My first year of marriage

[Looking4Wife]

Sean:

You titled your post, "My first year of marriage", but:

1.  How long has your wife actually been in the USA?

2.  What type of visa did you do:  K-1, K-3, or CR-1?

[sean126]

Looking4wife,
1 year to the day on Feb.21 and we used a K-1.  As I said before, we had a Big Pre-Wedding Blow out in Barranquilla and then a smaller actual wedding here.   

[rpcv]

Excellent post Sean and Congrats!

[P Daddy]

Driving lessons in Barranquilla is of questionable value. What the women will not learn is how to confine driving within their lane, how to operate at high speed, when to stop and who has the right of way.

I respectfully disagree...I think it's a HUGE advantage for the woman to learn to drive down there.  She will be more comfortable behind the wheel and she wil learn to drive in a crazy, fast paced environment.  When she gets here it willl be SO MUCH easier for her to learn our ways, and she will have no problem passing the driving test.  Of course, she will have to break some habits, but it is so much better than teaching a girl here who has NEVER been behind the wheel before.

Regarding not learning how to drive at a high speed...maybe you would like to ride with my girl on the highway from Jamundi to
Cali (one of the deadliest & most dangerous in Colombia)...hold on for dear life!!!

[papi]

They are WOMEN and LATINO….Double Jeopardy.  This bears repeating: do NOT under any circumstances get in a car with your novia and let her drive unless you are inebriated. Find her a school either in Colombia or the US and leave it be except to make sure that she or you maintains the scheduled oil changes. Get plenty of insurance and pray for the best...

PS If you live in an area with a high concentration of potholes, be sure to budget for extra tires for the first couple of years. Eventually, they usually catch on after hitting one or two large craters.

[Jamie]

“questionable value” was a poor choice of words I agree you should have your fiancé as I did take driving lessons in Colombia with the understanding that certain important aspects necessary for driving in the U.S won’t be emphasized in Colombia.
There are no highways in the city of Barranquilla and my wife tells me she did not get to practice any high speed driving. The two problems I had with my wife driving in the states is that she would not stay inside her lane (they don’t have marked lanes in Barranquilla) and she would not always stop or yield at intersections that did not have a light or stop sign which you occasionally run into in residential neighborhoods. Unless you are incredibly patient and understanding it is best to have someone else teach them as noted by all.

[Cali-vet]

While there certainly are no highways in B/quilla there are highways to Santa Marta and Cartagena. The only US driving experience that took a little getting used to was getting up to speed on entrance ramps to merge with traffic on the interstates. My wife´s driving instructor (and mine) taught her to stop at stop signs and red lights. While the Colombian driving style seems dangerously chaotic to a visiting gringo it´s really pretty efficient. In fact a couple of years ago a US traffic study looking at traffic patterns around the world found Bogotá drivers to be the best model of efficiency. For a gringo driving in the warmer cities of Colombia the most difficult to adjust to are the motorbikes which obey no traffic rules whatsoever.

[doombug]

While the Colombian driving style seems dangerously chaotic to a visiting gringo it´s really pretty efficient. In fact a couple of years ago a US traffic study looking at traffic patterns around the world found Bogotá drivers to be the best model of efficiency.

You would think so. I thought so (as relates to Lima traffic). But not being in-country for long stretches of time, most of us miss out on what the locals are all too aware of.

Of the estimated 1-26 million traffic-related deaths worldwide in 2000, 90% were in low and middle income countries.

A study of a dozen countries in the Americas--Argentina, Belize, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Cuba, Guatemala, Mexico, Puerto Rico, the USA, and Venezuela--from 1985-2001 found that traffic accidents were the leading cause of death among boys and girls between ages 5 and 14 years, and the leading cause for women and second leading cause for men between ages 15 and 44 years.

[...]

In the Americas, Venezuela and Guyana have the highest traffic fatality rates, with more than 20 per 100,000 inhabitants. Ecuador's rate is slightly above 15 and Colombia's is about 14, while Peru, Chile, and Argentina hover around 10. Bolivia's rate is about 6 per 100,000, but the Andean nation has fewer cars than its more developed neighbours.

