The Panama Diaries

Hemispheres would like to introduce Mike Gamble, a new contributor and part time expat in Panama.   "Fresh eyes", as I call them are wonderful and as often as we can, we'll find them and include articles that tell the first views, thoughts, and impressions of a person moving to a new country.   After a while, all things become "Normal" and these diaries from Mike, tell the story through a fresh set of eyes.

Mike, like many folks has some strong reasons for his move.   He opens up and includes them in this opening article.  Mike is one of a small group of people that move beyond just talking about doing something and is actually doing it.   He's one of the pioneers blazing a trail for others and his experiences can be both helpful and entertaining to anyone thinking of doing the same thing.   Enjoy the article and if Panama is on your radar screen, be sure to reach out to Mike as a resource.  Now let's hear from Mike:

Why the Diaries?

When friends and acquaintances became aware that my wife and I were considering retiring to a foreign destination the reactions were very different indeed!  Some expressed fascination at the possibility, some had recently heard of others who were considering a similar move and some thought we were downright nuts!  So I undertook to record our thoughts, observations and experiences and share them with those who had expressed an interest.  I suspect their interest stemmed from two sources; sincere curiosity and a desire to gauge our sanity.

Background
                                  
Shortly after retiring in January of 2010 I became ever more interested in the stock market and political and economic affairs.  I always had these interests but seldom the time to pursue them in any depth.  Hours of reading and research led me to the conclusion that the future of the North American economies, their ability to continue present levels of spending (without substantial additional tax revenues) and indeed their very fiscal survival were at risk.  Since time, we have witnessed the Greek and Irish financial melt downs and are at risk of seeing Portugal, Spain and Italy follow in the near future.  The second round of quantitative easing ( “QE 2” - read printing more money) by the US Fed is putting the US economy on a similar path and at some point in the not too distant future these “chickens will come home to roost” and we will find ourselves faced with inflation (as the increased volume of dollars chases after relatively fixed amounts of goods), the loss of the dollar as the international reserve currency (foreign governments don’t want to hold our dollars thereby effectively importing our inflation) and the possible financial failure of additional countries, even including the US, as wild as that may seem today.  These are entirely my conclusions but I firmly believe that future economic problems brought on by misguided policies of the past and present will result in previously unimagined levels of taxation and government intrusion into the private lives of individuals. 

As a result, I decided that it would be prudent to research various retirement alternatives outside of North America with a view to protecting our limited financial assets in a jurisdiction that offered financial security, favorable tax treatment and additionally, if possible, financial incentives to foreign retirees establishing therein.

In the process of conducting my research I came upon many sources of information from which to glean fact, opinion and inevitable marketing hype on various foreign destinations.  There is an understandable relationship that emerges between folks who publish material on the subject of overseas living and the developers of properties in their subject destinations.  It is important that anyone researching overseas living clearly understand this.  The old concept of “caveat emptor” needs to be front and center if one is to seriously embark on retirement relocation outside North America; more on that later.

Where we’re coming from

As we researched the subject of relocating outside North America, it became clear that in order to understand various articles and presentations, the context in which ideas, facts and opinions were presented was of critical importance.  Our tastes, standards and lifestyle may vary greatly from those of a given author.  That is why I chose to attempt a little context at the beginning of this undertaking so that the reader would be able to understand the perspective from which the various facts and opinions are presented.

Different folks seek different environments in which to retire.  Some want no change, some seek adventure, others relocation to the mountains, fishing, wildlife, beaches, etc, etc.  This is a critical element in understanding what follows.  We are both 65+ years of age and are seeking a beach in the front yard and a golf course in the back yard.  So understand that what follows will necessarily be skewed in that direction although I will attempt to cover other perspectives, albeit necessarily in an incomplete fashion. 

My research led us firstly to Panama as it offers the most advantageous relocation benefits with its “Pensionado” visa.  More about that later; for now let’s get to our Panamanian experience.

Panama

We arrived at Panama’s Tocumen international airport (PTY) on October 20th 2010.  We were attending a conference on relocating to Panama and were met by a driver who took us to our hotel (~30 minutes) in Panama City (PC).  Major hotels in Panama are pretty comparable to those in North America (we stayed at a Four Points Sheraton) with the exception of language and food.  In Panama City, Spanish is desirable but not absolutely necessary; outside the city Spanish is pretty much a necessity for effective communication however, our combination of English, French and sign language usually held us in good stead.  As to the food, it is simply different and the quality is not what we have come to expect in NA.  Meats are not chemically treated so they are less tender than we are used to and possibly better for you.  Cows are not fattened up for slaughter so meat is less fat but perhaps healthier.  Beef, pork and poultry are readily available however veal, lamb and specialty meats are not to be found outside the more expensive specialty stores in Panama City.   Vegetable selection is limited.  Fresh fish is plentiful, good and inexpensive (we bought fresh jumbo shrimps for $7.00/lb in a local supermarket).

The Country

Panama, like any other Central or South American country is definitely a “third world country”. What do I mean by “third world”?  Here is the best description I can think of;
1)  The amenities we take for granted in NA are not necessarily available
2)  The people are generally poor by our standards
3)  Cities are not clean and orderly.  Zoning (commercial, residential, industrial) is notably absent, streets may or may not be identified and sidewalks may be broken up or non-existent.  Traffic may be like a bad day at the zoo!
4)  Public sanitation services are distinctly inferior
5)  The majority of the population lives in housing you would not occupy
6)  Public transportation is not what we know in NA.  Taxi and bus (“Diablos Rojos”-Red Devils) rides are a nerve wracking experience and their drivers are certifiably crazy!
7)  Highways are inferior to downright poor (you need a four wheel drive SUV).  The Pan American highway is however, for the most part, in pretty good condition and between PC and Santiago is two lanes in each direction.  Past Santiago it narrows to two lanes so passing slower traffic becomes sport as Panamanian drivers have yet to discover turn signal indicators (I’m told the use of turn signals identifies you immediately as a “gringo”) and appear to believe any change in direction should come as a complete surprise to other drivers.