April 18, 201l

Yesterday, we had met a very young cab driver who had enlisted us for cab service to the airport today. He arrived a few minutes later than expected -- 25 minutes. We suspect that he could not find our hostel. We waited for him as we wanted to give him our fare, as we met his pregnant wife the day before. He had introduced her as his beautiful wife, in English.
Back at the airport, waiting for our flight, we again experienced the culture shock of tanned, burnt, some drunk, all-inclusive gang of Canadian in shorts, tank tops and sandals who had been on the Air Transat holiday. They laughed all the way home, again, using the bathrooms to change into warmer clothing as the pilot announced the Toronto temperature of 4 degrees C.

Adios Panama

Adios amigos

Welcome to Canada
We are home

April 17, 2011

The weather is sunny and very, very warm again. We decided that we would enjoy Panama City and the very warm weather on this Sunday as we were returning home tomorrow. We did a lot of walking and people watching today, taking in all the sights before our departure the next day. Returning to the 'Sports Bar' to order the pizza again, we discovered that there was no food available today, Sunday.

The man suggested a couple of other restaurants along the way back to our hostel. We decided to eat dinner at the Machu Picchu, a Peruvian restaurant. This restaurant is famous for its signature dish of arroz negro - rice with squid ink. We decided to pass on their signature dish. Instead, we ordered a surf/turf-like dish with grilled calamari as an appetizer and beer. The total bill came to $35.00 with tip. We began to miss Panama already as we thought of coming home the next day.

April 16, 2011

Today, in Panama City, the weather is sunny and very warm again. We decided that we would again explore some of the areas that we had briefly seen when we initially arrived in Panama City before we left to see the rest of the country. To get a 'flavour' of the city's culture we decided to visit the largest outdoor shopping mall, the Plaza Cinco de Mayo, on this Saturday. The area/closed street was filled with various stores and street vendors where sugar cane drinks could be bought as the cane was squeezed on the spot, bargains could be had on clothing and shoes and fresh fruit and vegetables could be bought. There was a very long line-up to eat at the McDonald's, which offered a few basic 'staples'. It was somewhat strange to see Kuna Yala women in their traditional clothing feeding their little children french fries and hamburgers while the children played with the McDonald toys.




Our explorations lead us back to the nearby Casco Viejo area. Here, we explored some of the different shops as we enjoyed the restored architecture, together with the buildings awaiting some tender loving care to be restored to their past grandeur. Every new corner and street was a visual experience of surprise and being overwhelmed by the beauty of the area. Here, we explored a gem/stone museum and the Museo del Canal Interoceanico. The Museo del Canal Interoceanico is housed in a beautifully restored building that once served as the headquarters for the original French canal company. We were not certain which was more impressive, the contents in the museum or the building itself. We also visited the Iglesia De San Jose church which protects the famous Altar de Oro (Golden Altar) which was about the only thing of value salvaged after Henry Morgan sacked Panama Viejo.

According to local legend, when word came of the pirate's impending attack, a priest attempted to disguise the altar by painting it black. The priest told Morgan that the famous altar has been stolen by another pirate and even convinced Morgan to donate handsomely for its replacement.



We also saw the Arco Chato, a long arch that had stood here unsupported for centuries. It reportedly played a part in the selection of Panama over Nicaragua as the site for the canal since its survival was used as proof that the area was not subject to earthquakes. We could see why this area has been getting international recognition and being declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2003 and we walked in the area.



In our explorations of Panama City, we also discovered a very different part of Panama City, i.e., the Wyndam Hotel/Casino area. This is very exciting area with with mini-lights beckoning to the visitors of the City. Inside, the Hotel, the lobby was huge -- a city of its own. Signs, like the Moutlin Rouge offered: Girls, Girls, Girls, as we walked by. Finding a place to eat dinner we decided upon a 'Sports Bar' not far from this area where we met two men from Brazil. They had come to Panama on a business exploration. Their explorations sent them to Colon, which is a tax-free zone in Panama. They talked about their disappointments in Panama's lack of business infrastructure, at length. They were happy to be going back to Brazil the next morning. They had spent a few nights at this bar and were excellent sources of the delicious food to order. We had a pizza, the crust of which was made of plantain -- it was amazing.