In the USA and Canada, most of the people killed in traffic accidents are drivers [likely, cars hitting other cars]. In countries like Mexico, Colombia, and Costa Rica, however, 40% of the victims are pedestrians--a figure that tops 60% in El Salvador.

[...]

More than 200 000 people died in traffic accidents in Latin America in 1990, and the WHO predicts that the figure will more than double by 2020 if current trends continue.

http://www.accessmylibrary.com/coms2/summary_0286-9694881_ITM

A consequence of poverty:



Speaking of Bogotá. "La Noche de las Mujeres":

On the night of Friday 9 March 2001, the Colombian city, Bogota, tried a unique experiment. The mayor, Antanas Mockus asked all the men to stay at home for the evening, and he invited the women to enjoy a night out on the town.

When he first suggested the idea of banning the city's men from the streets for a night, there was much discussion about it. Not least on its legality - and of course on the extent that it might violate the constitutional rights of the men. In the end the male curfew was not compulsory, but the men were asked to stay home voluntarily. Many, although of course not all, complied with Mockus' request, and they minded the kids whilst their womenfolk went out.

News reports quote the following crime statistics for Bogota:

40% of the men do not 'allow' their wives to go out alone at night.

85% of alcohol-related traffic accidents are caused by men.

88% of violent deaths are committed by men.

90% of the people arrested, are men.

40% of the women admit to being a victim of domestic abuse.

The mayor had conceived the idea of the curfew as a way to highlight such statistics, to draw attention to men's role in the perpetuation of domestic and community violence, and to prove that crime would be less on a night of male curfew. He hoped that the evening would be a time for serious reflection on the gendered nature of crime in the city. And the crime rate was indeed significantly lower in Bogota on Friday night, the 9th of March, and the mayor declared the experiment a success.

I've read a few news reports on the 'net that covered the story. In them, mayor Antanas Mockus was described variously as 'eccentric', 'goofy', 'clowning idiot', 'crazy philosopher', and the story was also featured on a 'legal humour' website. Men of Bogota were quoted as saying;

'We own the street' 'What about a female curfew?' 'The city can only take one night of this' 'We have high unemployment, we have social unrest' 'We have a lot more important problems to worry about here'

The mayor declared the night dedicated to educating 'men, who have much to learn about peaceful attitudes' a success...?

http://www.suite101.com/print_article.cfm/women_abuse/71281

[Jamie]

While the Colombian driving style seems dangerously chaotic to a visiting gringo it´s really pretty efficient.

I have yet to see on thing efficient about Colombia and it is certainly not the driving. The death rate due to vehicle accident per mile driven is higher in Colombia than the U.S. If you take a random look at the tires of trucks and cars you will find many are bald. Most do not do any safety maintenance they only repair things when they break and have to which also increase the likelihood of more accidents. It is not just the motorcycles with up to 5 people on them driving on the sidewalks and against one way traffic that is a problem but the cars which don’t give the right of way to pedestrians or to other vehicles for that matter. The whole methodology of driving here is chaotic and dangerous. Do not hesitate to tell your taxi driver to slow down or drive in a manner you feel comfortable with. My primary experience is only in Barranquilla so other cities may be more orderly and safe.

[rpcv]

It is not just the motorcycles with up to 5 people on them driving on the sidewalks and against one way traffic that is a problem but the cars which don’t give the right of way to pedestrians or to other vehicles for that matter. The whole methodology of driving here is chaotic and dangerous. Do not hesitate to tell your taxi driver to slow down or drive in a manner you feel comfortable with. My primary experience is only in Barranquilla so other cities may be more orderly and safe.

I wouldn't consider the drivers in Cali to be more responsible either. I was in an accident while in a taxi this past Xmas there. A motorcycle driven by a guy with a woman and her kid on the back slammed into us. They all fell off and narrowly missed being crushed by a bus. It all happened quite fast but from what i could see, the motorcycle driver was trying to swerve between lanes to get ahead of us and the bus on my right moved over, reducing the opening. Amazingly, only the driver was cut on his hand.

[el_ruso]

If you think driving in Colombia is "chaotic", you have not been to DR.  In comparison, Colombia is like Nebraska.

