Daily Life in Panama

Hard to believe we've been here almost a month.  We have just gotten moved into our new apartment - still have some more things to buy to get settled, and some furniture is arriving Saturday, so it's almost home.  It's fun to try to decorate on a budget - though I haven't done much of that yet - still outfitting the kitchen and other rooms of the house.  We have dishes for 8 now, so we can have company - oh, but I guess you need tables and chairs - and oh yeah, silverware.  Hmmmm.....

I am amazed at the beauty that we look out at from every one of the many windows in the apartment.  Giant trees, flowering shrubs and plants (Impatiens grow in the wild here!!), majestic mountains in the distance, wispy clouds and almost daily, a heavy afternoon rain.  As I sit swinging on my hammock chair on the patio, I am just at peace....drinking in the colors and textures of all that surrounds us.  I might add - I have not been uncomfortable once since we have been here, and this is summer! The weather ranges between 72 and 80ish most days (74 right now) - just enough for a blanket at night, but no need for air conditioning.  Fans do a great job of circulating the air - and basically, it's pretty perfect....pretty AND perfect.

So - what does life look like here?

El Valle de Anton is a rather small town - but about the size of our former home of San Carlos, Mexico.  About 6000 people live here - but only a small percentage of those are Gringos.  El Valle is actually a getaway for the wealthy Panamanians that come for the weekend or weeklong getaways.  Of course, because of that, many things are available that might not otherwise be available.  High Speed Internet, lots of nice restaurants and pretty decent roads in most parts.  To get here, you turn off of the Panamerican Highway and head up winding 2 lane roads flanked on either side by jungle, several small villages, homes  and various roadside stands selling pots, pottery and primitive wooden furniture.  The climb is about 2500 feet and then a descent of about 500 feet into the floor of this defunct volcano.  It is only just over 16 miles down the mountain, but will take anywhere from 30 to 45 minutes to drive it.  Another 8-10 minutes will have you in the beach town of Coronado.

There are several grocery stores in El Valle - all of them pretty good sized - some of them with things like you'd find in a hardware store, plus school supplies, etc....and they all look like they are something out of the 50's or a movie set.  Each store is a bit different, and we're finding that some things are available in one store that aren't in another.  The prices aren't real cheap here in El Valle, but you can find the basics of what you need, plus a few more things.  That is offset by the wonderful availability of almost everything you could want in the town of Coronado - not too far away.    It's almost like having the US shopping just 45 minutes away! As you get closer to Panama City, the prices get even cheaper, and many things are much less expensive than the US.  Other things, however, are higher, so it evens out.

The other day, we had gotten moved into our apartment, so FINALLY, I could color my hair!  I had everything I needed, it was just packed away.  So I put the color on and set the timer.  I always go for the longest amount of time because of the gray (who, me?), so even when the timer went off, I didn't rush in to rinse out my hair, just a couple of minutes though - no big deal.  I got in the bathroom and when I turned on the water - there was none.  And I began to freak.  I stuck my head under the sink to get the few drops out, to at least begin the rinsing process...then, thankfully(after almost having heart failure) , remembered that the landlord told us that he has 2 water systems here - one from the town and the other from the mountains. They flipped a switch and I was in business.  Most people don't have that luxury though, so I was extremely grateful!

There are some quirky things here:

Lots of bicycles and people walking on these narrow 2 lane roads with no shoulders and ditches on either side of the road for drainage when it rains.  This calls for some careful and slow driving....especially on the narrower bridges.

Little bitty vans and trucks (make our Caravan look like a Semi) that look like they are on motorcycle tires.  Very inexpensive and carry a full family, so I guess they're a good thing. Oh, you'd be amazed at how many people can fit in a vehicle here!

Lots of Guna women (used to be called Kuna, but they've just changed it because there is no "k" in their language) in native dress every day.  Beautiful and colorful - with perhaps a gold ring in their nose and a dark line finely painted from the tip of their nose and up and a red and gold scarf over their head.  Many of the Guna people go to the church where we are going - and they are precious.  I love their native dress!

I told you that it rains just about every day here - normally in the afternoon - and after being in the desert for so many years, it's a welcome change.  It is very humid....not an uncomfortable kind of humid, but the kind that doesn't allow clothes to dry on the line outside - or under a patio roof, either.  Pots in the yard are quickly covered with moss. You also have to be careful that everything in your home has air circulating around it or you will find your clothes getting damp - in the closet!  A clothes dryer is a wonderful thing to have!

Roosters do not just crow in the early morning - they crow most of the night.  Party time, I guess.  Along with that are the sounds the the jungle, and the welcome sound of songbirds every morning.  Last night, there was screaming in the trees around us - as if a woman were screaming.  Even the dogs and cat were woken by the sound.  Not sure what kind of animal that was, but it was creepy!

When we went to the city the first time, we were to meet my nephew and his wife at the mall, so we got there early and were walking around.  We'd lost the lens cover to our camera, so thought we'd go in and buy one.  We told the guy which one we wanted - then had to go over to a cashier to pay ($17.00).  She then handed the paper to this other guy at a counter nearby, he stamped the receipt then he recorded the information in a spiral notebook, went and got the item and then we had to sign for it!  REALLY???  I guess that's job security.

When we used to go to the US, we would 'turn off' our Spanish and pesos thinking and adjust to English and dollars thinking.  Here, the official currency here is the American Dollar - but everything is priced in Balboas, like this - B/17.00.  They have Balboan coins, and both those and American coins are accepted.  Then they are speaking Spanish, so I get really confused!

They take the Siesta thing seriously here - almost every store is closed between noon and 2 - even the grocery stores!

Time to go play house and to clean and such.  More later.