Rambutan and Mangosteen Season

 Apparently, Mangosteen and Rambutan ripen mid July. Now, everywhere are people on the side of the road selling bunches of "Mamon Chino" (as Rambutans are called here), and mangosteen, too in some places.

Mangosteen

Rambutan

I bought a bunch of Rambutan for 1$. The Mangosteen where also 1$. As much as I remember, Mangosteen - if available at all - where several dollar a piece at the farmer's market. Rambutan also a few dollars per pound...

This is one of my favorite parts of Panama: There's always something in season. And it is growing right in our backyard and doesn't have to be shipped around the globe!

Nationwide Protests

 About two weeks ago some indigenous of eastern Chiriqui and western Veraguas blocked the Panameriacn Highway (or Interamericana, as it is referred to here) in protest to the rising costs of gas and everything else as well. These folks work often for 10$ a day or less. Last time I filed up my car I paid more than 70$ - and my car is not a 4x4 pickup truck, which is what these folks need to use on their farms.

So this situation is really threatening their survival.

Unfortunately, the situation has since been highjacked by hoodlooms and "maldidos", who are taking advantage of the situation.

Interamericana between David and Santiago

Well, The interamericana is the only connection of Chiriqui and Bocas del Toro with the rest of Panama. As it happens to be, Chiriqui is the vegetable garden and dairy farm of all of Panama. And all the gasoline and diesel is being imported through Colon. 

So, blocking this highway is a real threat to life in Panama! There is a shortage of food in eastern Panama (Veraguas, Panama City, and places in between and around), and there is a fuel shortage in Chiriqui.

Areal view of interamericana (Photo: retenchiriqui on facebook)

Here in Chiriqui, many of the businesses and plants have closed. Schools are closed, too. 

Fueltrucks stuck en route (Photo: retenchiriqui on fcaebook)

Gas stations have no more gas. Upon hearing, that one gas station received a load of gas, my neighbor left early yesterday morning to try to fill up his car. He didn't get back home until after 7 pm! He was waiting in line all day, and when he finally got to the pump in the evening, they only gave him gas for 20$!

My other neighbor lined up yesterday afternoon. He spent the night in the car, and when I talked to him last around 4pm today he still hasn't gotten gas.

The area where the land of my future home is located is dairy farming area. Usually, everyday early in the morning there are trucks collecting all the milk to transport it to the dairy plant. However, the dairy plant is now closed. The farmers are trying to find something to do with the milk, but those with more than a cow or two are having to throw away most of the milk. 

As you can imagine, this is a terrible situation! It is threatening their livelihood!

My friend Maryorie has a fruit stand along the interamericana. She has hardly any business any more, since hardly anybody has enough gas to be driving anywhere. And, on the other hand, she's getting calls and messages from her suppliers, desperately begging her to buy some of their produce. They, too, have to throw away the produce - it is harvested the day before it is being sold to the general population. What's harvested today, is distributed among the fruitstands and mercados over night, and sold the very next day. That stuff can't be harvested much longer than a few days later, because it will spoil in the field. Nor can it be stored for more than a day, either. The whole system here is geared towards fresh from the farm straight to the table. There are no cool storages, nor other facilities to allow for longer retention of freshness...

I am only 30km (20 miles) away from the border to Costa Rica. I thought, heck, let me go there to fill up my car. In Austria they call that phenomenon "fuel tourism", which happens when gas prices in Germany and Austria differ significantly...

Well, all went well until about 5km before the border. There, some hoodlooms blocked the intermericana. As it turns out, they allow you to pass if you pay them 20$ per car. Great business! Simply throw a few old tires on the road, cut a few of your neighbors' trees and voila: 20$ per car!

Well, we (my neighbor Sergio, who cam with me, and I) decided to simply park the car, walk across the blockage, and hop on a bus beyond. There were about 10 buses already waiting there (as were on our side). All the people who need to travel between the Frontera or Puerto Armuelles and Bugaba or David have to get off their bus, walk across the blockage and hop on another bus on the other side to continue their trip.

