Panama Real Estate Investment Travel Information


Beggars, Hobos and Other Street People That Bite

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Written by Matt Landau

Friday, June 01 2007

There is a fairly large income gap in Panama which is manifested on street corners and stoplights where drifters with sullied faces will do and sell almost anything for some of your loose change.

Some people find this facet of Panamanian culture to be an annoyance, but I find it endearing. Compared to tourism hotspots in Europe, there are very few petty thieves or beggars here, which means little competition for people like me who have figured it out. While I’m not a full time hobo, I do dabble considerable amounts on the weekends.

Most of the people you’ll run in to will be selling something. Items like fruits, vegetables, linens, maps, and cheap cell phone accessories are quite common. Some of these guys hang on street corners, setting up shop like itinerant gypsies: the kind of individuals who can make anywhere feel like home. Others wander into traffic and sidewalks to prey on citizens like hungry hyenas venturing into a herd of innocent flamingos.

There are, in touristy areas like El Cangrejo, little child salesmen who probably report back to their abusive parents with the profits for the day. They sell things like lollypops, plastic bracelets, and oddly enough (in the case of one salesboy) vanilla car fresheners. “Oh, hey mini-Enrique.” I’ll say to him. “Thanks, but no thanks.”

Hobos here are copious, their business mainly limited to trash bins and recycling heaps. They’ll sift through hundreds of pounds of trash to find that one item—much like a seasoned fisherman. These men have very calm demeanors and that’s why I call them oracles of junk.

You have your obligatory rose representative who works at night: a kind of flower warrior. He’ll try to sell you flowers and cute teddy bears that appear to have been left over from Valentines Day at CVS and when you decline, he’ll guilt you in front of your girlfriend. Thank you amigo, but I don’t take relationship advice from someone who wears a My Little Ponies backpack.

There’s an older fat man with one leg who lies on the sidewalk of Via Veneto and jingles his tip hat like a fabric tambourine. He has several lines which come out of his mouth sounding rehearsed and mechanic, not unlike a hobo version of Teddy Ruxpin. Since people with one leg are practically destined to be beggars, I’ll give this one the benefit of the doubt. After all, what other profession caters so well to an amputee?

Learning how to deal with these people is the byproduct of seeing them on a regular basis. Almost every busy parking area will have some sort of parking ambassador who’s thoughtfully hired himself to look after people’s cars. The only prerequisites seem to be dirty pants. As you’re pulling out, they’ll tap on your window and ask you for a tip and I usually give them what I have. It was not long ago though, that a thin man (who looked uncannily like Colon Powell with no shoes) ushered me out of a space, then asked me for some change. I didn’t have any money so I gave him one of my less-favorite CDs which he accepted and caressed as if I had gifted him a baby pony: smiling in the rear view mirror for what seemed like hours.

Panama’s hobos, beggars, and various other fragmented populace are 100% harmless. The most aggressive are sometimes the ones trying to lure you to strip clubs, but for the most part, a firm “No” will do the trick.