Choose Chiriqui Blog

The Boquete Handbook by Dianne Heidke

Sat, 14 Aug 2010 20:55:40 +0100

Buy The Handbook

 Panama…Panama Panama..everyone is talking about Panama ..Invest in Panama, flip Panama, buy a condo for a song and live like a king for $10.00 a month…yeah yeah…we’ve all heard it. We’ve all seen the retirement websites…the ones that tout these venues around the world as paradise on a stick, the BEST places you’ll EVER live. Do you ever ask yourself if these people actually LIVE in these places???

Boquete has became an incredibly popular destination…we all know that too, especially the ones who moved here years ago. And we all know why. We all know the hard stuff too…the stuff the others won’t tell you. You can find tons of general info about Panama on the web and in different retirement books. But if you are going to live here successfully without the STRESS of learning everything for the ground up…YOU need to skip the hype and BS and get solid, detailed, on the ground information… stuff you need BEFORE you get here and information that you will continue to need long after you do get here!…………..if you want to save yourself time and money$$$$$ and more importantly the rest of your sanity – BUY this BOOK!!

The Grumpy Gringo

Sun, 1 Aug 2010 02:31:09 +0100

The Grumpy Gringo
July 31, 2010 by: Evan Terry Forbes
www.eyeonpanama.com

The Grumpy Gringo
Grumpy Gringo syndrome is all too common in Panama. It’s a negative outlook on life common amongst foreigners living on the Isthmus. The Grumpy Gringo resents what they have lost and under appreciates what they have gained. They over embellish fond memories of other countries and their home country while frequently pointing out the negatives they perceive in Panama. They are the Grumpy Gringos.
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Contrary to my coined “Grumpy Gringo” term, the syndrome isn’t restricted to strictly Gringos (Americans). Sure, we (Gringos) seem to be some of the grumpiest people in Panama. Yet, other foreigners; Colombians, Italians, French, Israeli, and more also exhibit this syndrome.
The syndrome is made up of two central components; Part one is Rosy retrospection. This is when a person over exaggerating the positive nature of their past. To them, the past is always so much better than the present. “The past is always recalled to be good”.
Part two; Foreigner superiority complex. Many foreigners who come to Panama believe they’re smarter than the countrymen they left behind. It should not surprise anyone that they believe that they are also smarter than Panamanians. This is common in all developing countries. Many people coming from developed countries; North America, Europe, and in Panama’s case Argentina, Chile and Mexico act with a sense of superiority. Typically, they’re very condescending to local Panamanians.
Simply stated, anyone negatively demonstrating both Rosy retrospection and foreigner superiority complex while in Panama, is what I call a Grumpy Gringo.
 On a recent trip back home to visit friends and family, I self diagnosed myself with Grumpy Gringo-itus. My prolonged, continuous time stay on the Isthmus was making me irritable. Panama was getting to me. The sweating, noise, and seemingly everything associated to Panama was beginning to drain my generally upbeat personality.
With increasing regularity, I would mention how I would have preferred to live in other countries I’d visited; India, Colombia, Brazil, and others. And, how a certain things were SO much better back in my home country of America. I was grumpy. I was gringo. I was that Grumpy Gringo.
During this time, friends would often hear me utter sentences like; “God, back home is so much better than ____.” , “Geez, ______ is so shitty in Panama.” , “I really miss ______ from back when I lived _______.” The list went on….
However, while back in the States, I noticed something. Those “things” us foreigners claim to are SO much better, generally are not. For example, a daily irritation of mine is the regularity in which I’m cutted in line in Panama. Yet, within minutes setting foot in Miami’s airport, I was overtaken in line. Additionally, I have always resented cab drivers price gouging me in Panama. Again, in California, I got ribbed off by a cab driver. I guess some bad manors are universal.
Even if there are some cultural norms we perceive as superior such as better customer service, less overt corruption, stronger work ethic, and others, there are many other cultural norms that are clearly not superior. A few examples from my home country of the United States are its uber materialism, bitter ideological political mindsets, weak family and community relationships, and rampant obesity, just to name a few.
What are the root cause of Grumpy Gringo-itus? I’m not sure I’ve discovered any scientific answers, but here are a few of my hypothesis:
1. Lack of a love life. Everything is so much better when you have a healthy dating life.
2. Panama’s small. Instead of comparing Bogota to Panama City or England to Panama, compare Cartagena to Panama City or Panama to Nicaragua. Compare apples to apples.
3. Age. Age increases people’s bitterness and paranoia. Especially in old men.
Grumpy Gringos, me included, need to loosen up. We live in the TROPICS. It’s warmer 85 degrees EVERYDAY. You can buy a delicious pineapple bigger than my head for $1. $1! You can be almost anywhere on the Isthmus and there is a beautiful beach less than 2 hours away. Life is not so bad.
As a matter of fact, I will bet that someday when we return back to our home countries we will still be grumpy. When we are working 50 hours a week, when we are stuck in traffic 2 hours everyday, when it is freezing outside and there are no Panamanian Chiva party buses to ride, we’ll look back at our time in Panama and say “Geez, Panama was SO much better than ____”.

