If you’ve been following our travels on my Facebook page, you’ll know that over the past 18 months my wife and I have spent about four months travelling in Paris (France), Madrid (Spain), San Sebastian (Spain), Toledo (Spain), Barcelona (Spain), London (England), Glasgow (Scotland), the Bahamas, Playa del Carmen in Mexico, December in Guatemala City and Antigua (Guatemala) and all over Costa Rica.

We had a boatload of fun but this year so far we’ve stayed at home in sunny Santa Ana, Costa Rica but decided to visit Panama City for a week to celebrate our anniversary.

Why do my wife and I celebrate our anniversary every month?

Why not?

While we were in Panama City we stopped by to visit one of our long-time VIP Members Matt Landau and enjoyed a few delicious postres (desserts) and a cup of Panamanian coffee – which I must confess was delicious compared to most of the coffee we had in Panama which was bloody awful!

Matt lived in Costa Rica for a few years and in his travels around the region, he ended up falling in love with the old section of Panama City, Casco Viejo where he has carved out a successful business for himself and, where he’s made a huge difference in the lives of those around him.

Matt Landau is one of those warm human beings who exudes love, compassion and positive energy – you can even feel that energy in his photo – he genuinely cares about others and has taken serious action to create a better future for some of the less fortunate members of the local population.

Matt owns the Los Cuatro Tulipanes (The Four Tulips) luxury rental apartments in the developing historic district of Casco Viejo, Panama.

Now don’t get scared when I use the word ‘luxury’ because these are most definitely affordable luxury apartments and as you can see from the glowing testimonials, everybody seems to thoroughly enjoy their stay.

Young Panama Gangsters Now Working in Tourism.

When Matt first opened up though, his rentals were just about the only nice place to stay in town for a period that lasted about 3 years and doing business was a little complicado because at that time, there were active gangs in the neighborhood that were unfortunately robbing his guests on a monthly basis.

This was quite a challenge however, Matt ended up building trust with the local gang members and now, through the Esperanza Social Venture Club The Hope Social Venture Club), he has those very same ex-gangsters working in the tourism industry… the legal way.

It’s a great, heart-warming story and I would encourage you to A: Take a look at what Matt and the members of the club have achieved and, if you ever plan on visiting Panama, B: You gotta’ go stay at Los Cuatro Tulipanes in the historic district of Casco Viejo ‘if’ there’s room!

A Great Place To Stay in The Historic District of Casco Viejo in Panama City – Los Cuatro Tulipanes.

Written by Scott Oliver, author of 1: How To Buy Costa Rica Real Estate Without Losing Your Camisa, 2: Costa Rica’s Guide To Making Money Offshore and 3. ¿Cómo Comprar Bienes Raíces en Costa Rica, Sin Perder Su Camisa?

Andrew Makarik

to@welovecostarica.com

Andrew Makarik is the main editor of WeLoveCostaRica, a fan of this sunny country. He is also a loving husband and a has a lovely daughter. By being a devoted family man and the biggest Costa Rica fan, he wants to make more people feel at home there. WeLoveCostaRica unites people and helps them find new home or a new travel destination. This website is a friendly community where everyone can find not only information, but also new friends and travel pals. Andrew is also passionate about IT and programming, so he himself maintains a friendly atmosphere in this cozy environment of WeLoveCostaRica.com.