[BOB SHAPLAND]

Jessica,
My apologies that I’m just now seeing this. We have only been here since the middle of December, so I’m sure there are others here that would be much more qualified to speak about building and living in Pedasi. We currently are renting in El Limon, only a 5-minute drive from Pedasi. Our house is being built on the road to Playa Arenal, half way between Pedasi and the beach so we can walk either way. There are some definite frustrations in living here, but we’re adapting and are quite happy overall. I’d be happy to talk to you if you still want to.

[BOB SHAPLAND]

We moved to Pedasi in December of last year and are currently renting a home that is on well water. I can say that after the water dried up in our dog’s shiny metal water dish and left a mineral film that was VERY difficult to remove, we switched to bottled water for our drinking needs. I also know that wells here cost about $25/ft to drill (this information coming from those that have had it done). We are building and will have city water at that location, but I can’t speak to the quality of the water as of yet and also know that due to drought situations that availability can be an issue for some.

[BOB SHAPLAND]

My wife and I have driven from Panama City to Pedasi several times now. We choose to rent from the Albrook airport because at that point, you’re almost out of town and don’t have to deal with as much crazy traffic. GPS is highly recommended, but after two rentals in which we reserved a car and requested a GPS, we got there only to find that no GPS was available. So we ended up buying a GPS here in the U.S. and purchasing a Panama chip to install in it. Works great, other than the fact that many roads there aren’t named, so the GPS will say “Turn right on road”. Which road? Still highly recommend it and yes, I’d allow at least 5 hours. The roads are as good (or better) than in the U.S.

[BOB SHAPLAND]

William:

If you haven’t already done so, you might want to check into these shipping options: http://airbox.com.pa/eng/maritime/ or http://www.delvi.com/

[BOB SHAPLAND]

My wife and I will be making our third visit to Panama in June and would like to ride the new metro. Can you give details on the vending machines that sell the Rapipass? Is there an English option for those of us not proficient in Espanol? Does the machine take credit cards, cash, or both? Anything you could tell us prior to getting there would be appreciated!

[BOB SHAPLAND]

We, too had heard those horror stories before we made our trip to Panama last November. We rented from a Budget agency (not in David, but in PTY located right outside the El Panama Hotel), took many pics of the car while we were filling out the paperwork so we couldn’t be blamed for any damage that was already present. We experienced absolutely no difficulties when turning the car in and were pleased with the whole experience. Other than driving in Panama City which is exactly like the horror stories you’ll read about that! Get the GPS!

[BOB SHAPLAND]

Gracias, Jessica. I hadn’t considered the possibility that in-home care might be a reasonable option.

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