Sunday Worship -- El Valle Style

As seems to happen quite a lot in El Valle, Tom and I had a fortunate meeting this Saturday while having coffee at the local cafe. We were blessed to meet Aaron, a native of Dallas, Texas, and his adorable daughter, Avalyn.

Aaron told us that he, his wife Janet, 7 year old son Mylon, and Avalyn (aged 4), had come to Panama a year ago to live. As the son of Christian missionaries who had lived in Africa and other far flung locales, Aaron wanted to give his own children the same exposure to cultures other than their own.  It was excellent timing that we got to meet Aaron on this day, as he explained that the family would be leaving Panama in a month to return to Texas.

After some conversation about El Valle, Panama in general and where the best restaurants are, it came up that Aaron and Janet were helping to lead a church that met in El Valle. He invited us to attend a worship gathering of about 40 other Christians, including other expats, Panamanians and Kuna Yala people.

We immediately accepted the invitation, along with the offer of a ride to the El Valle Bread Club. The El Valle Bread Club is run by a German family, and Charles makes some of the most delicious bread and croissants that we have ever tasted.  Each week, families place their orders via email, and on Saturday mornings, they show up at Charles' home to pick up the bread. With everyone showing up at about the same time, it turns into quite the social event, with Charles' wife putting out samples of bread, her delectable herb butter, hummus and fruit spread. It was here that we met Janet, Aaron's wife, along with Mylon, their son. (Aaron, upon arriving at the Bread Club and seeing the amazing spread, knew that he would be in trouble if he didn't run home to fetch Janet!)

Before Tom and I left with our motherlode of baguettes, croissants and assorted artisan breads, we firmed up the plans to ride to church with Aaron and his family in the morning. We then scurried home to savor those croissants!

Best buddies! (Aaron and Janet in the background.)

We arrived at the home of David and Lisa, 2 mission workers from the US who were back in the States for the week. David and Lisa rent a lovely home and grounds which used to house a candy factory, and the large shed at the rear of the property was more than ample for the worship gathering. We quickly set up the simple space with chairs, handed out song books, and in short order the people began to arrive.

Walking to church.

The worship gathering takes place in this old candy factory.

We were introduced to every man, woman and child who arrived, and given a brief run down as to who was related to whom. The families all sat down in the circle, and Janet led everyone in song; old favorites such as "Holy, Holy, Holy" were sung in Spanish, and then sometimes in English, and even in Kuna Yala! It was quite an experience to be singing Christian songs in Spanish, let alone Kuna. Cleo, a church member who is Kuna, did the translations for the songbook. Such a gifted young man; fluent in English, Spanish and Kuna, as well as being a father of 5.

Communion.

The message for the day came from 1Corinthians 12, which talks about how we are all members of the same body - the Body of Christ - though we are each individual members. And Aaron broke the news that he and the family would be leaving El Valle and returning to Texas. His eloquent, heartfelt expressions of appreciation for each and every person there (he called them all out by name, and gave thanks for them) put tears of melancholy, and yet joy, in almost every eye, including ours.

Getting ready to sing more songs after communion.

When the worship gathering concluded, it was time for the children to have their Sunday School lesson. I was reminded of my Sunday School kids back in Tennessee, and how sweet and bright they were. Hat's off to Janet for being able to conduct just one class for kids ranging in age from 4 years through 14!

Aaron and Janet's adorable children, Avalyn and Mylon, with a pal.

Tom and I feel amazingly blessed to have been invited to share this special worship time with our new friends, and that we were able to meet Aaron and Janet and their wonderful kids before they left El Valle. We wish them  many great blessings as they start a new chapter in their own adventure!

After church, it's off to the mercado for shaved ice!

Day Trip to Playa Coronado and Gorgona

This is a tale of getting lost, finding out and making a mini-adventure out of a shopping trip to "town."

Besides having some funny parts, this post might also prove helpful for those who are seriously considering a move to Panama and are interested in such practical matter as: "How do we get around?, "Can I buy mayonnaise down there?" and "How much is the rum?"

Our story begins on a Tuesday morning; needing to bring the infamous broken laptop to Punta G Computers (the place that was recommended to us by "everyone" in Panama) and assay the big, fancy supermarkets for items such as meats (for Tom), fancy cheese (pour moi), and - dare I dream? - Hellmann's mayonnaise, we caught a ride to Coronado with our land-persons, Michele and Ken.

The plan: to compare prices at all of the grocery stores, then grab a cab to La Playa, explore the beach, come back to town by cab, and then buy all of our groceries and take the bus back to El Valle. While we did end up accomplishing much of this, it did not go exactly as planned.... 

