My Life in Central America
Andrea Martinez
It’s been 6 years since I decided to move to Central America, and even though I believed that would be just a temporary decision, life had another plan for me.
My first contact with Central America was in Panama, we went for Christmas and New Year’s Eve with my parents, sister, and my then-only 2 nephews (now I have one more who is 5 years old). We had a very stressful year in Ecuador and decided to get away and just be with each other. This was in 2012. We loved the city, and the restaurants, we visited the Hard Rock Café and Trump Tower, which at the time was still active. We also visited the Panama Canal, which was so much fun for all of us, especially for my nephews, who were 12 and 10 years old at the time.
I never thought my next experience would be 3 years later when I visited Nicaragua as part of a medical mission organized by a foundation called Help Them Help Themselves. The founder, Patrick Hiebert, was very active in this type of work, and we both found each other via the internet, which facilitated our conversations and getting to know each other, who we were, and what we did.
It was very interesting to me to see that he being a Canadian decided to move to Nicaragua. I always thought people go the other way around. But this wasn’t the case, he had a lot going on in Nicaragua, a new life after selling two businesses in Canada and practically retiring before turning 30 years old.
I decided to leave my country and find a new life in Nicaragua. Together we did more medical, dental, and educational missions, met a lot of people from around the world, created a new life in Nicaragua, and found a second family. I loved walking every morning around the community and taking pictures of the trees, homes, flowers, the beautiful sky, and the sunsets. Oh my! The sunsets in Nicaragua are too much, each day was a new mix of different colors, a palette that any artist would want for their paintings. We would gather at the SeaSalt restaurant each evening, have dinner, and meet our friends. Anyone could share our table, and just enjoy the sunset and each other’s company. Also, we liked to explore what the country has to offer, so we took advantage of the weekends to visit places like the Masaya volcano, San Juan del Sur, Leon, Granada, Laguna de Apoyo, and more; and if we wanted to just have a night in the city (to go to the movies or find a new restaurant), we would escape to Managua and spend the night there.
Because my husband found a new job (yes, Patrick and I got married), we had to move to Ambergris Caye in Belize. At first, I wasn’t too fond of it, because I already had my mind set on Nicaragua; we had been there for almost two years and I was happy living there, it was a major change but we decided it was going to be for a short period of time.
We were supposed to be there for three months which turned into 3 years. The first year was hard because our minds we still not set in the country, we even moved to the USA for 3 months to get out of the island. But we had to come back and when we did we decided on a change of attitude, and we started enjoying the beauty of Ambergris Caye. We bought a small sailboat and invited our friends to ride along, jump into the gorgeous turquoise water, do snorkeling, and discover the different colorful fish; including nurse sharks, which freaked me out in the beginning, but then I realized they were not interested in any of us. We got used to the island life, driving a small golf cart everywhere, and not worrying too much about material stuff or getting my hair filled with dust in every drive, which was freeing. We became more minimalistic, we didn’t care about being fancy, just being comfortable and having a simple life.
Ambergris Caye has so many things to do, the San Pedro town looks small, but has more than 200 restaurants, we had our favorites like Elvis (the best coconut curry I’ve ever had), Tastes of Thailand (Thai homemade food that will make you want to come back for more), Caramba! Restaurant (where you can pick your favorite catch of the day to be cooked at the moment), and our favorite breakfast place: Estel’s Dine by the Sea. It also has new developments and projects that make the island even more attractive. And if you want to learn more about history, you can always go to the mainland and visit the Mayan ruins and caves. You can also go to Roatan (Honduras) in a small plane or take a ferry to visit Mexico in less than an hour.
After three years in Belize, my husband decided to start his own company, and we wanted to be in a more central place. This would allow us to travel from country to country in an easier way and also get closer to our families. The best place for that was Panama, so this is our home now.
We were fortunate to find an apartment just in front of the Cinta Costera, where you can see the Pacific Ocean, and to the right, you can see the Casco Viejo, which is the old Panama. Casco Viejo is charming, filled with small shops, hotels, restaurants, and bars, you can walk around and find beautiful arts and crafts, dine over a terrace in Casa Casco, or enjoy a delicious brunch by the park at La Fisheria. Panama never sleeps. There are so many places to visit, museums, and restaurants, which are always filled with people, no matter the day. You can also go from the Pacific to the Caribbean ocean in less than 2 hours and then come back for supper. We have done it a few times and it is amazing to be able to see two oceans in one day.
Working out is also a big thing in the city, you can see people walking, jogging, and playing different sports every day and every night. It has been a big change from the minimalistic life in Belize because Panama has everything you need, so you can get a little excited shopping in the malls or getting stuff online. So… our minimalism is far gone, at least for now. We are getting better at it, but we are definitely enjoying this country.
Living in Central America has also given us the opportunity to visit other nearby countries like Honduras, El Salvador and Costa Rica. Guatemala is still on my list. And I have absolutely enjoyed each of them.
My life in Central America is still being written, but so far I can say that each country has taught me that they can become your home if you have the right attitude, no matter where you come from, people can be and look very different but we can also have so many similarities, and you can have a second family without even looking for it. I have met amazing people in all these places and those friendships are and will always be close to my heart. Oh! And please, explore, you can find authentic gems and unforgettable breathtaking places in each of these countries.