DENTAL great and INEXPENSIVE !!!

Dental Tourism

So what exactly is Dental Tourism?

Dental Tourism is basically traveling to another country and having your dental procedures done and yes being able to afford having a free luxury holiday to pamper you in the process.

Many years ago I was told by my dentist... .. 

"Go to Mexico, you can't afford me."

He was right of course, I couldn't afford him. 
I couldn't afford him because as a retired Canadian gentleman, that lived on a fixed income, I just plain did not have the added cash needed to fix my teeth in Canada. 

Hello I would like to introduce you to the many benefits of getting all your dental work done at incredible savings in Guatemala and yes also having that dream holiday.

Today in Canada if you do not have a good dental plan, well the cost of getting your teeth fixed or having an improved look (cosmetic surgery) well the costs are out of this world. Prohibitive for a lot of people.

Let me tell you a story (it won't be be too long). 

Well a couple of years ago I was in Guatemala learning some Spanish. I went there to Guatemala to learn Spanish because it is a lot cheaper and yes a lot easier to learn Spanish in Guatemala than in any other Latin American country. Believe me I checked every other country in Central America and even in Mexico which is part of North America.

I was at the time staying in a city called Quetzaltenango or Xela (shay-la) as the locals call it. Xela is located in the western highlands. Situated at an elevation of 2330 metres (7600 ft) well it is high enough that most bugs cannot exist. The weather there is probable the most perfect anywhere in the world. High elevation means no humidity just nice dry air.  

Then one day I had this horrible excruciating pain in my mouth... didn't I?"

I needed a dentist and I needed a dentist fast, didn't I? 

Getting remedies to fix pain is easy. You just visit a local pharmacy and tell them what you want (in Spanish) and you can get all sorts of painkillers and anti-inflammatory pills.

But of course that is just a quick fix and I needed to know what was wrong and what could be done to fix it properly.  

What I did not know at the time is that I needed a root canal done. Canada was way too far away to fly back for that and Canada was also far too expensive for me to afford that in Canada anyway.

So what could I do? What did I do? 

Well I painfully, that toothache remember, searched the city I was staying in for a dentist. Yes, found an excellent dental service and close to where I lived right in Xela. 

Now comes that part that shocked me.

Cost of the consultation - $18.00 and that included x rays.

Cost of the root canal - $ 100.00
(and he brought in a specialist to do the root itself).

I was first Xrayed with the results happening digitally right there on a laptop for me to see right before my eyes. It was explained to me in detail (the dentist spoke perfect English) what was going to happen next.

He first gave me a series of strong antibiotics to get the inflammation down and lessen the pain. Arrangements were made for me to visit in a few days. The total time for the whole procedure just took two visits and a final one later to check if everything was alright . 

During this period of time when I was having the dental work done, I was in contact with a friend of mine in Canada. My friend wanted to know much implants and a new set of dentures would be for her.

Get this unbelievable amount...yes...

Cost of four implants and an appliance $2700.00

Can you believe that, amazing  eh!!! It would cost at the minimum ten times that amount in Canada or in the USA. At least $25,000.

This is all done with state of the art equipment and materials and procedures. 

Most dentists that practice in Guatemala take local training in Guatemala which is excellent apparently and then additional training in either Mexico, Cuba or The United States. So the very best dentists in Guatemala are all really well trained.

So the reason I am sharing this with you is that I want you to experience what Guatemala can offer you. Inexpensive dental procedures. Beautiful exotic scenery and a kind and loving people. 

First off let's get show a few facts. Guatemala is safe. They had a civil war here yes, instigated and perpetuated by the CIA and the government of the USA, but that all ended in 1996. So travel to Guatemala and in Guatemala is just as safe there as anywhere else. 

The facts speak for themselves as there is more crime in the city of Los Angeles in the USA than in all of Mexico and Guatemala put together. And does anyone say do not go to Los Angeles as it is not safe there? No never!

Guatemala is truly amazing. And I want you to experience the best and most incredible savings you can ever have, by choosing a fully trained dental surgeon in Guatemala.

I have been traveling to Guatemala several times now, so know my way around. While I should be fluent in speaking espanol, I am not... but yes I do speak enough to get buy with, to ask directions, to book a room, to move about easily... a little bit of helps a lot. More importantly though what I have and can also offer you are some really great, reliable contacts in transportation and accommodation and in excellent dental clinics in Guatemala.

What I can offer you is the chance for you to save thousands of dollars ($$$) while getting your smile back and your teeth done with professionally trained dentists, and in the process having a nice place to live, where to eat and to play and so much more for you to experience. Xela while cool at night is (great for sleeping) and has a wonderfully warm temperature during the day. 

