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!!!

Getting our appetite wet to finalizing the decision

Getting prepared by coincidents and experiences

I first contemplated retiring abroad when we visited Kerala - the southern most state in India. There, food and accommodations are very inexpensive (for somebody who had their job in the US or Europe), the mountains are absolutely gorgeous, the climate is very agreeable for me, and the food - well, "out of this world" is an understatement!

As so often, when your mind finally is opened for things to come, the things came!

First, my dear Friend Nancy told me about her neighbor retiring to Boquete, Panama. A few days later, another dear friend, Venus, sent me a link to International Living, coincidentally also for Panama. 

Now, that website is a mess!!! It makes everything look so easy, and desirable, and affordable, and plain out beautiful - how can one not get all excited? Of course, it is their business - so they make it sound beautiful, as it is their livelihood to keep people sign up for their "guided retirement tours" or use them for real estate transactions, and whatever other way thy figured out to make money off of interested folks...

Yet, despite the fact that their intentions are of a different nature than ours, it was a good start to wet our appetite and to get basic information about many places in the world.

Scouting out our options

We decided to start visiting those countries that are high on our list. Among them Dominican Republic, Costa Rica, and Panama. India doesn't have a visa that makes retiring there possible. Tobago - one of my favorite islands in the Caribbean - is beautiful, but way to expensive for us to afford it (similar to most other Caribbean Islands).

Of all the places we visited (on vacation at some time along the way, or during our scouting trips), Panama was special. After only a few days, Suzanne mentioned that she really, really liked the country, especially the rural areas outside of Panama City. And I felt the same way! So we decided to make it our goal to move there as soon as it makes sense for us to do so.

Another coincident preparing me more

Then Covid hit, and got us stranded at my parent's place in Austria!

What a great coincidence - another one in the string that prepared me for this! My mom cooks every day! We got used and hooked to delicious, home-cooked meals. My sister taught me how to bake my own bread. Not being able to leave the home much, we soon adopted my parents' daily rhythm. I experienced for 1/2 year how it would be if I were retired. Doing little projects, enjoying home-cooked meals, resting, walking the dogs, every now and then meeting some friends or other family... Life was awesome! By far one of the best times in my life - despite the Covid scare and restrictions!

Holding on to retirement-lifestyle (tooth and nail!)

Back in the states, I longed for the great way of life we just experienced. So I started to cook instead of eating out. I am baking my own bread (haven't bought a loaf in over a year by now!). And instead of going straight back to software engineering, I started working on our new old house. We had just bought it before our Panama trip and had completed most of the demolition. The rebuilding was left to do.

I thought, I could continue similar to how I lived in Austria. After breakfast work a little. After lunch have a siesta. And in the afternoon - well, either work some more, or write, or visit friends... 

Almost falling back into old ways

In April I thought enough home-fixing-upping, let me get a SW engineering project again. Make some dough! 

I applied for a couple of positions and got to where an offer was imminent. However, many things came in between that delayed the actual start. And, over time, it became clear to me, that I really could and should retire now! What sense does it make to work another year or two or ten, just to make more money, when I could get by and be happy with what I have saved up already - as long as I am not splurging?

I am free now!

So, I withdrew my name from the job, and put the wheels in motion to leave by autumn 2021.

I'll describe the visa options in my next post... For now, let me just ask you: do you prefer to work longer or to live on less money per month? What are your fears or concerns about retiring, and what are your hopes or plans?

Panama visa options - and how they apply to my situation

 Panama offers several visa options for US, Canadian, and European (and some other) citizens:

Friendly Nations Visa

Citizens of "friendly nations", who purchase real estate for 200,000$ can apply for a 2-year temporary residency, And after that, they can apply for the permanent residency. It used to be 100,000$, but the law was just amended (as of mid August 2021) to now require 200K.

Digital Nomad Visa

Folks who can work remotely can do so in Panama. With this visa, they are allowed to perform their work in Panama, and can stay up to 90 days.

