Since Ray has to check in with work and actually do some work using the netbook at night, I am trying to write down my blog and then type it out when I get a few minutes on the thing. Otherwise, it has to wait until I get home and then it's a lot of typing! I learned this the hard way after the last trip we took to Panama. Let me first say that despite my not liking bugs, and who really does for this matter, and the lack of A/C, the B&B we stayed in was absolutely wonderful. Just like visiting someone's home--we felt very comfortable and relaxed there. Definitely need the netting for sleeping under every night. The winds on Sunday night were crazy strong--instant A/C. Dare I say it was chilly, and we stayed wrapped under the blankets the entire night.
On Monday, we woke early due to appointments we had made with an attorney and realtor. We saw that our one tire was low, oh dear, but since we keep it topped off with about a pound of air, it has been fine. For breakfast, I had decided (and Ray was being supportive) to try a Fonda (a Panamanian roadside stall). I had read in the Playa Community newsletter of four specific Fondas in Coronado. We did a drive by of Rincon Cubano 2, and then we parked in the Coronado Plaza to look across the PanAmerican Highway at Casona and Hinas Mary. We knew that just like the gate attendant at COPA Airlines could tell we didn't speak Spanish fluently by looking at us, we would know by looking at the Fondas if we wanted to eat there. Not really. We parked, and then we ran across the street without any Panamanian policeman yelling at us this time (the overpass wasn't right there though) to read the board. Due to lack of anyone serving anyone (there were two men in front of us) and lack of food in the pans, we changed our minds and were unable to try a Fonda. This is the story, and we are sticking to it. So McD's it was---urg. But I knew what I was getting and really knew how to order it this time.
First appointment of the day was with Tonya Coronado, Attorney with PTY Lawyers (www.PTYLawyers.com) at nine am. We arrived at 8:57 and thought about waiting in the car until 9:00 (we are in Panama so we should have been late) but decided to walk up to the PlayaCommunity office where Tonya works only on Mondays in Coronado (she drives in from Panama City). The door was locked. We figured she was stuck in traffic. While reading the realty listings on the window of the Panama Realty office, Jody and her cute puppy, peeked outside. We reintroduced ourselves having met her and her partner, Kay, this past October. We chatted for forty minutes. She thought Tonya was stuck in traffic, and we thought we had been stood up. She took a phone call outside, peeked into Tonya's office window and guess who was there! Tonya had been there since 8:30. We had tried to walk into the wrong door (these things can happen)! Dumb gringos. She had even seen us walk by but didn't step out to find us. Since we had an appointment at 11:00 and were meeting Leslie, the realtor, in Sora, we talked fast. We really like Tonya and all she had to say. She was referred to us by who else but Clyde and Terry Coles, and she also comes highly recommended on ExpatExchange Forum. She told us (first we had heard of this) we can apply for our Residency Visa while we are in the States. We need to give her five business days (no Panamanian holidays so this could be tough) where give her our passport, and she runs us around to the different agencies and offices applying for the temporary VISA. We like her confidence. She thinks we should be able to get the Pensionado VISA. Here's hoping.
We scooted out of Tonya's office and over to Clyde and Terry's house. They wanted to tag along with us to tour Altos Del Maria. This is a gated community, and this is why we were meeting Leslie in Sora. She would take us through the gates and show us properties for sale. It was really wonderful that Clyde actually drove us. We also planned to meet new friends, Melissa and Bill, that we had met at the party Sunday and tour their home in ADM. Upon meeting Leslie at the market in Sora, Ray and I hopped into her SUV 4-wheel drive XTrail so she could talk to us about the houses we were going to see and ADM itself. Clyde and Terry followed closely behind.
