Think of moving to DR. (I guess this post comes up a lot)

There is quite a lengthy process for a foreign qualified doctor to gain the necessary permissions to practice in the DR. Practising without licences is not recommended.

Welcome to DR1. Not sure how many times you've been to visit the DR but you need to spend many weeks at a times preferably out of a resort to get to know more about the country. If you use the search button here you'll find lots of info. Search for "prices" "moving", three letter words won't work.

Good luck

Quite a number of fellow Americans (& Canadians, Europeans) feel the same way as you & have made the move. Drop me a PM or e-mail & I will get any of those who don't reply here to tell you of THEIR experiences in making the move down.

Have you decided on the most suitable location for you?? The DR is a diverse country - the BIG City of Santo Domingo, the smaller city of Santiago, Puerto Plata & Sosua on the north Coast. Do your check into the archives to include those as a source for GOOD information! ~ Grahame.

Forget it

Unless you are Dominican born, extremely fluent in Spanish, have lot of time, and are very hard headed and don't mind the pain of hitting your head in the wall. Remember walls in DR are cement. Think of something else you have always wanted to do with your life outside of medicine. AND DO THAT. I have checked with the members here, the Domninican Counsulate, my lawyer in the DR, and the Med. schools there, and is is not worth the effort. I think I will write cookbooks instead, and it will be the DR's loss.
BTW we will be relocating in Sousa hopefully this summer

Bob K

Moving to DR

I'm glad we are not the only people thinking of moving to the DR, except we are moving from the UK. I have spent most of the afternoon reading the posts on DR1 and found it to be very useful.

My husband John and myself are hoping to come over in March and stay for a few weeks so that we can go house hunting. Having been to the DR a few times now we have decided that the North is the place for us, looking at Santiago, Puerto Plata or Sosua. Don't want anywhere that is too hussle & bussle and really just want the simple life.

This is my first post but will be writing again as there are bound to be lots of questions that we will have that hopefully someone out there can answer.

Livvie, if you haven't yet found it, there is a very extensive archive of past threads available. Click on "search" then write your topic in the drop-down box.

Me too

I am also thinking about moving to DR. I want to get out of the rat race and enjoy a simpler lifestyle. At the same time survive...this is where the questions begin. I'm starving for information. Maybe we can get together and come up with a joint plan...

I want to start around the Punta Cana area where my fiancee is...

Is it really a simpler life living in DR?

For all you that want to move to DR.

The Dominican Republic is not a paradise if you don't have the money to enjoy it. It is not the same when you have saved for a year to go vacation there and have the excellent tourists treatment and attention vs living there.

If you guys are looking for a simpler life the Dominican Republic is not the country for you.

Most of us Dominicans are loud, drive crazy, our roads are not that great we eat plantains because cornflake is too expensive, our government is corrupted, drink more mamajuana que un puerco suero. Some of us don't know what a litter basket is for and our electricity and water sucks.........Is this the simpler life you want to leave your comfortable country for?

Think it over again.
I am not trying to discourage you or anything.

Mr Happy, I mean Mr DR, gives good advice.

What is definition of "simple life"?

Mr_DR said:

Is this the simpler life you want to leave your comfortable country for?

Think it over again.
I am not trying to discourage you or anything.

Click to expand...

Good question! I have often wondered what people really, really mean when they say that they look for a so called "simple life".

"Simple life" can refer to living a life in a controlled and functioning infrastructure. If you want that, then move to Sweden!

"Simple life" can also mean living in a place which is slightly chaotic, with less government control and not too well organized, meaning you have greater freedom to skip rules and regulations, and can get benefits from networking and from having more money than the locals.

However, "Simple life" can refer to many other situations, including some very romantic ones, if based on vacation experiences.

Being notoriously curious about peoples reasons for moving to another country, it would be fun to learn what people mean by "simple life"?

The Simple LIfe. DR style.

Yes, Life is simple here. Priorities are clear. Where can I get clean water for my family? How the heck am I gonna get enough money for food and rent this month? If I work from 8am till 10pm everyday, there's not much time to spend worrying about all the silly things that used to bug us out back in the good ole USofA. I like it this way, it keeps the questions simple, and the answers too. Survival becomes the priority, which is how it's meant to be, the true human experience.

If it was such a bad idea, why would all these naysayers be here. I think you've got it right Doc.

Simple Life? - Try This

So, you want to come and enjoy the simple life. Here's a simple test so you can enjoy the experience without leaving your current home.

You need a bucket and some candles.

When you get up on a weekend morning go over to the electricity fuse box and switch it off. - If you need central heating, leave that on but set it to maximum. (don't worry about the bill for the heating - you ain't seen nothing yet!) Now switch your water off at the stop cock.

By mid afternoon you'll need to flush and you'll need to drink so take the bucket to a friends house (at least a block away) and ask for a fill up. Does this sound like fun?

At night time get your neighbours to sneak around in your yard rattling window frames and so forth, and if you can find someone with a gun, get them to fire off a few rounds at odd hours in the middle of the night.

