Travel 9 - International Retirement

Recently, a close friend told me of her wish to retire to a country other than her own, with only one requirement;  the English language.  Now, that requirement needs a definition which, from my understanding, means any country where knowledge of the English language by the local population would be sufficient to permit reasonable communication.

A source of information ① provided one list of more than 90 countries using the language formally.  Of course, many of these countries use a form of English greatly modified by localization (other languages, dialect, and accent) that affect one’s ability to communicate.  In fact, there are only eight countries where English is the majority language, as a proportion of the native English population;  U.S., U.K., Canada, Australia, Nigeria, Ireland, South Africa, and New Zealand.

Of those countries, the Canadian government ② cautions against any non-essential travel to Nigeria.  Thus, from the few remaining countries, a Chinese citizen faces a difficult immigration hurdle to jump over.

Therefore, I looked elsewhere, and discovered 'International Living' ③, that appears to offer a treasure trove of information.  Unfortunately, some of the information appears to be out of date or in conflict with other destination information found elsewhere.  Nevertheless, it is a useful initial source.  For example, they provided me with a list of “Top Ten Retirement Havens” comprising the following;  Ecuador, Mexico, Brazil, France, Panama, Nicaragua, Italy, Costa Rica, Uruguay, and Belize.  Unfortunately, only three of these countries (France, Italy, and Uruguay) avoid the Canadian caution advisory against all forms of travel.  Therefore, to avoid strict European immigration rules, I concluded that Uruguay should be investigated.

Montevideo, Uruguay, has been named as the "second least expensive city in the world" ④ and, certainly, seems to show good value against the dollar.  It has a low poverty level, the second lowest level of corruption, and is the most developed and prosperous country in Latin America.  Between the years 2007 and 2009, Uruguay was the only country in the Americas that did not technically experience a recession.  Aesthetically, it is a very old-world European city, mainly as a result of the Spanish history, with minor British and Italian influences, and 85% of the population are of European origin.

Located within a temperate zone, Uruguay has a climate that is relatively mild and fairly constant nationwide.  Seasonal variations are pronounced, but extremes in temperature are rare.  Therefore, one may assume a closer investigation into our search for a haven is required.

To be continued, perhaps.

① wikipedia.com
② voyage.gc.ca
③ internationalliving.com
④ mercer.com

Politics 10 - Thin Edge of the Wedge

The U.K., the place of my birth but, now, a place that is almost unrecognizable in certain areas.  The County of Kent, where I grew up, known as The Garden of England, feels different, as if there is a pulsing undercurrent of unrest.  My loved Thomas Hardy County of Dorset, pictured on Christmas cards (Remember those?), breathes the fresh air with innocence of an uncertain future.  London, of course, has always been a multicultural city, since being established by the Romans, and where it was usually difficult to distinguish one culture from another but, now, there is an obvious ‘frontal attack’ by an increasingly dominant, and vociferous, Islamic community ... and the government appears to lack any authority for which to display the necessary control.

My Peaceful English Country House

Most English villages developed around small farming groups.  Produce marketing established the eventual village shop;  A religious need built a church;  eventually, a sense of community introduced the Public House (Pub).  Over the years, there were more shops, churches and, certainly, more pubs, as towns and cities were born (Please excuse the simplification).

Today, Christian churches are closing, and Islamic domes are constructed above their roofs.  Many shops are boarded up because of changing customer needs and, in their place, some are reopening with signs written solely in Islamic script (The Quebec language police would have a heyday with that).  The need for social community takes place in the mosque (although the ‘need’ for some Muslims is doubtful), and, thus, the once-popular pub has closed, and dereliction has taken over ... a probable breeding ground for extremists.

No, this is not Dhaka, Bangladesh, but London, U.K., 2013

A good friend of mine who made a more extensive tour of the U.K. recently, wrote to say that he was forced to double-check his air tickets because he felt sure that he had landed in Pakistan by mistake.  He wasn’t exaggerating. 

One is bound to ask, why do Muslims emigrate to a country that sells world-famous pork sausages, tasteful ale, and listens to glorious choirs singing in cathedrals every Sunday.?  If I had wished to become an Australian, I would have gone to Australia, but I admired the Canadian way of life and came to Canada.  Is this new wave of immigration the result of Muslims wishing to become British because they admire the British way of life?  It seems such an alarmingly sad question when they carry banners saying, “Kill the Queen” and “Sharia law for everyone”.