We were shown three properties completely and one we saw just from the outside. The ownere could not be reached, so we just couldn't barge in. Pictures of ADM once home. I will say that I am so happy to have seen ADM and to have toured some of these homes. They run the mix of casitas to large houses to mansions (Panamanian vacation homes!), but Ray and I don't think we will be calling ADM home in Panama. The hills rise and fall too much. In our opinion. It just doesn't seem that we want to be that isolated. Once in ADM, it is stunning. The mountains are gorgeous, and some of the views would be fantastic. But the driving, wear and tear on car, the cost of gas, and the ups and downs make me feel El Valle would be more of the place to be (the inclines are fewer and farther apart) or perhaps not the mountain areas at all? ADM is 1400-3500 feet above sea level (we were told not to live in the Highlands since we would be in the clouds 70% of the time). We were at 2000-2400 feet above sea level in El Valle. I think here it is just the climbing of the mountains in ADM that bothered my tummy. Once we said our good-byes to Leslie, we climbed the steepest driveway ever to Melissa and Bill's house. What a house! The additions are fabulous! I would just live in the master bathroom!
Clyde then drove us up to the highlands to get into the clouds. We saw so much with them that day and around three pm we had lunch. My chicken and fried plantains were spot on (huge servings for Clyde and Terry to have later--where would I keep leftovers), but Ray ordered some kind of meat. He had french fries though as a back up!
Clyde drove us to another friend's house, Daniel, in their neighborhood and gave us a tour of Chame where they live. What a day! At about four pm, we said our good-byes so Ray and I could hit the road again climbing the mountain back to El Valle. It was misting again up there. But when we asked a couple at dinner (we dined at Bruschettas having bruschetta and kabobs--excellent!) what the weather had been like all day, and they reported no rain, just sun. We talked to them about healthcare in Panama and El Valle and wrapped up another wonderful and fulfilling day in Panama! Once back at Casa di Pietra, Luis called us into his home to chat about our day, the winds were light so sleeping was without a blanket this time but still, we slept like rocks!
Out the door with Ray to tour more of the interior with Clyde and Terry! More later!
Thursday, March 21, 2013
Monday, March 18, 2013
FIRST FULL DAY
After un-cocooning ourselves from the mosquito netting (it really was a wonderful feeling being "tucked in"), we both took hot showers. The no see ums were gone from the bathroom, and we set off for breakfast in the main dining area. Orange juice, a full pot of coffee (for me having one cup), water, fresh fruit, eggs (why were they orange? cheese possibly?), delicious bread, and cheese were devoured. We had walked the beautiful gardens prior to breakfast and when we were just finishing our meal, Jeff and Denise from California arrived. They are on a two week vacation celebrating her big birthday. They are headed to Bocas del Toro but will stop along the way in Pedasi for fishing and the David/Boquete area. We chatted for a long while and off Ray and I went to the farmer's market. Such a great market. One day I would love to be able to shop for flowers, fruits and vegetables. For now, I browse.
Moving right along, we had a St. Patrick's Day party to attend, but we first met our wonderful friends, Clyde and Terry, for a quick lunch and conversation at El Machetazo's cafe. We followed them through the gates of Coronado to the party house where there were more than sixty people in attendance. All so friendly, warm and inviting. Sharing their stories and listening to ours. The party was being given by the CASA (Coronado Area Social Association). This club contributes many charitable hours and donates money to different organizations in Panama. On this occasion, the President of the club, Louise, gave checks out to Panama Animal League, SOS Orphanage House 4, Spay the Stray, Chame Orphanage, and Spay and Neuter. It was a wonderful day making new friends and getting to know Clyde and Terry just a little bit more. And although it was ninety plus degrees in Coronado, I never noticed sitting under the expansive bohio sipping green punch.
But wait, there's still more. Once we said our goodbyes and thank you's, we headed back to El Valle for the happy hour. It takes about forty-five minutes to travel to the town of El Valle. The new guests had arrived and showed up for wine along with Jeff and Denise. Jeff and Denise spent the day in El Valle shopping, sitting in the thermal baths, hiking to the waterfalls and exploring petting zoos and just the town in general. Bob was vacationing with his son, Daniel, and they too stayed in El Valle for the day. Bob lives in Cuenca, Ecuador and Daniel is in California. More sharing of stories, and then Jeff had the idea to try O'Pedros Irish Pub for a Guinness beer. We needed to continue celebrating the holiday!
