Handmade

None of these lovely handmade items made it home with me...{yet}...I wish I would of taken more photos....but after walking thru blocks of churches, restored building, ruined buildings..I was so hot and hungry all Jim and I wanted was a cool air conditioned cafe to have a cool one and eat... here are a few that I feel in love with.......











I know now that my hat ( bought from the sweet little lady that made it in La Pintada) was a bargain...This one in Casco Vijeo was $85.00.....$40.00 more than I paid for mine! :) sweet!


(mine)

Casco Vijeo

This old part of Panama is such a study in contrasts...very very old Spanish Colonial buildings being re-modeled....others left un touched..abandoned and littered with garbage as well as people living in slum conditions...
Here are some of the sights we saw yesterday.


Just one of the many building under restoration..check the angels at the top...


The wrought iron balconies and an electricians nightmare full of wires!


Plaza Bolivar...a courtyard filled with interesting vignettes..this a full height wooden statue of the priest was inside this huge church!


Just hanging out in the warm sun.....


The skyline in the background of the vibrant Panama City!




We had the help of a policeman on his bike who made sure tourists like us stayed safe and didn't go into the dangerous areas..he just lead us to the avenue that took us to the "Bridge of the Americas"....sometimes you just need to show that nothing is perfect anywhere...so we are careful..but not fearful and I feel because of that we have met so many delightful people who share their Panama stories with us!

My beach finds....

My pile of shells grows daily! I just love shells..never get tired of finding new ones to add to my collection and ones I plan to give as gifts...this one is from Portebelo..it is really quite small.


Many of these pink ones are gifts for a special friend, Koralee....


Cindy loves sea glass. The group here at Sue a Mar are a good bunch..they all walk every morning and they look for sea glass for my Cindy..I wonder how many pieces I will have by the end of the month.


Today we are off to old Panama..our day to explore!

Portobelo

Although today it is little more than a sleepy fishing village on the shores of the Caribbean, Portobelo was once the greatest Spanish port in Central America. Gold from Peru and treasures from the Orient entered Panama City and were carried overland by mule to the fortresses at Portobelo. During the annual trade fair, galleons laden with goods from Spain arrived to trade for gold and other products from the New World. However, much like Nombre de Dio, Panamá and Fuerte San Lorenzo, Portobelo was the target of constant attacks at the hands of English privateers. Considering that the city was destroyed several times throughout its history, it’s remarkable that so much of the colonial fortresses still stand.
Scattered around Portobelo there are several different sets of ruins, some in surprisingly good condition, complete with cannons pointing out to see, stone walls, etc. The first set is visible from the main road, on the left side, as you enter this beautiful bay that cuts deep inland. We never did see the other ones as we wanted to go to the end of the road and see what was there..the contrast is amazing..big boats in the harbor...but this part of Panama is very poor and it shows..there is garbage in heaps everywhere...sad and abandoned dogs..men without work...just hanging around.....all this set into this incredible bay..life is often very hard in a third world country! However..I still wanted to show you the incredible beauty experienced today.



The canons guarding the bay......


I wonder if you could still find some Spanish doubloons?


Imagine how large the boat would of been that this anchor held fast in here in Portebelo?


"Regina Maris"..A three masted luxury schooner..isn't she a beauty!

The beach life....

To the south of our beach.....we have the Rio Chame.....this river feeds fresh water into the sea..it is beautiful..lots of surfing just past the mouth of the river..It is about an hour walk from our beach..collecting lots of shells, seeing the birds fly overhead..seeing this weird jellyfish...just seeing...taking it all in...today we're headed to Portobelo on the Caribbean side of Panama..it is a World Unesco Heritage site..really looking forward to seeing this town.

