Returning to the US

Returning to the US

I am typing this on Tuesday, March 10, 2015.   At six this morning, Tom caught a cab to the Cuenca airport (CUE) for a 7:20 flight to Guayaquil (GYE)  He will spend the night in GYE, and then catch an early morning flight from GYE to Miami tomorrow.   Oddly, the flight schedules within Ecuador rarely make it convenient to catch international flights.  Most likely, you will have to spend the night in either GYE or Quito (UIO)  From Miami, he flies to Charlotte, North Carolina.  

He is meeting up with his siblings to wrap up his late mother’s estate.  He is scheduled to return to GYE on the 18^th.  He will spend the night in GYE again, then he has hired a drive to bring him over the mountains into Cuenca – the exact same plan we used when we moved here.

We had four more footlockers full of stuff at his mother’s house.  Those lockers contain my KitchenAid stand mixer, Miele vacuum cleaner, high end cookware, photos and other items that weren’t immediately needed here in Ecuador. The idea was that we would bring these lockers back to Ecuador on a future trip.  We just didn’t plan on the “future trip” to be so close to our arrival in Ecuador.  Since we’ve arrived in Ecuador, we’ve been compiling a list of things for Tom to bring back to Cuenca.  Not a whole lot – we’ll go over that list later.

Way back when – when we bought our tickets to move to Ecuador – we had to buy roundtrip tickets.  Unless you are a resident, Ecuador wants to see a return ticket or just a ticket OUT of Ecuador.  The return portion of our tickets is for early June – the latest we could book.  We knew we weren’t going to return home in June; therefore, we’ll pay the $200@ change fee, and go back to the US at another time.  We’ve just started thinking about a return trip to use the tickets.  Of course, we’ll have to buy one way tickets back to Ecuador.  We may go back for the holidays.  We’ll have to start planning that return trip soon.

OK, so what is on Tom’s list of items to bring back from the first trip home?  Mostly small items: more snacks for Sonny Bunny, Spot Shot (stain remover), rechargeable flashlights, good extension cords (with flat plug heads) some toiletry items, and duty-free alcohol and cologne.

AN UPDATE:  Tom's trip went well, despite having to handle 4 footlockers, 1 large luggage piece, and his carry-ons all by himself.  Everything made it to GYE with no problems.   Like the first trip, TSA went through each of the footlockers.  He scooted through GYE Customs and Immigration with no questions.  Jorge Lopez drove him to Cuenca the next day.

Sonny Bunny's Adjustment

Sonny Bunny’s Adjustment

This is how he deals with workers being in the house!

You already know that I’m a crazy cat dad, so bear that in mind as you read this.  This is for those who may be thinking about bringing their cat to Ecuador OR for those who want to know how Sonny is adjusting.

As you recall, we jumped through a lot of hoops in the US to get Sonny to Ecuador.  Turned out that 99.99% of those hoops were not used by Ecuador when we arrived in-country.  Better safe than sorry, and still complete all those requirements JUST IN CASE you are the one they decide to challenge.

After flying with Sonny Bunny, I have a whole new respect for those of you who fly with kids.  I worried about him eating, drinking, going to the bathroom, throwing up, getting cold, etc.  I flew with extra bedding, hand wipes, wash cloths, food in plastic containers, etc.

We sedated him for the flight.  He did great!  The sedation started to wear off about 1 ½ hours prior to landing in Guayaquil.  That gave him time to eat his dinner as we flew over Panama.  He stayed very calm and quiet as we made our way through the Guayaquil airport and in the van to the hotel.  He did very well at the hotel – I think he was just glad to be out of the SleepyPod!  I had placed a disposable cat litter box in my carry-on.  Good thing I did, because our checked baggage didn’t arrive until the next morning.

We sedated him again the next morning as we drove the nearly 4 hours over the mountains into Cuenca. The 4 hours went by very quickly, but there were several hairpin turns.  Without the sedation, I’m sure Sonny would have become car sick – he did sometimes as we drove through the mountains back home in North Carolina.

Cuenca is at about 8,400 feet above sea level.  That altitude affects humans and animals.  For the first week or so we were in Cuenca, Sonny took a lot of naps.  I’m sure his body was adjusting.  (I can tell my own body is still adjusting!)  Of late, Sonny is getting back into his normal routine:  napping from 10:30 AM to 4:30 PM. I made sure he had his familiar bowls, food, bedding, toys, snacks, etc. to help make the transition smoother for him.

We tried two different kinds of cat litter here. Litter and food is quite expensive – and good quality of both is hard to find.  We’re using a clumping cat litter, “Klin Kat”  So far, it does a good job of clumping and odor control. 