I have not driven in Colombia, but I drive aggressively (me being Russian and all  ), and I have not felt bad about the driving there, its tempo or aggressiveness, since I am used to the same.  The main difficulty there are those motorcycles and pedestrians that are everywhere, and you really would have to watch for them.  What you have to realize in regards to the aggressive driving in Colombia, is that almost all the drivers are middle-aged men.  This is the same demographic that drives aggressively in the US as well, but here you have all those grannies.  There are many categories of people who don't usually drive in Colombia, and do here.

The best drivers are in Europe in my experience.  They at least never block the left lane and go 50 as it happens in US all the time, and the European cars on average are much easier to drive and control. 

[papi]

i really don't think colombia is all that insane
the most polite drivers are in japan
the most scooters shooting everywhere like giant hormigas, taiwan

[daytrader]

...driving in Cali looks more entertaining and less dangerous than Bogota IMO...although the statistics in Cali disagree.  The highest risk are those poor souls riding the 80-100 cc cycles, they have NO protection against a bus just taking their lane space, which they love to do! 

Using common sense and extra caution at night...and operating a larger car than the Renault gokarts is recommended. 

DayTrader

[Cali-vet]

It is more efficient not to stop at a stop sign if no vehicles are coming. Also avoids slowing down all the traffic behind you. Vehicle safety inspection goes into effect this year. That should cut down on the bald tires. It sounds like a poster above is pretty unhappy living in Colombia.

I beg to differ with El Ruso in so far as the women drivers in Cali are just as aggressive as the men. Agree though on the Dominican Republic and the only thing police stop cars for is to ask for money especially when entering or leaving a pueblo. In five years I have only once been asked by police for money in Colombia at a traffic stop and that was in a remote rural area. On one trip to Ecuador it happened repeatedly to drivers of vehicles I was in.

[Jamie]

Clarifying the reality has nothing do with happiness. If I wasn’t happy I wouldn’t be here. Thanks for your definition of efficiency.

[el_ruso]

DT,

I beg to differ regarding Renaults.  I have driven Clio, it drives great, has great design, and I wish it was sold here.  It would make for a great second car, or for a great car for a student.  I was in Europe in November, and saw the new model, and it is gorgeous.  I wish they sold them here too.

CV,

Jamie's posts do come across like he doesn't like colombia.  I don't know the guy, but his criticism is really a natural reaction to some things he doesn't relate to at a new place.  Any immigrant goes through such a phase, and it does not mean that Jamie overall dislikes living in colombia.  I do wish however that he would post more about things he likes about living there.

[daytrader]

el_ruso,

Regarding Renault, I wasn't referring to their current models....the model I was referring to has about 2.5 cylinders, is about 20+ years old and is the size of two cans of tuna fish (the jumbo can).  The contraption must be reliable, because they mechanically operate far longer than their sheetmetal does..way underpowered, they can't get out of Britney Spears' way in the middle of a McDonald's drive thru. 

Renault is the largest selling car in Colombia from the info I have, they put out a quality sedan; --  I would never own anything French because that country's ruling elites hate America  (vis a vi, no French wines, no Silor Optical or Varilux eyeglass lenses [I don't wear glasses], no Michelin tires etc.).  I do reserve the right to use French words/phrases in my composition, however!

DayTrader

[Cali-vet]

DT I believe Renault is the second largest selling brand after Chevrolet. It was one of the first foreign manufacterures to set up an assembly plant in Colombia, sometime in the seventies I think. The first offering was Renault 4/Master series. It has good ground clearence and is fairly rugged and was cheap so all in all an apropriate car for a third world country at the time. My brother in law had one for years and loved it. The first foreign auto maker in Colombia was British Austin in the early sixties. They assembled Austin 1 1/2-2 ton trucks and Austin jeeps. You still see a few of the trucks in service but hardly any of the jeeps. 

[el_ruso]

"Chevrolet" in Colombia has very little to do with actual Chevrolet.  In fact, I don't think it sells any actual Chevrolets.  They sell Daewoo, Suzuki, Opel and basically a lot of small cars made by companies associated with GM.

Renault 4 I believe is the station wagon thing, and as far as I know it is very rugged, which is good for a country like that, but very slow and archaic.

