Any tips for living in Panama?
I'm going to be living in a rural community for three months. If anyone has been, I would appreciate any advice on the culture or language.
4 Answers
Smile a lot and make sure to say thank you often. My natural facial expression is one that to people who don't know me well looks like I am angry, and I constantly get asked if I am mad with them, so I have to force myself to smile when around people. When people have you over for dinner or make any food for you, be sure to compliment it or they will think you don't like it.
I don't know how good your spanish is, but in group settings when meeting new people as soon as it's announced that I am a gringo everyone will ignore me as they assume I can't speak their language. So, a tip is even if you don't understand everything the group is saying, try to interact in spanish and then they will see you do indeed know their language (or are at least attempting to learn it) and they will immediately do a 180 and include you in the group conversation.
That is just general advice from what I've experienced in Costa Rica, (I moved here a little while ago), and while panama is different than CR, their are quite a few similarities as they border each other.
Sorry I don't have any tips on the specifics of their language in Panama (every country is slightly different), but just remember to smile and try to speak their language even though it may be hard at first. Ask lots of questions, you will pick up their way of talking with practice (I guarantee it will be different than any text book you have learned from, they will use non-standard local words which will take time to pick up, bring a little notepad if you have a bad memory like me)
One final note, I don't know where you are from or how much money you have but if you don't speak perfect spanish you will be marked as a gringo which means to them you have money, which means you are a mark. This is just a generalization but just keep in mind be very weary of who you trust with your stuff, don't trust anyone you haven't known for years with any money and don't wear anything flashy (jewelry etc).
Summary: Smile, compliment, thanks, interact and enjoy as much as possible while still using common sense.
I hope you enjoy Panama, people in CR tell me you can buy things real cheap, I'll prolly be visiting there in a few months. 
All good advice, so far. One thing that you will have to get used to is the humidity. I don't care if you're from the southeast U S, you've never seen humidity like Panama. Those are my memories of Panama - heat and humidity. And I was living in South America when I visited Panama, so I thought I was ready for it. I wasn't.
I can't say much for rural areas, but in the city prepare for traffic! The people are generally warm and friendly, but it can be hard to break into the social groups people have had since their school days. The language is very different from what I experienced in Chile, and slang is prevalent, as is with most countries and cultures. Be ready to learn new things! Panamanian culture has a pretty unique blend of influrences - Spanish, American, African (from Jamaica, Barabados, etc. due to immigration during the construction of the canal). This is reflected in language, food, music, just about everywhere.
I will echo the previous comments on heat and the expectation that you have money.
Here are some good resources:
http://www.panama-guide.com/ http://groups.yahoo.com/group/americans_in_panama/ http://www.thevisitorpanama.com/
It's very hot year round. Dec - April is dry season, the rest is rainy season. So take raincoat if appropriate or umbrella because raincoats are too hot. October is non stop rain. Lots to do and see in Panama but as the person above says, yep, if you look foreign they will try to rip you off and that is a world wide thing. You will have to get used to the Spanish dialect as it is very corrupt, unless you are a journalist or a professor or erudite.
