By Linda Card, InternationalLiving.com
This article comes to us courtesy of InternationalLiving.com, the world's leading authority on how to live, work, invest, travel, and retire better overseas.
Valle Escondido, Boquete, Panama
I was in my favorite grocery store the other day buying fresh chicken at the butcher counter, and it made me think about a recent food scare in the U.S. One of the mega-conglomerate producers had recalled thousands of pounds of chicken, due to possible contamination. Then over coffee the next morning I read a story online about health insurance companies raising their "affordable" premiums by 20 percent to 40 percent next year. And I realized how relieved I am that those things don't concern me here in Chiriquí Province, Panama.
One of the major benefits of living in Panama -- aside from the fantastic weather, highly affordable lifestyle, and great healthcare -- is intangible. It's simply not having to worry about things that might stress me out up north.
I don't worry about being able to pay my utility bills. No matter where you live in Panama, you'll never have to pay a heating bill. That could represent huge savings for North Americans, almost all of whom have to pay for fuel oil, natural gas, electricity, wood, coal, or something else to heat their homes for several months of every year. You may see a fireplace in the highlands of Panama here and there, and they are cozy on a chilly night, but they're mostly just for show.
In fact, I don't even use air conditioning in my home. Sure, it gets hot some days, especially in March and April before rainy season returns. And I can't say I recommend doing without air conditioning in any of the lowland areas of Panama. But we manage with fans, and my electric bill runs about $36 a month.
As long as we're talking about weather, I don't have any worries there, either. Panama is outside the hurricane zone, so we don't get any. Nor do we have tornadoes. Thunderstorms are fairly common, but they don't last long. I never give a thought to my plumbing pipes freezing, or thawing out my car in the morning. We feel an occasional earthquake, and I'm thankful for the little ones that prevent the big ones. Other than that, my only gripe is too much sunshine.
I don't worry about going to the doctor or the dentist. Even before the current healthcare mandates in the U.S., it was a hassle for me to get an appointment with my doctor in Florida. He was one of many in a large physicians' group, and even getting through to talk to a person and schedule an appointment was a challenge. And that was just the beginning, if I needed any kind of diagnostic tests or follow-up.
Now I go to Hospital Chiriquí, near my home in David, for all my medical needs. I can go to any doctor I want to, without a referral, an authorization, or an appointment, and pay $20 to $40 for a consultation. If I need any kind of tests -- blood work, X-rays, ultrasound, etc. -- it's no problem. I just go to the hospital when it's convenient for me, pay the bill ($30 for a mammogram, $5 for most blood tests, for instance), wait my turn, and get what I need. No hassle at all.
I don't worry about being shot, robbed, or hurt. Of course Panama has crime -- every place does. But overall, Panama is a very safe country, and crimes tend to be non-violent thefts, as opposed to school, shopping mall, or movie-theater massacres. At my home in the city of David, I leave my windows wide open all the time, unless my husband Al and I leave overnight.
I don't worry about the food I eat. While I don't have my own garden, most of what I eat is grown or produced locally. That's one of the reasons why I chose Chiriquí Province as my home here in Panama. Fruits and vegetables are fresh, readily available, and inexpensive. Once I complained about finding slugs in some lettuce at my favorite produce stand, and the owner shrugged and said to me, "Well, at least you know it's not loaded with chemicals." She's right!
The other day I went to a meat market here in David that friends had raved about. It was spotlessly clean, smelled good, and had nice posters on the wall of the various cuts of meat. The owners were very welcoming, and I could see half a hog hanging in the adjoining room. The butcher told me it was raised locally, and showed me some lamb from a rancher in nearby Caldera. I bought some hand-cut pork chops for $2.53 per pound, and they were tender and delicious for supper that night. You just can't beat that.
There are things I do worry about here, to be sure -- such as whether or not my favorite grocery store will run out of my favorite butter or my Melitta coffee filters. It annoys me that they can't keep their inventory stocked. It's difficult where I live to find good tradesmen, so I worry about getting a good plumber. And I worry about avoiding traffic. We actually have three rush-hours: morning, evening, and midday, when everyone goes to lunch or takes their kids home from school.
Occasionally I have far greater anxieties, such as deciding whether to spend a beach day at Playa Las Lajas or Las Olas Resort! I worry that my friends may be upset if I don't join them for a musical performance at the community theater in Boquete. It may stress me a bit to choose between visiting the archaeological site in the highland town of Volcán, versus going to the canyon swimming hole in Gualaca.
But these social concerns and minor inconveniences are insignificant when I consider the most amazing benefit to me of living overseas ... freedom from worry.