April 15th, 2011

We decided to leave our beach paradise this morning to begin our return home via Panama City. Our cab driver came at 8.30 a.m. and picked us up and took us to a place we had discovered the night before for breakfast -- it was just off the Interamericana Hwy. After breakfast, we walked out to the Hwy. and a bus came by, almost immediately, and we were off again, in an air-conditioned bus, on our way to Panama City. We had been having trouble getting money out of the ATM.s in El Valle, but we felt that we had enough money until we got to Panama City, as transportation is very inexpensive.

Arriving in Panama City, our first priority was to get to an ATM and then find a place to stay. Getting to the place we had hoped to stay in, we discovered that they were totally booked. The woman in this hostel was extremely helpful in phoning another place for us to go to. With only $6.00 remaining we decided to go to the bank before proceeding to the other hostel. No luck, no luck, no luck at every machine we both tried. It began to rain, rain, rain, rain. It was one of those times that makes backpack traveling challenging. The backpacks and I stayed on the patio of a sports bar, while Gerald ran around looking for a Bank. I felt that I could not order anything, given our money situation. After some time, and more rain, rain, rain, I wondered exactly how much money I had for a coffee and cab fare to the hostel. I searched my entire money belt and found $30.00 -- we were rich. Gerald came back, without any success. So, we decided to get to the hostel and plead our case, if necessary (which it wasn't).

Arriving at the Hostel, yet again, another lovely place, with air-conditioning and hot water and CNN, we got settled in Then, we headed to Rey, the supermarket to buy groceries for supper and breakfast, as our hostel had a kitchen we could use. It had stopped raining and the sun was shining -- truly and it was very warm again, i.e., in the 80.s We received an email that our bank was wanting to speak with us, so we decided to contact them the next morning and hopefully solve the money situation.

April 13th-14th, 2011

Leaving El Valle we took the bus going to the Interamericana Hwy. We were, very easily, able to get this bus waiting on the main street in town. It took us about an hour to get to the Hwy. On the Hwy. we flagged down another bus going to towards our destination of Playa Blanca on the Pacific Ocean. We had changed our minds about going to Santa Clara (or so we thought, at the time). Our bus was lovely -- airconditioned, with plenty of leg room for Gerald. After 45 minutes we had gone as far as we could and got off in a small town where we had to catch a cab to take us to Playa Blanca. We had read that Playa Blanca was a small fishing village with some building occurring as Playa Blanc has been recast as one of the hottest beach destinations in Panama as it is one of the most beautiful beaches along the Pacific coast of Panama.

As we drove along the road closer and closer to the beach, we began encountering gates with security guards. We began to see many landscaped properties next to highrise resort-like, condo-like buildings. Not what we had envisioned for our beach holiday. After a short conversation with the cab driver, with mixed understandings, he drove us to another area called Farallon, which is also called Playa Blanca. Hence, the confusion, we think. The driver drove us to the only hostel in the town on the beach. When we tried to order coffee, they did not have any, only beer and alcohol. Next door, to this hostel was a bar called Woody,s. We decided to have a coffee and some food there and strategize our next move. In Woody,s the waitress, was from London, Ontario. In the bar/restaurant, there were many indicators of Canadians having been here. We found out that these Canadians stayed at the all-inclusive Royal Decameron Beach Resort & Casino down the road and came to Woody,s as part of the all-inclusive deal. In speaking with the waitress she told us that Santa Clara had even less to offer in terms of places to stay than Playa Blanca. It was discouraging to find this out as our options of staying in Playa Blancthat meant that we could stay in the first place we had seen (not) or we could stay at the Decameron for $120.00 each, per night and enjoy the benefits of the all-inclusive deal. This option did not appeal to us either.