We took our gas canisters with us, and filled them at the one gas station at the border, who seems to get supplied from Costa Rica. However, they limit the amount to 15$ per person. So our two 15 Liter canisters weren't even filled all the way. Then back on a bus, back to the blockage, shlepp the canisters across to our car, and return home... Luckily, I still have 1/2 a tank of gas, so I can make another one of these trips in a few days if needed...

It occurred to me, that this is a perfect example of what happens when people only think of themselves: everybody suffers! All the little mom-no-pop businesses along the road: closed. Gas stations: closed. Schools: closed. All the people that are day laborers: out of work, out of income. Many people here live basically from hand in mouth: so no income for a day, often means no food on the table that day! (except plain rice, and whatever grows in the back yard)

This is going on for two weeks now. It used to be peaceful. Now it is turning violent. Last night, a police truck was set on fire in Santiago (the capital of Veraguas). Today, Senafront (border protection police) was sent there in riot gear to help the local police.

The government has instituted a fuel subsidy. When filling up the car, you simply provide the license plate and your cedula number (personal id), and you pay less than a dollar per liter - the government pays the rest. With that, the original demand of the indigenous is met - in a way that's quite amazing to me! Non of the European countries has come up with a similar idea! The government first asked people to register on a website, but the indigenous often don't have access to the internet. This requirement since has been removed, and providing the cedula and licenseplate number is sufficient.

Imagine this! This developing country's government is able to put up a website in one day (!!!) - how long did it take the "developed countries" to develop the covid websites? A month? two? And, since that requirement fell, they are able to implement a system, where this subsidy is possible without the previous registration! Very impressive, I have to say!

Anyhow, I am curious to see how this situation is going to develop, how long it is going to take for it to be resolved, and how it is going to be resolved... 

Preparations and Waiting

Since returning from Panama I am basically in a waiting position - with a few loose ends to tie up in the US.

First I have to sell my condo in Atlanta. Then I can buy the teak-plantation to get my residency visa process rolling. 

So nothing is happening until my condo is on sale. In order to sell it, however, I'll have to do some renovations. So, I drive the 780 miles (~1300km) to Atlanta - with a rental from the dealership. Because my dear old Prius gets "renovated", too - 6,500$ for a new big battery, replacement of dashboard cluster, new small battery, new tires, and a few other things. The trunk is full of tools and work-clothes. I'm anticipating a week or two of work.

Luckily, the real-estate market in the US is piping hot! When I arrive in Atlanta, the day before my appointment with the realtor I get one of those text-messages from a whole-sale buyer. I respond, and they agree to a price that I find fair towards me and towards them! And I don't have to do any work, they buy it as-is! Yeay! 

First they say they'd close in 3 weeks. But, three days before the closing they postpone by another 2 weeks! Well, no problem that gives me time to get my things organized in Wilmington. So, I drive back to Wilmington, get the last few items that my now-ex-wife Suzanne has put together and placed in her garage for me, and move everything into a storage unit. 

Then I pack the items that I think I will need for the next year in Panama: my kitchenaid (so I can bake my rye-bread) the rye flower and other bread ingredients, the Kelomat pressure cooker, some simple tools, a few gifts for my girls in Panama, the computers, and 2 shirts, 2 pants, 2 underwear (you see my priorities?) - all in all three 50 lb suitcases, my backpack, and another carry-on bag. Aye aye aye! Will I ever be able to travel light?

But now. finally, everything in Wilmington is settled. Time to drive the Prius back to Atlanta. But beofre that, three days before the closing, the buyer calls and says they want to change the price, reducing it by 10,000$! I stay firm, though - the due diligence period has expired, so they are bound by the purchase&sales contract. I tell them, they can breach the contract and forfeit their ernest money, or they follow through on the contractual agreement! They try to pressure me a little more, offering 5,000$ price reduction ("Do you really want to let the deal go for 5,000$" they ask), but I'm firm... So they agree to stay with the original agreement (apparently, they don't want to lose the deal and their 2,000$ earnest money over a 5,000$ either!) And we close as planned!