I think this to be a very important question for a country like Canada which believes, wrongly, in a policy of multiculturalism.  In 2012, 257,515 immigrants and 23,056 refugees came to Canada, and the Minister for Immigration states that these numbers are planned to continue in the future.  It may be too late for the U.K. (and France), but it could be a warning for us. 

The U.K. and Canada (and other similar countries) occasionally make changes to their respective list of “safe” countries, (Countries from which refugees are no longer accepted).  It occurs to me that refugees from these countries who have enjoyed the safety, and benefits from our welfare systems, could be deported back ... certainly, if they have not proven to be productive members of our society (I have written elsewhere about the huge number of criminal immigrants in our over-crowded goals).

I see it as the thin edge of the wedge, that requires a sensible strengthening of immigration and deportation laws.

As a Postscript, my attention is focussed on our indigenous communities.  They are Canadians too, yet we segregate them to wilderness reserves.  I am tempted to suggest that we set up reserves for refugees too, after all, Australia does it.  Remember, qualified immigrants come here after a long intensive scrutiny to integrate and become tax-paying, employed Canadians, whilst refugees come to simply escape politically and culturally unsafe countries.  I imagine that when the word travels globally that refugees in Canada no longer live in highly subsidized, high-rise apartments, etc. (usually, better than low-income Canadians) there would be an remarkable reduction in refugee numbers ... simply because some of them are not refugees, but ‘queue-jumpers’.

Now, we shall discover if controversy creates discussion, anonymously or otherwise.   

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Environment 1 - Where There's Smoke ....

For some time, recently, I have been searching the Internet for some details related to an intended visit to the U.K.  Specifically, renting accommodation.  My search reveals an alarming trend that is spreading throughout Europe, the increasing use of burning carbon creating fuel in private homes.

I grew up in a lower/middle income family and we had a three-bedroom home.  One thing that I remember was the situation of a fireplace in every room (except the smallest room).  And at times, every fireplace was in use, and I can still picture the sound and sight of our black-faced coal-man driving his horse and cart full of our weekly sacks of coal.

Eventually, people became aware of the pollution and, more importantly, the ease of simply switching on an electric fire.  This continued to the present day, and introduced air-conditioning systems capable of using gas, oil, and other forms of heating.  Then, costs rose and double-glazed windows became essential.  In addition, a chimney on the roof became a heat-loss device and fire places were quickly blocked and plastered over (or remodelled as a bookcase).  A few were retained to house simulated fire inserts, but only switched on during weekends ... or when the vicar came to call.

But, now, guess what?  The cost of energy has 'gone-through-the-roof' ... if you'll excuse the pun, and the term 'kilowatts per hour' has become as unclean as coal.  Innovation has taken over.  Now, there are hundreds of fire-place shops opening in every town selling caste iron, wood-burning (or anything) stoves for use in the home.  Real-estate agents highlight the advantages of such devices, and holiday cottage renters are always supplied with a "free" supply of logs.  Once again, it is possible to buy coal but, this time, the coal is a "clean" type ... another oxymoron, I suggest.

Is this the sign of the ingenuity that we can be proud of?


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Education 6 - GCSE and the Chinese Language

Foreign language learning is an interesting subject at the best of times, notwithstanding the misunderstanding between a foreign and a second language.  But, I find the examination of foreign language courses quite thought-provoking.

For some time, I have been studying language schools in the U.K.  At least, those progressive schools that include the Chinese language within their curriculum.

As with many European schools, the emphasis of ‘academia’ and ‘language’ is to resist change for various reasons.  In the U.K., French and German are popular with both teachers and students because of the relationship of their shared origins.  In other words, they are easy.  But, if one raises one’s head to look, globally, it is not difficult to notice the increasing Chinese presence.  Business is beginning to notice this but, unfortunately, many schools have not ... yet.

All schools teach the French language, just as they did 60 years ago when I was at school.  Interestingly, not as a foreign language but, just because ... “we always have”.  The German language may be introduced in sixth grade for the same reason, together with Spanish (For some obscure reason).  But the slow acceptance of introducing Chinese is narrow-minded.

Originally, the Chinese language was not part of the GCSE and, fortunately, that has changed.  But, recently, I have noticed that some schools are teaching the Cantonese dialect instead of Mandarin.  Cantonese was the language of Hong Kong and may be heard in most Chinese restaurants, but even in Hong Kong today the CCP mandates the use of Mandarin.  Therefore, one wonders if some schools feel that their students will rarely visit China preferring, instead, to visit the local Chinese restaurant.

There is something to be said for the influence of the Confucius Institutes.