Time is flying. 60 days is what remains until we make the move to Aruba. 60 days. Two months. Eight weeks. So what still needs to be done in that amount of time? The answer is A LOT!
The purpose of this blog is two-fold. First, to keep our friends and family aware of our plans and second, to inform others who might be considering a similar move on the processes and what it takes to move from the U.S. As every country has different rules and procedures, of course there will be variances, but at least you will get a general idea. Lately, we have had the conversation of how someone who is not completely organized and very patient could never make a move like this happen. There are so many details to coordinate, and if you aren’t staying on top of every little thing, making a million lists, and having oodles of patience with an occasional meltdown, then moving to a different country just might not be for you.
So what has happened thus far? As stated previously, our residency permitting was submitted in November of 2015 and we have been waiting on Aruba’s DIMAS to get us to the next step. We just had another update about this and found out that they are currently processing applications from October, so we are getting there. It is definitely not the 2-3 months we were told, but again, this is where the patience comes in. So now we know that we will do the health testing portion and finalize our residency status AFTER we have actually moved. Good news in this area is that we were also told that the Minister (similar to President in U.S.) is about to pass a law that will allow Americans and Europeans to remain in Aruba while waiting their residency permits to be finalized. That means that when we applied in November, we could have then stayed on the island indefinitely. The regular time for a visitor is 180 days, then you must leave. For the permitting, we will just continue to be patient and allow DIMAS to do their thing.
When will we ship our stuff? Well, we aren’t quite sure yet, but we should have a date in the next week or so. We have been in touch with the same shipping company for months, asking several questions, getting quotes, time frames, etc. We are at the point now where they are getting the shipping schedules finalized and then they will let us know when they will pick up the goods. We are shipping our car and two pallets of boxes in a 20 foot container. There are many boxes packed and we will continue to pack until there is just nothing left. It’s been the most challenging figuring out what we are still using until the boxes go away and also what we won’t need in those last couple weeks while things are in transit. Pretty much we will live out of suitcases, use paper plates, and eat out a lot during the end days before leaving. It seriously feels the packing and selling things is never ending, but we are getting there!
Where will we live? Hmmmm….we don’t know this yet! What? Again, patience. We have been in touch with several different real estate agents to find us a long-term rental, but nothing is available that fits our criteria. At first this could make us freak out a little, but if we think about it, it makes sense. If someone is renting a house and needs to give a 30 days notice that they will move out the first of July, that hasn’t happened yet. We are hoping several people will need to move in June and give us some choices. If push comes to shove, we will move into a vacation rental for the first few weeks and try to find something after we arrive. Don’t freak out – we’re trying not to! The other thing is, being homeless on the beautiful island of Aruba can’t really be that bad, right?!?
So those are the major things – shipping the stuff, finalizing residency, and finding a residence! There are 20 million other little things. You should see my sticky notes! We have all sent in our passport renewals, ordered a home phone (we will have a US number through Vonage), contacted the company who will coordinate flying Molly to Aruba, purchased our plane tickets, scheduled the car maintenance that needs done, given our notice that we are moving out of our current rental, had 4,000 garage sales with one more to go, and sold many other things through other listings. Is there anything else you would like to know? I probably have a sticky note somewhere talking about something pertaining to just about every subject imaginable
The next 60 days are going to go so fast! There are still a lot of things we need to finalize, but this is happening and it’s happening FAST! In the midst of moving, our Maddie also turns 18 and graduates in the next 10 days, but that’s the subject of a whole different blog! So yes, things are a little nutty, but we love it. Again, the key to making a move to a different country is organization and P A T I E N C E. Until next time….
Z Island Life 