I want you to share with you all the fantastic cost savings for you...

Have you save money ($$$).

Getting dental work done in Guatemala could never be easier. 

Imagine getting needed dental procedures or cosmetic work done at a fraction of the cost of what is would cost in Canada or the USA. 

Yes that's right. 
In Guatemala the cost of dental work is 10 % of the comparable cost in Canada or the USA. 

I do not know about you (the reader) but I never want to spend my years looking like someone who cannot afford dental work done. 

I do not want to walk about with a sagging and gaping smile... with huge spaces or worse still with no teeth at all in my mouth. 
I enjoy eating too much... so no teeth would be a yuck (gummy) situation! 

******************************

Dental Tourism

Lets just imagine you need some dental work done on your teeth.

For argument sake lets say the cost in Canada or the United States is going to be $40,000.00.

Well that same cost, for the same work done, for the same qualified dentists and the same appliances is going to be a mere, yes just 10 percent of that same quality work and yes only $4,000.00. A huge difference of $36,000 dollar saving for you.

I bet you can have a great holiday anywhere for a lot less than the saving of $36,000.

****************

So just Imagine 

The return flight from anywhere in Canada or the USA to Guatemala city... 
All ground transportation while in Guatemala..
All your accommodation...
Great food and dining out... (after your teeth are fixed)
Being pampered and having fun ...
Plus a few days holiday in one of the many towns that surround Lago Atitlan...
A must visit to the beautiful city of Antigua... 

All for Free

Yes that's basically right as all of this is basically free when you consider the cost difference in savings of having your teeth fixed for so very little...

$40,000 minus $4000, minus the trip costs (approx $3000 to $4000).

What a saving... and I can help you get that.
Yes and I can help you save thousand of $$$.

What are you waiting for?
Lets get that smile back.

Want to know more contact me....<gavjonessm@gmail.com> 
  

Alcoholism

Alcoholism is a disease that not only affects those with the craving to drink alcohol, but everyone an alcoholic touches. It is rampant here with violence and abuse of women and children, taking its toil on the innocent.

Then you have that tourist alcoholic or those that choose to live here on a more permanent basis. 

For most people from the United States or Canada or Europe, Guatemala is an inexpensive place to be an alcoholic. You can drink till your liver sings and swells and eats away at you.. You can drink cheaply till it kills you.

Depression another disease is what feeds the alcoholic. A poor local man with perhaps too many children, or no work, or possibilities and starvation in his family will hide the effects of his life in drink. If he cannot afford alcohol, gasoline or sniffing glue will suffice. His intolerance places blame on everyone but himself, the result are battered women, sheltered in secret places. 

The perpetual alcoholic tourist, continues his/her eroding journey coupled with 90 day border rides to get another visa stamp and 90 more days of cheap alcoholism. They live from bottle to bottle. Lost souls from lost generations of life, forgetting some past, or pain, or family in their wake.

Alcoholism kills everyone not brave enough to face the truth.

      

Travel to Guatemala and Hostels

Hostel Prices...

Hostels come in all varieties and forms.
Some are professionally operated and some are not. Some are operated by amateurs, who have no business being in the hospitality business at all. 

Some are located close to attractions and some are not.
Some offer that great view, some do not.

The bottom line (for me) is that I never pay the price for a room that they want from me.

I worked in the hotel business for 12 plus years. 
Here I learned some tricks. 

The hotel or hostel business is very competitive and they all run on some pretty tight budgets. The ones that survive are the ones that are smarter. 

Prospective guests want different things and it is the hotel/hostel that MUST learn what you want and how to deliver that quality to the prospective guest without giving too much away. That is a fine line and it is the professionals that know how to walk that line and be profitable in the process. 

Okay lets look at some facts. 
Hostels operate (or should operate) on a wholesale budget for that room or bed. 

The wholesale price is what it takes to maintain, clean and present to the prospective guest that space.

The retail price is what they want to charge you.
The difference between the wholesale price and that advertised retail price is the area of negotiation. 

Okay lets say the (developing country) room costs $15 retail. Transfer that to your local currency.

The wholesale price of that room is probably around $2.50 for the cost the establishment needs to break even on that room.

I never pay that $ 15.00 retail cost and go for something in between. That is in between the wholesale price and the advertised retail price. 
I want a lower price yes, but I also have to be reasonable.

I know that the hostel wants to makes as much money as they can on that space and I know that I want to pay as little as possible for that space.

Getting the price down is the trick.

If you are a senior citizen then you can ask for the seniors rate. That should knock off a little from the room price. 

