OK, we know what you’re thinking.

“Lancaster, Pennsylvania?!? What is the ‘retiring abroad’ couple doing there?”

We’d be asking the same thing. Let us explain.

After spending months in Mexico over the summer, then visiting family in the States, issues arose that made leaving the country again in 2021 impractical.

So…

We shifted gears and began researching best retirement locations in the U.S.

Unsurprisingly, several of the top picks were in Florida, which for many reasons holds no interest to us.

But more than once we noticed Lancaster being mentioned. In 2019 it was #1 in the entire country according to U.S. News & World Report.

Their top ranking reflected favorable scores in areas like housing affordability, desirability, health care, and overall happiness.

Having never even heard of the place, we were immediately intrigued. You see, we’d never heard of Cuenca, Ecuador, when it popped up on an Internet search in 2008.

And you know what happened with that discovery.

October...