A monkey in my arms By David Dell

Fri, 2 Jul 2010 20:27:48 +0100

Seeing wild animals up close and personal is one of life's most fulfilling experiences. People who have swum with dolphins describe the interaction as almost religious. I recently had several of these wonderful experiences thanks to the people at the Alouatta animal sanctuary in Chorcha, Chiriqui.
I drove up a rough mountain road about 20 minutes east of the City of David. The Alouatta (Latin for Howler monkey) sanctuary is the passionate work of expat couple Steven and Michelle Walker. Steven greeted us with a troop of friendly howler monkeys in tow. These small, black monkeys are wonderful creatures that were soon climbing all over my two companions and I.

Howler monkeys are known for their loud calls at night

While living in Australia as farmers, Steven and his New Zealand-born wife Michelle decided to make a change. They investigated 37 countries along with their two children, Rebecca and Gareth, before deciding to settle in Boquete. Steven worked with local wildlife enthusiast Paul Saban, doing landscaping work at the Saban's Paradise Gardens sanctuary in Volcancito. A year and a half ago he bought the 40 acres that is now Alouatta Lodge and started on his dream.
Steven and Michelle have transformed this mountain jungle into one of the most beautiful and peaceful places in all of Panama. From Steven's wooden viewing deck I looked down the valley to the coastline of Boca Brava at the Pacific - it took my breath away.
Como llegar:
El camino al Lodge es exactamente 15 millas más allá del paro de Tránsito David. Cuando usted vea un signo de la derecha diciendo: Ganaderia de Las Vueltas, el giro hacia Alouatta es sólo un centenar de metros más a la izquierda. Visita www.alouattalodge.com., E-mail: rooikop@fastmail.fm o llame al 6747-3446.

Paradise found in the Chiriqui foothills overlooking Boca Brava and the Pacific Ocean

The main purpose of my visit was to see one particular howler monkey named Maisie. On May Day 2007 (hence the name), a tiny orphaned howler monkey was given to Paradise Gardens in Volcancito. Maisie's mother was most probably killed for bush meat. The Walkers also had a rescued howler called Yahoo.
Soon Maisie and Yahoo became friends and spent time together in their secure pre-release enclosure at Alouatta. Soon some wild howlers came into the compound and one, who was named Big Boy, reportedly mated with Maisie. On the 19th of November 2009, The Walkers told the Sabans that Maisie had given birth to their first Howler grandchild, called Novey. Maisie and Yahoo are credited as being the first documented releases of captive raised Howler monkey's in Panama.
Sitting in a camp chair at Alouatta, Maisie, with baby Novey firmly attached, approached me and climbed up onto my lap. She stretched herself out, her small black head nestled under my chin. I gently stroked her stomach and I could feel her relax into my arms. There is a wonderful feeling when an animal trusts you this way. Steven said Maisie is not so friendly to everyone, I was fortunate.

Steven Walker with one of his monkey friends at Alouatta Lodge

As the warm afternoon sun filtered through the trees, Steven took note: "Look at that, Maisie's fallen asleep!" What a special way to spend an afternoon. Aloatta Lodge is not a zoo, there are no animals in cages for people to look at. The idea is that animals, Parrots, Capuchins, Sloths, are cared for just as long as is necessary and then they are released into the wild. Steven and Michelle are seeking an investor who would like to partner in their goal to expand their lodge and buy some adjacent land.
My friend Felipe is happy to take visitors to Alouatta The lodge charges $10 a day for a visit, $15 if you include lunch and $75 will get you afternoon tea, dinner and breakfast the following morning after spending a night in a jungle hammock.

