May 2007
It was early in 2003 that the thoughts and discussions about starting a new life matured into a decision; what was not clear, was where? Costa Rica had been the initial location until I came across an article in an investment magazine - If you think of Costa Rica, have you thought of Panama?

We hadn't but I managed to persuade my partner to travel to costa Rica via Panama. what did we know about the place? Very little...Noriega and The Canal of course, but other than that I had a vision of Panama City as a dilapidated South American town in an equally undeveloped country. Were we in for a pleasant surprise!

Surfing the Internet we found a great deal of information on the country and its culture along with a proeprty developer in the Bocas del Toro archipelago. Convinced we were on to a good thing we boarded a flight that brought us to Panama city on June 17th 2003. We stayed a few days in the city, which actually reminded me of Singapore in style and architecture. The glass and steel towers, banking and insurance- companies - if it had not have been for the buses we would not have known that we were truly in Central America. It was incredibly clean - we visited a park in Casco Viejo, old part of Panama City, and not an empty coke bottle to be seen. unbelievable

To Bocas del Toro
A few days after our arrival, we boarded the flight to Bocas del Toro, a one hour affair with Aero Perlas at the ridiculous cost of  $US62.00 one way. We were ready to go property hunting. Our broker from San Cristobal Land Development met us at the airport and took  us to a nice hotel by the sea. Next morning we headed off in a boat towards the Alimirante bay and visited a property that seemed encouraging.

There was a peninsula which he had for sale and while we looked at it we fell in love with the place. So off we went for negotiations with Tom from SCLD. The price he mentioned did take us by some surprise, but then comparing it with what we knew in the old world it seemed a steal! When we looked at the proposal a bit closer it became obvious that one could turn this area into a farm and that the whole deal offered three levels of protection:

1) We could definitely calculate on an appreciation of the property, it being seafront and in an outstandingly pretty area. This was not that important, since I planned to live there and not trade the land for something else.

2) The land offered, was an ideal place to invest in a reforestation project, i.e. hardwoods such as teak. Althogh one would be looking at a longer term investment, circa 15 years, it was definitely something worth considering.

3) A suggestion by Tom mentioned incredible yields from the Noni plants, that could be quickly generate an income, though this posed more questions than it answered. 

Morinda citrifolia, commonly known as Great morinda or Indian Mulberry, is called Noni, which is its Hawaiian name.  It is a small shrub or tree native to South East Asia which grows in shady forests as well as on open rocky or sandy shores. It reaches maturity in about 18 months and then yields between 4-8kg of fruit every month throughout the year, so that, plus its popularity when juiced, gives it good cash crop status.  Despite its bitter taste and strong smell, it is eaten as a famine food and in some Pacific islands even as a staple food. It can be eaten cooked or raw.

Added to these aspects was the climate -  was hot and humid.  We spent some time in the mountains and went to a little village called Bocquete in the foothills of the volcano Mount Baru.  When I found out that the temperature there ranged between 24 to 26 degrees Centigrade every day of the year my decision was easy. If I felt it was getting too hot in Bocas the hills were only a four hour bus ride away!   Hence we decided to invest in our peninsula.

After a few months Tom came up with some new ideas always promising incredible returns, but I decided t part copmpany from SCLD, which subsequently turned out to be a good move on my part.  Not long after SCLD folded and Tom went back to the USA, where he was convicted of hustling, and is serving time in Atlanta -  a well deserved holiday  at US Government expense. A lot has been written about this and I do not need to add to it.

The Visa
There are many ways of getting a residents visa, and thus a Panamanian ID card; we applied for ours on the basis of our investment in the country (an investor's visa).  This was achieved by 2005 using the services of a good lawyer. 

Firstly I would advise you to get a lawyer in that field; he will know his way around the immigration process and can save time in the immigration office, where unfortunately you have to present yourself in person.  It can be expensive, but well worth the money.

We then went to work on the Eco resort plan with a top level architect in Panama City. Once the basic concept was developed we were confronted with the governmental requirements, of which the environmental impact study appeared one of the most important documents. It took all of one year to have it complete and submitted to the authorities. Then the  speed of work by the government becomes evident. Things simply take longer than in the Western World. It is an attitude one has to accept and live with. Again not a really big problem -  I do have the time to wait. You can accelerate the process if you are willing to grease the right palms, but I had made it clear from the very beginning that I was not going down that path.

A common thread in our endeavour is that we work with true professionals; they may not be the cheapest you can find but they sure get the job done. The exception to that rule was described above. Check the references!
Nevertheless it is proving good practice to be in Panama about every three months. Things advance better if the involved professionals know you are coming to check on progress. 

The ultimate question that remains: would we do it again if we knew what we know today? The answer is a simple, but resounding Yes!

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