I thought I knew what to expect. I thought I had things figured out. I knew where the best places in the world were for fun, retirement, and adventure…the lowest-cost havens, the coolest beach towns…the best food…
But when I first scouted Southeast Asia for International Living, I discovered a whole new world. It’s the safest place I have ever traveled. The best meals of my life cost less than $2 and I got them at stalls in Penang and Chiang Mai. (I still dream of the curries and pad thai.)
I also found the most outstanding bang-for-buck destinations of my travels to date. Just read our feature story to discover a few of them for yourself. Malaysia’s best retirement havens offer world-class everything…from healthcare to shopping…the luxuries you can afford include maids, country club memberships, and plenty of fun travel. Best of all, you can get by in English easily thanks to the country’s British colonial past.
We’re meeting more readers in Southeast Asia all the time, and investing more resources there to find those opportunities. Take the Thai island of Phuket, where you can rent a brand-new townhouse for $575 a month and find everything a tropical island paradise is supposed to offer, but with every First-World service you could want…think 25 beaches, five hospitals, first-rate shopping, and costs of $2,200 a month for a couple.
It seems like every country in the region is on a development tear. A new private hospital in the Cambodian capital, Phnom Penh, is big news, and a shiny new international airport is set for that country’s most popular beach town, Sihanoukville. Mick Anderson explains how he seized opportunity to run a beach bar there.
Hanoi is home to IL Vietnam correspondent, Wendy Justice. The Vietnamese capital earns its exotic reputation—and yes, you’ll find chaos with the color. But as Wendy explains, it’s a city that begs to be discovered.
It comes down to this: Southeast Asia is now a big player on the global retirement stage where many of the best-value opportunities are today. And so, it makes good sense to consider it…
—Eoin Basset, International Executive Editor
Italy abounds with medieval history, much of it violent. But in the town of Ivrea each February, this past is celebrated with an altogether less bloody battle. Sometime during the 12th or 13th century, the townsfolk of Ivrea were said to have overthrown their cruel overlord.
It’s not unusual for political leaders to meet untimely deaths. Usually what follows is a huge funeral and lots of attention. But not so for a twice former president of Ecuador, Gabriel García Moreno.
Stopping in a small, rural village for lunch, I was led back to the kitchen by the owner. I pointed to what I wanted, and 20 minutes later, I was staring down at a delicious meal of stir-fried rabbit and assorted vegetables.
Things are finally starting to look up for the down-and-out Brazilian mining company Vale S.A. (NYSE: VALE). From its 2011 high of $36.45 to its 2016 low of $2.13, the price of Vale’s U.S.-traded shares lost a staggering 94% of its market value.
Ever since my wife Jackie and I moved to our beautiful homestead in the tropics, we like to joke that more of our friends are jetting down from the States to see us.
The Italian lifestyle is undeniably alluring. A nation that puts emphasis on good food, human interaction, and simple pleasures is definitely doing something right. That’s what drew my husband Bryan and me in, along with gorgeous landscapes, historic sights, and the slow pace of life.
From the balcony of her two-bedroom condo in Tamarindo, Kathy Bowen enjoys a panoramic view of the palm-lined Pacific coast. “This is where I spend most of my mornings, right here, reading or doing puzzles, or just listening to music and enjoying the view.”
For Linda Pothoff, every day in Nicaragua is an adventure. You can find her horseback riding on the beach, or perhaps catching a ride on a catamaran and drinking Mai Tai cocktails all afternoon. On Tuesdays she goes to water aerobics.
“My quality of life here is excellent,” says Marlene Kimball of her new home in the Andes Mountains of Ecuador. “I love the peacefulness and the tranquility. I’m able to eat clean foods, breathe clean air, drink clean water, and live in a culture that is not materialistic.”
You’ll never find a better time to take out the Malaysia My Second Home (MM2H) visa. As I write, $1 is equal to 4.49 Malaysian ringgit (RM). The exchange rate hasn’t been this strong in years. And that’s good news for everyone who is thinking about applying.