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Could We Live Here? Putting Costa del Este to Our Slow-Go Test

What happens when you stop visiting a destination and actually start living there? After nearly 30 days in Costa del Este, Panama, Wayne puts the neighborhood through the International Drivers’ Slow-Go Test. From morning bird flights and neighborhood dog parades to Pacific Ocean views, walkability, shopping, medical services, and everyday conveniences, come along as we explore whether Costa del Este is simply a great place to stay—or somewhere we could actually see ourselves living in the years ahead.

THE SLOW-GO TEST

Wayne Driver

9/30/20265 min read

Some places you visit. Other places make you wonder: Could I actually live here?

One morning around 8:00, I looked out toward the water from our apartment in Costa del Este and saw something I wasn't expecting.

Birds.

Not a few of them. Hundreds seemed to move together above the river toward Panama Bay, forming a long line across the morning sky.

And these weren't the noisy, bright-green parakeets we had become accustomed to hearing around our former neighborhood of El Cangrejo. These birds made a low, unusual sound that, to my ears, almost sounded like grunting hogs.

I started looking forward to them.

Then there were the dogs.

Big dogs. Little dogs. Fluffy dogs. Dogs that looked as though they belonged in a handbag, and others that looked capable of walking their owners, rather than the other way around.

Every morning and evening, Costa del Este seemed to hold its own unofficial dog parade.

Birds overhead. Dogs below. The Pacific Ocean in the distance. Ships waiting offshore for their turn through the Panama Canal.

That became part of my daily routine during our approximately 30-day stay in Costa del Este.

But this wasn't just another place for us to stay.

It was a test.

Testing Our Future

Tamara and I have talked quite a bit about what we call our Go-Go, Slow-Go, and eventually No-Go years.

We're still very much in our Go-Go years. We travel, cruise, explore, and are willing to move around quite a bit.

But eventually, we expect the pace to change.

Slow travel for us may mean spending 30 days—or perhaps considerably longer—in one place. That changes what matters.

A great hotel isn't enough.

We need to be able to live there.

Can we walk?

Can we buy groceries without making an expedition out of it?

Are restaurants nearby?

What about medical care?

Does the neighborhood feel clean and comfortable?

Can we prepare our own meals?

And perhaps most importantly: Would we enjoy waking up there every morning after the excitement of being somewhere new wears off?

Costa del Este gave us an opportunity to test those questions.

First Test: The Apartment

We stayed at Arcadia Corporate Suites in a one-bedroom apartment with two bathrooms, a full kitchen, and floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the Pacific.

For slow travel, having a kitchen matters to us. So does having enough room that Tamara and I aren't living on top of each other for a month.

Arcadia gave us both.

But I'll admit—the view was difficult to beat.

At almost any time of day, I could look toward the Pacific and see ships offshore waiting to transit the Panama Canal.

That never got old.

The apartment was modern, clean, and comfortable, and it functioned more like a temporary home than a hotel room.

Slow-Go check: ✓

Could We Walk?

Absolutely.

One of my biggest tests for a neighborhood is whether I actually want to walk once I step outside.

Costa del Este passed.

Wide sidewalks and walking paths made my daily walks enjoyable. Groceries, restaurants, shopping and medical services were accessible within the area.

That isn't entirely accidental. Developers began planning Costa del Este as a community in the 1990s, including residential, commercial, and corporate areas, as well as wide streets, sidewalks, parks, and recreational spaces.

One important distinction, though: Costa del Este is walkable within the neighborhood, but it isn't a neighborhood you'd walk from to get to central Panama City. To explore other parts of the city, you'll still want a car, an Uber, or other transportation.

For our purposes, however, being able to handle much of everyday life on foot is exactly what we're looking for.

And, of course, the dogs provided entertainment along the way.

Slow-Go check: ✓

About Those Birds...

My morning bird observation turned out to be more interesting than I realized.

Costa del Este sits along the wetlands and tidal areas of Panama Bay, an important habitat for both local and migratory birds. Researchers from the University of Panama documented thousands of bird observations and dozens of species along this coastline.

And remember those long lines of birds I watched heading toward the bay?

Recent observations describe hundreds of Neotropic cormorants following the Matías Hernández River toward Panama Bay each day to feed.

So apparently I had stumbled onto a morning commute of a completely different kind.

That's one of the things I enjoy about slow travel.

When you're somewhere for three days, you see the attractions.

When you're somewhere for 30 days, you begin noticing the rhythms.

Costa del Este vs. El Cangrejo

This may have been the most interesting part of the experiment.

Costa del Este didn't feel like El Cangrejo.

El Cangrejo felt more local to us—older, established, lively, and full of neighborhood personality. We developed relationships there and enjoyed the area's friendliness and character.

Costa del Este felt newer, quieter, and more international.

That's consistent with its development. Costa del Este is a major residential and corporate district, with multinational companies, modern residential towers and newer commercial development.

Did we like it better?

Not necessarily.

We liked it differently.

El Cangrejo gave us more neighborhood character and a stronger sense of community.

Costa del Este gave us more peace, modern conveniences, and an easy everyday routine.

And as we think about our Slow-Go years, we're learning that peaceful and easy may become increasingly important.

The International Drivers Slow-Go Test

After about a month, here's my scorecard:

Three Questions Before We Left

Would we use Costa del Este as a landing spot when we're passing through Panama?

Absolutely.

The location works particularly well for us because it offers easy access to everyday necessities and places us on the eastern side of Panama City, with convenient access to Tocumen International Airport via the Corredor Sur.

Could Costa del Este work during our Slow-Go or even No-Go years?

It makes the list.

We're nowhere near finished exploring, and that's part of the fun. But after living here for approximately 30 days instead of simply visiting, Costa del Este passed enough of our tests to remain a serious contender.

Would we stay at Arcadia Corporate Suites again?

We already answered that one.

We've booked our next stay.

And yes, our travel advisor handled the reservation.

Her name happens to be Tamara.

You may have heard of her. 😁

The Experiment Continues

One of the things we're discovering is that slow travel isn't simply about staying somewhere longer.

It's about learning how—and where—you want to live.

A 30-day stay gives us enough time to move beyond sightseeing. We grocery shop. We cook. We walk. We find pharmacies. We learn the neighborhood. We figure out what's convenient and what's annoying.

Eventually, the place stops being a destination and starts becoming everyday life.

That's when the actual test begins.

Costa del Este passed ours.

But there are plenty more neighborhoods, cities and countries ahead.

So we'll keep walking, observing, living—and asking the same question:

Could we live here?

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