A couple of weeks ago, I walked over to a veterinary office with Sonny.  The purpose was to get Sonny established as a patient.  The doctor spoke about as much English as I do Spanish, but we communicated just fine.  He’s a young doctor that many fellow ex-pats use.  We can see his office from our condo – talk about convenient!

Sonny turns 16 in July.  This has been a very big change for an old cat! I hope that all of my planning has made it easier for him to adjust.

Connecting to the Grid

Connecting to the Grid

One of the first things we did upon arrival in Ecuador was to get our cell phones switched over to Claro (the biggest service provider throughout Central and South America.)  It was easy:  they took out the Verizon chip from my iPhone 5S and put in a Claro chip.  While still in the US, we bought Tom a BLU (Bold Like Us) brand phone that can handle two chips: one for use in the US, and one for Claro here in Ecuador.  Now that we have Ecuadorian cell phones, it makes day-to-day transactions much easier!  When we return to the US, we’ll have Tom’s US cell phone number.

On Friday, March 6, our temporary internet was shut off (planned – it belonged to the family subletting the apartment from us.)  Our permanent internet was scheduled to be installed on Wednesday, March 11.   I say “scheduled” because one never knows for sure when ETAPA will actually do the installation.   ETAPA is the city-run utility department (provides cable TV, internet, water, etc.)  Our building uses ETAPA for internet - we have no option.

We have DirecTV installed (only 1 day past the “scheduled” installation date!)  In their defense, Cuenca had a major downpour on the scheduled day.  Many homes and businesses were flooded.  The jury is still out on whether or not TV is worth paying for – not a very good programming selection, and not a whole lot of HDTV channels. 

TV and internet are the only two utilities that we must deal with ourselves.  Everything else (water, gas, electricity) is provided by the building, and we pay the building owner via meters.

As I mentioned, our internet was scheduled to be connected on Wednesday, March 11.  We have been using the retail shop’s internet, as well as free wi-fi at restaurants.  We have a lot depending upon getting internet installed!

First & foremost is my need to have internet to do my independent contractor consulting work.  I’m actually in the mood to work; therefore, I have to strike while the iron is hot!  My home office is completely set up now.  Tom even has a small built-in work station in the office. Sonny Bunny’s “nest” is right beside my desk, and he’s napping away in it right now!

We will also be using our internet connection to hook up our Ooma internet-based telephone system.  You may recall that we switched our home phone service in the US to Ooma last year. We love it.  We have the Ooma apps on our cell phones that permit us to call the US for free (as long as we have a wi-fi connection.)  You may also continue to call our US home phone number FREE OF CHARGE.  It will ring at the condo here in Cuenca.  How cool is that?!    We highly recommend Ooma – even if you have no intention of moving abroad!

Our internet connection will also be used to stream TV and movies via our Roku box.  There are so many channels available on the Roku; therefore, we may drop DirecTV and use only the Roku box.

To get Pandora (internet radio), Roku, Netflix, a lot of websites, etc. to work in Ecuador, we have to “trick” the internet into thinking that we are still in the US.  Otherwise, we get messages such as “Sorry, but Pandora is not available in your country.”  To accomplish this, we bought a router from Sabai, a company in South Carolina.  The router is programmed to have a US-based IP address regardless of where in the world it is being used.  Some people use internet programs such as “Hide My Ass” and “Hola” to access US websites from abroad.  We’re going the router route because we heard it is the better, faster option.

An update:  We finally got our ETAPA internet installed – on March 23.  The speed is slow, and it makes streaming videos frustrating.  We will upgrade to a faster package soon!

Fresh Off The Jet Updates

Whew! What a busy few days. Long story short: we arrived in Guayaguil (at midnight) about an hour and a half late due to maintenance issues with our aircraft in Miami. We barely even made the connection in Miami due to maintenance issues with our aircraft in Charlotte.  American Airlines needs a serious update to its fleet!  We made the connection in Miami........our luggage did not (no surprise since we knew the connection was tight.)

Luckily, all the luggage made it to Guayaguil on the next flight, 5 hours later.  It really worked out for the best: we were able to get a nice night's sleep, then head to the airport to pick up our bags locked away in American Airlines' security office.  Since there were no international flights arriving at that time, the airport was empty.  We were whisked right through Customs, and were on our way to Cuenca. The airport staff were very polite, and were excited to hear that we were moving to Ecuador.

Sonny made the flight just fine - thanks in part to my exhausting preparations and his medication! He slept through most of the flight, waking up only to have dinner and water somewhere over Central America. He's been a real trooper!