Pensionado Visa

If you receive at minimum 1,000$ (plus 250$ per dependent, like wife)a month in retirement income you can apply for this visa. You're not allowed to work in Panama. But you can live there, you can import your household goods, and you can import a new car every 2 years tax free.

Reforestation Visa

Panama is making serious steps to aiding the reforestation within the nation. One such step is this visa. If you invest 80,000$ in a government approved reforestation project you get a 2 year temporary residency. After that you can apply for permanent residency, but must prove for 5 more years that you are still holding and maintaining the reforestation investment.

Visitor's Visa

There are several other visa types available, but they are not really useful for me (or any US, canadian, or european) - except, of course, the regular tourist visa. Coming from these nations, you need no visa to enter the country, and get approved for 6 months.

Once the visa expires, you have to leave the country. But can return soon thereafter for another full period. There are several expats living in Panama that way - usually, if they can't get any other visa, mostly due to having blemishes on a criminal record, or - well, my case (see below)... 

As with everything, the devil lies in the details!

How these visas apply to me:

Pensionado Visa - my first choice

According to Miranda and Contreras - one of the best known law offices in Boquete - the immigration authorities do not like to give this visa if you have a private pension, which is exactly what I have. In order for them to consider a private pension, they require a letter from the company whose private pension it is - so, some large corporation or something. I don't have that, since it is my own savings. EVen though it is an annuity, which is potentially paid until the end of my life, that is not accepted by the immigration authorities.

Thus, this visa is not an option for me until I am drawing social security - which I hope to be delaying until after I'm 67.

Friendly Nations Visa

Buying property in the US is no big deal, since you can easily sell it again, if you don't like it. In Panama this is different. There, it is easily possible for a property to be on the market for years! So, I have to be very careful when choosing what to get - and don't want to just get "something", just so I can apply for that visa! 

Aside of that, 200K is more that I had hoped to have to spend on my new home! I'm not interested in a condo in Panama City, or any of the expat tourist beaches. The properties I am interested are below 200K. So I would have to buy something additional. But, what can you buy for 50K? 

Well, for now, this visa is also not an option for me. Maybe, once I found my property it becomes applicable - but for now, this doesn't work for me.

Reforestation Visa

The total cost of the investment would be about 100K. 80K for the property, and 20K for the maintenance of the project for the 8 years it takes to get the permanent visa. 

Reforestation is one of my potential dream projects - however, doing it myself, rather than financing somebody else to do it. Also, I don't have enough savings to spend 100K for the visa and still have enough to get a home, and to live on for a few years.

So, this visa is also a no-go for me. At least for the moment...

Visitor's visa

So, the only visa left viable for me is the visitor's visa. The biggest disadvantage, of course, is that I can not have my household goods shipped until I get any of the other visas. But, I guess, I can import the most important stuff every time I come back.

I would like to visit my parents at least once a year - so there goes my first exit-reentry scenario already. Secondly, I might want to visit some friends in the US or in other places, or travel to some other countries that are still on my bucket-list - there goes my second exit-reentry instance for the year. So, the 6 month restriction isn't much of a big deal for me... Let's see, if there's another devil hiding somewhere in these details! 😝

 For now, I just trust in the Universe, that things will arrange the way it is best for me. And I am curious how everything will pan out - and WHAT will pan out...

Free as a bird - but what direction to choose?

During my June trip to Panama I firmed up my decision to not go back to work (at least for now), but to retire early. I have a little money left from the sale of the house last year, and a condo in Atlanta, which I am planning on selling next year. Together, the funds should suffice to buy a little property and sustain my life until I can start drawing my retirement annuity in two years. Together, it should allow me to postpone drawing SS until I am 67 (maybe longer, maybe not quite as long).

So, in essence, if I am very thrifty for a few years, I can retire now, and start working on my dream already!

Yeay!

But, wait! Which of my dreams? 

There are several options that sound absolutely awesome to me! I now have to make a very hard decision which of the possible lives I would want to lead.

