Moving to Mexico? Could Be Dangerous!

I've written about this subject so much that you might say I've done more than beat a dead horse. I have had to resurrect that horse and go into overkill again and again. If you want to retire to Mexico or move here for whatever reason, not becoming highly proficient in Spanish could mean your death. Literally.

The traditional areas, or Prime Living Locations, to which Gringos have flocked have been those areas in which there exists a highly developed Gringo Infrastructure just waiting for you. The impression a lot of the real estate pitches give you is that there will be a Fantasy Island Welcoming Party waiting for when you arrive. Life will be like living in Shangri-La, nothing will ever go wrong, and you will soon forget what life problems mean because they will never happen to you ever again. I am not stretching the truth here. A magazine I've stopped writing for puts out that pitch to get people to buy real estate. Damn the truth...Full House Sales Ahead!

Let's say there are two gringos, a man and a woman, walking down the street. They both have lived in a central Mexican town for many years. Their Spanish is somewhat abysmal, though they should be applauded for making the effort to learn it. Suddenly, the woman keels over in pain. The man drags her into a medical clinic/hospital that, fortunately, was just feet away. Neither could communicate what was wrong. There was the woman, in dire, dire shape but could not tell the doctors what was happening to her. The results of their attempts at communication were confused looks on the faces of the medical staff. None of the staff could speak English.

The woman had to high tail it to America for diagnosis and treatment because of the language barrier.