From Guayaguil, we hired a van and driver to take us into Cuenca.  It was about a 3 hour drive up into the Andes Mountains. It was a beautiful (and no rain!) drive through cocoa plantations, coffee plantations, banana plantations, and rice fields. 

We are currently in a B&B right across the street from our apartment.  We expect to move in by Friday at the latest.  We are ready to unpack!

We arrived in Cuenca on Sunday.  On Monday night, we attended a big magazine launch party, and got to see a lot of people we've met on previous trips to Cuenca, as well as a lot of people we've "met" via Facebook.  The ex-pat community here is very diverse, and we look forward to meeting more of them. 

On Tuesday night, we were invited to a cook out at our new friends' condo. There were 6 of us guys there, and we had a lot of fun.  After days of stressful travel and 3 hotels, Tom and I really needed the break.  Retirement has already changed us - we didn't get home until after 11:30! 

Today has been a busy day. We had our cellphones switched over to Ecuadorian telephone numbers. My USA cell phone will no longer exist now.  Tom's USA cell phone number will only work when he is back in the US.

An interesting side note: Ecuadorians LOVE $2 bills. They consider them good luck. When we were getting our cell phones switched over, we paid with a $2 bill. The employees got very excited, and wanted to buy every $2 bill we had!

Today, we also went to the big American-style (read: "expensive") grocery store just a couple of blocks from our apartment. We got our "SuperMaxi" customer cards to make shopping easier.

So, with local telephone numbers and SuperMaxi cards, we are starting to feel like things are falling into place.

Selling Our Cars Until the Countdown

SELLING OUR CARS

We're "car guys." We like cars, we know cars, and we've owned many, many cars over the years.  Small cars, large cars, luxury cars, SUVs, pick up trucks - you name it, we've probably owned it.

We just sold our 2007 Mini Cooper and 2011 Subaru Outback. For the last week, we have been using a rental car from Hertz. We have a 2015 Chevrolet Impala. It has been a great road car. We drove it from Richmond, Virginia to Atlanta, Georgia dealing with Sonny's pet visa paperwork. We turn the rental car in today at 3 o'clock.

At this point, we do not plan on purchasing a car in Ecuador. We live very close to bus routes in Cuenca, and the city is very mass transit friendly. Taxis are very cheap as well. We live within walking distance to a lot of shopping; therefore, owning a car does not make a lot of sense right now. Eventually, I'm sure we will want a car to do some exploring around Ecuador.  Automobiles are very expensive in Ecuador - almost double what you would pay for a car here in the United States. For the most part, the cars and trucks on the road in Ecuador are newer. When I was living in Poland, there were a lot of antiques on the road!

We do plan on buying bicycles once we arrive in country. And I am thinking about possibly buying a Vespa motor scooter. 

Our building has a secure parking deck, so we will park any bicycles, Vespas, or automobiles there. 

THE COUNTDOWN IS ON!

Well, almost 24 hours from now, we will be heading to the Charlotte airport to begin our journey. A friend of ours is driving his pick-up truck to Charlotte to transport us, Sonny, and our 14 pieces of luggage to the airport.  Pictures will follow.

As luck would have it, the east coast of the United States is socked into cold, cold weather. The good news is: there is no additional snow or ice in the forecast. As a result, we are hopefull that there will be no flight delays or cancellations. We fly from Charlotte to Miami. Our layover in Miami is about 3 1/2 hours. Then we board the 4 1/2 hour night flight into Guayaquil. We get into Ecuador at about midnight. We will be staying at a bed-and-breakfast across the street from the airport. On Sunday afternoon, we will make the 4 hour trip through the mountains from Guayaquil to Cuenca. We have hired a private van and driver for that trip. 

This morning we began the medication for altitude sickness. We start that 24 hours in advance, and take it for two days. Guayaquil is at low altitude; however, Cuenca is at about 8,400 feet. 

Next post will be the progress of our trip!

Sonny's Passport Update

As I mentioned in my last post, we were concerned about the USDA closing its Raleigh, North Carolina office.  That threw a wrench in our plans to have Sonny's paperwork approved within our 10-day window of arriving in Ecuador.

Sonny's local vet visit is scheduled for Thursday, February 12. That is 9-days from our arrival in Guayaquil on February 21.

As it last stood, Tom was planning on driving the local vet's paperwork to the closest USDA office in Richmond, Virginia (5 hours away) for an appointment on Friday, February 13.  That was..."IF" the Richmond office was willing to have a vet come in on Friday.  They don't typically work on Fridays!

