Boquete

We have a little cabana here @ Villa Marita....overlooking the coffee plantation....yesterday it was very cool with a misty rain..today is beautiful..the flowers are stunning..the people friendly and they look more prosperous here in this mountain town...more photos later...





Our cabanas with a view over the valley



Our view...coffee plantation below us....





Love these color combinations......



The village of Boquete...

On the way to Boquete...

Our current location (Gorgano) is the green dot on the right side and the red dot shows Boquete..Costa Rica is just off the map to the left.... this is where we are heading today and staying 2 nights.......Boquete is surrounded by spectacular mountains at 4000'...renown for its flower festivals, coffee, and handicrafts...So we are out the door and off to see this charming town.


btw...if you have an iPad and want to take a photo of what you have on your screen..just hit the home button and toggle the off/switch at the same time..you should here a click..photo taken and sent to your photo stream..cool eh..?

Panama Canal...

The history of the canal is intriguing and complex...this is a really good read if you are interested.. HERE
Last week we went to the Panama Canal Museum in Casco Vijeo...to learn about of the history that went into building it before going on a canal tour! On Saturday we travelled 72km...(45 miles)...from Pacific to Atlantic in 10 hours by boat... to think this was built almost 100 years ago....simply amazing and awe inspiring..On our bucket list..checked off! ❤
Here are a few of 155 photos that made the cut!


The Pacific Queen...our tour boat holding 300 passengers.


Early morning Panama City Skyline..it was a little humid already at 7:00 am..


Amazing ship in harbor...wouldn't this be a dream sail?


Almost 100 years old...what an engineering feat...still going strong and to be expanded for the super-super tankers...


The walls of the canal behind us..the water rose or deleted in the locks in 8 minutes..what a feeling it was to have the water rise under the boat so quickly...42 tankers, ships, cruise ships, boats go thru the canal in a 24 hour period...50 or 60 boats were waiting on the Pacific.... The Panama Canal Authority sees gross income of more than $3 billion dollars per year, and about two thirds of that is spend on manpower, maintenance, and the logistics required to keep the canal operating. Add on top of that the ongoing project to expand the Panama Canal (with a budget of $5.25 billion dollars).It makes money, cuts down traveling time by 22 days that it used to take going around Cape Horn ,Tierra Del Fuego and Straits of Magellen....The Panamanian people are hopeful that their standard of living will improve.

Virgen del Carmen....

Statues of Mary are everywhere here in this lovely country..in churches as well as in shrines along the roads...however, this country has a great love for the Virgen del Carmen. She has been adopted as their patron by sailors and fishermen in towns and villages....The Virgen del Carmen also battles pirates. According to Taboga lore, (a small series of islands off the coast of Panama) a pirate ship attempted an attack on the island. When the pirates reached the shores of Isla Taboga, they met an enormous army face to face that was headed by a beautiful woman. The pirates were terrorized by the vision and fled back to their boat. To this day, Taboganos are convinced that it was the Virgin del Carmen who saved them, and each year on July 16th the patron saint blesses the fleet in Taboga Bay.
These photos are taken as a tribute to our sweet daughter in-law, Carmen...I hope she will love the story behind her name!

bright and colorful houses..

Yesterday we drove through a couple of little towns right off the Panamerican highway..Chame is about 5 minutes south of us..Here the streets were tidy, the houseS were painted in bright colors..reminded me of a California surfing town..little houses, well kept in tropical colors.











What a happy experience to see all theses colors in such a small little town.

Langostinos (aka shrimp but different)

These were the boats coming in today..not sure which one held the Langostinos ...but which ever one they were, they were delicious! I steamed them and just added lemon! It was ❤ at first bite.
Our new friends from Grand Forks, BC. Carol and Len, from the condo upstairs gave me 4 {Jimmy does not do fish}...a trade for baggies..good deal, eh?.... they close that fishery here at the end of the month, so when the boats come in it is a big rush to get in line..they also were cleaned for me!

Knitting and crocheting...

When we are enjoying our beach day..I swim in the ocean or I am lazy on the floaty thing in the pool....but most of the time I spend in the shade under the Bohino (big shade Palapas) knitting, crocheting or making friendship bracelets for the kids that are visiting here..I brought my needles and some wool with me, but picked up these little cotton crochet balls and a hook...keeps me totally happy......with my digital magazines, books and reading blogs..oh my gosh..what a lovely way to spend a month in the sun! I know some of you are in the snow, rain and cooler weather..so everyday, I enjoy a small part of my sunny holiday for you..hope you feel the sunshine and love❤

Faded Glory in Panama....

These are a few of my favorite pictures to take..faded..I love the time worn elements that exposé the colors underneath...these old building and doors bring those layers to life....what do you think?

Churches....

These three photos are all of the same church in Casco Vijeo..there is at least one Catholic Church in every small town....a place for worship...I stand in awe and marvel how these were built.....some are being restored..some are falling into decay...depending on where they are and if the population around them can support their containing restoration.

Colors of Panama...

Morning sunrise...it is going to be another beautiful day....should be about 91 today's with a cooling off-shore breeze!


Hot and bright colors on the food labels!


Tomorrow we will be traveling to Boquete..@4000'.....400 km NE of here..we will be staying for 2 nights, see the coffee plantations, the volcano, the beautiful flowers in the valley....I am sure my camera will be busy taking photos to share.
Update..we will delay our trip by a week because of the large crowds that will be for the flower festival..no rooms to be had!

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!