I haven’t posted in 6 weeks. And I have a good excuse. Really.
They’re called Henry and Joe. They’re my grandkids and they’ve been with me for a month. Oh yeah, a couple of others came with them. Like their parents, their aunt, and their other grandmother. But those people are incidental, right? I mean, compared to two darling, blonde 6 and 3 year-olds, EVERYONE else is incidental.
They leave tomorrow for England, which is home. Yup, my grandkids speak with English accents because my son married a Londoner and they’re raising them in a darling village south of London. Odd to hear my own grandkids say: “Grand-muthuh, might I have a glahss of woe-tuh?” Jeez, they sound smarter than me.
After they leave, I’m in the studio solid until January 26th. All will be revealed, but suffice it to say I’m doing a large painting for the new Boquete Public Library. It opens on the 26th and my painting will be featured on the ground floor. And with family staying with us over the holidays, I’m late. Very, very, late.
I will see you in late January and I will have posts on our activities: 5 days in Boca Chica at the Pacific Bay Resort, 5 days in Bocas del Toro, zip lining in the tree tops above Boquete and lots of other fun.
I have no idea what is going on in the world, but I can quote word and verse of the Scooby Doo movie. Rock on, Scooby. “Ruh Row, Raggie!”
Hi Robyn, We are coming to Boquete tomorrow, driving down from PC, have been here since Tuesday and having a great time, have some friends that joined us from New Jersey. Was hoping to run into you or meet up with you, do you go to the Tuesday morning meeting? Sounds like you are busy with your painting for the library, That is pretty cool. We are staying at the Boquete Garden Inn until Friday. Jeanette
Oh, hey, Jeanette, the owners of the Boquete Garden Inn are our neighbors!
Normally I go to the Tuesday market, but with my library deadline, I’m going to skip the meetings until after January. If you want to come in to the studio and say hello, email me off line or message me on Facebook and I will give you directions.
I know where your studio is, behind the insurance building owned by I think (magda something?) next to the visitor center. I don’t think I have your regular email. I haven’t ventured into the world of facebook. Jeanette
Good luck with the painting and remember to come up for air now and then. We can’t wait to see it!
I just stumbled on to your website last night. And I read every one of your posts. A girlfriend of mine just discovered she needs some dental work done and I pointed her to your “dentistry installments”. Thank you. I’m attempting to do research prior to retirement and wanted to read something not published by International Living. I’m new to the process and haven’t exhausted all possibilities yet, but I’m having some problem finding a price for rental (either apartments or condos) in Boquete. I’m not looking to buy or for luxury property. If you could point me in a direction I’d be most appreciative. Thanks!
Mary: Thanks for your comments. Once I determined International Living is a “for profit” entity run by real estate interests, I quit paying them any attention and began doing exactly what you’re doing….looking elsewhere.
If you’re interested in Boquete, the best advice I can give you is to regularly read (in addition to my blog, ha ha) Boquete Guide.com by Lee Zeltzer and become a regular reader of all discussion of http://www.boquete.ning.com. It’s like Facebook for gringos in Boquete. You can do a search of past conversations about rentals and pick up some tips, too. Also check out http://www.viviun.com and find your way to Panama/boquete rentals. Should shed some light.
You can find rents anywhere from $350 for a typical Panamanian small home (not American-built) to over $2,000 for a luxury condo. If you’re in the market for a decent, American-style condo or apartment, budget between $700 to $1400, depending upon size, location and view. We have an 1100 square foot (not large) 2 br, 2 ba condo with a fabulous view in a small building with only 6 units for $750 per month. That’s pretty average. But, I just heard that a friend scored a 3 bedroom home with fantastic views, American style kitchen appointments, but on a horrible, lengthy road out in the middle of nowhere, for only $800 and it had been advertised for $1,800. So one never knows.
Hope this info helps. The best thing to do is schedule a vacation down here for a couple of weeks and see if you can even tolerate living out of the country. Check out infrastructure, check out health care and visit with the gringos here for a while.
Best of luck, and write back any time.