1. Reforesting a piece of land

We hear about vast areas of land being deforested every day all around the globe. But there are also reports of reforestation projects. Panama, for example, has the declared goal of reforesting 1 million hectares ( 2.5 mill acres) by 2035. This is a report (in German) about a retiree in Turkey, who converted a landfill into a forest. And, of course, there's the awesome story of the photographer Sebastião Salgadoand his wife in Brazil.

I LOVE trees! The idea of buying a finca with a couple of hectares of former forest now (probably degraded) pasture, and spending my retirement years just planting trees, fills my heart with joy!

I've done some online searches and there appear to be properties of a reasonable size and price available. So, this is definitely a feasible option. 

2. English tutoring for locals

English is the de facto lingua franca. Any knowledge available in this world today is available in English. Some of the knowledge is available in German too, some in French, some in Chinese, and so on. But, for every other language it is only a part of the information that is available. Also, with most of international cooperations and projects, english is the common language that is being used.

I think, for any kid in this world today, who does not speak english, the world is not open. I was able to make something with my life by having been able to migrate from my home country to the US. Today, migrating is not necessary anymore - as long as there's internet and the ability to communicate in English, there are possibilities!

I've overheard some university level english classes, where the teachers had a terribly strong accent, and made many mistakes. I could imagine that on highschool level and even more so primary school level, the quality of english education is even less. Having access to another person to practice and experience is very important!

I do not like cities, but prefer rural areas. As everywhere, in rural areas it is even harder for locals to find good english tutoring options. Also, there seems to be a two class society, where indigenous folks get less opportunities than citizens of european, asian, or north-american descent. 

So, I think, I could make a real difference by offering english tutoring, especially to indigenous kids. 

Tutoring english has been on my mind for a while. I took an ESL Teacher certification program at University of North Georgia 2 years ago, already in preparation of this idea - offering english conversation and general language tutoring to locals.

This, too, is a very feasible option, that also warms my heart.

3. "my conversations"

I find myself very, very often in a situation, where the insights I have been given over my life-time are of great interest to people who just happen to show up in my life. Be it as seat neighbors in an airplane, at a coffee-house, on social media, in a park... anywhere, any time!

Going to Panama in June I anticipated not being able to have any conversations like this, due to the language issue. However, I soon realized that this concern was unwarranted! 

My first stay was at the Bhodi Hostel in El Valle de Anton. There I found a very diverse mix of nationalities and ages among the guests. And, plenty of instances where "my conversation" was happening.

It occurred to me, that if I were to organize a hostel then guests from all over the world could show up. I would be, essentially, "available" for the Universe to arrange for people to show up who need the information I'm able to provide.

Later, it dawned on me, that I don't even have to operate the hostel myself, but could just live close to a hostel, and every now and then, when I feel like it, go there for breakfast or dinner, and make myself available that way.

El Valle is a lovely town, and at a perfect elevation - temperature-wise. It has a great market and supermarket, it's very quiet and peaceful (off the main-street; but even on the main-street the traffic is nothing to worry about). 

There are several homes and properties for sale there. I found one online, which looks promising. So, this, too, is quite a feasible option.

As of now, I have no clue which of these options it will be. I keep flipping back and forth between them! 

I guess, it will clarify once I go back to Panama. As I always recommend to folks: let the Universe guide! Instead of me firming up plans based on my thoughts and knowledge (which is, of course, less than a fruit-fly poop spec!), be open minded and on the lookout for what is coming my way!

I love to ponder ideas, and to know what I am working towards, and then getting to work on it! Right now, I can't do that, as I have no clue what I'll end up doing. That makes it very difficult for me! On the other hand, there are so many loose ends I have to tie up where I am, that if I can focus on working on those, I'd soon be really free as a bird! 

So, I guess, I'll just do that: get my stuff here together and settled. Soon enough, I'll be in Panama again, and things will develop...

