Best Places In The World To Retire

The artisans here in San Miguel de Allende are amazing. You can take a picture of something you want and give it to somebody, whether it is a metal worker or a furniture maker or a tile maker. You can have something recreated very inexpensively and very quickly if you can’t find what you are looking for.

 

The upholstered furniture in Mexico is not very comfortable. However, I have friends that are in the interior design business that work for...

The artisans here in San Miguel de Allende are amazing. You can take a picture of something you want and give it to somebody, whether it is a metal worker or a furniture maker or a tile maker. You can have something recreated very inexpensively and very quickly if you can’t find what you are looking for.

 

The upholstered furniture in Mexico is not very comfortable. However, I have friends that are in the interior design business that work for individuals and they have tradesmen that manufacture the furniture for them. They get it manufactured to spec. Part of the problem with it is that the pitch, the backs are straight up. You want a slight incline for your chairs and that is something that hasn’t been figured out yet here. But if you could have somebody make it for you that is not a problem and it is very reasonable. 

 

Custom-made furniture here in San Miguel is reasonably priced. They are less expensive compared to custom-made furniture in the US. There are a number of stores where you can buy furniture here, too. Yes, you can buy pre-made furniture in San Miguel. You just have to know where to look and if you can’t find something that you want because you want something specific, you could just have it made. 

 

I had an 8-foot dining room table made that was extra wide like a country French table with a specific base that I was looking for. I also had it white washed so that it looked country French. I paid US $320 for it to be made to my specifications and it took 8 days to make. The same table would have cost me about $1,500 in the US. The artisans here in San Miguel are really great craftsmen. You just have to tell them what you want done.   They can do anything and it is astounding.

 

(Wood bedroom furiture, San Miguel de Allende, Mexico, pictured.)

Having or owning a car is an optional choice anywhere in the world but public transportation is available here in Cayo. If you are the adventurous type, you would want your own vehicle because there is just so much to see in the Cayo area. As an example, if you want to go sightseeing at the Mountain Pine Ridge, you have to go there in a private vehicle or you could get a tour guide and rent a vehicle.

 

(Arial view of the river Machal and the road to...

Having or owning a car is an optional choice anywhere in the world but public transportation is available here in Cayo. If you are the adventurous type, you would want your own vehicle because there is just so much to see in the Cayo area. As an example, if you want to go sightseeing at the Mountain Pine Ridge, you have to go there in a private vehicle or you could get a tour guide and rent a vehicle.

 

(Arial view of the river Machal and the road to  The Lodge at Chaa Creek, Cayo, Belize, pictured.) 

I cannot give out a number on the crime rate against expats in Coronado, Panama, because most crimes are not reported. I am on the board of a group called the Panama Helpline Neighbors Helping Neighbors, which is a group that was set up here in the Coronado area so that people who speak only English have a contact. There are three guys who answer the phone and will contact the police, talk to them in Spanish, and dispatch an ambulance, a fire truck, or the police, if necessary. It is...

I cannot give out a number on the crime rate against expats in Coronado, Panama, because most crimes are not reported. I am on the board of a group called the Panama Helpline Neighbors Helping Neighbors, which is a group that was set up here in the Coronado area so that people who speak only English have a contact. There are three guys who answer the phone and will contact the police, talk to them in Spanish, and dispatch an ambulance, a fire truck, or the police, if necessary. It is also good for roadside assistance and it is a good group to belong to, but not all crimes get reported there.

 

All of your information is kept on file there, too, so if you are in an emergency situation, you can just tell them that you are a member and give them your contact number and tell them you are home. They will have all the information there in Spanish to translate if you need help. So they can send the police, an ambulance or fire truck; whatever you need. You don’t have to relay that information every time. It is all kept on file.

 

The crimes that happen here are often crimes of opportunity. We live in a house and we have bars on the windows, which is very common for Panama. We have two dogs and a gated yard. I have never ever felt unsafe here even when Neil is driving and working nights.

 

In other places, crimes do happen because the doors or gates are left open. It is not worse than when we lived in Calgary. In the city or here in Coronado, there is always going to be some crime but it is not anything that we are overly concerned about.

 

Coronado is also a very wealthy area so it is somewhat targeted because of its wealth.  This does not mean it is targeted because of its expats. I have heard of wealthy Panamanian families having problems here just as much as wealthy expats having problems here. The crimes are not necessarily about crimes towards immigrant people as it is just a wealthy area.

 

Violent crimes are very minimal here in Coronado. There is one group of people that has been doing home invasions, about ten people who are giving the country a bad name. It is very random and I think it has a lot to do with opportunity. They watch your house and see if you are not diligent about locking up when you leave or locking up at night, which creates and opportunity.  Overall, however, I could say that 90% of the crimes here are crimes of opportunity, which are non-violent, such as when somebody sets something down, turns her back, and when she comes back, it’s gone. Overall, I don’t see violent crime as a big problem here. I would say that it is probably worse in most major cities in North America.

 

I don’t feel unsafe being alone in the house. During the daytime, I have no issues. At night, well, I wouldn’t walk at night in Calgary, either. If I have the dogs, nobody comes near me. I have even walked to happy hour by myself. It is just four blocks away and it doesn’t bother me at all. It may be unsafe at night when you are down on the beaches because sometimes criminals come in by boats and not through the gated roads, so there is a potential to be attacked at the beach at night or in dark alleyways. But the distance between our home and the local happy hour is all well-lit on the major road so it is not a big problem.

 

If you would exercise the same degree of caution you would anywhere, where at night, you would go to well-lit places, you’re fine. I wouldn’t walk on the back streets or the quiet streets. During the week, there is nobody here so if you ran into somebody on the street, you could go two blocks and not see a light. That’s what I mean I wouldn’t walk at night, because there are no other people there.

 

(Panama Helpline logo, pictured.)