Poland - Fourth Best Place to Live

Here's an interesting one that's close to my heart and family. You see my dad was born in Poland. He would have been pleased to read this and to see this.

The Warsaw Business Journal announced today that Poland came in as the fourth Best Place to Live in Europe. It owes this ranking to: a low retirement age, long holidays and being one of the cheapest places to live in Europe with a low cost fo living.

Poland even finished ahead of Germany and England on the list. The list is the Quality of Life Index compiled by uSwitch. The article didn't really give any further details about who or what uSwitch is. But they did say that 16 factors were used to compare European Countries and determine rank order. Those factors included - net income; sales taxes; vacation allowance; working hours; life expectancy; costs of gas, diesel and electricity.

France came in top spot followed by Spain and Denmark in 2nd and 3rd respectively.

Source: Poland 4th best place to live in Europe

High Quality Coffee Production Around Boquete, Panama

Guest Post By Tyler Ramos

Boquete, is located on the slopes of Baru Volcano, and it is one of the most recognized coffee growing areas in all of Panama. For more than a century, the area has been dedicated to producing some of Panama's best coffee and it is now becoming known on an international level for the high quality brews grown here.

In the past Panamanian coffee was overshadowed by neighbors such as Costa Rica and Colombia, but thanks to several international awards that were won by Panamanian coffee plantations, it is now getting the respect that it truly deserves. There are now several specialty coffees that are produced by the local plantations that have propelled the beans from Boquete to international esteem.

The climate in the region is excellent for growing coffee, with just the right measure of sun, shade and humidity. The soil is volcanic and highly fertile, which helps to produce a particularly rich flavored coffee bean.

For visitors who are interested in experiencing some of the world's best coffee as fresh as possible, there are coffee tours that you can do to sample the local brews at the site where they are grown, harvested and roasted. The tours also teach you about the history of coffee growing in the region and you can see coffee mills that are more than a century old.

Panamanian Rainforest Coffee Medium Roast, Universal Grind - 8 oz.

During the coffee tours that you can take at Boquete, you will learn about all different aspects of growing, harvesting, processing and selling the coffee. You will get to know more about how fair trade and organic production of the coffee works as well as getting hints on how to make the perfect cup of coffee yourself.

When the coffee is to be harvest, there are two different kinds of processing that can be done and both are performed in Boquete. The first is wet processing, where the beans are first washed and pulped. When this has happened, then they are dried out and the bean is extracted from the cherry. Only 20 per cent of the cherries is actual bean, so the cherry pickers work hard to pick between 100 and 200 pounds of coffee each day.

Alternatively you can find dry processing, which is done by laying the beans out on open air platforms to dry out. The beans have to be raked and rotated every few hours to ensure that they are evenly dried and that there is no build up of mildew. This process gives the beans a gorgeous earthy flavor, but it is more labor intensive and therefore more expensive.

When the processing is done, then the beans are chosen according to their size and quality. They are grouped together and then undergo a process known as cupping, where they are stored for up to six months and continually judged for readiness. When they are ready, the coffee beans are packaged and 90 per cent is now exported out of Panama to the waiting lips of coffee lovers worldwide.

About the Author:

Discover great deals for Boquete panama real estate by going online. There are many choices of Boquete panama locations that you can buy. Head online today and learn more.

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Channels Expanding On The Panama Canal

By Tyler Ramos

The Panama Canal is a ship canal which was built in order to join the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. Naturally its construction had a significant and positive impact on maritime trade, which was the primary reason behind its construction. Now there is a new project being proposed by the Panama Canal Authority which would expand traffic capacity of the Panama Canal.

The project goes by the name of the Third Set of Locks Project. This name is related to one of its goals, which is to construct lock complexes at both the Atlantic and Pacific ends of the canal. These lock systems are aimed at resolving the water preservation issues which have come up in the past with the canal's continued use. The Panama Canal Authority also aims to not only construct additional access channels to the canal but widen those that already exist. These channels will all also had their depth increased when the project has finished.

The work of expanding the canal is classified as a mega project. This means its construction and completion could deeply impact both nearby communities as well as the environment. Not only that, but it is also expected to cost more than one billion US dollars. A great deal of public attention has been drawn to the project as a result of its scope.

The project has begun as of September 2007 and could be finished within the year 2015. There are and have been many voices in favor of its commencement. This a result of the many potential benefits that the canal expansion could offer. For one it is expected to pay for itself given time as well as provide a significant amount of return on investment for not only its investors but Panama as well.




Along with its profitability, the canal expansion project is expected to reduce poverty within Panama. This will be a result of the need for labor of all kinds being necessary in order to complete the project. Some have claimed that the reduction will be as high as 30%. Of course it is also believed that improving the channels and traffic capacity of the canal will bring in higher revenues from tolls.

The improved cargo capacity of the canal could also mean an increase in profits for those involved in maritime trade. This profit margin could very well affect the country again as well as more and larger cargo ships move through its waters. As mentioned before, however, this image of a parade of cargo ships has also spurred environmental concerns.

