Relocating to Boquete, why?

Hi Nadica,

Welcome to Expat-blog!

I hope other members will be able to help you.

I wish you good luck
Christine

Hi Nadica, in order to answer all the questions we should write a book for you
We have been living in the area for ten years and four in Boquete.
Boquete is a nice place to live but depends what you are looking for. I don't believe there is much in colleges and in case should travel every day to David. Road is becoming a four lane to David. 33 minutes drive. It is not the cheapest place in Panama but probably one of the most confortable if you don't like big cities. There is a big Gringo community in Boquete and for gringo I mean expat in general (we are all gringos for them).
Much depend from the job. I have seen many business born and drop in matter of months sometime days. There is a bit rise of crime but mostly burglary like every where in the world.
If you make more specific questions we can try to answer.
If you read Italian can find some info on my blog www.sognandolestero.com
Hope it can help a bit.
Flavio

Grazie Flavio, thank you for your kind reply.
Well, certainaly coming there from a big city is more than a leap. We don't plan to open any personal business but simply let my husband work for his new employer. If anything, I am the one who need to find something to do....BTW, I am an English teacher with experience both with children and adults. Maybe I can get a position somewhere?
With this regard, you mention there is a big Gringo community, I wonder if only from the States or also from other countries; and what age range. There are families with children like us? Are Gringo friendly enough? I believe that if you are good people, everywhere you'll travel around the world you'll find good people but the time you screw up, you're done. We have lived several years in a community with expats only from UK and we never felt to be at home.
I need info on elementary schools (bi-lingual are fine), rent/buy a car, hospitals and banking. About shopping malls, food and restaurants I am sure they don't miss. Cartainly the immigration clearance is another question mark but we should be supported by my husband's employer, at least I hope...
I will take a look of your blog, thanks a lot.

Does this ring any bell?

Nadica

Hi again everybody!

I have found this web site, please see the link:

http://www.panamalaw.org/panama_facts-t … about.html

I know it is quite long but scares me a lot at the same time.

Do anyone have any comment to give me in response to this article?

Nadica

Hello Nadica:  I, too, am thinking about relocating to Boquete but reading the above article that you posted scares me too.  I hope someone will respond to this article. 
Barbara

Hello Barbara and welcome to Expat.com!

I hope that you will have a lot of nice contacts.

Regards,
Harmonie.

Nadica and Barbara,
We do have to be careful to do not follow or believe everything we see and find in Internet.
I have seen and follow the web site you mention since few years. There are so many similar sites and I believe all of them are sort of corporation mills or something like that. About couple of years ago that site was trying to desperately sell corporation, bank accounts, packages etc. from Panama. Suddenly they changed idea and are trying to move to other countries even if the original name still about Panama. Probably they get better commission or favors elsewhere or in Panama they have too much competition. I don't really know.
Please, do not get scare from how the things are exposed in this article. Panama is now the safest country in Latin America, is the only one that did not suffer from this recession; she just slowed down a bit.
Those people only want to drive your attention away from Panama and I am sorry that there is not a regulation that stop this kind of misinformation around.
I could answer and explain every line of that and explain what kind of BS you read in internet.  Just go there try and see by yourself.
Regards
Flavio

http://sognandolestero.com

Just want to add a little more info.
First I want to make clear that I am not associated with any bank, attorney, broker or agency in Panama.

You can find on line different service that store in cache web site during few years so you can go back and check different changes during years.
This is the link of a page from the above web site as seen on 2008:
http://web.archive.org/web/200703210012 … butes.html

In the same way you can see many more comment as they where making only two years ago and how fast they change the mind.

Internet is a very good source of info but we must be able to filter through
Saludos
Flavio

Hi Flavio ~ I agree with your thinking.  Someone has an interest in scaring Americans away from Panama.  I shall come there and see for myself as you suggest.  Thanks so much for your input.
Barbara

The Panama Law blog is loaded with misleading information and in some cases downright lies. Anyone basing their decision on whether or not to move to Panama based on that blog would probably be best served by never leaving their place of residence in the first place and by that I mean don't go out of your house....EVER.

Nearly all the crime here in the greater David area are petty crimes of opportunity. Burglaries against people who leave their homes wide open, things like that. Compared to most metropolitan areas in the rest of the world crime here in the hinterlands is almost laughable. Of course if it happens to YOU it can be traumatic.

We've lived here going on seven years . . . and I know some of the folks who've replied.  Boquete for us is fantastic.  Obviously it's not for everyone.  Flavio says he could write a book about it [Hi Flavio!  Miss you in Boca Chica!] Well, I HAVE written a book about it - ESCAPE TO PARADISE.  And I've just updated the book with a chapter "People come . . .and go" because there are folks who come down here, maybe stay for 3 or 4 years, and then start missing all the conveniences and comforts of "home" (wherever that may be) . . . and others are just perpetual adventurers.  So I thought before people move here they ought to know something about why folks leave. 

Old Salt is a regular reader of my blog www.RichardDetrich.wordpress.com and he knows his way around and is pretty savvy about life here.  There is actually a new private school in Boquete which impresses me because it's not a "typical" Panamanian-school model, although we have friends who've been here a long time, whose kids were educated like every other kid, and who ended up going to great schools in the States.  Cream rises to the top.  Newton Osborne, an amazing doctor, was born and educated near here, ended up with a scholarship to Yale, then medical school at Michigan, and went on to be head of OBGYN at Walter Reed.  By the same token Colin Powell was born and educated in the South Bronx and went on to be Secretary of State.  So if the parents are motivated and involved, and if the kid is motivated and involved and has the goods, I really don't think it matters where you go to school.  Just my humble opinion.

Regards, Richard

Hi! My husband I are considering a move to Boquete. We have two young children aged 1 and 3. Did you ever move? What did you do for schooling?