The 40 minute ride down the mountain from our volcano-crater home was winding and scenic, and before we knew it, we were at the Coronado Mall. We immediately took note that a McDonald's McNifica burger would run us about $1.59 each, should we feel the need to partake in some fast food (we did not, but we reserve the right to have a taste of the USA if we need to!). We then took the dastardly Dell up to nearby Punta G Computers, where a cheerful, English-speaking lady named Ruby took the demon off our hands with a payment of about $25 for diagnostic services. (Ultimately, the diagnosis was "dead hard drive", and we are having Punta G install a new (bigger) hard drive, Windows and virus protection for a bit less than this would cost in the States.)

With that bit of business behind us, we crossed the Pan-Americana Highway to the new mall that is still being finished. This mall houses the much-hyped El Machetazo store, and some of the hype is indeed warranted. It's basically a grocery store on the first floor with 2 upper floors of toys, housewares, electronics, clothing and "what-not." Sort of like a Target store in the States (but NOT Target...the Conway stores in Panama City are owned by Target). So what's the big deal, right?  Well, for ex-pats who yearn for the modern grocery shopping experience, complete with Hellmann's mayo, good quality meats and "luxury" items - not to mention armed guards at the front of the store (de riguer in Panama) - this place is PARADISE.

Before our faithful readers point out our previous ramblings on this very blog about how Tom and I want to learn to live with less and consume less, there are times that we are just comforted to know that if we want this experience, this mayo, this CHEESE (yes, I like cheese), it is here. And for the record, we did come home with 3 logs of herbed chevre, some wine, a spatula (our well-equipped rental cottage was lacking this essential implement), some art supplies (!) and POUNDS of various meat. No mayonnaise; alas, I had already bought some at the Super Mini Centro Hong Kong Market in El Valle, and thus could not justify buying more.

Now for the million dollar question - how are the prices? First thing to know about shopping ANYWHERE is that you need to know what things cost typically. For example, in our little town of El Valle, a pound of papas (potatoes) can run  .65/lb up to .95/lb, depending upon how close the market is to the "tourist" section of town. This is not considerably less than the cost of potatoes in the US. When you get into a store like El Machetazo, the cost of food can be close to US prices. There are some big, IMPORTANT (to some) exceptions. Booze is much cheaper here, even in the "fancy stores." Regular white table wine (they do have bottles, not just boxes!), runs about $2.15 (the "B" in the pictures means "Balboa" -this is what the dollar is called in Panama) for 2 liters.  Liquor is also cheap by comparison to the US; this is a local brand of rum, priced at $3.89!

After El Machetazo, Tom and I had a quick lunch at Don Lee (think "down-scale" Pei Wei), which was cheap and good. Then we headed back over to Coronado Mall to check out Rey and Super 99, the 2 main grocery chains in Panama (the family of Panama's President, Ricardo Martinelli, owns Super 99). We found a lot of items in these stores that we were used to "back home," and made sure to grab a coveted bottle of Hershey's chocolate syrup for Tom, who'd been jonesing for it!

Bottom line: if you move to Panama, and shop at "fancy" markets and buy imported foods, Panama will not be a bargain for you. If you go "criollo" (local), and shop the mom and pop stores (look for the words, "super" and "mini") and Super 99, you will do better. Eat local foods - fruits and veggies in season, rice (don't ask me how to cook it perfectly; I am still trying to figure that out), fish - and you'll be healthier and richer. Try and stay away from the sugar-y juices that Panamenos love!

Tom found a steampunk-style Iron Man statue in the El Machetazo toy department!

In the Coronado Mall there is also a Dollar Store - the presence of which, we hope, will entice Tom's parents to visit us! This place is crammed to the limit with unnecessary plastic objects, and even some useful stuff. Tom didn't find any useful stuff.

After the inspections of the supermarkets and such were completed, we stopped into the Mailboxes Etc. store and spoke to the owner about their services. For those who don't know this yet - not every country in the world has door to door mail service, and Panama is one of them. Heck, many places in Panama (such as our house) don't even have street addresses! When we tell folks where we live, it is usually, "the casita in the front yard of the big green house on the road next to the Yin Market; the house that Doreen used to own but now Michele does." So, there is a dilemma that exists for those who need to receive mail, which is usually resolved by renting a post office box. Since Tom and I are currently having the tiny amount of mail that we receive sent to a friend's house in the States, and we will be apprised of anything "urgent," we didn't feel the need to rent a PO box just yet. In the unlikely event that we start ordering stuff from Amazon and EBay, we will have to revisit this. We did find out that if you only order things every now and then, Mailboxes Etc. will let you have it shipped to them on a "by the piece" basis.

