Joel and I were talking about our experience so far in Panama, and decided it might be interesting if we both wrote posts separately with our thoughts. (250 words or less) You hear about expat adjustments, frustrations, difficulties, unhappiness, etc. How has it been for us?
What did we give up?
Mail – no home delivery. General delivery is painfully slow if it gets to you at all. But before, it almost all went in the trash anyway.
Netflix and US TV. I don’t miss TV. We bought some DVD’s. So far I don’t feel deprived.
Hurricanes, frost in winter, alligators, bad drivers
Language – few people speak English here
Reliable water supply – usually it’s part of a day, and with water on had it’s easy to adapt.
What did we gain?
People. It so different here with these warm, loving, friendly people.
Food. Fresh fruit and vegetables at every meal. Fish, chicken, home cooked food. Delicious, and my body and health appreciate it.
Better shopping. Everything is available here, service is usually excellent.
Cost of living – vast improvement
Relaxed life – people here adapt, don’t sweat the small stuff
Time – no economic pressure to work, more time to do what we want, not what we have to
Not everyone who moves is happy. Why? It depends on what you need. If you don’t have what you need, or have things you can’t tolerate, life will be difficult. But, for us, it seems we have chosen well. It’s working for us.
Whew! 249 words 😉
PS Joel’s blog is HERE
The Panama Adventure 
Kris…that is a great shot of you that Joel took …the middle one in a black and white top…you look so happy!!!
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Aww thank you! 🙂 Yes, we are both very happy to be here.
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you’re welcome Kris….not sure why i came up annonymous. i think that photo would be great for your blog!
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Me either. Maybe you aren’t logged in? But, I can click on your IP address and see other comments so i figured out it was you. You know how it is with photos of yourself though. Everything else seems more interesting to post!
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If you feel deprived for US TV, Log on to USTVNOW.com and get the major networks plus PBS and CW for free, all in real time. I was amazed to find that the local channels for the major networks are from my area in PA, so it’s like being home without the hassles and weather.
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Nooo, don’t make me watch TV! Seriously, thank you for the tip. I think my husband tried it and it worked some of the time, or there was some reason he wasn’t thrilled by it. I may go check it out and see how it goes for me. But I honestly don’t miss TV. I never watched much anyway, and now I’m finding so many other more interesting things to do with my time here.
Thanks for stopping by my blog! 🙂
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I love how positive you have been about this shift. Seems like there are a lot of good things to be thankful for in Panama 🙂 Loved the post!
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For us, it has been a wonderful change! and an eye opener. The US only thinks it’s the best of everything, but it isn’t necessarily so.
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I miss being able to text you, but I’m sure that will change eventually. So is Joel posting his 250 words on his blog?
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Amy? Yes, Joel’s post is up. I don’t know about texting. I’m kind of enjoying not being attached to technology in my pocket.
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Congratulations! 249 words..awesome post. I’m going to read Joel’s now. 🙂
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We didn’t discuss it after we came up with the idea, so it’s interesting to see how we had different approaches to the same subject.
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It’s interesting to note that the quality and freshness of food increases the further we go from the US/Western European world…Incidentally, I’m finding that your list also applies to the Middle East.
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Really, how interesting. I saw the recent post on your blog – Where the shops have a Name. We think we are the best in the US, but maybe this isn’t always true. And, what a pleasure to have good quality food. Thanks for stopping by my blog and commenting, and I’ll be interested to learn more about your life in your area.
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but you can have netflix! (yes, i’m scanning your back posts… haha.) i use a VPN service ($5/month) to make my computer appear to be in the united states and then have my regular US netflix for like $7/month (minus mail delivery obviously – but a much better selection for streaming than panama’s netflix choices…) VPN also comes in handy for watching my sports games sometimes…. 🙂
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Ahh yes, I do have one of those VPN services now so I can watch an occasional TV show on line. When we get back I’ll have to check out Netflix. I thought it would probably work for that too.
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