Twinkle, twinkle, little star . . .

Ever wonder what the night sky looks like from our Roca Milagro development in Panama? A good friend of mine is an avid amateur astronomer and Dave, if you're curious, below is a link that will show you what I was talking about in our recent conversation. The skies are pitch black at night. There is very little ambient light from anywhere. If you set up your telescope, this is what you'll see:

The Night Sky From Roca Milagro

Roca Milagro Update - July 2009

Hello, friends of Roca Milagro:

This is a pictorial update with photographs taken by one of my partners at Roca Milagro, Philip Schlesinger. He toured Roca Milagro last weekend and took hundreds of photographs. I will share a very few of them with you here.

The first photo is of Miguel Bernard. He has been our official translator in Panama since we started our project. Here he is standing on one of the ubiquitous rocks at Roca Milagro. Phase one of road construction is nearly complete and there are still piles of rocks and soil everywhere. Once the roads are all in everything will be tidied up. The rocks are a beautiful and desired part of our landscape, but we will 'help' mother nature a bit by repositioning rocks to where they will look most pleasing and also use them to build various site features like benches, barbecues, etc.

Below, Miguel is touring an area of Roca Milagro where the roads have been cut but where the cunetas (concrete channels alongside the road used to direct rainfall) are not yet in. Miguel, and Melissa, the client who is with him, are looking towards a ravine at the edge of our property through which the Rio David flows. Melissa is exploring building a spa at Roca Milagro.

The next photo is of the Rio David as it flows through the ravine. Melissa takes a break and contemplates the beauty of her surroundings.

Our orange trees (all 400 of them) and a number of other tropical fruit trees reside in the grove shown below. Eventually there will be picnic areas with stone barbecues and benches and other features here. This, along with all of our other 'green' areas, will be open to all Roca Milagro residents. Want an orange (or a dozen) and a pineapple for breakfast? Help yourself.

Until construction of homes begins, we are allowing our workers to graze their horses on our land. It helps keep the grass under control a little. Most grounds-keeping is done by a couple of fine lads named Jonathan and Prospero. Although we supply them with weed-whackers and other more modern implements, their tool of choice is still a machete.

Below is the view from the nature trail that we have cut into the hillside down towards the Rio David. The trail runs through an area of pristine rain forest that is part of Roca Milagro and although we will make the trails user-friendly and safe, we intend to keep everything as much as possible in its most natural state.

In the shade of the tree canopy overhead, the Rio David looks mysterious, almost like something out of a National Geographic rain forest documentary.

The photograph below shows an area where the phase one road is done, complete with the cunetas alongside the road edge. In phase two, the roads will get a layer of capa base, a fine gravel, and then a coating of 'double seal.'

For more information, please feel free to contact me or our sales director, Philip Schlesinger.

Thanks,

Sieg Pedde

Email: spedde@rocamilgro.com

Philip James Schlesinger, MBA Panama Direct: 507-6-480-0881

Sales Director USA Toll Free: 888-PHILIPJ

Email: sales@philipjamesrealty.com

Roca Milagro Website

More rock work at Roca Milagro . . .

The planters around our entrada at Roca Milagro are finally complete. Now what remains is to landscape the area around the planters, fill them with topsoil, plant some shrubs and flowers, and finally enjoy the view.

I'm like a little kid with a new toy every time something new is done at our development site. The problem is that there are so many things to do that it seems to take forever. I'm not the world's most patient guy, so I am always waiting, waiting, waiting.

The wait is always worth it, thank goodness!

Please sign up for our email updates by clicking the icon below and visit our website.

Roca Milagro Website

Checking out Panama

Anyone contemplating a permanent move to Panama (or anywhere else, for that matter) must be aware that leaving friends and family behind is not for everyone. It can be tough to end up somewhere where you know no-one and to basically start a completely new life.

Yet, many people do just that. There are many reasons to uproot and move away from everything you have known for your entire life. For some people, getting away from the typically cold winters in much of North America is reason enough. For others, being able to afford a much higher quality retirement than would be possible 'at home' is the reason. Other people simply want to hedge their bets, to put down roots somewhere other than their home country in case of social upheaval or economic trauma.

Whatever the reason for a move, it is always a good idea to do some research before committing to life in a new country. Panama is a safe, secure, beautiful and friendly country. Thousand of individuals who have moved there will attest to that. A good way to get a feel for how these individuals fare in Panama is to join internet groups and to read stories about them and by them.

My purpose with this email is to mention a couple of internet sites that will be helpful and informative. The town of Boquete is about a 30 minute drive from Roca Milagro and there are many expats living in Boquete and David (a larger city, also about 30 minutes from Roca Milagro in another direction) and in areas in between. Many of these individuals belong to an internet group at http://boquete.ning.com. Visit the site, join as a free member, make 'friends' with others in the community and learn. Ask questions, communicate with others, look at photographs submitted by members, find out what life in the area is really like.

The map below shows the relative positions of the places mentioned above:

(Click map to enlarge)

Another interesting site is Boquete Bajareque Times. This is a local newspaper with articles in both Spanish and English. It will also give you a lot of interesting information about the area.

If you would like to see a detailed weather analysis and forecast at any time for the Rovira Arriba area (Roca Milagro is just a short distance outside the village), see this site: Accuweather Rovira Arriba.

Actually, it's greener on OUR side of the fence!

(Click image to enlarge)

It's May. It is beginning to rain more in Panama. I like the rainy season. Often, all it means is that there is a downpour for a while and then the sun comes out and everything smells fresh and is bathed in sunlight again. Sometimes, it is overcast all day but is still warm and pleasant. If you are past the age when you like to splash barefoot in mud puddles, what do you do when it rains? You go shopping. You meet friends in a restaurant or bar. You stretch out in a hammock with a good book. You stare off into the distance and reflect on your past and future and thank your lucky stars for what you have.