And now the fun begins! After grabbing a refreshing libation at the Sunset Grill and Bar, we jumped into a taxi on the road that "appeared" to lead to the playa. Those who know me know that I tend to conduct careful due diligence before travelling to places - on a recent trip to Greece with my daughter, I researched every grain of sand on every island we visited before we left the US. Those who REALLY know me, know that I have a mischievous side, and sometimes I like to just "get lost." Tom probably thought I had studied the map and knew exactly where "la playa" was, but he quickly learned that I had no idea where we were going. The long, bumpy ride through residential neighborhoods and the cackling laughter of the driver and his front seat passenger soon revealed to us that the taxi driver had no idea where "la playa" was either, but was up for some fun.

As we rounded a corner, we spied a bit of sky and water in the distance. There was an alleyway leading between 2 houses that led to the promised land! "Aqui, aqui," we exclaimed, and hopped out of the cab. Headed in the direction of the golden sand of Playa Coronado, we figured that we'd take a nice stroll on the beach, dip our toes in the water, and take those kinds of photos that make the folks "back home" green with envy. After that, we'd duck into one of the many resorts that we just knew would be beachside, have a cold drink and maybe a nosh, and then have the door man hail us a taxi.

After the required rituals of beach frolicking, toe dunking and picture taking were completed, we set off on our stroll toward what appeared to be luxury hotels in the distance.

Looks good so far... except that these are all private homes on the left (see photo above), and continued access to beach was blocked by rocks. And the beach was quite deserted for such a lovely day, so we figured: well, the best thing to do would be to go back to the road and try to find the "resorts" from the front. After a long, sweaty walk down a street with lovely seaside homes, we arrived at the Sands resort and cut through the property to the beach. As we strolled down the beach for quite some time, looking for that perfect resort at which to alight, we noticed that the sand was gradually getting blacker and blacker; I knew that Gorgona had black sand, but we couldn't have walked to Gorgona... or could we..? Seeing a fancy staircase leading up to what appeared to be a posh hotel, we decided that this would be the place to stop. Arriving at the top of the stairs, we saw tanned people lounging by the pool, a lovely bar area, children playing in the pool and uniformed waiters attending to the needs of all.

As we sashayed across the pool deck, looking for all the world like we "belonged", a gentleman addressed us from his lounge chair. "Can I help you?," he asked. To which my dear husband, in a slightly veiled smartly-alecky tone, replied, "Why, is this your house or something?" [Tom sez: "Hey, it was hot out and I was frustrated..!] I can't make this stuff up, folks... of course this guy (a New Yorker, no less) replied, "Yes, it actually is."

With feet in gaping mouths, we were speechless. The man got up from his chair and asked if he could get us each a glass of water, which we accepted gratefully before we slunk away, wishing we had remembered to pack those cloaks of invisibility.

On down the now-black sand beach we continued, in the direction of three naked, laughing children, and when it become apparent that we were at the end of the world and there would be no resort (those tall buildings are condos that are still being built -argghh!), no cold drink, NO TAXI, we headed off the beach and down a local road.

Happy children!

Gorgona sands.

As we wandered with wet sandy feet down the rural streets, we were indeed "lost," but not overly concerned. We knew that we could muster enough Spanish to ask a person (should we encounter one!) how to get back to the Pan-American Highway, and a bus. For a while, we walked with only the chickens and country dogs as company. Eventually, we came to a fork in the road - which we took. A few buildings (one with the bible verse John 3:16 beautifully painted on the side of it), kids on bikes, people relaxing in hammocks, even a car or 2, appeared - but no buses or taxis yet. Seeing a "Super Mini" store, we stopped in for a cold drink and asked the young lady inside for directions to the Pan-Americana. With hand motions and the few words we did understand, she helped us get on our way. Another young lady we met on the road communicated that it was very far to the highway, but that a bus would come soon.  We walked and walked, and sure enough - a bus came and on we jumped. 5 minutes and 30 cents later, we were at the highway, where we grabbed another bus right back to Coronado, and the meats and cheeses of El Machetazo.

After all of the shopping, walking, self-inflicted embarrassment, lamentable speaking of Spanish to smiling, helpful strangers, the 40 - minute bus ride back to El Valle was a welcome respite!

Sometimes it's ok to get lost -- you never know what you might find out.

For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life. John 3:16 KJV

Settling In - El Valle de Anton

We have arrived in El Valle de Anton, our new home base for the next six months! After a half-hearted attempt to find a used car to buy in Panama City was aborted (Tom and I have decided to try to *gasp* live without a car!), we did as the locals do and took the bus. The public transportation system in Panama is excellent and far-reaching, and many locals and expats get along just fine without owning cars.

