Puerto Vallarta, Mexico - The August 22nd edition of International Living magazine named Mexico the second most popular Global Retirement destination for 2011. We continue to report these articles to emphasize how popular Mexico is for retirement:

White sand beaches and turquoise-blue seas, with hammocks swaying nearby... centuries-old Spanish-colonial cities with winding, cobblestone streets and fountain-filled plazas... towering Mexico is rich in romance, as the one million-plus U.S. and Canadian expats who live there will tell you.

But expats don’t live by romance alone. Fortunately, Mexico also provides solid, modern-day comforts and conveniences. That secluded, away-from-it-all beach on the deserted, packed-sand road? You can get within a few miles of it on a modern highway — one of the many that criss-crosses Mexico. Those centuries-old cities with their colonial homes? Today their walls conceal telephone and high-speed Internet cables and their roofs sport satellite dishes and solar water heaters.

Likewise, health care is very much 21st century, with first-rate hospitals, clinics, and medical staff. (Don’t speak Spanish? Many doctors, especially in private clinics, speak English.) And the bill will likely run you half or less of what you’d pay at home.

In fact, life in Mexico can cost you up to 40% less than what you’d pay in the U.S. for a similar lifestyle. It’s also lived at a slower, more gracious pace. And that is what, finally, many expats seek. As expat Jill Jackson, who lives in Loreto, Baja California Sur, explains: "It lets me be the person I have always wanted to be."

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Learn Vallarta is dedicated to education and cultural integration. Owned and operated by two Americans and their staff who live in Vallarta fulltime, they deliver personal and helpful assistance in learning more about this charming tropical environment and its friendly people. Located in downtown Puerto Vallarta, Learn Vallarta's office hours are Monday through Saturday from 9 am to 7 pm. For more information, call (322) 223-1566 in PV or 1-888-856-3120 toll free from the US & Canada, send an email to info(at)LearnVallarta.com, or visit their website at LearnVallarta.com.

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