You're allowed to run electricity for the next bit - but no cheating now! You probably dont have tree frogs so either download their "song", record it and play it at full volume all night, or play some Celine Dion records.

Set your alarm clock for five thirty in the morning and just to make sure you get up, find a neighbour who can remove the muffler from his motorbike and get him to start it and leave it running for no apparent reason outside your house for half an hour.

As a substitute for getting mugged, take a walk in the morning and find the biggest meanest dog in town, wind it up and get it to bite you. And as a substitute for getting taken for a ride, on your way home give 100 dollars to the first person who walks past you.

That's it my friend - that's the fun, simple life in the DR.

Although written with a fair bit of 'Poetic licence', Simon does make some good points here that all would be relocators should try to understand. Life is NOT all sun & frolicking on the beach as many tourist turned "wannabees" think it is. There are MANY frustrations, MANY disturbances to annoy the ears, MANY delays in getting things done (within YOU time expectancy) & bills do seem to exceed ones initial expectancies too!

However, Simon DOES PREFER living here or otherwise he would have returned to his home of birth or some other country more palatible to his needs - he is NOT short of the wherewithall to move elsewhere. The same goed for many of us who daily put up with the above - when it comes to the DR or the land we originated from, we generally prefer the DR.

You have to choose your location for living VERY carefully - that is why we advise NOT buying until you have studied a desireable location at MOST times of the day!!

You Have to inow what to look for in a property & you can not make that decision based on your experiences of house purchase in another country.

You have to know who are the trustworthy people to deal with & which lawyers/estate agrents(realtors) are NOT trulu representing YOUR best interests. That sort of information only comes with time ..... LOTS of time.

To those of you contemplating relocation to the DR PLEASE, do your homework & read ALL the posts in the archives at least twice (first time might blow your mind & you will SURELY miss some gems of information. Make your plans & then come down to check them out for two weeks or so, go back from your scouting trip & revise your plans to meet what you saw/noted & ask MORE questions. Repeat this process at least 2 or 3 times & THEN you might be ready to move to "Paradise"!!!!! ~ Grahame.

Simon & Nicky said:

So, you want to come and enjoy the simple life. Here's a simple test so you can enjoy the experience without leaving your current home.

You need a bucket and some candles.

When you get up on a weekend morning go over to the electricity fuse box and switch it off. - If you need central heating, leave that on but set it to maximum. (don't worry about the bill for the heating - you ain't seen nothing yet!) Now switch your water off at the stop cock.

By mid afternoon you'll need to flush and you'll need to drink so take the bucket to a friends house (at least a block away) and ask for a fill up. Does this sound like fun?

At night time get your neighbours to sneak around in your yard rattling window frames and so forth, and if you can find someone with a gun, get them to fire off a few rounds at odd hours in the middle of the night.

You're allowed to run electricity for the next bit - but no cheating now! You probably dont have tree frogs so either download their "song", record it and play it at full volume all night, or play some Celine Dion records.

Set your alarm clock for five thirty in the morning and just to make sure you get up, find a neighbour who can remove the muffler from his motorbike and get him to start it and leave it running for no apparent reason outside your house for half an hour.

As a substitute for getting mugged, take a walk in the morning and find the biggest meanest dog in town, wind it up and get it to bite you. And as a substitute for getting taken for a ride, on your way home give 100 dollars to the first person who walks past you.

That's it my friend - that's the fun, simple life in the DR.

Click to expand...

Simon you old wag
thats the funniest post I've seen in a long while!!!!

you did forget to mention that the OP should go out for a meal and pay at least double to what he is used to!!!

BushBaby...

That should be required reading 101. You pegged it. That is exactly what you have to do here.

Also, I would add, immediately take a spanish class and stay with it until you are speaking and understanding the language...something I did not do and regret.

And the more money you have, the easier the transistion and the lifestyle.

Time teaches you a lot. You learn to be street smart in this country. But it takes a lot of time and frustration.

DRShine,
Well.............you've passed the first test, the need for a sense of humour! Banker, indeed! You HAVE been reading the archives, haven't you? A lot of expats find a gallows humour a necessary prerequisite to survival (very funny post Simon!). This changes over time, however. The physical challenges of living in the DR are most noticeable in your first couple of years here. After about 5 years you notice them less & less, because by then, this is the 'norm'. A couple more years further on........& you take avoiding action BEFORE the challenge happens (well, with most of them!).
After 12 years here, I don't relate to the 'good outweighing the bad' argument. For me, there isn't 'bad'..........there is 'norm' & there are things I'd like to see done differently, some of which I can do something about, others of which I can't. But then I am in the fortunate position of being totally content with where I am & what I have (& I'm not talking possessions here).

You will test yourself by living in the DR, DRShine. If you're happy with yourself now, there's a good chance you'll be happy with yourself here too. And if you happen to be in the middle age bracket, this country is wonderful for keeping you young..........needing your wits about you is a great antidote to mental stagnation.

Good wishes for whatever you decide.