The Best Regions in the World for Retirement 2025
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I love my Mexican Caribbean home and the water is fantastic! I'm a single lady, travel around Mexico solo and have never felt unsafe or had any issues so I'll toss Mexico's hat in the ring if you're a water baby like me. It's wonderful.
Bel - IL Mexico Correspondent. -
For France, the process to bring dogs over is pretty straightforward and you can find rentals that will take you and your dogs. It's a dog... and cat.. loving culture. I've interviewed several expats who brought their dogs over, large and small. There are vets everywhere and you just need to see your vet in the US before moving to France so they can sign off the paperwork and validate the vaccinations. No quarantine period when you arrive.
Tuula, IL France Correspondent
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Ha ha ha me too! I always listen to these as everyone is talking and think "wow your country sounds amazing!" and then I want to go visit so I'm with you!
Bel - IL Mexico Correspondent. -
jramesch said:
As others have mentioned here - thank you all for chiming in - Panama runs the Panama Canal, not China.As a non-political "autonomous" entity the Canal is not affected by changes in presidents/administrations.
Panamanian enginners, geologists and others were already working at the Canal alongside Americans long before Panama took over running the Canal.
Panama was prepared by the US to run the waterway over a 20-year transition period, as laid out in the Torrijos-Carter treaty. Panama has been running the Canal extremely successfully since Panama officially took over in 1999 (so we're talking over two decades, 25+ years)
I do understand these concerns are coming from comments the type of which are unprecedented by a US president or president-elect.
I may not be able to predict exactly what's in store but we have good reason to expect that on a macro level things won't be changing much.
Some of you may be justifiably concerned because there just isn't a lot of LatAm foreign policy info or past examples to go on. Over the past years particularly with the covid crisis as a major concern, LatAm has not received nearly as much attention from the US government and now we're seeing new focus and interest.
But I agree with the experts who say: Looks like it’s all about 1- pressuring countries like Panama to do even more to try stem the refugee tide and 2- the always popular topic of tariffs and trade. Not any real belief that any US leader could rally enough support to “invade and annex Panama” or "take back the Canal."
With Panama's stellar track record and long history of close ties with the US (and a long list of other countries) I like many others here am still feeling great about my decision to live in this incredibly peaceful country often referred to as the Switzerland of Central America.
(This moniker stems from Panama's commitment - as home of the Panama Canal - to stay neutral. Panama has no military. The country has this year once again rotated into a non-permanent seat on the UN Security Council for 2025 & 2026. Panama became a sovereign republic with major support from the US over 100 years ago, in 1903. Panama has used the US dollar for over 100 years. The long history of friendship and respect between the US and Panama cannot be overstated.)
Best,
IL Panama Editor Jess Ramesch -
Hello,
I'm not too sure about the answer, but I would check with the American Hospital in Paris. I think they could point you in the right direction. I know many of the nursing homes in France specialize in Alzheimers, but not sure about home care. Best of luck!
Tuula, IL France Correspondent
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Hi MRANADE,
For Panama you can check internationally known sites like Airbnb, Booking, and Trip Advisor.
You can also check local site Compreoalquile.com, most of the listings will of course be in Spanish; if you're fluent then great but if not Google Translate or ChatGPT can help.
One last tip - and thank you for asking this question so I could post this,it's a good question and one we get often: IL's multi-region reports are a fantastic introduction for you to kick off your research. Generally speaking once you are far enough along that you're ready to actually book a visit it's best to research one country or region at a time there's often no one-size-fits-all answer. Different countries (and regions) may have their quirks and differences (and we love addressing these!) You can post specific questions here and IL's correspondents across the globe do their best to respond, and your fellow readers will often have valuable experiences to share as well.
Happy planning!
Best,
IL Panama Editor Jess Ramesch -
For Panama I do often check internationally known sites like Airbnb, Booking, and Trip Advisor (one of the very helpful things on Airbnb is how messages between renters and landlords are automatically translated) but according to your preference you can also check locally popular site Compreoalquile.com - most of the listings will of course be in Spanish; if you're fluent then great but if not Google Translate or ChatGPT can help.
Best,
IL Panama Editor Jess Ramesch -
How are tentals in the Algarve area if Portugal?
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THANKS SO MUCH. This was so informative. I loved seeing the smiles and kind faces of each one discussing their new homelands. This was great. Maybe you can bring monthly one or two of your writers into the newsletter as a video version of their story on where they are living currently. Putting a face with a story is always great. Thanks, Michael White
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Many US residents of Panama keep Medicare thinking they will fly back to the States where they can use it for anything major. In the meantime while here in Panama many use an inexpensive Panama insurance OR pay out of pocket for minor health expenses because it's so affordable even sans insurance.
(Right now some hospitals in Panama are now saying that they can bill Medicare Advantage directly which could be extremely helpful, but note that this isn't guaranteed, just a possible new perk, we'll see how well it works.)
As mentioned above WHEN to take social security is a question you do not want to deal with lightly, it's something you want to be very informed and strategic about (getting your information from a verified expert and not just friends and family much less unknowns online).
A lot of helpful information has been shared by experts in International Living Postcards, International Living magazine, and on the International Living Bookstore.
It's great that you're thinking about this now, keep it up - the more informed you are, the more you lay out in a plan, the better and more empowered you will feel. (It's a wonderful feeling!)
Best,
IL Overseas Editor Jess Ramesch -
Is the Seminar over?
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I'll just add that far-right movements have had periodic resurgences in a wide range of European countries every decade since WWII. The spectre of this type of nationalism is always there, one part of a broad and varied political landscape. I wouldn't necessarily let yourself be turned off of France because of what the media is saying today about any "Putin effect" if you love France. Take all opinions (including mine) with a grain of salt, keep asking questions and reading articles by people like Tuula who actually live in France, and do your own "macro perspective" study - you can have a lot of fun with it and you'll feel empowered to make the right decision for yourself.
Best,
IL Overseas Editor Jess Ramesch -
Note that Panama does not have large high-end assisted living facilities as most families here (as is customary in most if not all of Latin America) choose affordable in-home care instead. There are some smaller options being talked about and I do hope to see more options added but at present there isn't a huge demand... yet. You may want to join Facebook groups for expats in Boquete to keep abreast of any specific news about this particular topic and it's great to see how potential expats gather info and post questions.
IL Panama Editor Jess Ramesch