The Panama Canal Authority has performed studies regarding the environmental impact of its project and claims that no significant damage will be done environmentally. The area in which the work will be done is already owned by the organization and no major community upheaval is necessary for its work to be done. It also states that the lock systems being installed are intended to mitigate the environmental impacts of the increase in usage of the canal.

Again, it is projected that the canal expansion will be finished in 2015. It is the hope of many that this expansion's completion will mark a time of renewed prosperity in the country of Panama. It will certainly be seen in time whether or not this happens, and many will be watching closely in the meantime.

About the Author:

Find more information about the wonderful opportunities awaiting you when you are looking for Panama homes! If you are planning a vacation soon, booking your Panama rentals early will assure that you are close to the activities and events!

Did you see this?

This is just too interesting not to share. It is the world's biggest train set which covers 1,150 square meters / 12,380 square feet and features almost six miles of track and is still not complete!



Two German Brothers have put this TRAIN SET together.

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Cheap Houses

CBS News posted an article on their website today about the Cheapest Houses in the United States and some of the most expensive too.

The piece was about a new study done by Real Estate giant Coldwell-Banker.

C-B took 1,000's of listing from cities and towns nation wide and compared the prices of homes of the same size over a 7 month period. Here's what they discovered: The average price of a 4 bed - 2 bath house ranges from over $2,000,000 in the most expensive market to less than Seventy Thousand Dollars for cheap house in the most depressed markets.

The most expensive houses were found in Newport Beach California - for those who don't know that's the setting for the TV show 'The OC'. The Cheapest homes were found in the Detroit area were you can land the same size house for $68,000.

California had 6 out of 10 of the most expensive communities to purchase a home while Michigan garnered 3 of the top 10 spots for cheapest places to buy a house in the U.S. All 10 of the cheapest places to buy real estate were found in the midwest.

Overall the study revealed the average price across the nation for one of these houses was $353 thousand and about 30% of the market had similar houses under $200k.

Top Ten Cheapest Places to Live

According to a survey done this past spring the following list of Cities are the Top Ten Cheapest Places to Live in the World.

This study looked at cost of living throughout the world by creating a basket of common goods purchased by people including:

Booze (alcohol) - I don't know why but that always seems to come up on lists for the necessities of life!

Tobacco (that one really has me puzzled!)

Clothes (OK now we're getting real)

Foot wear (ditto!)
Domestic services (what the hell is that? I always think of maids and gardeners. Now if you're looking for the cheapest place to live are you really concerned about having a maid or a gardener?)

Food (As in groceries)

Food (As in dining out - restaurants, etc.)

Personal Care (As with the maid - if you're wanting to live cheap cut your own hair!)

Household Supplies

Sports & Leisure (Isn't this where the booze and smokes should be?)

Transportation

Utilities

OK, as I've pointed out these lists and what is ranked as important can get a little squirrelly but here's the result -

1. Asuncion, Paraguay

2. Quito Ecuador

3. Karachi, Pakistan

4. Johannesburg, South Africa

5. San Jose, Costa Rica

6. Buenos Aires, Argentina

7. Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic

8. Montevideo, Uruguay

9. Winston-Salem, U.S.A. (Really? You've got to be kidding? Must be the cheap smokes!)

10. Tunis, Tunisia

Buying Cheap Homes

We've all seen and heard the horror stories about the real estate market in Florida. The state that was once the retirement haven of the entire country where people dreamt about having enough retirement savings to move there has now become one of the cheapest places to buy real estate.

Recently the Sun Sentinel presents it's 'Tips on Buying Cheap Homes'. The article begins with the standard disclaimers of knowing exactly what you are doing and what you are getting yourself into when you chose to buy cheap homes. Of course that is particularly true when looking at foreclosures - the best and most popular place to find a cheap home.

Tip #1 - Keep you first buy simple and easy. Don't go for the major over haul - reno project. It could sink you. Start by looking for cheap homes that just need minor repairs, a coat of paint and a good clean up.

Tip#2 - Use your common sense. A deal which brings the cost of a home back to market value after renovations isn't a deal at all. David Dweck of the Boca Real Estate Investment Club suggests you look to keep your total investment to no more than sixty five percent of the market value. So, if the home has a market value of $100,000 after you clean it up than you don't want the total cost of purchase and renos to be more than $65,000.

Tip#3 - Always insist on a home inspection. Remember as you look at cheap homes for sale they are likely sold 'as is'. You need an inspection to know what is hiding and what you're really getting yourself into in terms of prepping it for market.

Tip#4 - Insure you are getting clear title to the property. This means being thorough in your title and lien search. You may need to pay a few outstanding bills but as long as that fits in the 65% total cost scenario your still making a good investment and buying cheap.

Some investors are looking at income properties so that can at a few more steps but essential the same tips apply when it comes to finding cheap rental homes and cheap vacation homes.

Click here for more tips on How to Buy Land Cheap


Source Sun Sentinel: Tips on buying cheap homes