I have never seen so many different trees, plants, and flowers as I have here in Mexico, including Puerto Vallarta. I have never seen so many different trees, plants, and flowers as I have here in Mexico, including Puerto Vallarta. .png)
Panama is well-known for its world-class health care and is home to some of the most modern health care facilities in all of Latin America.
At the top of the list for reputation is Hospital Punta Pacifica in Panama City. This is a state-of-the-art facility that is affiliated with John Hopkins Medicine International. They work together with John Hopkins Hospital regarding patient referrals to the US, program development, education, and lectures for...
Panama is well-known for its world-class health care and is home to some of the most modern health care facilities in all of Latin America.
At the top of the list for reputation is Hospital Punta Pacifica in Panama City. This is a state-of-the-art facility that is affiliated with John Hopkins Medicine International. They work together with John Hopkins Hospital regarding patient referrals to the US, program development, education, and lectures for physicians and nursing development.
Paitilla Hospital (Centro Medico Paitilla) is the next most popular hospital among expats, as most of the doctors speak English. Many, in fact, complete their residencies in the US or Europe. This facility is best known for cardiology, cancer, and lab pathology as well as critical care for newborns and adults.
Other well-known and respected medical facilities within the country of Panama include Hospital Chiriqui, Hospital Nacional (affiliated with the Family Hospital Group of Boston, Massachusetts) and Hospital Santa Fe.
In Coronado, where I live, we have the San Fernando Clinic – and it is awesome! You will find that most of doctors and the staff there speak English. There is an emergency section of the clinic, as well as a walk-in area. There is rarely a long wait in the walk-in area (usually it is about 10 minutes) and the cost for a drop-in visit is $20 during the week and $60 on the weekends. They also have an on-site dentist as well as other specialists. Services range from radiology, CAT scans, ultrasounds, a clinical lab, ophthalmology, and an on-site pharmacy.
We also have an independent doctor, Dr. Victor Levy, who has opened a private office in The Village Mall and he is awesome!
Standard medical care, surgery, hospitalization, and dental care in Panama are less the half the cost of the same services in the US and Europe. Many people even come to Panama specifically for the medical tourism alone, since it can be much cheaper here than in their country of origin.
If you are planning to live in Panama, you can obtain a private insurance plan as an individual or a family at one of the hospitals mentioned above. Otherwise, payment of hospital expenses is the responsibility of the traveler and is due upon receipt of services.
Another important detail that I must not leave out is that pharmacies are in abundance here in Panama, and the cost of prescriptions is generally much lower than in Canada or the US. The neat thing is that you can purchase as few as ONE pill if that is all you need. Often, Panamanians only buy what they need, thus many things are available in small quantities – including medicine. Before leaving your country, learn what medical services your health insurance covers overseas. If you do have overseas coverage for major medical mishaps, remember to bring both your insurance policy and identity card.
Living entirely abroad is something I never heard anybody say that they regret. It's just a life changing experience, and a completely different perspective of the world than vacationing in different countries.Living entirely abroad is something I never heard anybody say that they regret. It's just a life changing experience, and a completely different perspective of the world than vacationing in different countries.
We have three or four beautiful rivers that cross Portugal. Further south from Lisbon we have the Guadiana River, where I have rafted. Up north we have Mondego River and further north close to Porto we have Douro River, which is where the Porto Wine comes from. And this area Douro; the Douro River and the cliffs surrounding the Douro River, is where they plant the grapes to produce the world famous Porto Wine or “Port Wine” as you call it in America. We do not have the...We have three or four beautiful rivers that cross Portugal. Further south from Lisbon we have the Guadiana River, where I have rafted. Up north we have Mondego River and further north close to Porto we have Douro River, which is where the Porto Wine comes from. And this area Douro; the Douro River and the cliffs surrounding the Douro River, is where they plant the grapes to produce the world famous Porto Wine or “Port Wine” as you call it in America. We do not have the very extreme classes of river rafting but we do have some mild intermediate class areas. People raft here in Portugal in the winter and spring. You can go in summer but the rivers are very low and it becomes a bit boring for people looking for some excitement. 
You will see all sorts of wildlife here in Belize. We have jaguars, monkeys, caribous, storks, and saltwater crocodiles. There is a gamut of wild life here. There is a nice zoo on the mainland called the Belize Zoo and it is spectacular. You will see all sorts of wildlife here in Belize. We have jaguars, monkeys, caribous, storks, and saltwater crocodiles. There is a gamut of wild life here. There is a nice zoo on the mainland called the Belize Zoo and it is spectacular. .jpg)
My dear husband and I left the good ol’ USA when we sold our home in California in 1994. He told me: “Honey, don’t look back!” We were young and adventurous so we drove from California to Costa Rica.
