It all began with a dream

I was a senior at the University of Texas when I met Jim. He had a strong vision of what he wanted in life. He knew that he wanted to do something different and that it would be great if it could be near salt water. So you could say that I knew very early on that I was in for an adventure.

We met Jay through one of Jim’s cousins and as it turned out he had an interest in a different life as well. The three of us began talking, saving money and planning for what the future might hold. During the following years Jim and I got married, I attended law school part time, graduated and began practicing law, Jim and Jay bought a boat together to test the strength of our friendship, Jim was transferred out of Houston and we all traveled throughout the Caribbean and Central America to further solidify the dream.

In 1998 we moved back to Houston about 5 minutes from where Jay was living. Our planning took up almost all of our free time; however, Jay met Stefanie and began dating her in spite of his self-avowed bachelorism. Over time, Jay and Stefanie’s relationship grew and she was invited to learn a bit about our crazy plans.

Stefanie and I sent Jay and Jim to Bocas del Toro, Panama in October 1999 to see if it was a good fit for our plans. Upon their return from Bocas, the guys informed us that it was the right place but that it would take a bit of time to find the exact location. Panama had so much to offer: land at a reasonable price, currency on par with the US Dollar, an infrastructure much better than other Central American countries, a biological wonderland, an extensive national park system, it was beneath the hurricane belt, its people seemed to be so welcoming and a fair number of them spoke English. The four of us decided to proceed with Panama. Jim was the best person to keep the process moving. Jim resigned from his job at about the same time he had been informed that he was to acquire his dream job – business development responsibilities throughout Latin America.