Hint to you: don't let these sharks mess with your mind! Once the due diligence period is done, they can't reduce the price anymore - except if you agree to it! Just don't!!!

The closing happens as planned! Yeay! The money arrives the same day in my account! Now I am ready to start the next big step: purchasing the teak plantation!

My Teak Plantation

Now that I have the proceeds of the sale of my condo in my account, I can make the transfer to Panama to pay for the teak plantation. But, wait, not so fast!

10 year old teak trees!

It takes 70 years for spruce and fir, but only 25 years +/- for teak!

I am buying the teak plantation to be eligible for a reforestation visa. Jeff, the CEO of Panama Teak Forestry, and their lawyer Lill of Kery Cruz are very helpful in telling me exactly how to go about it, and what to be careful about.

The rule says, the plantation has to be in my name (that is, not in the name of a foundation or company I might have in Panama), and the funds have to be transferred from a Non-Panamanian account in my name straight to the PTF account. Plus, they want a notarized and apostilled confirmation of the transfer from the bank where my account is from which I make the transfer.

Well, E*Trade is a 21st century bank, where everything is done online. There is no branch, where I could go to get a document with a signature of a live person that can be notarized and apostilled! 

Panama is a developing country, which is under strong pressure from the US to be diligent about money transfers, due to a history of money laundering. So, the Panamanian banks, as well as the Panamanian government want to make sure everything is in right order, but they use 20th century processes. 

I talk to Customer Service at E*Trade, but they, too, are at their wit's end about how to get this accomplished. They can send me a transfer confirmation, no problem. And it is on their letter head, no problem either. But, it is an email attachment, thus doesn't have a live-ink signature.

I end up printing the email document, and writing on it that I swear by perjury of law that this is an authentic document. I sign it in front of the notary and get his seal. Then I submit that form to the GSCCA who apostilles Georgia notarizations. I hope, this will satisfy the Panamanian Immigration department. We'll see...

Two days after I initiated the transfer, I get an email from PTF notifying me that their bank is threatening to reject the wire if we all don't submit within 2 days a bunch of documents! 

They request: The singed contract (of course), six months worth of statements of the account where the money originated (well, ok, too) that also shows this transfer. Heck! How am I getting a bank statement in the middle of April, that shows a transaction that happened in the middle of April? Impossible! Statements are created at the beginning of the month for the previous month! 

I decide to take a screenshot of my online-banking recent transactions page and submit that, together with the 6 months statements. Plus, for good measures, I add the HUD statement of my condo sale, too, to prove where the big deposit came from, that showed up on the account 5 days before the wire to Panama went out.

Two days later PTF emails me, that the transfer was accepted and the funds were credited to their account. Yeay! First hurdle taken successfully!

Now I can go back to Panama, buy my land, and start building my home...

A rich selection of available real estate

Over the last two and a half months I have been looking at various properties that are currently on the market. Initially, I was a bit concerned as to whether I'll find something that will suit my needs and priorities.

Well, this worry has been replaced now by: How the heck am I going to choose the right one among all the ones I've seen so far!

What a lovely problem to have!

Originally, I looked at various locations all around western Panama. I excluded anything less than 100 km west of Panama City as the traffic is too crazy anywhere closer to that city.

I found very nice properties around El Valle de Anton, Cocle, very affordable ones on the Sona peninsula, and off course all over Chiriqui.

At this time I think I'll be focusing on the properties that are along the little 18 km long side-road off the Panamaerican Highway. 

It is off the beaten path, yet there are about 10 expats already living in the three villages Los Santos, Santa Rosa and Camaron Arriba. That is enough to have a little community, but not too many, so the area still has the local flair, and expats and locals are getting along nicely.

Two weeks ago, my host had gotten sick. Several of the local families around us checked in on him, one family even came and brought a pot of soup for him! Now, that is community to me!!!

The properties are a little more expensive here than in other parts, especially in other provinces. However, you can not overvalue having caring and friendly neighbors. ANd, they seem to be less costly than in high-demand areas like Volcan and especially Boquete.