You can also say you belong to a travel group, or a car insurance group, or a even a large company or whatever. All of these areas should get the price down a little...Usually you do not have to even prove that you are associated with any company or organization.

You have to remember if you are dealing with a professional hostel well they want you to stay there. But if they are amateurs, well they will just stick to the price they want and will not sell that room at anything lower... That is a loss for them. 

It is a loss because the cost of maintaining that space is $2.50 remember and therefore that room is now costing them revenue they could have sold. Amatuer operators do not even realize this... and if you're brave enough you could even remind them that by not selling you a room at that price that you want to pay, that they are actually not just losing money on that space but that the empty room is costing them money while being empty.

Some hotel owners have no idea how to operate a business at all... they are amateurs. 

Another thing to mention when all else fails is to just say, is that the best price you can give me? If they say yes.... then stall a little as if you are thinking, perhaps pull out a small pad and write down their best price and tell them that you are going to check out the competition. 

Or you could even call a competitor right in front of them... even asking prices and what the competitor offers. You could even say " I am in 
"such and such hostel" and that "can you beat their price?"

Lets call this shock tactics.

Remember it could work... and you have nothing to lose attempting this..

You can also ask to speak to the manager. 

I remember one motor hotel in the United States that I stayed at, while on a long driving journey using similar tactics. 

When arriving there on a friday night I had noticed that their very large parking lot was mostly empty. That there was very little customer presence seen inside the hotel either. I surmised that they were either undergoing some renovation project or the hotel had been taken over by new owners. I was correct on both accounts.

When all attempts to lower that price fairly, had failed, I politely thanked the front desk clerk then turned and slowly walked away. 

Behind the desk and also behind the front desk clerk I earlier noticed a man in a business suit. When I walked away he did not just ask me to stop, but came after me and asked me what I wanted to pay. 

The hotel was under new management and under a total refit of the rooms, so they were not renting many rooms out at all. Any sale of any room was to the total advantage of the hotel at that time, so they were able to give me that room at my price. Yes this is a very rare example but one that is possible under certain circumstances.

Remember you have nothing to lose but a little time.

Also one thing to remember is the season you are there. If there is some big event going on in the area , well you will most likely have to pay their price and it may be even an inflated price. 

But if the area is dead of tourists, has a glut of half empty places well that makes you more in control of the situation.

Being direct may make you seem bossy or not liked, but the bottom line here is that you are doing all of this to stay cheaper. 

Read the reviews on their place. If they have some bad reviews ask them if they have been fixed. Remember you have nothing to lose. If they are amateurs this is your opportunity to take control.

Some places sell a great view, and can you believe it, some try to sell great coffee.... as an advantage to stay there... Duh..what!!!

Well as a seasoned traveller that great view and that (so called great) coffee do not cut it for me. I need a secure and quiet place, with access to the property on my terms, comfortable and a clean room, with staff that know the value of great customer service. I also want to pay a price that I feel is fair... fair for them and yes fair for me..

Happy hunting... 

Remember it can be fun... so take charge and get that right price for you... 

You have nothing to lose, so try it.

Drugs.... be careful

Drugs...

Drugs of every kind imaginable illegal or legal are of course available in Guatemala.

They are really available everywhere.. in the world if you want them.

Please do not get me wrong here.... I am not here to agree (or disagree) with drug useage. Trafficking is widespread and yes dangers exist here or elsewhere in the world.
Buyer beware.

But getting caught with drugs in your possession for a foreigner is really bad news. It is way worse than in Canada or Europe or the USA where the availability has been governed by decriminalization in many areas.

In Guatemala they take a dim view of people from other countries using drugs in Guatemala. Using something as simple as weed is really bad for us. For the Guatemalan people themselves, they might get a slap on the wrist.

So forget it.. and forget the embassy of whatever country you are from, your embassy is not going to be helping you. Forget it for that is just NOT going to happen. What is going to happen to you is that you will be stuck in a very uncomfortable place for a long time.

Yes you will going to jail.

Guatemala you see works under French rule. 
With French rule you are considered guilty till proven innocent. Not the other way around.

Dealing drugs in Guatemala is really a bad thing for you to do and if caught you will go to jail. You will go to jail and for a very long time.

Jail time will involve a very uncomfortable experience for you. Forget exercise rooms and big colour TV's, or even an outside exercise area. Forget about your rights as human being, because you won't have any. In your cramped crowded jail cell, which depending where they send you will be either cold or clammy, certainly bug ridden and crowded. You will not have anything, resembling comfort or safety. Yes extra comfort can come from your bank account. With money you can spend a better time in jail. You may not have to work, You may have a blanket at night. With money you may have an opportunity to have a woman visit you.

