2 Retire In Panama?                                            NEWSLETTER

         February 15, 2021  Volume 21  

This week's COVID...

...update is how I am helping to keep readers updated on how "under control" COVID-19 is in Panama.  This is the update as of February 12th from Karyn Saunders.Thank you so much Karyn for continuing to keep ex-pats aware of the statistics:

Panama has 910 new cases, +23 new deaths, 202 in ICU, 1286 hospitalized, 18.756 active cases, 3024 newly recovered + 2204 new. 

1) 7.8% positive rate.

2) Beaches are open Monday through Friday from 6am - 5pm.

3) All retail has reopened in Panama and Panama Oeste which includes beauty salons and barber shops, restaurants, car washes and other cultural and creative businesses. Restaurants must close by 9pm and alcohol may only be serverd with a meal.

4) Gender specific shopping has been discontinued. This means that we can once again shop with our spouses.

5) Total weekend and nightly curfews (10pm-4am) remain in effect.

6) This Wednesday February 17th at 4am the checkpoint at Capira wil be lifted.

This is all good news with improvement in almost every statistic. For more information on the covid vaccine in Panama click here.

With the lockdowns and curfews...

...coming to an end soon, I have been wrapping up a couple of projects and getting organized. I bought a toolbox/workbench for my deposito, which made a wonderful excuse to organize my stuff. I cleaned out some closet space that we were using for tools and got all the extra parts and junk either discarded or boxed and labeled. Now I know exactly where to find everything.

                                              

After that was accomplished I finished painting the doors and trim in the condo. We wanted to do something a little different in our guest room to give it a beach like feel, so I painted the 12 closet doors. You can learn to do anything on YouTube. The pictures below are the before and after. I am just waiting for new hardare to put it in the finished column.

                                 

My special offer this week...

...is in celebration of things opening up everywhere. We recognize that a little extra care to protect ourselves goes a long ways. That is why we wanted to link in this page where you can find masks, hand sanitizer and most anything to give you all a little extra protection from the COVID-19. Click here to check it out. After all, we would not want to trend backwards in our efforts to keep one another safe. Nobody wants to stay locked down for another year!

                                           

Carnival... 

...started Saturday. Even with every festival and event cancelled people flocked to the beach areas. Traffic from the city got cranked up really good last Thursday with travel times from the city to Coronado exceeding 4 hours. 

Carnival is a huge celebratioin in Panama and most of the population has time off work the week of Carnival. Even with all celebrations cancelled, the businesses will close and give their employees time off. The government has prohibited parties and social gatherings, but that will not stop people from enjoying the beaches and family celebrations. Last week, I put a snipit from my book in the newsletter that tells how Panama celebrates Carnival in a normal year. If you missed it you can check it out in the archives on my blog.

 

I came across this...

article in the lifestyle section of pty life.  It was written by Joey Bonura, and highlights 14 incredible Islands you must see when visiting Panama. Jen and I have explored a few of these, but there are a few others that I have added to my bucket list. Perhaps we will save a couple for future guests.

For a small country – Panama manages to pack an incredible amount of terrain that will satisfy any explorer. You’ve got a cosmopolitan city, cool mountain towns, beaches with world class surf, AND ISLANDS GALORE! 

Joey has traveled quite a bit through Latin America and states that Panama has some of the most beautiful islands in the region. San Blas alone has 365+ islands where you can island hop. The beauty of Panama's islands is that they are located on both the Atlantic and Pacific sides of the country so you can hang out on a deserted Caribbean Island one day and check out an island on the Pacific the next! Click this link PTY Life   to read the entire article and enjoy his awesome pictures.

                                 

This week's fan photo...

...is our friend and fellow expat Rani. Rani and her husband Dav have been settling into their new home here just north of Coronado. They connected with Jen and I after finding my blog. They spent a little over a year on the ground before purchasing their condo. With the pandemic affecting international travel, they have opted not to return to Canada until recently. They learned of extreme travel restrictions going into effect for travel back to Canada so they decided to leave last Thursday to avoid these restrictions going into effect on February 22nd. They are now at their home in the cold north.

                                                    

You can get a copy of my book by clicking the link here, or the link on the blog. It is exclusively available on Amazon or Kindle. Kindle Unlimited subscribers read it free.  

Blessings from paradise,                          

  Greg                        

 
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