Over time I learned about 12 properties that are currently available to purchase. Twelve (!) on only a 15 km stretch! There's a lot to choose from. From 1300 m2 to 17 ha, from the warm Los Santos to the cool Camaron Arriba. Lots with houses, and lots without. Some of the properties have fixer-uppers on them, which is ideal for me! I like little projects, and improving "my nest" ( and maybe one day some ladybird will show up and decide she likes it with its occupant)!

I decided not to rent for a year - even though everybody is recommending. I already know I like living here. I already know that this area is where I feel at home. However, it showed, that it is a good idea not to buy right away, but to wait a little. Word does get out that there's a "gringo looking for land". And eventually one hears about many, many properties. 

I spent a lot of time driving around, taking every little side-road, too, to find "Se Vende" signs and contact the phone-numbers given. Usually I use WhatsApp, as that allows me to text in Spanish - using Google Translate. And I talked to all the people I met, asking if they knew about any properties. Over time, more and more people heard about me, and I learned about one property after the other.

 So now I have to choose. That's quite a challenge!

While I was working and having an income this was less of an issue. Even if I stretched myself a little thin, I could always make up for it. Now, however, I have a certain amount in savings available. I can not make up for budget overruns. It is most likely going to be my "forever home" - so it better really be exactly what I want and need. But there are so many priorities and some of them competing!

Still, I am happy I have this problem, rather than the issue that I don't find anything that would suit my needs...

Planning my new home

 I have come to decide on two potential properties among which I'll choose "the one"! Both of them are land without buildings. I'll build my own home.

The disadvantage is, that I'll have to rent somewhere until the home is ready for me to stay in. However, this disadvantage has no teeth, since Kyle's Bugaba Highland guestroom is super nice, and close to where I'll be building.

The advantage is, that I can try out all kinds of ideas!

Most likely, I'll get a piece of land in an area where it is a bit warmer, but not as hot as in David, or on the coast. That means, I might be able to get by without air-conditioning - if I am careful about heat management.

I think I want to have the roof open on the very top for the whole length of the house. On top of that gap I'll add 50cm higher another roof that covers the opening. That way, it doesn't rain in, but hot air raising to the top of the house can exit and doesn't build up under the roof.

Secondly, I'll only have the bed- and attached bathrooms walled in, and bug proof. Once the sun goes down, one retreats inside to turn the light on. Bugs, attracted to the light, will stay outside. 

The kitchen will be an outside kitchen, which together with the living space makes up the big terrace under the roof. About 3/4 of the space under the house's roof is terrace and kitchen! Mosquitoes are not so much a problem in this area, neither are there any sort of dangerous animals, from which one has to protect oneself. 

There's an outside kitchen on the big terrace under the roof here at Kyle's. I've been using it for 3 months now, and it was awesome! I'm always outside. Except in the evening, when I need light or when I am sleeping - then I'm inside of the room which the insect screen makes bug-free.

The locals are building everything with blocks and concrete. Well, that is easy to do, and is pretty much resistant to any kind of weather or condition - except earthquakes. The problems I do see with this - aside of the earthquakes - is, that any repairs or changes are very hard to do. You have to employ a jack-hammer. Secondly, due to the high humidity all the time, you have to repaint all walls every 2 or three years. And, stone feels dead and emotionally cold.

I am going to be owning 2 1/2 ha of teak plantation, where every 4-5 years some of the trees have to be removed, to make more light available for the remaining trees. That means, every couple of years I'll be having a ton of teak wood, with which I would need find something meaningful to do. Teak is a rather insect and rot resistant hard-wood. So, I am thinking of trying to build the walls (and ceilings) in my house out of my own lumber. Even the frame that holds the roof could be made from this lumber.

I still have to figure out how I get the trees from the plantation to my land, and how to transform them from logs to lumbar. Maybe I contract this task out to one of the many small sawmills in the area. Or maybe I'll bring a bandsaw and do it myself... But, that will show, too... 

