Panama has been touted as a tropical yet familiar place for retirement or investment, especially for those from the United States where the real estate market is roughly as stable as the local psychiatric ward. And while sanitary gated communities and sleek high rises in Panama are no doubt luring comfort-seekers south, other, more alternative neighborhoods in Panama City are having similarly fulfilling effects.

Once the epicenter of Panama City, Casco Viejo—the peninsula of quaint colonial charm—is now re-emerging as a center for arts, culture, and investment. And with this rise is strengthening the magnetic-like pull on visitors and relocating foreigners who are ironically finding sanctuary and inspiration outside their traditional comfort zones.

It may not be right for everyone, but after living the majority of ones life in the organized Western world, the effects of walking the streets of Casco Viejo are eerily eye opening. And due to the area’s real estate boom in the past few years, the once purely emotional retreat is now being monetized, heavily.

It is a neighborhood attracting foreigners looking not to duplicate their old lives, but ones looking to experience life outside the comfort zones that they spent so long exploring back home. Moving to or visiting Casco Viejo is not as much about scaring yourself into oblivion, as much as pushing yourself into a place where extraordinary goals can be accomplished.

The comfort of visiting somewhere safe and predictable is knowing nothing terrible is there. But then again, extraordinary things rarely happen either. Exploring something you’re not used to like Casco Viejo feels good, and inevitably wonderful opportunities arise when we step outside our comfort boxes for just a moment. Take just the other day for example when I was offered a half-eaten chunk of beef from the local homeless man on the corner.

Many people moving to Panama motivated by the dreaded feeling of regret, having spent much of their lives in jobs they simply didn’t enjoy; the main culprit being they were too comfortable to do anything different. And buying a new condo or joining a gated community in Panama may be just the right step for them: a baby step in the direction of the unordinary and in the direction of the unexpected. But for those who truly want to explore outside the realm of the comfortable, Casco Viejo offers just that. An unfamiliar wonderland where inevitably good things happen to those who visit.*

*That is, unless you wander all the way out to the ghetto of Chorillo where all bets are off.

Options are limited for accommodations in Casco Viejo, so check out Los Cuatro Tulipanes Panama Hotel at www.loscuatrotulipanes.com for a unique experience in the old quarter.

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Filed under: Country Guide, Real Estate on April 30th, 2008