Panama is a melting pot of cultures to wait for when traveling or relocating
When you decide to venture out of the comfort zone offered by your hometown and travel to other countries in the world, you can expect to find different cultures and traditions in your new destination. Some may be a very enjoyable experience, but others are not. This is most evident with those who decide to take a step further and want to move permanently to a new location. This creates an even greater clash that accentuates the Cultural Clash between our own “normality” and what we find in our new country of origin.
One of the most obvious cultural differences you will find in Panama is the diversity in the people and how varied everyone looks in such a small city and country. Panama is a melting pot of cultures, as in the big cities like New York, Chicago, Toronto, London, among others. With the particularity that in Panama people of different cultures coexist and mix freely. Although we have many different cultures in a rather small place, we are not segregated, but on the contrary, we are all mixed and mixed. This creates an integration that allows us to live together without conflict and allows us to learn and share customs from other cultures.
That’s something quite unique that happens in Panama and that may not be seen in other metropolitan cities around the world. Generally, in large cities, you will find that ethnic groups will be concentrated in a certain area of the city and may not be noticed or seen living outside those areas; much less learn and share cultural traditions as holidays, gastronomy, clothing, language, among other things.
This is a great reason why everyone who comes to Panama feels welcome and considers Panamanians to be very warm and friendly people. Even though Panamanians have a very pleasant way of tolerating, accepting and embracing other people’s differences, there is something that the crucible culture still needs to develop further, which is Customer Service.
Panamanians are very friendly, but in general there is a lack of customer service. This problem is quite common, so you can experience it very often in the city. It doesn’t really matter if you are in a high, medium or low zone because the Customer Service you receive depends mainly on the mood of the person who serves you. And this is something that happens almost everywhere: going to restaurants, getting professional services, visiting government and private offices, running errands, etc.
Being completely open, it is worth mentioning that such problems are more common in the city than in rural and rural areas. It is remarkable how the further away from the city, the better the customer service you will receive. One reason for this may be that the city’s frenetic and fast-paced lifestyle keeps people on edge all the time and doesn’t allow them to have much patience or pay much attention to what they are doing. Meanwhile, the quiet lifestyle in the countryside makes it easier to have more patience and focus on serving customers or people in general.
That’s why, when you come to Panama, you can expect the friendly, melting pot and mix of cultures, but get ready for the “different” level of customer service.
When deciding which area of Panama to call home, you should travel to various regions and experience the culture and pace of life in that area.
Regardless of the area you visit or move to, RE / MAX has agents and contacts nearby and we can help make the transition as simple as possible.