January 11, 2010
This morning we slowly rolled out of bed and only because Kennedy was ready to get up. We stayed in El Palmar and spent the morning on the beach. We took the Kayak down and I paddled Elijah all the way to the west point of the beach against the cliffs. He is a good boy and fun to have along. Moriah took it out with her new friend Ingris and had a ball until she paddled it near the beach and got rolled by a wave pinning her underneath. She got some fun little scrapes on her legs to show off, but in no time was back to having fun again.

Later we drove west on the Highway and explored a few other beaches. We first hit Playa Corona where the girls unloaded and played in the surf while I stayed in the car with the sleeping kids. It was a gorgeous beach and somewhat remote feeling. However, an average sized house in the area, half way remodeled and seemingly abandoned was still expecting $540 K. I called on another property even more remote later on with less house for $1.5 M! We continued west again to Playa Blanca passing Noriega’s Airstrip which actually cuts across the main highway. There are no fences or signs at all, just a big airstrip where an un cautious pilot could easily find himself being smashed by an oncoming semi. A terribly bumpy road lead us out to a beach access with a small fleet of fishing boats blocking the way. We loved this beach! Liz went for a jog down the way while I played with the kids. Moriah and Dresden just cant get enough of the Ocean. Finally we drive into Farrallon looking for some grub. Talk about overdevelopment. Just off a terrible asphalt road we passed golf courses, hundreds of condos, and high rise buildings on the coast. There was even a Hard Rock Café in the middle of it all. Within a ¼ mile we were onto a sand road again weaving in and out of tiny beach huts and commoner housing. What a contrast. We found the end of the road where Pipos beach side restaurant sits. We had a good meal of Jumbo Shrimp (heads still attached) and chicken fingers, then ice cream. We sat under a thatch hut with our bare feat in the sand just 100 feet from the gorgeous ocean. It was seemingly right out of a movie.

Tuesday, January 12, 2010
Today we had another leisure morning here at Palmar. After messing around the house and beach we decided to load up and go explore some more. We drove out to Santa Clara and found a gorgeous beach with bungalows for rent for $5. We spent a few hours there soaking up the sun and enjoying the warm ocean waves with the kids. We invited Moriah’s new friend Ingris along and they had a ball. Having Moriah speak Spanish constantly with a native is priceless. It excludes Dresden a little, but she does great on her own splashing around in the waves and collecting shells for her 1st Grade class back in Utah.

We couldn’t resiste driving back up to El Valle again. It is the most gorgeous place I have ever been. We also couldn’t resist another small restaurant offering the basic foods of the area. Liz had stewed chicken and rice, and I had to order a Peruvian chicken and rice that was delicious. We hurried out the the hot pots in town that turned out to be not so hot. In fact they were cold so only the kids bathed in the pools. After they played on the swings there at the park, we continued back over to a local privately owned zoo. We didn’t expect much at all, but were very impressed and pleased with the results. Up front and personal with all kinds of amazing animals including monkeys, crocodiles, turtles, tapirs, hundreds of amazing birds, kinkajous, ostriches, sloths, Jaguars, Pumas, and Ocelots. Our guide was fearless and would nearly get bit by many of the animals which was very entertaining all by itself. We tipped ‘bobby’ $10 and left very happy.

We drove back to the house on the beach where I had planned a beach bon fire. Sadly, things went south and the water was off completely, we were out of drinking water, the upstairs bathrooms were flooded, Kennedy fell on her head off the bed, and Dresden was sobbing for having flooded the bathroom! We went to bed tired grouchy and ready for a change of scenery.

Wednesday, January 13, 2010

Today marks one week since we arrived in Panama. It’s also 1/3 into our adventure. We arose this morning, had breakfast, and packed up our goods. We bid farewell to the caretakers Carlos, Yariela and their daughter Ingris. We left them a generous tip and what food we had left in the house. We also exchanged addresses so that the girls could write to each other.