Cabanas Las Veranera


So, once again, we put on our knapsacks, in the sweltering heat, and decided to risk going to Santa Clara and finding another option for our beach holiday. This meant catching a local bus (van) on the road, going to the Interamericana Hwy. again and then proceeding to the road for Santa Clara on another bus with knapsacks in tow. Did I mention the sweltering heat. After the second bus, it was a $2.00 cab ride to the Restaurante y Cabanas Las Veranera, where we hoped to stay if all went well. As it turned out, the place was beautiful, on the Ocean and very quiet and peaceful. We stayed in this setting near the fishing village for a couple of days taking in the sun, water, and beaufiul beach. We think we were the only ones staying in this place although, people did come to eat in the restaurant and enjoy the beach in front of the restaurant.

April 12, 2011

beach rest in Santa Clara

We are sitting in our favourite bakery, smelling wonderful tastes, feeling a cool breeze on a sunny day. We are guessing that the temperature is at least 80 degrees

We have just returned from our hikes in the area and have walked back into town.
After fortifying ourselves with a delicious coffee at the bakery this morning, we left around 9.30 a.m. for our hike at Cerro Gaital. We found out about this hike from the young Japanese at the Orchid Gardens we visited yesterday. To get to the beginning of the hike, we took the local bus along an amazing route filled with grand estates. The bus driver and assistant were kind enough to have us sit in the front of the bus/van with the driver. It was very comfortable and very scenic, despite some of the poor conditions of the road.

Ringed by 1000m-tall mountains and surrounded by humid cloud forest, this was truly an amazing hike and a rugged workout. The bus driver van kind enough to let us know that he would be back in two hours, so we had to hike quickly -- what an incentive. The view from the top of the mountain was spectacular. From the `viewpoint`we could see towards the town one way and then towards the Pacific ocean the other way.

True to their word, the bus/van returned in two hours. We took the bus down the road to the waterfalls called Chorro El Macho, the most famous waterfall in the El Valle area. It is 85 meters high. Again, a spectacular sight. Below the waterfalls there was a large swimming area made of rocks, surrounded by rainforest and fed by river water. After this short hike, we decided to walk back into town viewing the area.



Hostel in El Valle

Tomorrow we plan to leave El Valle and go unto Santa Clara on the Pacific. That is the plan so far, but who knows what tomorrow will bring.

April 11th

El Valle


El Valle, officially known as El Valle De Anton, is a picturesque town nestled in the 5 km. crater of a giant extinct volcano, surrounded by forests and jagged peaks. Like the town of Boquete in the province of Chiriqui. El Valle is a popular weekend getaway for urbanites wanting to enjoy the fresh air and scenery. Exploring the various activities in the area, i.e., hiking, horseback riding, we have discovered an extensive network of trails leading from the town into the hills and around the valley. We have seen many bird watchers with their binoculars walking about. El Valle is home to an impressive set of waterfalls as well as some rare golden frogs.


El Valle
Having discovered a very nice hotel yesterday at which we stayed for the night, we learned that our television did not have cable consequently, no English-speaking stations. As we have been without any news of the world for a few days, we were disappointed to find this out. However, we found that the hotel next door did have cable and a room looking out at the mountains for the same price, in addition to a beautiful rooftop terrace with hammocks, comfortable chairs and a frig. So tonight we are staying in this hotel and for the next couple of days.

This morning we slept in until 7.00 a.m., had a leisurely breakfast, moved our things to our new hotel and set out for a hike to the Orchid Conservation, Aprovaca Orquideas. Here, some 32 volunteers work to maintain the flowers inside , the greenhouse and the grounds. A lovely young Japanese man, who is working here on behalf of the Japanese government, which funds the project, gave us a tour showing off 96 varieties of orchids cultivated. As many of these orchids are in danger of becoming extinct they are cultivated here, then to be replanted in their nature habitat in the mountains. Panama´s National Flower is the terrestrial orchid known as the flor del espiritu santo or the holy ghost orchid. This stunning flower is shaped like a red-spotted dove emerging from the ivory petals is endangered due to poaching. Its natural habitat is in the forests around El Valle.
Leaving the orchids, while difficult, we proceeded with our hike.


a local orchid

Walking along our hike, we found a beautiful luxury hotel in an amazing setting. We had lunch here and took some pictures.


if you get tired hiking

Today was a hot, breezy day, but not too humid, as we are in a mountain valley.