A couple from the US who moved to Panama to live out their dream of owning an off-grid farm have revealed that they are now scared to return because of the furious mining protests which are currently taking place.
Kaylee Dubeau and Jordan Saglio were due to return to their Central American homestead on November 20 with their two-year-old daughter, Sadie, after completing a US road trip, but they revealed in their latest YouTube videos that they have been warned to stay away with the region ‘in shambles.’
Protests have raged for weeks in Panama against Canadian-owned First Quantum’s government-approved contract for a $10 billion copper mine, with some protests blocking access to the mine.
In Kaylee and Jordan’s video clips they reveal that friends back in Panama are now resorting to buying illegal gas for their car and the supermarkets are running low on supplies, with toilet paper being the first thing to go.
Kaylee Dubeau and Jordan Saglio were due to return to their Central American homestead on November 20 with their two-year-old daughter, Sadie, after completing a US road trip
In Kaylee and Jordan’s video clips they reveal that friends back in Panama are now resorting to buying illegal gas for their car and the supermarkets are running low on supplies
The couple’s friend Rodrigo says on speakerphone in one scene: ‘It’s pretty hard having limited gas to go to town to supermarkets.
‘We’re already starting to see the aisles are like empty. Toilet paper was gone first… no meat….
‘Today we had to buy some illegal gas. I ended up paying $120 for 10 gallons of gas… This thing is nuts. Don’t come, stay back there!’
Kaylee and Jordan, from Massachusetts, spent years traveling through Central America in a converted school van before settling on the leafy climbs of western Panama.
The couple – who have more than 390,000 subscribers – purchased a 2.5-acre plot of land on the outskirts of Boquete for $75,000 four years ago and since then, they have gone about creating a farmstead while welcoming their first child, Sadie.
When they moved to the empty plot of land, the couple had to go about building everything from scratch before they could finally move out of their school bus.
To earn a living, the couple took to running a coffee shop and selling beans sourced from local farmers. They also started monetizing their YouTube channel.
While Instagram posts show them living the ‘dream life,’ a series of candid YouTubes have revealed the harder parts of their off-grid lifestyle including living without a proper toilet for six years and always getting stuck with higher prices in Panama because they’re considered foreigners.
Kaylee and Jordan, from Massachusetts, spent years traveling through central America in a converted school van before settling on the leafy climbs of western Panama
The couple have more than 390,000 subscribers on their YouTube channel
To earn a living, the couple run a coffee shop and sell beans sourced from local farmers. They also run a popular YouTube channel
For the past couple of months the couple have been in America after setting themselves the challenge of traveling in an Airstream to 48 states in 48 days.
Now towards the end of their adventure, they are still undecided if they will return to Panama.
In one clip, Jordan says he even ‘kind of’ regrets buying land there as this is the third time protests have taken place in the country.
Touching on the situation, he explains to viewers: ‘I’m not going to lie and say no I don’t regret buying land in Panama.
‘This is the third time this has happened. [It’s] not a place that you want to go right now… there’s no gasoline, there’s a gasoline black market of people who are legally importing it.
‘There’s no propane, food is scarce, it’s just desperate times. Especially when you have a baby… you want your home to feel comfortable.
‘You don’t want to have to worry about there not being any food, you don’t want to worry about not being able to drive your car or being able to leave if you have to because all the roads are closed.’
Jordan says while he knows protests take place all over the world they are even harder to deal with in Panama.
They purchased a 2.5-acre plot of land on the outskirts of Boquete for $75,000 four years ago
Since then, they have gone about creating a farmstead while welcoming their first child
While Instagram posts show them living the ‘dream life,’ a series of candid YouTubes reveal the harder parts of their off-grid lifestyle including living without a proper toilet for six years
The couple had to go about building everything from scratch before they could move out of their school bus
Kaylee strikes a pose next to their beloved school bus, which served as their home for many years
This is because, he explains, there is ‘one main road and if you shut that road down it basically takes away everything from everyone.’
The father-of-one concludes: ‘So there’s a little bit of concern about going back there and how things are going to look when November 20 rolls around and it’s time to go back. We’re just going to keep our eye on it.’
To make matters worse, the couple received the news that their dog, Lola, had seizure on their farm in Panama, making their desire to return home even stronger.
After airing their grievances, the couple have received hundreds of messages from supportive fans.
One viewer wrote: ‘You guys stay safe and just wait it out until Panama calms down. Hopefully it will soon and y’all can go home.’
Another commenter mused: ‘Sad to hear about the unrest in Panama. Hopefully, the government will hear the voices of the people and do what is right!’