I may be 63 years old myself, but I am just a big kid at heart. If you join my partners and me at Roca Milagro one day, you may just see me walking around in the pouring rain with a silly grin on my face. I may even be barefoot, you never know. Life is too short not to enjoy and to experience the simple, everyday things that often go unnoticed during our more stressful career years.

The view in the photo at the top of this post is from one of my personal lots at Roca Milagro and yes, it was taken during a previous rainy season. Isn't it wonderful how green everything is? The view in this photo is towards Volcan Baru but views in all directions are beautiful, from every single building lot in the development.

We're selling building lots now, folks, and prices are still low as we finish off our roads and services. Take advantage of the low prices. Want to live a perfect life, and like me to pretend you're a kid again? Join us. You'll be glad you did.

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Roca Milagro Website

A Sales Pitch for Roca Milagro

Retirement in Panama:
Is it for you?

Yes, I think it is for you and I'll tell you why.

World economies are crashing around us, just as many of us are reaching retirement age. With our investments decimated and with the prospect of living on a lower fixed income after retirement, how will we be able to maintain a reasonable lifestyle? Have we been working hard all of our lives in expectation of a comfortable and enjoyable retirement just to discover that it has all been a dream and nothing more?

For some of us, the question is even more critical: How will we be able to pay the bills? Will we be able to retire at all? Will we have to seek some menial employment just to pay the bills? And now, with jobs disappearing everywhere, will we be able to work anywhere at all, even flipping hamburgers or pumping gas?

Maybe. Or maybe not. Even menial jobs are disappearing at an alarming rate.

What if there were a place where we could live economically and not have to worry about making ends meet? What if this place was safe, stable, affordable and beautiful? And what if it was warm year-round and you would never have to worry about paying a heating bill again? What if you could build a beautiful home for a fraction of what it would cost where you live? And what if property taxes were very low, or if you build a new home were forgiven completely by the Panamanian government for 15 - 20 years?

What if there were already many Canadians, Americans and Europeans living there?

Where is this magical place? It's the Republic of Panama.

Panama is a beautiful country. Google 'Panama' and you will find hundreds of pages of information on Panama and everything in it. Google 'pensionado Panama' and read about all the wonderful benefits that come with the pensionado program. No matter where you live in Panama, there will be advantages galore. But we want you to live with us and that is the point of this letter to you.

And who are we? We are a group of Canadian, American and Panamanian investors. We are developing a beautiful community in the mountains of Panama, near Boquete, David and the Costa Rican border. All of our partners own building lots in the development and we would like you to join us as our neighbours. Our development is called Roca Milagro.

You can check out our beautiful development and read all about us at our website and and I will give you its link in a just a moment. First, I just want to add that we are now selling building lots at low introductory prices and they are going fast. When infrastructure is complete, prices will go up dramatically. The time to act is now.

Before you go on to the website, please sign up for our email update list by clicking the graphic at the bottom of this post. No-one will call or annoy you. Your email address will not be sold to anyone else. You will simply be put on our own email list from which you will get periodic updates about Roca Milagro. That's it. If you ever wish to stop getting our updates, send us an email and they will stop. We are not pushy people and respect your right to privacy.

And, one more thing . . . we are real people. We will be living at Roca Milagro with you. We have invested our own money. We don't owe anything to anyone. There are no banks holding mortgages on our land and on our future. Why are we telling you this? Because we feel it is important to stand apart from some unscrupulous developers out there who once they have your money forget all about you.

Come on . . . join us. We look forward to sharing our first drink with you at Roca Milagro. Will that be on your patio or mine?

Thanks for checking us out!

Roca Milagro Website

Sieg Pedde, President
Roca Milagro Residential Community
Rovira Arriba (near Boquete)
Republic of Panama

Home is where the heart is.

(Click photo to enlarge)

"Home is where the heart is." Or is it: "Home is where the hearth is"? I guess either would make sense. So would: "Home is wherever I hang my hat."

Home is whatever you want it to be. We all have fantasies about where we would love to live and what our ideal lifestyle might be. Some of us have simple wishes. Others of us have aspirations that would shame Donald Trump or the late Aaron Spelling, both of whom known for their extravagant lifestyles.

I wonder what the story is about the home in the photograph above, taken a few kilometers outside of Boquete, Panama. The place is abandoned or perhaps had never been completed in the first place. The setting is beautiful, the home looks like it might have been a beautiful place to live. It was once someone's dream, now it is more likely someone's nightmare.

My personal dreams are simpler. I don't need a huge house. I want a comfortable home. I want it to be clean and orderly. I want enough room for a few guitars and other musical paraphernalia, some good books, and a few comfortable places to sit. Besides that, the atmosphere and the company are what really count.

I have a number of building lots at Roca Milagro. I want to build a nice, comfortable home on one of them to stay in whenever I am in Panama. It won't likely be the largest home in the community or the one with the most 'presence.' But it will be mine and I will enjoy it. I hope there will be friends and neighbours around with whom I can discuss philosphy and politics and religion and the general human trend towards self-destruction. Maybe there will be someone with whom I can 'jam,' playing (as my Canadian jam-partner puts it) music that is older than we are.

I am looking forward to getting a horse and to riding in and around our development. Maybe there will be other riders in the community who will join me. Sunshine, fresh air, beautiful scenery -- what more could one possibly want?

One thing for sure: My home will need one of these:

I think home is where the Gitane is.