The Albrook transportation center, conveniently located near the Albrook Mall, is on the west end of Panama City (in the old Canal Zone). If you arrive at the terminal by taxi and laden with 4 suitcases, two backpacks and 2 laptop bags (as we did), a porter will load up your gear and bring it right to the ticket counter and then to your bus. Once you buy your ticket and board the bus, you will soon be traveling over the Puente de las Americas and onto the Pan-American Highway within minutes. There is a bus to El Valle every 30 minutes, and frequent buses to many other destinations, so you won't be waiting long in the terminal. If you do become peckish during your wait, there are restaurants and shops (tons of mobile phone shops...we are not quite sure why they need so many); we decided to try Nikos Cafe, which is basically what Southerners call a "meat and three". You can also buy dishes and desserts a la carte, and the food is hearty and inexpensive. We both had the meat and 3 veggies (pure de papas = yum!) and the tab was about $11.00.

Important Note: Make sure you have a nickel to get through the turnstyle to board the bus. Also, if you need to use the restrooms at the terminal, you will need a quarter to insert into the turnstyle. Tom calls it the "pay to pee swindle."

The buses in Panama range from the smallish passenger van type (which we rode in), to Diablos Rojos (intricately painted old school buses that primarily navigate the urban areas), to "luxury" buses (the air conditioning is the open window and the toilet is, well, rough), to genuine luxury buses with real toilets and a/c. ALL Panamanian buses feature loud music, so bring your mp3 player or ear plugs if this doesn't suit you! I happen to think it adds greatly to the experience, and you might agree. (Tom said "bollocks" and listened to the Sex Pistols.)

Also present on every bus is the driver's assistant (sometimes there is more than one). The assistant collects the money and tickets, opens and closes the door and helps with packages and luggage. It is very interesting to see the assistants round up prospective passengers at the many bus stops along the Pan-American Highway. I observed that many of the passengers don't line up for the bus immediately when it arrives; rather, they wait for the assistant to come out and announce the bus' destination.

After a pleasant ride of about 2 hours, the bus ascended the mountains surrounding El Valle, and then descended into the extinct volcano crater where the town is situated. Our stop was the "end of the line," near the mercado. Once our luggage was unloaded, we waited outside the very busy Yin market for our new landlady to pick us up and bring us to our new home. We quickly learned that our new home is very centrally located just down the dirt road next to the Yin Market, and across from the big Mercado. Our cottage is part of a small compound, which includes the owner's home, gardens and a lovely bridge across a stream which leads to the stable. The owner is a cat lover, and she has set up the stable as a shelter for "feral" cats.

During our first few days in town, we have been very busy shopping for food at the various markets (which all seem to be Chinese owned), poking around the big Mercado (one of the most famous markets in Latin America), meeting people and assaying various restaurants. Shopping for food around here is an experience - you might have to go to 3 places to find most of what you need! We have been told that the best shopping for "stuff that expats like" is in Coronado, so we will be sure to check out the situation there. You might buy something in the store here, as I did, thinking it is something entirely different. I grabbed what appeared to be a stack of pineapple slices, and opened it later to make a fruit salad. I found out that I had purchased masa,
which is dough that is used to make tortillas and tamales. Guess I will be learning how to make tortillas - but not tamales, as Tom hates them!

A great discovery we made right away is that Ty's Sports Grille is located close to our house. We met Ty and Michelle, the Canadian owners, and had a delicious lunch. My beloved husband does not need to go without his sacred baby-back ribs! Just when I was wondering, "When am I going to see a monkey around here?", in walks Michelle with her pet Capuchin, Mona. So, great food, nice people, close to home, and a monkey...yes, we will be regulars here..!

The entrance to Casa Verde

Here I am, relaxing in the yard - Aaaahhhhh!

Our street...it doesn't have a name, so just turn at the Yin Market and keep going until you see Casa Verde.

The end of our street, where it meets Avenida Principal. You can see the mercado on the left, and La India Dormida straight ahead. There is a legend that goes with that name (of course), which we will blog about soon.

What we see when we walk to El Valle Gourmet Coffee Shop.

Michelle and Mona.

My monkey, Tom with Mona.

Pekin Plaza, which has shops, restaurants and a hotel. It kind of makes you wonder if you somehow got on the wrong bus and ended up in China!

The Mercado

Kuna Yala lady working on a mola (MO-lah) at the mercado.

