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3 thoughts on “13 Downsides to Living in Manizales: An Expat Perspective – 2021 Update”
Hi, I am an North American expat living in a rural farm area, between El Penol and Guatape. Prior to this, I spent my life on a Ranch in eastern Oregon. I initially came to this area simply because it was rural. I am a big fan of getting on the bus, going to town, getting what I need and then coming home to peace and quiet. But I decided to stay because of the people who live and work around me. For me, the downsides of living in Colombia are far outweighed by the graciousness and warmth of the people of Colombia. I personally believe a significant factor in deciding whether to live here or not is the friends, the connections and the quality of life a person can find here. I do not mind a bit paying 19% when I buy something, I got sorta tired of living under a government that told me ” You owe us money, now use your time and energy to prove to us how much” so it being a done deal at the time of purchase is just fine with me. I don’t miss Mc Donalds much anymore. So hang in there everyone, you might just find the downsides aren’t so evident in a year or two. Jeff
Manizales is my adopted home away from home, so I’m biased. But, I have one major problem with your article: You use comparisons to larger cities like Medellin, Bogota and Cali when it’s suitable to create a negative point, yet ignore them when it doesn’t. For example: yes, Manizales has less hospitals, restaurants, etc than these larger cities. It’s fair to list those as negative points. Then, however, you list security as an issue, not mentioning that Manizales is a much safer city than the three larger cities previously mentioned. For anyone living in Colombia or seriously considering it, the security level in Manizales would be a plus, not a minus. It would only be a downside for anyone who wasn’t truly prepared to live in Latin America.
Nice post, I went to Manizales and agree with you about the downsides. Too cold and hilly for me. Also, too small of a city without the selection of restaurants, shops and nightlife you can find in a bigger city like Medellin.