia and I am pretty familiar with it.
Safety there is "ok". It's not Syria or Afghanistan but it is not the USA either. Your probabilities of getting robbed are many times higher. You also have a higher chance of seeing someone getting killed.
If you don't walk around showing off your phone or stacks of money you will probably not get robbed if you live there for a short period of time. You also need to be extremely careful when you withdraw money from a bank or ATM machine because someone could be watching you. Some areas can be very dangerous to withdraw money and they are not necessarily bad neighborhoods, you need to ask the locals, about the safest places to withdraw money.
I have lived in Colombia and I am pretty familiar with it.
Safety there is "ok". It's not Syria or Afghanistan but it is not the USA either. Your probabilities of getting robbed are many times higher. You also have a higher chance of seeing someone getting killed.
If you don't walk around showing off your phone or stacks of money you will probably not get robbed if you live there for a short period of time. You also need to be extremely careful when you withdraw money from a bank or ATM machine because someone could be watching you. Some areas can be very dangerous to withdraw money and they are not necessarily bad neighborhoods, you need to ask the locals, about the safest places to withdraw money.
I saw someone get murdered when I was in Bucaramanga and I saw a person laying dead in the street in Bogotá
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