As someone who is in the process of relocating to Boquete, I wonder when you were in the "north country" last. In my city, in the Northeast US, there is broken glass, heroin needles, beer bottles, and trash all over the streets, even in nice neighborhoods. I just didn't see that in Boquete. In lovely, touristy New England, we have power outages, crime, gun violence, regular sewer main collapses (most were installed in the 1800's), epidemic opioid addiction, homelessness, and bitter partisan political hatred. To quote JimAndNena, "you can apply all the lipstick you want, it is still a pig." I guess I prefer the Panamanian variety, and am eager to adapt, adjust, learn, and contribute to a small community in meaningful ways. Will Boquete be perfect? That's the wrong question to ask. It is what it is. We are all free to make choices.