Latest Expat Stories

“Bless me, Father.  It has been ten years since my last confession.  Leastwise, that was when I committed the ‘sin’ of my exodus from Philadelphia, PA to the Promised Land of Belize.  You see, Father, that little coastal country hanging below Mexico laid before me a sensual temptation.   With the strength of the mythical Sirens, it lured me with its enchantingly sweet ‘singing’ about sunny days and more-for-the-money lifestyle.

“Alas, there was no...

Panamá has recently invested several million dollars in their road infrastructure, making it one of the most modern systems at least in Latin America, connecting the airport to the city via a beautiful highway 20 minutes drive surrounded by the Panamá Bay.

 

As a matter of fact, in today´s newspaper, very important information was released that the government will invest several million dollars more between 2015-2019 to expand the ...

I hear you are Belize bound.  Maybe I can help.  No, packing plates wasn’t what I had in mind.  Sorry.  Be of good cheer, though, that your porcelain will remain safely out of my CLUMSY hands.

Now then, let’s consider some handy things you may want to toss in that last box before you tape the top.  First, have you included a goodly number of chains among your household items?  You look at me wildly.  Take it easy, now.  I am not...

So how did this all start?

 

So there we were.  Bored, in the jungle, and getting jungle fever.  We were looking to socialize over beers, snacks, and music, all while working out and having fun.  The solution (according to our teacher, who came from the UK) was obvious: line dancing.

 

First, we needed a venue, which turned out to be this open air restaurant / bar in the center of town called Hode’s place. Perfect!!

...

A bridge.  Some hills.  A river.  Interesting?  Taken individually, maybe not so much.  But wait!  If you can find all three together, then you almost have a match made in heaven.  I say almost.  Now if you throw in a town, then – and only then – you have attained nirvana!
 
To be sure, the third largest urban setting in Belize is not quite paradise.  However, San Ignacio sports enough merits for city sainthood, and that will do in...

Phil McGuigan has some stories to tell. In this interview, he recounts to Jet Metier about his ties to the man who eradicated malaria in the Canal Zone and about the time he wrestled the richest man in Belize. McGuigan bought land and a house in Panama almost as quickly as he now buys hundreds of pounds of dog food for animal rescue in Boquete. Ask McGuigan about an event, and he probably knows someone involved directly. There is a story about how friends...

It was two years ago, December 9, 2012 when we landed in Panama City. As excited as I was, the fact that I had bronchitis dampened that feeling a lot. Day two found us looking for yet another round of antibiotics. I bought them over the counter. They worked great, too. I had such severe allergies in the USA, especially in Texas, that I usually had some kind of upper respiratory infection at least twice a year. Odd, but it seemed the doctors had no idea how to treat it. I was given the...