With all of the crime, drugs, and deadly auto accidents

[Steve and Nancy Rice]

is Boquete a good retirement destination? 

[Thomas Bonham]

Attention folks,

The multitude of loud, vicious, lunging Pana guard dogs has just had added a new canine to their roster; David van Harm.  He doesn't even live here yet but he is attacking those who do not fully concur with his dreamy vision of Boquete/Pana paradise.  If someone merely questions the fact that he may know less than someone who actually has lived here awhile, he calls them a lone wolf fear monger who is below contempt and then ridicules them as pathetic, whiny, scared victims if they deign to move away or even if they were to contemplate such a betrayal.  van Harm, you are a scary person and you have a long learning curve ahead of you. 

[Thomas Bonham]

Amen.  I speak Spanish and have been here four years in the City, and I am becoming disillusioned.  This is not paradise.  This is the gritty third world. Keep a firm hand on your wallet and be on guard at all times. Juega vivo should be the first two Spanish words you should learn upon arrival.  85% of the people behind the wheel here would lose their driver licenses very quickly if they lived in the US.  They are rude and highly inconsiderate behind the wheel, qualities which they carry over on foot which is evident if you have ever walked a PC  "sidewalk"  or pushed a shopping cart in a Pana supermarket.  As a pedestrian in PC walking around, I feel like I am in a shooting gallery. There have been many near misses with me as the victim and that includes my always being on a high stage of alert.  Grocery food prices are higher than in the US. The cuisine is gauche although often tasty from a hungry peasant point of view.  Beer prices are wonderful. Real estate prices are not that great.  Weed is cheaper and more widely available in Sebastopol. And as this thread emphasizes, life is transitory here especially if you're behind the wheel and often when you are not.  The one big plus are the jubilado discounts and the price of medical care.  So if you are sick and feeble and relatively poor, this might be the place for you.

[Goodbye San Diego]

The title is obviously tongue in cheek.

The usual b.s. from Villa de Caca continues to bore like a broken record.  Boquete is still charming (partly because people like Villa left).

[Susan and Pat]

GSD...yup it was a loaded question...both barrels.....sad to see it come to this...again

and to make matters worse here in Boquete - Deli Baru was out of Nutella again!!!

[3t5ufon2fxo1d]

Mr. & Miss Rice,
Panama is absolutely positively a nice place to be and to retire, I know I am doing both. I have seen Panama evolve and change in the last 27 years and through all that I will say that Panama is still a good choice. Boquete is one of the most popular retirement destinations for perhaps as many reasons as there are Expats all of who indulge in a high quality of life all the while enjoying a somewhat lower cost of living compared to the average location in the USA.

From my vantage point I would say that crime, drugs and auto accidents are not much higher or frequent that any place else. I report on such topics because I’m geared to deal with those issues and have interest in the safety and well-being of the public including the way in which our Panamanian Hosts see us as we move about in the pursuit of our daily lives.

Please don’t let any of us influence your decisions to retire in Panama. If you choose to move here you will be surrounded by highly experienced Experts Expats who will guide you and your wife every step of the way. Just remember we are all her to help.

[Lee Zeltzer]

If you are searching for Crime, Drugs and Deadly auto accidents I will recommend you consider Miami, it has more of them.

[Thomas Bonham]

But the traffic flow and the quality, intelligence, and temperament of the motorists are far superior. Of course Miami is going to have more traffic accidents than Boquete.  What about per capita compared with PC? 

[Keith Woolford]

Have you ever noticed most of the so-called "negative" comments on this platform come from outside of the community? Genuine difficulties folks that folks encounter are often resolved or improved through discourse here. It's a shame to hear that they are parroted later on as reasons to stay away from Boquete. Just sayin'. 

[Bruce Laidlaw]

Interesting that you used the word "parroted" Keith...

[Evelyn Kendall]

Having lived here for about 7 years now, I would say the greatest concern would be health issues.  There is no guarantee that you could get to a hospital in time if you had an emergency.  There is no "state of the art" ambulance in Boquete.  There is no hospital closer than David.  And in my opinion there is no adequate health insurance plan offered to those who do not have their own plans from their previous employment.  If you had a serious health issue, I would consider very carefully about moving to Boquete.

[B & A in Brisas]

An honest assessment.  Note she said: "If you have a serious health issue"   I assume a known serious health issue.  What Evelyn said should definately be taken into consideration.  Now for some, there is a willingness to take the chance.  Insurance policies can be gotten .  The older you are and the more pre-existing issues you have drive the price of that insurance upward.  Sometimes staying within the USA or Canada is the better option for some folks.  For others, death in Boquete beats life in the US.  My husband and I chose life until death...in Boquete.

[Evelyn Kendall]

I don't mean to be overly dark and dreary, but there is much to consider about dying in Panama.  First, however, thank heaven we have Hospice that has been so very helpful to many at the end stage of life.  I cannot say enough good about them and I hope all will support this wonderful organization.  That being said....I think sometimes we have the idea that we are going to enjoy life until the end, not realizing that the end could be long, slow, painful, lonely, and expensive. We are probably not just going to go home one night after a great party and lie down and depart.  Or drop over on the golf course with a smile on our face, golf club in hand.  Unfortunately, for many the last days, weeks, months,and even years of illnesses are usually spent in varying degrees of pain and dependency upon others.  So who is going to take you around when you can't drive any more?  Whose going to think for you when you are completely muddled and can't manage your finances? Or remember where Romeros is? What kind of pain management can you hope for in Panama? What is the philosophy of medicine here?  What about the right to die?  How available is the technology to help give you quality of life? (ie Chiriqui Hosp. to date has only one dialysis machine) All of the above is what you have to face in your own home country, to be sure.  But you owe it to yourself to have a realistic plan for Panama and know the answers to those questions and more.

I plan to die here.  But I am sure learning all I can about what that might entail as I take in the sunset here in beautiful Boquete.