Throwing a Party? If Don't Want it to be Dead, Listen Up

In Panama, lots of people have to work Saturday (usually 8am till 1pm). I've learned through trial and error, that if you want a to plan a party or event do it either Saturday night or Sunday during the day.

Because people work Saturday, most folks will not want to go to or stay long at an event on a Friday night. For that same reason, Saturday during the day is a terrible time to host an event.

Your best bet is to throw a nighttime party on Saturday and throw a daytime event on Sunday. Keep in mind, that there are always unknown factors that can ruin your plans (such as rain, the city's water has been shut off, family obligations, etc.)

Disappearing Employees - Another One Quit Again?

The employee turnover in Panama city high!

There is a Texaco gas station by my house. I'm not kidding when I say that every month, the person that works behind the counter has been replaced with a new face.

This is very common in many places of service oriented business (restaurants, gas stations, department stores, toll boths, etc). Some get fired, some quit, some just don't get paid enough to care. I'll let a Panamanian tell you the reason why, but I'm just stating what I've observed on MANY occasions.

It would be a nightmare for me if I ran a business where I always had to hire new employees.

Car Washes - Great If You Don't Mind the Wait

To get your car washed, its about $4 to $6 for inside and out. A great deal and they do a good job (they even armor all your tires and interior). The only issue is that you have to wait about 30 minutes to an hour for them to clean your car.

If you make time for this, then its not a problem, but if you want a quick last minute wash, forget it! In other words, I've yet to find a place where you can just drive in and wash your car yourself in 10 minutes by dropping a bunch of quarters in a machine. Nor do they have a place where you drive through while spinning brushes and machinery wash and dry your car.

Those things doesn't exist here...manual labor does.

So if you are in a rush, or you want to wash your car at night...too bad for you!

Where Are the Active People Over 30???

I've been noticing a trend...

The active people around here are mainly under 30 years old. By active, I mean:

• Going to the gym regularly
• Running in the park
• Training martial arts/crossfit/etc.
• Dancers (including bboys)
• People who go out to nightlife social events

Where I lived in the US, I was used to people being very active in their "Dirty" 30's. It was very common to find people who were 30+ doing all of the things (and more) from the list above. Here not so much...

Whenever I participate in various activities and events here, I'm usually one of the oldest people. In fact, a few weeks back, I entered a Jiu Jitsu tournament and because I'm over 30, they wanted to put me in the "Senior" category!!!! What??? (FYI, I entered the regulary category and beat the 20 years olds that I "fought" to win first place).

For me and my friends back home, 30's are the new 20's, but here, 30's seem like the new 40's.

Some might argue that the mentality here is more of "get married and start a family soon" than it is in the US. While I know it might be a little harder, what law says that you can't be active if you are married or have a family???

Cold Showers - Better Here Than in the US

One of the perks of being in a tropical location is the weather. Its always warm here. That fact really can make a difference when you are put into certain situations that would piss you off in other places.

Case in point:

Months ago, my water heater stopped working. Translation, no hot water for anything in my apartment. Not a big deal for washing clothes, dishes, drinking, etc. However for showers, that could really suck!

For 1 month, I was forced to take cold showers. Well ironically, whenever I took a "cold" shower, the water was still a slightly warm. It wasn't great, but it was tolerable. If this would have happened at my place back home, a cold shower would have meant a freezing COLD shower, but not here!

To this day, at times I take a shower and I turn the hot water off, because the cold water is fine.

Sometimes you just gotta appreciate the little things.

Free Pay Per Views - Boxing, UFC, etc...

One of the things I love about Panama City, is that most major boxing or UFC matches are shown on TV for FREE!!!!!!

Yes, the Pay Per View events that cost $60 in the US are shown for free on regular TV!!!!

Just last Saturday, I was in my house, watching my simple TV (fyi, my TV does not have cable and barely gets 3 channels). I turned to channel 4 and the Mayweather vs Ortiz PPV boxing match was on!!!

To watch UFC events, you need to have cable, but once you do, you can watch the UFC events through a Mexican channel. Which still...is a steal! Because you are already paying for cable, but now you get $50 UFC events for free every month.

My First Two Car Accidents in Panama - Yes I Hit a Pedestrian

The rules of the road here are followed...when convenient. From time to time, you will see people:

• Driving on the wrong side of the road
• Going in reverse on a freeway (yes you read that correctly)
• Honking if a car doesn't take off 1 millisecond after the light turns green
• Driving the wrong way on a one way street
• Not stopping for cops at police checkpoints
• Pulling into the middle of an intersection to block traffic so they can turn left
• Etc.

I'll admit, I'm guilty of at least 4 of those...

You think there'd be tons of car accidents all the time, but ironically, there is not that many.

I was doing pretty well for the year+ that I've been here, up until 3 weeks ago.

ACCIDENT #1

3 weeks ago, I was trying to force my way across a busy street (Juan Diaz) so I could make a left turn. In doing so, I pulled up too far as a cab was passing and swiped the side of his car. No one was hurt, and the only damage was the cab's dented/scratched fender and head light, while my car had yellow streek and cracked headlamp case.

The cabbie said it would cost $70 to fix the damage. I thought about going through my insurance but then I did the math: Wait FOREVER for the insurance guys to show up and pay my $200 deductible OR pay the guy $70 and bounce! You do the math.

ACCIDENT #2

A little background first...

Pedestrians here in Pan City don't always walk on the sidewalk. A lot of times they are walking in the street or the side of the street, but still in the car lane. In fact, it quite common to see them walking in the street with their back to traffic (so they can't even see when cars are coming).

Yesterday while driving on my way to work, a car was on left, and a man was walking on the right side of my car lane. I thought I had enough space to fit between him and the car to my left...nope! I hit the guys arm as I passed him. I think it was probably my mirror that made the contact. I heard a loud thump and thought "Oh sh*t!!!" I looked back and they guy was still walking. He wasn't cursing or yelling at me, to my surprise.

Call me a bad guy, but I kept on going...