Glad you Asked

May 6, 2011

I get a lot of emails asking questions about our area, and thought that I would share one that I recently received, since we are frequently asked these questions:

Hi Leigh,

I hope you don’t mind me using your email that I found on expatexchange.com to contact you. I am a regular reader of this forum, and get lots and lots of useful information there. After reading your description of Olon, we’ve got quite interested.

Hope you can give us more info that will help us to decide which part of the coast to explore.

My husband and I are planning to move to Ecuador in about a year and a half (if we can sell out house in PA by then). We definitely want to be on the coast. We were in Ecuador in January this year mostly exploring the area north of Bahia. Even made a deposit on the lot in a new development there, but after further consideration decided that area was too secluded, and it would take quite a few years to develop. So, on our next trip later this year we would like to explore the coast between Bahia and Salinas.

I know you live in Olon and love it, but we are concerned with the rough ocean there and being kind of far away from bigger towns.

This is what we’re looking for:

• Not directly on the beach, but within a walking distance.
• Ocean view is a must.
• Calm ocean where we can swim. Most of the areas we’ve seen are beautiful, but not swimmable.
• My husband wants to have a boat as his biggest hobby is fishing. So, we have to be able to keep the boat somewhere and to be able to launch it.
• Preferably on the hill – for the better view, cool breeze.
• Being close to a bigger town like Salinas or Manta, so we can easily go there for entertainment, restaurants…
• Preferably a house or a townhouse in the development - privacy and safety.

Are there areas in and around Olon with calm ocean that is good for swimming?  Are there existing developments or the new ones being built on the hills? How far is it from bigger towns?  Do you need a car to get around?

I’ve done lots of research. Read a lot of good stuff about Crucita and Olon, but looks like the ocean is pretty rough in these areas. Puerto Lopez and Auyangue have calm waters, but they are just small villages far from civilization. Salinas looks very good, but flat and mostly condos. May be our list of wants is too long, and we’ll have to compromise, which is OK.

Can you please advise based on our criteria which areas we should concentrate on? Can you recommend towns/villages on the coast? How about Ballenita? Punta Carnero? Punta Blanca?

I am also concerned with the water situation on the coast. Correct me if I am wrong, but I understand water has to be trucked in everywhere (except Salinas). How does this work? Are any areas that do have water on the coast?

Appreciate any info and advise you can give me.

Best regards,

Irina

View from the bar at
Casa del Sol in Montanita

Irina,

Good for you for doing your homework before purchasing in Ecuador. The Expat Exchange forum (Ecuador page)* is a great source of information (Yahoo also has several good forums; the main one is  "Ecuador Expats" and a newer one in particular, "Coastal Ecuador" focuses specifically on the coastal areas you are interested in. The Yahoo forum also has a companion page on Facebook, ("Ecuador Expats"), with a number of people participating.  South of Zero is also a great website.

Mary Beckman runs the site and her page is a great consolidated source of many useful links, and a list of Ecuadorian-focused blogs.

But the most important thing is that you have been here to look for yourself.

Yes, WE love it here, especially our little Olon area, but Ecuador is not for everyone. This is not the United States. Ecuador is still a developing country, and many of the conveniences and infrastructures we take for granted in the Estados Unidos are not necessarily the norm here (the power does go out too often, internet is generally slow, and good luck finding some of your favorite gringo junk foods or clothes that fit). On the other hand, life is much more tranquillo in Ecuador: the pace is slower, the food is healthy and fresh, nothing is usually taken for granted or wasted, the people are kind, the scenery is breathtaking, and children still ride bikes and play hide and seek outside after dark without anyone worrying (well, at least that’s still true for our “neck of the woods”).

But kid yourself not; once you move here, no matter how many times you have visited, you will be on a long learning curve. Be prepared to regularly make physical and mental adjustments, and do your best to learn some Spanish since most small-town coastal locals don’t speak Ingles (though many, many have a desire to learn it, and are respectful and more than helpful regarding our efforts to learn their language). Todd and I have been here for almost a year, and most days have been an exhilarating adventure, but we have also had our days of frustration and intimidation because we don’t always understand the culture or the language.  But it’s been an opportunity to be “stretched’ (at our age! – we are in our mid-fifties) in ways that we couldn’t have imagined a few years ago.

One of the views from
our balcony

Now to answer a few of your specific questions, but a bit of disclosure here:

Our Olon home is on the market, and meets many of your criteria, but I am not writing this to plug the sale and hope I don’t sound like a blatant advertisement. We love Olon, love living in the Jardines de Olon (a gated community, but not behind high walls barricading our neighborhood from the locals as some of the gringo compounds in other parts of Ecuador tend to do). We live and work daily with the local community. We are not leaving Ecuador (or Olon for that matter, either). We are selling because we want to build a home on a lot we own nearby. All homes in the Jardines de Olon are on/or within a hundred yards from the beach, and all have ocean views.

