Hi Deanna, you should be able to get internet very quickly (a day or two) depending on the provider you opt to go with. Then again, it’s Ecuador and may end up taking 3 or 4 days… or 6. There are two providers in Cotacachi I use: Christian Cadena (speaks English) who can have you up and running quickly and will charge per month and allow you to shut down and restart at will. His email address is infomultisoluciones@gmail.com. Or you can go through CNT, the phone company, that has offices behind the Iglesia Catholic church. You have to have a phone line for this latter service.
I don’t know about any roommate share forums, but there is a Facebook page called ‘Cotacachi Expats’ that you may want to join.
Various banks have different policies. I am uncertain about the exact policies of the three banks in Cotacachi but ask that question of the folks on that Facebook page. As I’ve said before, I’ve chosen not to have a bank account in Ecuador. Just uses my ATM card for withdrawals from my US bank. Makes life easier for me.
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