Volume 2 October 5, 2020
Going all in on the newsletter to subscribers only?
Volume 1 went out via social media only, as I struggled with the logistics of making a special newsletter only available to my subscribers. I am still experiencing difficulty with the e-mail functions so I will be posting the newsletter in this manner today as I work through the challenges. If this is the first for you, I appreciate you for following the blog and will be sending out this free newsletter weekly by e-mail on Mondays soon .
Panama is Reopening.
The government-imposed restrictions have been loosened and Jen and I have had a busy week enjoying freedoms that were missed during our more than 6 months of lockdown.
On Monday we took the opportunity to do a little grocery shopping at one of our favorite places PriceSmart. PriceSmart is similar to Costco or Sam’s Club in the States and we are able to get products there unavailable in our local stores. We also made a grocery stop at Reba Smith which is a local grocery, however there is a much larger one near the PriceSmart. Reba carries a lot of grocery brands from the States. We pay a premium for some items there that we also cannot find elsewhere. Last but not least we visited Ashley Furniture where we were able to order a couple of pieces of furniture that have been on our wish list. The lockdown left us with a little more disposable income, and we want to help stimulate the local economy. We also, ate inside at McDonalds with restaurants opening for inside dining being the height of excitement here.
Tuesday, I had a Zoom Meeting with Panama Living. They are interested in having me write some articles for their publication which promotes living in Panama. I will be meeting with them again this week and will report back on what transpires.
Wednesday I took an expat to Penonome so he could take care of some business. He and his family are from South Africa and have been struggling after arriving here at the beginning of the lockdown in March. My heart goes out to them as they make decisions to return to South Africa in spite of the political climate there.
Thursday continues to be our day for gathering socially with some good friends and we have no intention of changing that. Our lunch and Dominoes afternoon has been sustaining us through the most depressing periods of isolation.
On Friday we were able to enjoy dinner at SecundoPiso which is one of our favorite local restaurants. Our good friends Lyn and Ty joined us, and we celebrated their anniversary. We also, were able to attend our church for a service on Friday which is our churches way of hosting gatherings prior to the end of Sunday lockdown. Churches have been allowed to open, but not on Sunday. Official church services are scheduled to resume on Sunday October 18.
I did not offer a bribe…
Readers of my book will remember that I had not had a moving traffic violation in Panama. A couple of months ago, a friend and I traveled to PriceSmart on our allowed Tuesday shopping day. We traveled outside our normal time without too much trouble, however I had an unfortunate traffic stop on our return. The officer claimed that I was going 80km/hr. and the jurisdiction was a 60km/hr. zone. The officer seemed to want me to offer him a cash payment, but I stuck to my morals and accepted the citation. He was not happy, and upon returning to my car he threw my ticket and documentation through my open window from several feet away. Payment is required within 30 days. Payment can be made online once the citation is entered into the system. More than 6 weeks after the ticket was issued it finally appeared in the system and I was able to pay online from my local bank account. Fines for offering a bribe can be bad so my sources say take the ticket and pay it.
A Doctor Visit Last Week.
My sinus infection appears to be succumbing to the antibiotic. For that I am thankful. I will have a follow-up with Dr. Levy later this afternoon. We still have no official word on the reopening of our gym here on the property. Our administration tells me that if I have a Doctor RX for therapy, they may be able to get the gym and pool opened for me. I will have him write the script and hope for the best.
I am Committed…
…to keeping this newsletter under 2 pages and sharing good information. It would benefit the whole readership to have feedback. Please reply with any questions or suggestions for next week. Remember that if you have not had a chance to get your own copy of “2 Retire In Panama? the book, click here to order now.
Blessings from Paradise,
Greg
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Good newsletter, owning a place in Panama, and in the US for the quarantine and waiting to come back to Panama as soon as it opens up completely, I enjoy reading it.