Moriah had a sick stomach again the night before and was in real pain when we left. We stopped at El Rey grocery store and pharmacy and got her some ‘pastilla’ that was recommended by the pharmacist. Not sure what it was to be honest, but if nothing else the placebo also has a great shot at helping. We made two emergency pit stops on the way back into Panama City, but otherwise we made good time and without mishap. Jim and Karen welcomed us to their nice home near the canal where he is a Pilot. They are incredibly gracious and generous with their possessions. We exchanged their car back to them and went into town to pickup our rental van, a Kia, at Alamo. Liz and the kids stayed at Dertien’s house and relaxed. Jim outfitted us each with snorkel gear for the Caribbean beach house in Portobello. The drive was quite effortless and less than 2 hours on a well paved highway which was welcome to us after the bumpy windy road that makes up the Pan-American highway and connects east to west Panama. We found the ‘Dive-Dump’ just a few minutes shy of Portobelo. It’s a little shanty with two small bedrooms, a kitchen and a bathroom. It’s definitely a dive which is a huge understatement, but with the ocean just 10 feet from the front door, they lodging is amazing. We unloaded our gear, set up the hammock and beach chairs, and played around the small yard and pier until the sunset. Senora Chon is the restaurant cook next door and also the caretaker of the property. She cooked us a delicious dinner of “Pollo Filete” or Filleted Chicken and Rice. It was yummy and we all attacked it despite not being hungry as we had just eaten.
We cleaned up the rooms a little in preparation for sleep, which included disposing of a giant arachnid that resembled a crab with long whisker looking legs in the front. The sleeping arrangements consist of 4 bunk beds crammed ino two small rooms. There is just one AC unit in the entire house, but it cooled off quickly enough. Surprisingly everyone is excited to be here in this very third world shack with no TV, no internet, and not a whole lot to do.

Thursday, January 14, 2010
Last night was rickety and squeaky trying to sleep in the wood bunk beds. We were tired enough that we all still slept well enough. I awoke to the sound of a rogue dog rifling through our garbage, the rain beating down suddenly on the tin roof, and Dresden having nightmares about spider monkeys. In the early AM we headed to Portobelo just 10 minutes away. It’s a very small town right on the water and what used to be a collection of forts protecting the gold being carried back to Spain from Peru and Panama. The forts were interesting and fun to experience with the kids. They were built from cut coral blocks originally which is as solid as rock and still in tact. We saw dozens of original cannons in place which lay partially on the ground continuing to rust away. Sadly, the locals live all around the ruins and garbage is strewn everywhere detracting from the sights. I ordered 4 scones and some fried salami from a very questionable kitchen with amazingly terrible service. It was quite tasty and worth the experience.

We toured the Cathedral of the Black Christ with the kids and got a kick seeing their reaction to the inside of a very pagan Catholic church. The statue wasn’t all that bad however, since the depictions and other pictures we’ve seen so far look to be a little disturbing. The kids were intrigued with a pet monkey on a leash belonging to a local. The monkey was most interested in Elijah and Kennedy however and at one point grabbed onto Elijah’s legs with an arm and tail which caused him to panic, trip and fall as he attempted to get away.

We loaded back into our van and drove another 20 minutes Northwest to La Gauira and hired a boat to shuttle us to Isla Grande. The Carribean is quiet tempestuous currently and therefore the waters haven’t been clear enough for snorkeling. We still had a ball on the white sandy/coral beaches. Moriah found a rope swing where we spread out our stuff and played for a few hours. An old black gentleman approached us and offered us fresh coconut milk. He pulled out his machete and hacked open three good size coconuts. The girls each handled a swallow or two but no more.

We took another boat back to the mainland and drove out to Nombre de Dios and through a few more small villages along the way. The country was absolutely incredible and quite virgin for the most part out that far. The towns were plain and didn’t offer much, but the drive gave time for everyone to take a nice nap while I drove.

Upon returning back to our hut, we went out to dinner at Los Canones just a few hundred meters down the road. I ordered fried chicken with coco rice for the kids, and Ceviche and Octopus for Liz and I. The Ceviche was good, and the octopus was even better in my opinion. Liz could only stomach a bite of the octopus, but I thought it was great and would definitely get it again. Currently we are all in good health with stable tummies. Moriah has had a go of it for the past few days and is still not quite regular, but we hope her bug is gone and won’t return!