People around here have problems with lightnings taking out various electronic equipment, even appliances. I want to learn about lightning-rods, and hopefully install a lightning-rod that will protect my and my neighbors homes.

The windows used around here are very low quality, do not keep bugs out reliably, and can only be opened to have 45% of the window space be open. They are sliding windows - mostly sliding side-ways. So more than half of the opening is blocked by the sashes.

I would like to try to build my own windows. There are two types I'm thinking of:

* Sliding sideways onto the wall space besides the window

* Tilting upwards and secured on the ceiling

Both windows would have the frame with the glass not be inside of the window-opening. Instead, there would be a frame with insect-netting there (removable, off course; so it's easy to fix when needed). The frame with the glass would be on the inside of the room, sliding along the wall with the window-opening, and slightly bigger than the opening. So, when closed, it is pressed against the window-frame, not inside of the window-frame.

The tilting window would require ropes and pulleys to make it easy to open and close the window. 

For both types I need to think about how to best lock them, for when 'm leaving the hosue cannot be broken into too easily.

The goal of these windows is to get as much air circulation as possible into the rooms! Air circulation seems to be the only measure that prevents mold and mildew buildup.

I want to install wall-mount toilets and vanities. The cost for such toilets is much higher - probably 1500$ a piece, compared to 150$ for a floor mount one. But, I feel, it is worth it over time to be able to easily clean the floor of the bathroom. Wall mount vanities are not easy to find either. But, I thnk I should have enough wood to be able to build them myself.

There won't be bathtubs - to me just a waste of hot water! - instead there'll be only showers. Those, however are roomy - maybe 150 cm by 180 cm (5' x 6'). The floor of the bathroom is about 5 cm (2") lower than the rest of the house, and it is slightly sloped towards the shower drain. That way, I can simply hose down the floor and be done with it!

The local septic systems don't even deserve that name! They are basically a container with an incoming pie and an outgoing pipe. Everything falls in on the one side, and sits there. Once the container fills up, whatever is too much runs out the other side.

I want to do a better system. I'm thinking of implementing a three chamber tank, which then empties in a holding tank, from which the fluid is discharged periodically via a mini flashflood onto a vertical-style clearing field. The water draining out of that clearing field should almost be drinking water quality. So, it should be safe to use in the garden for watering, or when it gets into a river.

Also, I would like to collect and treat rain-water. No chemical or energy using treatment, but simple, natural filtering.

The system consist of three tanks: First tank simply collects the rain water. It is a buffer. It discharges water through a smallish pipe (5cm, 2"?) into the second tank. That one is filled with gravel and sand, similar to the clearing field. The microbes developing in that filter will clean out most of the stuff that's in the water (like bird-poop and other stuff that the rain finds on the roof). The bottom of this tank now drains into the third, the actual water holding tank.

I'm hoping to use this water for showers, toilet, and garden watering.

The hot water for the showers I'm planning on heating using some sort of solar-collectors on top of the roof. Currently, I'm thinking a simple hose laid in serpentines on the roof should suffice. I'll have to play with how big a hot water tank I'll need, and how much hose is needed to reliably heat the whole tank.

There are many more details to be thought through: exact makeup of the walls, how and where to but the wiring, how to get the heavy lumbar for the house frame in place (there seem to be no cranes like in Europe, and everything is done manually), and much more... Since I am not building the typical, traditional style, there are no common best practices available. That means, I have to think up everything - from the overall big-picture ideas, down to the very gory details...

A lot of brain work. But also a lot of fun!

Money Issues

 I used to think the hard part is making the money needed to get some savings together. Well, yes, that was hard, too. But that's in the past, and accomplished, so it lost its teeth!

Now, the issue is: How the heck do I get the money from the US to Panama?

Here's a log of methods and paths I tried. If you don't care about this, skip to the bottom, where I'll describe the one method that finally worked...

1. Wise (formerly Transferwise) directly into my Panamanian account

I used Wise multiple times to transfer money from the US to Europe. It works excellently, is quick, and inexpensive! I paid an Austrian company for the replacement windows, a German freight forwarder for their transport, refunded some AirBnB guests their downpayment, sent money to my kids, and such.

