More explorations: Days 2-5 in Panama
Forecast: 91°/77° with 87% chance of thundershowers;
Humidity: 90%
Sunrise 6:10 am., Sunset 6:33 p.m.
The first few weeks in an unfamiliar place are full of new experiences and surprises, and days 2-5 of our Panama trip are full of examples of this general rule. So much new stuff to do!
Some of what we've done
Bought a bike
We arrived in Panama on Thursday, and the first thing we did Friday morning was walk together about 3k to a bike shop called "Re-cycle". This shop was actually basically a huge room in the back of someone's home, in a beautiful residential neighborhood. The shop (house, really) had no signs on it at all, but we google-navigated our way there, and the owner, Andres, found my husband a nifty pre-owned ("de segundo") bike in excellent condition.
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| The bike shop is just up the street and around the bend. |
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| My guy's new bike. |
Got my health certificate
I'll need a "good health certificate" for my upcoming immigration paperwork, and so on the way back from the bike, I popped into Clinic Salud to ask if they could help. The clinic had no line; it was super clean (as in, the marble-ish floors were so shiny I could see my face reflected in them). They checked my passport and had me fill out a form; they then did a urinalysis and blood test. We fiddled a bit with my credit card -- this was the first time I'd used it, and so I was a little nervous that there'd be problems -- but eventually it worked fine.
I'd gotten blood tests back in Pennsylvania before I left, and my insurance company and I are bickering over which of us pays the $350 for those tests. Here in Panama, the clinic charged me $35, which I paid without complaining. They didn't do a physical exam (no height/weight/blood pressure/etc), but I got my certificate quickly and easily. That was a sweet surprise!
Went to several food marts
There's a little food mart near the Clinic Salud, a 2km walk over a big hill from our AirBnB. What we found there was the kinds of things we might find in a Turkey Hill or 7-11 back home, but it was enough for us on our first night here.
Through the shortcut that leads north of our place, we could walk about 1.5 km to a different "food mart"; we'd hoped it would be a bit bigger and better, but it was correctly called a "mini mart". The selection there was sparse, and plastic-wrapped, and also fairly pricey.
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| The vegetable selection in Store #2. |
I have to admit, I got a little depressed after this. It made me miss walkability, farmer's markets, bulk food, food options . . . I have heard that Panama food prices are generally lower than U.S. prices, but so far, what we'd found was very much the opposite.
I had lots of fun (exhausting fun!) practicing Spanish with kids. I got to help explain how to put together a puzzle (rompecabeza) with lizards (iguanas) that were made of tricky shapes. It was a great experience.
The animal I thought was a capybara is apparently an "Agouti". I still haven't gotten close to one.
Fortunately, my cell-phone-on-legs (Neil) located a true super-mercado about 5k from us. And, because (a) he has a bike and (b) he likes to ride it, he's been to that store several times, each time with small backpack, and the food and mood here in Casa Annalisa have both improved dramatically. The bike itself has already proved very useful for getting groceries and exploring.
Helped Fundapromat at a large Fair
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| Outside the Feria Internacional del Libro |
The Atlapa Center in Panama City has been hosting a 6-day "Feria del Libro", which translates to "Book Fair", but is so, so much more. The Fair filled a giant convention center and had (of course) books, and also social services (health, embassy, bank), food, karaoke, radio stations, games, and more.
Fundapromat had a table set up there, and I helped staff it for one day (Saturday).
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| Arreglando las rompecabezas con iguanas amicables |
Had story-worthy communication errors
Here's what I *think* happened.
- Neil whatsapped our host, Paula, because the dryer wasn't getting hot. Clothes would spin, but wouldn't dry.
- Paula didn't understand him. She guessed he was asking if he could store the bike outside (he keeps it inside our AirBnB).
- Paula, being off on a weekend trip, sent her friend Delfi to show Neil a place in the rear, under cover, where he could store the bike.
- Delfi knocked on the door, pointed at the bike, and showed Neil via hand signals where to put the bike in the rear. Note that Neil speaks no Spanish, and Delfi speaks no English, so the hand signals were all they had.
- Neil whatsapped me, consternated, because he thought this meant he can't keep the bike inside where he'd prefer to have it.
Between whatsapp and a few in-person conversations, I think we've gotten everything sorted out -- the bike is inside, the dryer is reportedly working, and all parties are mildly amused at the sequence of misunderstandings.
Bought a Metro Card
I'd like to figure out how to become less dependent on having other people drive me around, and one component of that will be figuring out the bus system. The bus system is quite affordable: I *think* it's $0.25 for two hours of riding around, but I guess I'll find out.
Former Fulbrighters speak highly of the buses, but local Panamanians I've met are more leery, especially about taking buses down into the city. Jeanette says it's probably okay doing the trip from the short-cut out of here to the Ciudad del Saber where she's located.
It's also the case that one set of buses is accessible through a short-cut that takes about 10 minutes to walk to, and another is a 2km walk over a quite steep hill. So I'm sure I'll have more to say about Panamanian buses in the future!
Met/saw animals
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| Shy agouti. |
Today, walking back from church, I saw a coati (pronounced "co-AH-tee"). Like the agouti, it was too shy to let me get up close; watching it move was amazing. It's very purposeful and sure-footed.
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| The coati is by that tree leaning into the road. |
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| Zoomed in. See it? It's bigger than a cat, with a raccoon-like face and a monkey-like tail. |
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| Through the middle of this picture, you might see a trail of ants carrying little pieces of leaves. For days, they've been hauling leaf-bits down a drainage ditch, across a wide paved path, and up the steep side of a wooded hill. It's like they're taking coals to New Castle, these ants. |
Also, I've made friends with two animals in the pavilion in my AirBnB. Noah the cat loves helping me read my early morning email (and chew on my shoes); Toto the Dog wants to make a gift of all the hair he can shed by rubbing himself against my legs.
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| Noah makes herself at home on the porch. |
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| Toto shares his dog hair with anyone who will pet him. |
Not pictured:
- an iguana that ran across the road in front of me; when it passed through a patch of sun, it was like green iridescence!
- A friendly tiny armadillo.
- Butterflies galore
- funky black centipede-like creatures
Perhaps most surprising is what we haven't seen: mosquitos! Neither Neil or I has seen, heard, or been tasted by one of these . . . yet. We've been told mosquito season starts in October. We're glad for the respite, in the meanwhile.
Found a church
At the base of that 2km hill, right near the Clinic Salud and food(ish) mart, is the Crossroads Bible Church. They have an 8 a.m. service in Spanish and a later service in English; I attended the 8 a.m. one. The songs were a mixture of English and Spanish; the rest of the service was good practice for me, plus a welcome community to start to become part of. Did I fold a few origami frogs for the kids sitting near me in service? You bet I did!
Rode the bus
Monday, I used my new bus pass and rode the bus four different times. I am officially a fan. In one direction (and back), I rode to my offices at the Ciudad del Saber; in the other direction I went to a mall. Both of those destinations are interesting places in and of themselves, so I'll save those stories for later. It was another full day, and helped to up the optimism factor. I got to do my travels mostly before the obligatory afternoon rain deluge; my next set of travels are likely to take place in full-rain mode, so I'm glad I got a dry run, in both senses of that phrase.
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| A well-marked bus stop, as seen from the inside of the bus. |
More later!
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