Our Story
We want to inspire people to live more consciously and hand-in-hand with the natural world.
Our lifestyle embodies a balance of health, sustainable living, and close companionship with animals, all woven together in a vibrant, intergenerational community.
The journey is the destination
It all began with a longing.
A longing to leave behind the fast pace of life in Berlin and embrace a life full of nature, animals, spirituality and genuine community. Ever since we, Alexandra and Stefan met, we shared one great dream. We didn’t want to only talk about living in harmony with nature, we really wanted to live it every single day.
In 2019, that dream found its first home. Between the towns of Schleswig and Flensburg in northern Germany, we discovered the perfect property and created our second home there. Nearby stood a traditional thatched farmhouse nestled within a protected nature reserve. Towering beech trees filled the forest behind us, while open meadows and shimmering waterways stretched out before us. With only a handful of neighboring farms and almost complete solitude, it felt as though time itself had slowed down.
Not long after we settled there, the world changed dramatically in 2020.
Despite the uncertainty that swept across the globe, we spent another year trying to build our dream in Schleswig-Holstein. That remarkable place gave us countless moments of peace, joy, and gratitude during an unforgettable chapter of our lives.
Throughout that time, one dream never left us: the dream of creating a community. We actively searched for people who shared our vision and eventually met Karl-Heinz, who operated a website dedicated to intentional communities. During a Prana hiking retreat near Hanover, our lives took an unexpected turn.
Until then, moving abroad had never crossed our minds, especially not Alexandra’s. We had always imagined building our future in northern Germany. But during a short break in conversation, Karl-Heinz casually mentioned that he knew people in Paraguay who dreamed of creating exactly the kind of community we envisioned.
When Alexandra walked back to me only minutes later, she spoke a word that, until that very day, she hadn’t even known where to find on a map:
“Paraguay”
At first, we explored that possibility. But life had another path prepared for us. Our dear friend and housemate Sabine told us about acquaintances who had emigrated to Panama. Reaching out to them became the spark that changed everything.
Almost overnight, we made one of the biggest decisions of our lives.
We left the careers that had provided security for so many years, sold nearly everything we owned, and in July 2021 took the leap into a completely new life. The rapidly changing immigration regulations in
Panama made our decision even more urgent, and suddenly there was no longer a reason to wait. Our journey began in Amsterdam, where our dear friend Sabine drove us to the airport. We had deliberately chosen a direct flight so that our beloved dog, Jule, wouldn’t have to endure the stress of changing planes.
Before leaving Europe behind, we spent one unforgettable evening with friends in the Netherlands and watched the sun sink into the North Sea from the beach at Zandvoort. It was our last peaceful evening on European soil before the greatest adventure of our lives began. Filled with hope and carrying the dream of creating a community rooted in nature, animals, and self-sufficiency, we arrived in Panama.
Reality, however, proved far more challenging than we had imagined.
We spoke almost no Spanish. We barely knew the culture or the people. Panama was still feeling the social and economic effects of the previous years. Many places remained closed, and there was a quiet sadness that seemed to linger everywhere we went. During that time, we met many other expats, mostly from German-speaking countries, but also from many other parts of the world. While everyone was eager to exchange experiences, it soon became clear that many of us were searching for direction ourselves. We were all trying to find our footing in an unfamiliar world.
We felt that uncertainty too. There were days when we missed the security of our old home, our professions, and above all, our families. It often felt as though we first had to rediscover solid ground beneath our feet.
Yet even in those difficult months, life kept offering us beautiful gifts. Our animal family slowly began to grow. Our faithful dog Jule was soon joined by Momo, who came into our lives through friends. Before long, two tiny kittens—Morpheus and Neo—filled our home with warmth, laughter, and new life.
But nonetheless, after only six months, the pressure became overwhelming. We seriously considered giving everything up and returning to Europe. Doubt seemed stronger than hope.
Then came the moment that changed everything.
Friends invited us to visit them near the slopes of Volcán Barú. We accepted.
As we drove from Santiago across the Cordillera Central, the landscape slowly began to change. The mountains rose before us, and beyond them the lush slopes of Volcán Barú unfolded in every shade of green imaginable. In that instant, everything became clear.
Without saying a word, we looked at each other and knew exactly the same thing. We were home.
Everything we had dreamed of for so many years seemed to be waiting for us there. From that day forward, we searched for land throughout the surrounding countryside. We explored countless beautiful properties, each unique in its own way. But our hearts truly came alive only when we stepped onto one very special piece of land in the lush slopes of Volcán Barú. After visiting so many remarkable places, we had finally found what we had been searching for all along. Our home.
For the past year and a half, we have been slowly turning that dream into reality. Our gardens continue to grow, vegetables flourish, fruit trees have taken root. Every day, we move a little closer toward a life of self-sufficiency, living hand in hand with nature and surrounded by the animals we love. It is a life of constant learning, creating, and arriving. A journey that feels more deeply right with every passing season.
Fortunately, we have never walked this path alone. Many wonderful people have encouraged us, supported us, and offered exactly the guidance we needed at just the right moments. Every encounter, every conversation, and every helping hand has become part of the story we are living today.
And, of course, none of this would be complete without the many incredible animals who have joined our family along the way. Alongside Jule and Momo came our beloved Emilia, who blessed us with six beautiful puppies. Four of them: Ole, Lasse, Malte and Finn, still share our lives today, enriching our family every single day. Together with our gentle cows, our faithful horse Maya, our chickens and our ducks, they remind us daily that joy often lives in the simplest moments and that the bond between people, animals, and nature is one of life’s greatest gifts.
Everything we have experienced, learned, and built together is only the beginning. Because from these deep roots, something even greater is beginning to grow… our vision for the future.
