When Calamity Strikes: Why Panama? Why Western Panama? Why Finca Cazador?

Being able to avoid political, economic or environmental disasters will come down to: location, location, location.

 

Choosing the right spot could mean the difference between getting swept away in a life-changing event, or watching it unfold from the sidelines.

 

Why Panama?

Panama is the financial capital of Central America. It's economy is experiencing the fastest growth in the region, and in general, it's people are hard working, well educated and worldly. Panama is economically and politically stable and quite safe, unlike other destinations considered "options" for someone interested in leaving their home country.

It's three million person population is mostly concentrated in Panama City, and to a lesser degree the outlying cities of Santiago, Penonome, David, Volcan, Boquete and the island archipelago Bocas Del Toro.

  

Click to Enlarge

Rural farming communities make up the rest of the country, and those residents, in many ways, live the slower-paced lifestyle they have lived (not dependent on others for basic necessities) for many generations.

Because parts of Panama have become accustomed to first world amenities, metropolitan areas (such as those listed above) are likely to see similar problems as the U.S. and Europe when an economic, political or environmental event disrupts their infrastructure or social order. 

If there were to be an extended power outage, for example, large segments of the rural population would not be affected by it. Contrast that with living in an urban area (such as David), where an apartment would be nearly unbearable without air conditioning.

Interruptions to the distribution of food could be a real possibility both in the metro areas here in Panama, and even more likely in the highly developed but dependent on technology west. Dense populations can strip a store shelf bare in a matter of minutes, as witnessed during hurricane Katrina.

Typical Metro Area Store - Click to Enlarge

People living in rural areas, are naturally less dependent on others (and modern conveniences) for survival, and therefore less likely to be negatively affected by an economic disruption, loss of power or (because of the distance) a mass exodus from the city.

 

One of Many Locally Grown Food Stands - Click to Enlarge

Shortages of store-bought food in the rural areas would have a minimal effect on the local population, as much of their food is home-grown or obtained locally.

Why this particular area? 

Finca Cazador is located near the pueblos of Santa Clara and LaUnion. This friendly rural farm area, surprisingly, has many amenities not even found in larger towns and even some of the nearby cities like Volcan and Boquete.

 This large police station, effectively discourages crime. That, coupled with a nearly non-existent expat population, makes living here less dangerous than areas which are heavily populated by "rich" foreigners.

 

Modern Health Clinic - Click to Enlarge

Most towns this size would not normally have a clinic, but because it's the "county seat", and serves the county's entire population, it is sizable and modern, providing essential health care services at unbelievably low prices. More serious incidents are handled by the 24/7 ambulance service to the various full-service hospitals in David.

Advanced state-of-the-art medical treatments (many not available in the States) are only a couple of hours away in Panama City.

There are many reasons this area, and Finca Cazador in particular, would be a good place to be during a catastrophic event. These are only a few of the advantages. We will post more when we have more time.

If you would like to take a tour of Finca Cazador, let us know by email or phone.