"Master Class" Activities For A Successful Retirement
Genealogy(01 of14)
Open Image Modal"I have over ten thousand names in my [genealogical] file and am hooked on not just the facts, but the story-writing. I reconnect with cousins I haven't seen since I was a teen. I meet new relatives online and in person, even fifth cousins, who I never know I had... There's nothing like knowing that you had an ancestor in the Battle of Saratoga..." -Jean Benning, 75 (credit:Alamy)
Cultural Immersion Travel(02 of14)
Open Image Modal"I traveled with the Hershey (Pennsylvania) Community Chorus to sing in Wales. When you visit the valleys in the east it's like going back in time; people aren't attached to their computers and mobile phones. I started renting an apartment in the city of Pontypool for six months a year. Now I have a lot of friends there and even volunteer at a shop where the proceeds support cancer research." -Judith Emmers, 69 (credit:Alamy)
Exercise(03 of14)
Open Image Modal"I'm lucky enough to live across the street from a gym. I go over there two mornings a week and work out for an hour at 5:30 a.m., and then see a trainer for another hour. I also do water aerobics three times a week. I do it so I can keep doing the things I love, not because I love the exercise. I didn't start exercising until I was sixty-six." -Corinne Lyon, 74 (credit:Alamy)
Travel(04 of14)
Open Image Modal"I spent my seventieth birthday in a hot tub six thousand feet up Mount Hood. I didn't want my kids to think they had to do something special." -Carolyn Rundorff, 71 (credit:Alamy)
Group Bicycling(05 of14)
Open Image Modal"A group of us organized a trip along the Natchez Trace from Nashville, Tennessee, to Natchez, Mississippi. We researched stops and places to stay, and every day one of us was the designated driver to haul the gear. You want to know the people fairly well before you set out on something like this. We covered 444 miles in less than a week." -Bill Dunn, 65 (credit:Alamy)
Book Clubs(06 of14)
Open Image Modal"We started the Canetti Literary Society in December 1981. [Elias] Canetti...had just won the Nobel Prize for Literature. I have a Masters in Literature and had never heard of Canetti. So I thought it was a good time to read his work, and the best way would be to have a book club with other women who might be interested in reading good literature. We are still in existence." -Anne Richtel, 95 (credit:Alamy)
Volunteering As A Docent(07 of14)
Open Image Modal"I'm training to be a museum docent at the Bishop Museum in Honolulu. The training to be certified is rigorous -- six hours a week for six weeks, then shadowing a certified docent, then delivering your spiel to two different staff members in two different areas of the museum." -Therese Wilkin, 63 (credit:Alamy)
Dancing(08 of14)
Open Image Modal"I began morris dancing in 1984 and long sword dancing in 1989. These forms are English and date back several centuries. I get exercise; a very close bond with a group of people of both genders and a variety of ages; the challenge of learning and performing a wide variety of rather complex and demanding dances; and the satisfaction of helping keep ancient traditions alive and growing." -Robert Orser, 79 (credit:Alamy)
Gardening(09 of14)
Open Image Modal"It is lovely to come to this physical and spiritual, scientific and creative body of knowledge at this point in my life. When I talk over the back fence with my gardening neighbors or give someone a bouquet of flowers from my garden, I know just how my grandmother and mother felt when they did the same thing." -Ally McKay, 68 (credit:Alamy)
Singing In A Choir(10 of14)
Open Image Modal"We had one piece that we were doing at a festival, which we had only a short time to learn, and we rehearsed on the bus to Abilene. We were the last to perform, and our director was very nervous. We rehearsed one last time before going on, and everyone in the choir got every note right. It's a pleasure you can't understand if you haven't done it. It really keeps you going." -Mary Roberson, 70 (credit:Alamy)
Community Theater(11 of14)
Open Image Modal"The best part of community theater is that no one cares about your politics, your religion, or your money. Everyone's on the same bus. I've gotten so much out of it. My closest friends come from there. The ones I depend on, the ones who have my back, come from the theater." -Ellen Kazin, 71 (credit:Alamy)
Writing(12 of14)
Open Image Modal"When I retired I took several Road Scholar watercolor trips and subsequently read everything I could find on Winslow Homer... My wife suggested that I had uncovered so much material on Homer that I should write a book... The rewards are beyond my fondest dreams...I believe that has brought me as close to the Master as one can get." -Robert Demarest, 83 (credit:Alamy)
Learning A Foreign Language(13 of14)
Open Image Modal"I started [studying Italian] when my husband and I were planning our first of four Road Scholar trips to Italy. I have found other people -- over two hundred of them, to be exact -- in an organization called Il Circolo Italiano on the Philadelphia Main Line, who come together to speak and promote the Italian Language and culture... They are the warmest people you would every want to meet." -Jean Benning, 75 (credit:Alamy)
Volunteering With Habitat For Humanity(14 of14)
Open Image Modal"I wanted to do something in retirement that would give back to the community and to people in need, and this seemed to be an excellent candidate... The major reward is seeing families that are living in great need...partner with us in building first other people's and then their own homes, and then move into what in most cases is the first home they have ever owned." -Robert Bond, 75 (credit:Alamy)
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