We just got confirmation from Richmond that they will indeed have a vet come in just to approve our paperwork!  Yeah!

So our plans are now:

1) I will now quit my job on Wednesday, February 11 (rather than the 13th)

2) Tom and I will take Sonny to his vet in Charlotte on the 12th.

3) We will then head to Richmond on the afternoon of the 12th, and spend the night in Richmond.

4) We have an appointment with the USDA vet on the 13th. Sonny does not need to visit - just his paperwork is needed.

5) We will drive to Atlanta on Tuesday, February 17 and spend the night.

6) We have an appointment with the Ecuadorian consulate on Wednesday, February 18.  The consulate will grant Sonny an entry visa for his pet passport. Sonny does not need to make this trip, either.

7) We will call an Ecuadorian office in Guayaquil 72-hours prior to our arrival to alert them of Sonny's arrival at GYE.

Sonny Bunny has always been high maintenance.......and we wouldn't have it any other way!

NEXT ENTRY: Selling our cars!

Updates and Plan B's

Well, one month from today, both Tom and I will no longer be employed, and the final rush will be in full swing.  Tom's last day will be February 6, and my last day will be February 13. We fly to Ecuador on February 21. ......Remember that February 21 date as you continue reading below....

Since we started the moving process, there have only been a handful of challenges.  As most of you know, we're both meticulous planners.  We always have Plan A, Plan B, and Plan C. (OK, and if the truth be known, we also have Plans D through AAAA as well)

It's a good thing we are organized, because we've recently had two curve balls thrown our way: 1) additional security clearances needed, and 2) the USDA closing their North Carolina office.

As I mentioned in earlier posts, we were required to get an FBI arrest record when applying for our permanent resident visas for Ecuador. That involved us going to the county sheriff's office to have our fingerprints taken ($10 each.) We then mailed those prints, about $100, and a background check form to a private company that taps into the FBI database to report that neither of us have been arrested. I'm a former federal agent and a police department volunteer.  I've given a lot of fingerprints in my life!

Well, right around Christmas 2014, Ecuador changed the rules regarding background checks. Now, they also require a state-issued arrest record in addition to the federally-issued report.  So, back to the sheriff's office to get more fingerprints!  We sent those prints, a $28 check, and a form to Raleigh, North Carolina. A few days ago, we received our state arrest records.  We've sent them to our facilitator for translation into Spanish. 

I would think that an FBI-issued report would trump a North Carolina SBI (State Bureau of Investigation) report, but what do I know?!

The other curveball tossed our way arrived just today.  The USDA closed its veterinary office in Raleigh, North Carolina. Why is this a curveball? Well, actually it is a major crisis!

As I mentioned in an earlier post, Sonny Bunny has to have his medical records certified by the USDA vet in Raleigh. Sonny has his local vet appointment on Thursday, February 12. In accordance with Ecuadorian law, that appointment is 10 days out from our arrival in Ecuador.  Tom was planning on driving Sonny's report to the vet in Raleigh on Friday, 13 February. Tom had to call the USDA vet today (exactly 1 month out) to schedule the appointment for the 13th. 

We have an appointment at the Ecuadorian embassy in Atlanta on Tuesday, February 17. We have to take Sonny's USDA-approved paperwork to the embassy so that Sonny will get his entry visa.

That was Plan A. 

When Tom called the USDA office in Raleigh today, he got an automated message saying that the office was permanently closed, and all paperwork now had to be sent to a New York state address. Now, obviously we are not going to be driving the paperwork to New York, so we had to go to Plan B.  

Plan B is to drive the paperwork to a USDA office in Richmond, Virginia. The snag in that plan is that no vet works in that office on Fridays!  They are going to try to get a vet to come in and process Sonny's paperwork.  If that doesn't work, we will go to plan C.  That will mean shipping the paperwork to the New York office, and a delay in getting the paperwork to the Ecuadorian embassy in Atlanta. 

The concern with either of those two options is the fact that we have to have the paperwork in-hand to take to the Ecuadorian embassy for our appointment on Tuesday, February 17. As a buffer, we have the appointment rescheduled to Wednesday, February 18. The Ecuadorian embassy (so far) has been very easy to work with.

As I mentioned in my earlier post, timing is very critical when taking a pet to Ecuador. The vet appointment has to be within 10 days of arriving in Ecuador, and the Ecuadorian embassy has to have the entry visa issued shortly thereafter. The 10 days is written in stone: not 9, not 11.

Working within such tight time restraints requires everything to fall into place exactly as planned. The USDA closing their office in North Carolina really threw a wrench into our well-oiled planning machine!

Look at the face!