Well you certainly don't have to be interested in UFO or other such things to enjoy Ecuador but you would be well advised to learn some Spanish if you want to have a full and rewarding experience. There are very few places where English is spoken and if you only speak English then you will be in the Expat ghetto for all of your social interaction and much of your commercial life as well, which you will have to pay a premium for. The country is not large but it has a number of climatic zones that are more dependent upon elevation than upon latitude because Ecuador straddles the Equator. Guayaquil on the Pacific coast is hot and humid year round, Quito is quite cool at 9,000' ASL, Cuenca is about the same and is a continuous springtime but wet and cool, The Amazona is very hot again and then there are all the points in between that tend to be somewhere in between climate wise - plus the Galapagos which are unique.
Ecuador was hyped by International Living for it's wonderful climate and affordability for retirees and as a result there has been a large influx of economic expat retirees moving to Ecuador for the past decade and more. It's not as rosy as all that but it is quite nice. The living can be very easy in Ecuador.

@Surfpirate thanks for that rundown. I've been looking at the notion of getting out of here for extended periods of time, and have superficially explored (via the internet and people I've communicated with) areas of Mexico and Central America; both have large/growing expat communities. One question; did you have your own car, or rely on public transportation while in Ecuador?

@Condor5 Wherever you decide to go there is one sage piece of expat advice that applies to all places, rent for at least a year before you even consider buying. I know a lot of people who lost their shirts jumping into the real estate market while in the honeymoon phase of being an expat.

@Surfpirate I'm too old to consider purchasing, don't want the responsibility anyway. Thanks for the advice, however.

@Condor5 I have a couple of expat friends from our time in Ecuador who now live in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico and they really love it there. It would be much easier and affordable for you to get there, you could even drive it. Just a thought.

@Surfpirate I will check that out, thanks.

@Condor5 De nada.

Yes, plenty of churches and the cathedral of course. It's a beautiful structure with it's blue domes but out front are rows of beggars and religious trinket sellers. Inside is an obscene amount of gold.
The golden altar at the Catedral de Concepcion is rumoured to have 5 tons of pure gold in it but out side the main doors are beggars and hustlers, this floating angel is one of the more upscale performers.

@Surfpirate ...crazy how much $$$ is spent on such things, while the parishioners and other townspeople struggle to survive. That 'floating angel' is a totally cool dude with those shades!

@CelticFire He must get bored but he is a real operator, I saw him trying to pick up a young chick passing by that he seemed to know, she just blew him off and he went back into character.
There is a town about an hour drive out of Cuenca that was the original capital for the area but the governor abused the natives so badly, constantly demanding more and more gold that eventually the natives attacked him and the whole town the night before the tribute was to be delivered. The natives killed everyone in the town and poured molten gold down the throat of the governor in an attempt to quench his insatiable thirst for gold.
The nuns are pretty hot though, I'd never seen a nun in heels before I went to Cuenca. lol

@Surfpirate .."Hot Nuns", sounds like an adult entertainment film waiting to happen, if it hasn't already!

@CelticFire They sure look like 4" heels to me but a lot of the women in Ecuador are short and go to extreme lengths to look taller, even the nuns.

@Surfpirate I'm not short, but I'd get on board with the 4" heels too!

@CelticFire Let's just say that's it's easy to spot the other expats. Just look over top of the other heads and anything visible is probably an expat.