A view from the
Lomas de Olon development

Because you mentioned your interest in hillside property, let me add there are a few homes and developments in the nearby hills that you may want to investigate. In particular, I will transparently promote the "Lomas de Olon"  which is being built by experienced U.S. and Ecuadorian developers we know and trust (another caveat – these are all good friends of ours).  There is also some other hillside lots/property with acreage if that is your desire. You may also want to check out hillside properties around Montanita and I think the Montanita Vista development is worth looking at. And there is generally always a nice breeze in the hills, along with the great views.

Regarding your comment about the “rough ocean current(s)”…I am a little puzzled since I spent almost 15 years living along the Southern California beachside (specifically in Dana Point, and Newport Beach/San Clemente/Huntington Beach were all nearby) and as far as I know, rip-tides/under-tows HAPPEN in the ocean. They happened there, and they happen here now and then.  But our Olon beach is generally calm, there are no rocks or hidden boulders to bump into, the tide is mild, the sand is soft, and you can usually walk out forever and still be only up to your knees in water. You may be confusing us with Montanita (just south of us, on the other side of the point) that is known for more treacherous and higher waves, which is why the international surfers love it.  But our Olon stretch of the beach is very “swimmable”.

A car is nice to have here, but not necessary along the Ruta del Sol (Spondylus). Gas is cheap, but importing or buying a vehicle here can be expensive. We get around using the local cabs and chicken buses and do just fine. ***

Fishing is good (and is the main source of income for many of the locals who know exactly when to fish, know exactly how far out to go and how long to stay, and know exactly what they are trying to catch). Many gringos coming here will probably need to hire a reputable guide to help them find the deep-sea fishing spots – at least initially, and most are at least an hour or two out – but friends and guests we know have been pleased with their catch(s) on these expeditions.

Regarding the boat your husband wants to harbor: In our area, I think only Puerto Lopez (to the north) and Salinas (to the south) may offer docking opportunities, both of which are an hour away.

Some of the nearby coastal towns do depend on water “trucked in”, though Olon is not one of them. However, many local municipalities (including Olon) turn the water “off” during the night for conservation purposes, and we suggest during your house-hunting expedition, DO ask whether or not the property has a cistern or water barrel container that will prevent you from being held hostages during local water-less conditions. And then ask how it is pumped into the house. We have a cistern, so we are generally never out of water, have a good electrical system/box that heats and pumps the whole house with hot water faucets/showers/etc (rather than the heat generating shower/water suicide devices, which are more common).  Which is great, unless (like I mentioned before) the power goes out —and it does with some frequency – which renders everything I’ve just said as a moot point.

A small traveling
carnival visits our town

 I can’t give much advice on the towns north of here that you mentioned, since I haven’t visited those yet, other than Puerto Lopez (which is one of the larger villages along the coast). Manta is about two hours north of us and is a large town (I’ve only been there to catch a flight from the airport) and I wasn’t impressed. Crucita has many fans on the Expat Exchange forum that can answer your more specific questions about that area.

Ayangue (also known as “Lobster Village”) is a quaint little pueblo, situated in a beautiful cove about a half hour south of us and we go there occasionally to eat and stroll. There are some nice developments being built nearby that you may want to check out.  Ayangue is somewhat remote, though closer to Salinas.

Jugglers in Montanita

Salinas is an hour to the south of us and known more and more as a “Little Miami” because of all the new condo developments (and there are many that are reasonably priced) which might be attractive to you and your husband since condo security is generally tight. Salinas also has an active night life, a thriving expat community, and several nice beaches nearby – a more cosmopolitan type of environment compared to Olon.  And if you or your husband have any on-going medical conditions, or that is a concern, you most certainly want to consider the Salinas/Libertad area with sophisticated medical facilities and hospitals conveniently close-by (good and reasonably priced medical care is available in Ecuador).  We have an adequate clinic in Manglaralto which is equipped to deal with most common situations, and can handle emergencies, but the most urgent cases are then rushed on to Libertad/Salinas.

I’m not sure any one town along the coast can satisfy all your “criteria”, but many come close. The best thing is to come and explore Ecuador; if it beckons you as it has for many of us living here, you will find your own slice of paradise in time. You will recognize it when it speaks to your heart and soul and you will know that you have found “home”.

A couple of our neighborhood kids

* I am always entertained and educated when I peruse Expat Exchange in particular, though I am a little concerned there may be a few too many articulate people in really cold places, drinking some fine single malt  and wearing tin foil antennas, with a little too much time on their hands, making late night comments about any number of conspiracy theories over any number of different issues (not to all do I object or disagree) which often have little to do with Ecuador, but entertaining nevertheless.

** BobnRox live in Manglaralto (about two towns south of us – 5 miles) and have been writing a chatty and edifying blog for a couple of years now.

*** I have written more about that in “Thingamajiggy” and “Boose”.