I think if anyone has enough cash to invest and connections, they could make money selling Malaysian or Chinese cars.  Malaysian Proton is quite competitive and modern, yet seriously undercuts the Koreans.  Chinese cars so far are not well designed, but they started to sell past generation Japanese pickups in Russia, and since our domestic industry didn't make anything quite like them, they sell really well, and people like them, and they are very cheap comparatively and would sell well in Latin America as well.  And redesigned Ladas could sell very well, as they sell a lot in Ecuador (they actually have a plant there).

[daytrader]

...Since we're posting issues about Colombian automobiles on this thread, the surprise I found out on the last visit to Cali is that there really isn't a "used car" market down in Colombia. 

You either buy "new" or you buy an exorbitantly priced used car.  Around Cali, the  Kia sedan and the Chevrolet (the Daewoo sedan Chevy brands) 4 door are excellent choices.  The Chevy/Daewoo sedan (don't remember the exact model) runs about $22,000 new with A/C & a stick shift and holds up well.  Both models would not compare favorably with our choices in the USA for durability and above-average engineering but down in SA they look like good choices based on riding in both of them.  The Daewoo product seems to have a higher engineering standard than the Kia and puts to shame most piece of junk mid-priced American sedans - although I would be leery of expecting 150,000 miles on it (the norm for a Toyota or Nissan IMO) without investing in repairs. 

I asked around about used vehicles, a Mazda 323 (used, stick, with no a/c) in decent shape goes for $5,000 in the Cali area.  This is probably what I will be looking for in the used department for a first car down there in SA.  I visited a website that sells used vehicles throughout Colombia and a 1995 Isuzu Trooper was listed for $16,000.  WOW! 

If things go well in SA after a year (and Cali Diamond doesn't total the Mazda), then I'd spring for a new vehicle, or maybe try to import a Jeep Grand Cherokee via Panama thru Papi's Used Auto Parts Service.   LOL. 

(I'm interested in exploring the import option if anyone has any advice to give.)

DayTrader

[papi]

(I'm interested in exploring the import option if anyone has any advice to give.)

i feel panama does have potential. but i dont want to take the risk unless i found somebody strong in the area that can take the ball and run with it. i don't know about colombia. somehow i don't see you and i going into biz together. good luck with your diamond and possible import/export biz

[daytrader]

Papi, I was looking for advice.. not a biz relationship....I only want to get one car into SA, not start a dealership.  If anybody has any links, advice or leads, please PM me..it will be a fun project to do due diligence on while trading the e-mini Russell 2000. 

DayTrader

[papi]

my advice, save the headaches and buy a car in colombia. If you must ship it, I am sure there are plenty of outfits in miami setup for this sort of thing. google it. 

buy the car in Detroit and drive it to miami. You can see the seasons change along the way and dream of diamonds in colombia. 24 hrs mas o menos. while you are in the motor city, you can try your daytrades on the vegas style casinos, bJ, dice, etc.

[papi]

if you require advice on negotiating the best price, my online course on negotiating with taxistas, agency owners and dealerships commences at 5:00pm at www.papichulo.com   

[daytrader]

can't import a car into Colombia, no way no how, from the info I have.  Generally this is frowned upon in all 2nd or 3rd world countries because it plays havoc with their balance of trade deficit, which lowers the value of the currency + the government & business community can't make enuff dinero off of you importing a vehicle.  The government wants dinero from both sides of the transaction, the seller and the buyer, they get neither when you import it. 

Also, the powers that be in Colombia have the used car dept rigged it appears. 

As far as buying used cars in the USA, nothing compares to www.craigslist.org in major cities in Florida.  Florida has the best quality used cars in the nation IMO.  My uncle shipped lots of used cars from Florida TO Detroit where the dealership he worked at was.  Made a ton of $ for 20 years that way. 

Use Edmunds.com  as a resource for finding the real street value and network thru the listings in www.craigslist.org to find good condition, low cost used cars/SUV's.  It is helping reshape the used car market throughout Northern California and Florida (my residences the last 26 yrs). 

I sold my vehicle before leaving the SF area in December and got top dollar,  and had the cash in 48 hours. 

buenas!

DayTrader