The BBC reports on Uruguay, to which after a decades-long pause, expatriates from rich countries are again choosing to live.In 2009, for the first time in 44 years, the country saw a positive migration influx, while the number of applicants who got residence permits has tripled in only four years.Although most of the new legal residents come from neighbouring countries (half from Argentina and Brazil), the number of American and European applicants is also growing.And even though the figures remain small, the arrival of hundreds of people from the northern hemisphere is starting to be noticed in this country of 3.3 million.“If you look south of the US, Uruguay stands out for its clean water, good and healthy food, a good educational system, and good infrastructure, both in terms of roads and of internet access,” Ronald Yoder, an American who just settled in the country, told the BBC.Mr Yoder came to Uruguay in 2009, after Casey Research, an American investing newsletter he reads, rated the country as a good place to live in and invest.This 64-year-old entrepreneur and investor decided to move to Piriapolis, a seaside resort situated an hour’s drive from the capital, Montevideo.For Paco Bermejo, a 44-year-old Spanish entrepreneur who came to Montevideo with his family last March to start a garden centre and landscaping business “in Uruguay, you feel optimistic about the future, something you don’t find in Europe anymore”.“You get a better quality of life, more safety, easy-going people and good weather,” he adds.Michael Brown was transferred to Uruguay from California in 2005, and when it was time to go back, he decided to stay.“You get good food, good wine, nice people, plus there is no rush-hour traffic, and I can get by speaking almost no Spanish at all,” he told the BBC.