Alouatta Lodge

A visit to Alouatta Lodge

Sat, 26 Jun 2010 16:45:01 +0100

By Peter Sterling

       So far this year we have entertained two sets of northern visitors, ranging in age from 7 to 70. We showed them mot-mots and manakins, hummers, and honey creepers. We guided them through cloud forest to see a blue-throated toucanet and even a male quetzál. We swam them on a palm-shaded beach with land crabs and turtles. But when asked, “What was best?” the response was unanimous: the visit to Alouatta Lodge!

This is no conventional lodge, with rooms to rent and hot showers. Rather, it is a botanical garden with magnificent plantings that merge with the wild, a regenerating forest. Located at the base of Cerro de Monte (the mesa at Chorcha), it has trails for birding and “sloth-ing” that lead to spectacular views downward toward the Pacific to mangrove-lined estuaries and little islands. There are jungle-hammocks with mosquito netting where you can spend a night listening to owls and frogs and then wake at dawn to the roaring of howler monkeys (genus Alouatta, for which the spot is named). Several troops live within earshot, and since they are not shy, you see them feeding and napping in the canopy along the trails.

       The blend of tame and wild extends to the primate inhabitants, and this is the special charm and fascination. Two human primates, Steven and Michelle Walker, created the place: made the plantings, built the trails, and constructed the visitor facilities. They continue to develop it as their inspired vision of how to restore decrepit pasture to what the ecologist, Dan Janzen, has called, “wildland garden.” Thus, part of the appeal is to meet the Walkers, who provide a superb lunch, share their knowledge and their dream of extending the wild corridor from the mangroves below, up across the mesa to the Comarca beyond. Steven, born in London and raised in South Africa, was a guide in Kruger National Park, with all the usual lions, buffalo, and elephants, so he is of the wildland. He is also fun.

The non-human primates include a group of Geoffrys tamarins—tiny monkeys, about the size of a man’s fist. Brought from Paradise Gardens in Boquete, they remain caged (commodiously) because otherwise they would be instant canapés for local raptors. Also, tamarins are fierce. When you approach the cage, they jump to meet you, anticipating a bit of food and the chance for a nip. But when, with hands in pockets, you bring your face to the cage, they study you intently, gazing deeply into your eyes. Returning the gaze of this tiny Yoda, you feel connected as though the 35 million years back to our common ancestors were only yesterday.

Still more wonderful is a trio of howlers, two young adults, and four infants. Refugees from various miserable situations, they have recovered under the Walkers’ care and are free to roam. Theirs’ seems the best of worlds: sufficiently wild to mingle with the local troops, yet sufficiently civilized to enjoy human visitors. One drops from a branch to ride your shoulder as you hike, gently winding its scaly tail around your neck for safety. Mother with child crawls into your lap to be scratched and petted. To all our visitors these were the moments that most appealed: the unique experience of physical and emotional exchange with a species so close to our own as to feel intimate.

For directions, contact information, and activities available: www.alouattalodge.com

www.boquete-bajareque-times.com

Alouatta Lodge

Peru, Panama, Brazil Lead List of Touted Markets

Tue, 22 Jun 2010 16:05:16 +0100

Panama continues to get great press as the place to invest. From fellow blogger Kevin Brass, International Property Journal comes these excerpts;
Investors looking for the next wave of residential growth should target Peru, Panama and Brazil, a new report on global markets suggests.  Strong economic growth, low interest rates and continued housing boom make Latin America, in general, far more appealing than other regions, according to the latest recommendations from the Global Property Guide, which tracks markets around the world.   The site’s analysis, which is weighted toward rental yields, is less kind to Europe, where “property markets have not sufficiently adjusted from their 15-year rise.” And while Asia valuations are skyrocketing, GPG believes the region is already “over-valued,” except for locales like Malaysia and riot-torn Thailand.  Overall, the GPG sees stronger markets around the world. Nineteen out of the 36 countries tracked posted gains in the first quarter of 2010, led by Hong Kong, Singapore and cities in Australia. In most countries with drops, the pace of declines is slowing, the site notes, except for Ireland, Bulgaria and Thailand, which are in “severe crisis,” the site notes in its quarterly report.  But for its mid-year recommendations, GPG steers away from Asia and the other hot markets to focus on the opportunities in Latin America. With low valuations, growing economies and under-valued currencies, even countries like Chile and Colombia provide better odds for appreciation than more established markets, the report concludes.  Panama, for example, offers “rapid GDP growth, good yields, lowish taxes, reasonably priced real estate, and reasonable round-trip costs make it hard not to put Panama on our list of recommended locations buying property, despite its history of corrupt government,” the report concludes.

internationalpropertyjournal.com