My new Panamanian Hat

La Pintada is a typical Panamanian style town that is based around a central church Plaza. The locals have a great sense of pride and like most towns in Panama's interior the towns people are very friendly, honest, and hardworking! La Pintada is located within the province of Cocle. Cocle is known for its bright colorful festivals and hand made local crafts which include the well known Typical Panamanian hats and other folkloric items. This small town is where we drove today..I met the lady that wove my hat..when you love hand made things as I do...meeting the maker of my hat was a thrill..she didn't speak a word of English...and I only a few words of Spanish..but it was a wonderful moment when she went back into her shop..got a hat, put it on and posed with me! What do you think..didn't she weave a great hat?

Sun and sand......

most of the days when we are here at the beach..we are well covered up with 20/50/60 SPF.....or under the shade palapa.....Jim had a great ride on a very rough and tumble wave...trying to keep his swim trunks on..I wish I had a video for YouTube..it would of gone viral...so much sand everywhere...even the boats came close to shore to fish today....it was such a good day!

Flowers and trees

There are many flowers and trees blooming here this time of the year...there will be upcoming festivals in small towns celebrating the different varieties...some I recognize, like these orchids but others look so different..I am off to buy a book that will help me identify some of them...the air is really fragrant around some of these flowers..makes going outside such a joy!

El Valle, Panama

El Valle is one of the most special destinations in Panama. Only two hours away from Panama City, it is also a perfect weekend escape from Panama's lowland heat! El Valle is a fertile volcanic valley filled with bright flowers, square trees and golden frogs. Looking into El Valle it looks like a huge broccoli field – most of the houses are surrounded by trees that make for a green and unspoiled impression. The temperatures are moderate throughout the year and it cools down at night. This is part of the valley @3,000'


It has a very Tuscan feel about the buildings.


It is known for it's hand craft and farmers market..15 hours of hand work to sew this all together...amazing!


Love these sweet bananas....


fresh veggies..I will take more photos of the fruits and veggies I don't recognize next time and find out what they are and how to cook with them!

In the morning...

Up early to enjoy the sunrise...take my coffee to the beach...take some photos..walk with Fiona and Quigley {gentle Irish Wolfhound giants}..listen and watch the waves roll in..add another few rows to my knitting..read for a while, catch up on emails......listen to some music..bliss. ❤

Panamanian color

Shopping has been a really interesting and colorful experience..there are many brands we recognize..but none more colorful as some of the few I found here on the shelves...many people speak English here and there seem to be a lot of people from BC here...so asking where or what something has not been a problem yet..





These were a few of the colorful things on the beach...the coconut is for my dear BIL Larry who is always kidding me when I call and he tells me the monkeys are throwing coconuts at him...( in the wintertime in Bull River BC, no less)...the beaches quite empty except for weekends when the locals come out from the city. We are looking forward to everyday with great joy and anticipation..such is what this adventure represents to me....hoping you are finding joy in your day!

beach walk today..

Here are a few of the beach walk photos..happy little Panamaian kids..rescued pup..fishing boats...our beach....warm weather, ocean sounds..it was a good day!

Black Sand beach

This incredible fine black sand comes right up to the shade palapa and where the waves roll in to the edge of the beach..the sand is pale white in color..such a lovely contrast..lots of shells and sea glass {collecting some for you Cindy}...today when we walk on the beach we will take a plastic bag and pick up some litter...the beach is really quite clean but if all the tourists pick up a bit...then it will be cleaner...there is what I found yesterday and filled Jim's pockets with..nice aren't they?

morning view....Gorgona, Panama

No time yet to start checking out the area we are staying in..but the first view this morning was lovely..it is already very warm {78}.....sunglasses, a hat and shorts day for sure...heading into the little town for groceries...it should be interesting day...I love the sound of the waves as they roll into the sandy beach just below our deck.

Books to travel with...

Happy New Year

It was my good fortune to find out that my local library back in BC has ebooks in their lending library..

you can browse their selection, choose a book, download it and enjoy it for 21 days..

how sweet is that?..

.no need to carry those books when you can read them at your leisure...

does your local library have this ebook lending service?