Not wanting to support the international money-extorting scheme of the banks (called internationl wire-transfer), I tried to use Wise.

However, Wise doesn't support sending money to banks with a Panamanian SWFIT code. I guess they don't want to risk getting into trouble with the US authorities about potential money-laundering? Although, when there's a clear path of where the money comes from and goes to, it can't be money laundering. So, who knows what's going on!

2. Wise via intermediary bank

My Panamanian bank gave me a list of half a dozen connections they have with intermediary banks in the US and in Germany. 

So, next I tried a transfer using Wise, to send money to my bank's account at one of their intermediary banks. However, that money came back again three days later.

Conclusion: Wise is excellent for whatever countries they do support. But it's useless for Panama!

3. ACH transfer to intermediary bank

The US banks on the list also have ACH codes. ACH is a relatively new system in the US, which facilitates easy and quick money transfers from an account in one bank to an account at another bank. Similar to the "Ueberweisung" that is standard in Austria (and other European countries) for more than 1/2 a century.

So I tried to make an ACH transfer into the account of my bank (Banesco Panama) at their sister bank (Banesco USA), specifying myself as beneficiary and my Banesco Panama account # in the memo field. 

Well, that money came right back as well (3 days later).

I guess, they don't want to do this, because then they miss out on the 25$ wire fee they charge for doing that same work!

4. US check deposit

I could have tried to write out a US check and deposit that at my Panamanian bank. However, don't have any checks for my US accounts anymore. I never use them - this is the least secure method of payment, the easiest to forge, and as such totally outdated! So, I don't have any checks for my US account any more. And, if I had some, I wouldn't carry them with me on an international trip!

I'm thinking this method might work, though. I have paid my alimony/child-support to Austria like this for close to 30 years. So, at least, for "smaller" amounts this might work... I haven't tried it though...

5. ATM withdrawals

I had been using my US debit card at the Panamanian ATMs a few times since I arrived here. That is a very expensive option! The ATM charges 5.25$ per transaction. The US bank charges another 2.50$ for using an international ATM. And, the Panamanian ATM network does not give out more than 250$ per transaction!

Now, after having made 4 or 5 withdrawals, every ATM suddenly claims my "card is not enabled for this service". What the heck is that supposed to mean?

I checked with my US bank, and they have no trace of the ATM even trying to contact them!

Awesome! I have 14.87$ in cash. Aside of gringo restaurants and gas-stations credit-cards are rarely accepted and sometimes they add between 3 to 10% to the amount when using credit-card, versus paying in cash. My return flight is in roughly 2 months.

How am I going to buy food, or pay for buses, or anything else?

6. Online international wire transfer

Out of options, and in dire need to get funds here, so I can buy a car and don't have to rent a car any longer (another fraudulent system, here in Panama), I broke down and tried to make an international wire transfer.

Well, turns out, that my bank's online system only support domestic wire transfers! (Why, in the world, would anybody send a domestic wire, with all its cost, when there's ACH? It's beyond me!) They require me to call them on the phone!

Sure! No problem. Simply make an international call, sit in the waiting queue for 1/2 hour or more until you get to talk to somebody. Answer the same questions you could answer in the app. And finally get your funds on their way!

7. Initiate international wire by calling US number from overseas

Luckily, my friend and AirBnB host Kyle reminded me of Skype. I had used it 10+ years ago to stay in touch with US and Austrian friends and family while I was living in Tobago. It has a feature, where you can call any regular (land or mobile) phone number for a few cents per minute. Yeay! So I just added 5$ to my Skype Credit, which reinstated my long dormant account...

I finally was able to call my US bank, complain bitterly about them not giving me any other option (like WhatsApp) but require me to make an overseas call, and, to top it off, stick overseas calls into the same queue as domestic calls! After crying enough, I finally was able to get the international wire transfer initiated. Hurray!

By the time I was at the bank, just about 1 1/2 hours later, the funds were already in my account!

But, Oh what a difficult birth!!!