Exploring Casco Viejo -The Old City of Panama

A district of Panama City known as Casco Viejo, Casco Antiguo or San Felipe, is full of beautifully restored colonial buildings, crumbling ruins, restaurants and bars, museums, churches and tourists rubbing elbows with locals as they navigate the narrow streets.

In 1998, UNESCO declared the area a World Heritage Site, and the restoration effort began in what had previously been a dangerous and poverty-ridden slum. The President of Panama moved his official residence to the Casco district, and brought with him a large force of National Police. The presence of the armed Policia Nacional, in their red berets, can be disquieting at times, but it cannnot be denied that the Casco is now considered a very safe place to visit (at least in most of the district).

People watching...

Balconies festooned with laundry are a common sight.

La Plaza de La Catedral. The Cathedral is lovely and peaceful inside.

 The Kuna people sell their moles and other handicrafts on the streets of Casco, and they all seem to have radiant smiles!

The cathedral at Plaza Simon Bolivar, one of the prettiest squares in the Casco, and a busy meeting place at night with bars and restaurants all around.

Viejo Havana...this unassuming-looking place serves the world's best Mojitos, AND plays the best Cuban music!

It's amazing what can be done with bananas. These fried plantanos, served with a fancy dipping sauce known as ketchup, were crispy and delicious. We recommend you visit the Diablicos Restaurant if you find yourself in these parts..fantastic service and wonderful food.

Our first Panamanian meal consisted of Ceviche de Corvina (served in little cups made out of mashed bananas) for an appetizer, followed by the dish shown below...Ropas Viejas (literally translates to "old clothes" - sure doesn't taste like it!) with rice and beans, and these little "cakes" made of......you guessed it -
bananas!

Here's the Policia Nacional guardsman that has to stand outside of Viejo Havana and watch the people inside having drinks and fun. He seemed pretty bored out there, and I felt like being a pal and bringing him a Balboa beer. But they carry machine guns, so I decided against it.

Tom and I found ourselves drawn to Casco Viejo, and spent a lot of time there while in the city. There is a patina of warmth and history that blankets this district. When you go, you will see restored buildings with every detail lovingly wrought, next to dilapidated building. Often these ruins consist of just a facade. If you purchase that ruin/facade, keep in mind that when you rebuild it to open your chic bed and breakfast, you will need to keep that facade and building footprint as part of the new structure! Even with the restrictions, the Casco is a hub of construction activity and it seems like it will be more and more lovely on each subsequent visit we make.

Good Morning from Panama City!

Tom and I arrived safely last night...we are finally in Panama!  After a flight delay at Dallas/Fort Worth Airport, a very long line at immigration, collecting the luggage and going through customs, we met our driver, Jose. With Jose's English limited, and my Spanish even more so, we relied on Tom to do most of of the talking. By the end of the cab ride to our guesthouse, I was already speaking Spanish..."Si, bueno!" I exclaimed repeatedly as Jose pointed out the new Trump Tower, Casco Viejo and other landmarks. What a vocabulary I have.."aqui", "gracias", "necessito un bano" (haven't used that phrase yet, but I am sure I will bust it out within the week).

Seriously, I am very thankful that Tom speaks some Spanish...it's obvious that he will be fluent very soon. And maybe it will rub off on me. [Tom sez: "Oh, Monkey - you'll do just fine in no time at all..!"]


Upon arrival at our guesthouse around midnight, we discovered that my Dell laptop crashed during the flight from Dallas to Panama...we have tried to revive it, but it's not looking good. Right now I am very very thankful that I bought my emergency netbook for $100 at Music City Pawn back in TN. And wondering if it will be able to fit the Rosetta Stone Level 1 Spanish program that I just got around to loading onto the Dell just before our departure...sigh...trying not to stress. Especially after waking to the calls of strange new birds out in the garden.....

Our guesthouse is The Balboa Inn, right near Cerro Ancon. It's in a residential neighborhood with lots of trees, birds and the cute little critters known as agoutis. They look like guinea pigs, and probably are closely related, if not the same thing!(I will have to research this further.) You can see one in the picture above...the guy and his buddies joined us for breakfast along with more kinds of birds than we could count. Several types of hummingbirds and lovely little blue parakeets clamored around the patio when food was offered by Mieke and Bill, the owners.

Now it's time to go exploring! The weather forecast is for temperatures in the '90s, with quite a bit of humidity, but we are undaunted. Tonight at 6:00 pm, we have a date for drinks with a gal named Liz Taylor who is here from the UK for the big jazz festival that is taking place mainly in the Casco district --I made Liz's acquaintance via an expat forum, while talking about starting a book exchange for expats down here. I am expecting that it will be very interesting down in the Casco today with all of these "jazzy" people around, and we will have some good photos and stories to tell!