The only thing you will not have is freedom to leave or be bothered of being taken advantage of or beaten up my other cell mates. They will steal from you at every opportunity and take everything you have.

I have never been to jail, in Guatemala or anywhere else. But yes I have spoken to people that have been incarcerated in Guatemala and in other Latin American countries. My accounts here come from the many stories and desperation these people have experienced.

So the advise here is, don't get caught or better still just stay clean.

Buyer beware... the consequences of getting caught far outways the simple pleasures derived.

CNN Guatemala

It is another warm day here in Guatemala.

The sun is really bright and the heat you feel on you is filled with warmth. Step into the shade and you soon realize what the elevation here brings with its cool dry air and arid climate. Just a short distance away and towards the pacific ocean (a one hour ride by chicken bus) and you would be bathed in your own sweat, yes in a tropical paradise.

I try to notice simple things. 
Looking beyond my doorway I see petaled leaves of the courtyard trees arrange themselves delicately, splattered across the thin stick like branches. The leaves are a vivid collection of pink, magenta, and purple. A soft breeze gently caresses them making slight movements to the array. Some loosing grasp flutter to the ground. A petaled blanket.

I do not watch TV much preferring to connect with the people and alone I write stories, keep my blogs updated or read a good book. I am presently leafing my way through a James Patterson novel on crime and mystery. His words and thoughts well written, linger as I pattern together the jist of the story. It is a friendly escape. 

One night recently I decided to watch TV. As my fingers surfed the channels with the remote control, I came across a program on CNN that had something to do with Guatemala. The show featured how medical supplies and other goods that where destined for Guatemala became lost in an mire of red tape and political mumbo jumbo. 

Nothing new there. 

The hypothesis of the show was how a company called Charity Services International, had collected funds destined for Guatemala. As charities are difficult to manage and yes detect inner corruption, those funds and medical goods had mysteriously disappeared. 

Charity Services International is not a charity, but with its somewhat misleading company title, it certainly would fool a lot of people into believing it is. Me included.

Charity Services International, is one of such companies of many for profit companies, who's purpose is to collect funds for charities. 
In some aspects such companies are needed, their fixed for profit focus well channeled into generating profit. 

The missing sum mentioned was 40 million dollars and in such a poor country as Guatemala with its uneven wealth and power structure that sum would make a visible impact. 

It has not. 

While I see the production like the CNN show having a moral obligation in exposing wrong doings, what it also does is condemn  a country and its people into a much worse case scenario. Mistrust of alleged funds for Guatemala and anyone thinking of donating now to help, will look carefully holding back donations badly needed. 

There is a juxtaposition of values here. 

The production contributes and exposes wrong doing yes, but all in the face value of self interest. CNN we have to remember is also looking for more exposure for itself, more viewers in a tight market. Yes 40 million dollars gone missing is not just a tidy sum but a huge massive amount, an immoral waste supposedly destined to assist and cure the needy.

It is also perhaps an exaggeration of the truth.  

The Anderson Cooper show I witnessed was editorially well produced stabbing blame visually where needed. But hidden within the lines of journalism though, it also contributes to this problem.

The contribution it gives is not to trust, is not to give. This is ethically I believe immoral. 

Where is that massive sum of monies? 

Perhaps it lives within the imaginations of companies like Charity Services International allowing with its premise figures conjured and molded from representational needs. The premise being that the more money it supposedly collects, the more charities needing funding will look at this company as one that is professional and knows how to work effectively.

Regardless if that sum exists or ever existed, what this expose does, is hurt those that are in need the most. 

Twenty percent of the population in Guatemala live on less than a dollar a day. In 2012, 9000 people starved to death. Children are most at risk with infant mortality rates higher than other country. Most children never go beyond the grade six education that is mandatory. 

I see in this guise of a story something akin to the vulgarity that tabloid sensationalism is. 

Instead of vaguely representing what is truth here with miss directed story babble, perhaps what was needed was discovery of the real truth first. 

Instead the viewer was left with that empty feeling of corruption and that whatever happens in Guatemala is well deserved isn't it? After-all isn't it a country embroiled and wrapped in violence and corruption at all levels ? 

Truth like history is written by those in control, the winners. The exaggerated presentation of what a country is or is not, is just misdirected truth. It has little to do with reality. We can generalize all we want but that has little to do with the real values or truths a country is all about. 

I was appalled at CNN for presenting this visual escapade into fantasy. Get the facts first, then make the story fit those facts. The reverse may sell TV time, but what it truly really does is hurt those in need.