PS: For those of you, who do not know about my world-view (which is guiding all my life decisions and goals): it is explained here

Colón and Caribbean Coast Eastward

 I decided to make use of my time here and check out one of the two caribbean coast locations. Headed to Colón early this morning. That area is soooo depresing! So much blight, desolation, and garbage everywhere - it seems they don't have a decent garbage collection system.

Headed back on the Transistmico Careterra towards Sabanitas, and then turned eastwards along the coast.

There is only one road from Sabanitas to Puerto Pilón - and it is a mess. Heading towards Maria Chiquita I am looking at the traffic in the other direction being at an absolute standstill - and the line is all the way from Sabanitas to Puerto Pilón - about 3 km!

Sabanitas is just a continuation of Colón - same desolation and blight. And Puerto Pilón, appearing like one town with Sabanitas, fits right in!

There is not much going on on this coastal road. Mostly just poor shacks, several failed touristic investments (elcastillo being the most noticable one). Maria Chiquita has nothing that holds any attraction to a foreigner, I'd say. Basically a poor fishing town, grown to a size where there are many people, but not enough money in the area to allow for growth and beautifications. My experience was rather depressing, again lots of garbage everywhere - an indication that people are still on the food, shelter, clothing level, and do not yet care about their environment - homes are patched together, "stuff" everywhere, no yard maintenance noticable.

I head on towards the next town - past playa la Angosta to Mechi. Playa La Angosta seems a communal beach, with facilities, a restaurant, and such. They even take credit-cards there. Mechi is just a handfull of buildings, most of them right on the beach; half of them broken and abandoned shacks of locals, the other half obviously walled in and fenced off villas of foreigners - even of them half seem to be abandoned.

So, all in all not an area where one would want to relocate to. You get the disadvantage of a rural place (have to drive far to get to any store and no restaurants or anything else of interest outside of your house) with the disadvantage of it being right on the main-road along the coast (not much traffic, but enough to have to always keep your gate locked, and the fence-wall secured with barb- or better even razor wire...

After a short rest on the beach I turn around and head back towards Sabanitas. As I was afraid of, I now was one of these poor souls that are stuck in a stop and almost no go traffic. I checked google maps - there is no way to avoid this road! One time, I take a detour off that road into the village. It didn't look that bad there - just poor, and dirty, but at least not appalling! This traffic jam seems to be an every-day situation. These poor souls that life there have this pollution and noise going on every day! And even worse, any time they need anything from the store, they are stuck in that mess!

It took me a whole hour to get only 2 km down the road. about 600m before the intersection with the Transistmico highway, There's finally a side-road that also heads towards that highway. I take it. It leads through a residential area. By now I am used to the poverty and desolation, so it doesn't even look that bad anymore...

I take a left on the TransIstmico Hwy and head back towards Panama City - intending to stay on this highway instead of taking the Autopista again.

Every little town we hit, there's a traffic jam! And in between the towns, there are sections of the road that are so bad, that cars can only ease their way over the potholes at walking speed!

By now it is noon-time, and I am hungry. In Kerala, you can stop at any hole in the wall restaurant and get delicious meals - vegetarian, if you want! In Panama you have a choice between foreigner restaurants - where a meal that's nothing to write home about can be had for 15 - 20$; or an american fastfood joint (like McDonalds, KFC, and such); or a fonda with panamanian comida (fried chicken, fried fish, fried pork, soggy tasteless rice, beans that also don't taste of much); or a fonda with comida creola (fried chicken, fried fish, fried pork, soggy tasteless rice, beans that also don't taste of much). If you're lucky and ask for it, you might get two tiny slices of plantana madura, or patagones. These things are really quite nice, but it's a real struggle to get them, and always in small quantities. People here eat mostly meat... Another indication that most people here seem to still be on the food, shelter, clothing level. 

So, one thing is clear: when you live here you're going to be dependent on your own cooking! 

This is fine with me - just, when travelling to checkout places, it would really be nice to be abe to find something decent to eat...