We found the pub (near La Casa de Lourdes--a stunning restaurant!), and it was empty. "Everyone partied last night". A day late, and a dollar short. I tried seco con leche (sort of like a watered down white russian)--it's the national drink here apparently. It was much better when we jokingly asked the girl for chocolate syrup. Out came the Hershey bottle! Much better! Muy bien!
Instead of going for dinner to Casa de Lourdes, Jeff and Denise came along with us for burgers at Ty's Sports Bar. Mona, the monkey, and her owners (Michelle and Ty) were not there and no one else was for that matter. People go to bed early here! It was a Sunday night at about eight pm. We ate quesadillas, drank Balboa beer and wine, had burgers and wraps and called it a night.
Until Ray asked about the discotheque! We were told "you will stick out, but you will be safe". We paid $3 and again, we were just about the only people there. The music was blasting, we were dancing, and had a silly night just because we could. The only thing I really regret is using that Panamanian bathroom. Oh dear. I will leave it at that, and I will walk away. Problem was that Ty's had closed the door behind us, and when you have to go...
Excuse the typos or the rambling. Ray has fallen asleep. Today was a busy day spent with Clyde and Terry in Altos del Maria (we had a realtor take us in beyond the gates), and we met Tonya Coronado (attorney) who had wonderful information to share. That will be posted another day! It is an early day for us tomorrow. We are hitting the road at six am to head to Penenome, Las Tablas and Pedasi. Jeff and Denise are in Pedasi so we may just stalk them a bit :) Ciao for now!
Moving right along, we had a St. Patrick's Day party to attend, but we first met our wonderful friends, Clyde and Terry, for a quick lunch and conversation at El Machetazo's cafe. We followed them through the gates of Coronado to the party house where there were more than sixty people in attendance. All so friendly, warm and inviting. Sharing their stories and listening to ours. The party was being given by the CASA (Coronado Area Social Association). This club contributes many charitable hours and donates money to different organizations in Panama. On this occasion, the President of the club, Louise, gave checks out to Panama Animal League, SOS Orphanage House 4, Spay the Stray, Chame Orphanage, and Spay and Neuter. It was a wonderful day making new friends and getting to know Clyde and Terry just a little bit more. And although it was ninety plus degrees in Coronado, I never noticed sitting under the expansive bohio sipping green punch.
But wait, there's still more. Once we said our goodbyes and thank you's, we headed back to El Valle for the happy hour. It takes about forty-five minutes to travel to the town of El Valle. The new guests had arrived and showed up for wine along with Jeff and Denise. Jeff and Denise spent the day in El Valle shopping, sitting in the thermal baths, hiking to the waterfalls and exploring petting zoos and just the town in general. Bob was vacationing with his son, Daniel, and they too stayed in El Valle for the day. Bob lives in Cuenca, Ecuador and Daniel is in California. More sharing of stories, and then Jeff had the idea to try O'Pedros Irish Pub for a Guinness beer. We needed to continue celebrating the holiday!
We found the pub (near La Casa de Lourdes--a stunning restaurant!), and it was empty. "Everyone partied last night". A day late, and a dollar short. I tried seco con leche (sort of like a watered down white russian)--it's the national drink here apparently. It was much better when we jokingly asked the girl for chocolate syrup. Out came the Hershey bottle! Much better! Muy bien!
Instead of going for dinner to Casa de Lourdes, Jeff and Denise came along with us for burgers at Ty's Sports Bar. Mona, the monkey, and her owners (Michelle and Ty) were not there and no one else was for that matter. People go to bed early here! It was a Sunday night at about eight pm. We ate quesadillas, drank Balboa beer and wine, had burgers and wraps and called it a night.
Until Ray asked about the discotheque! We were told "you will stick out, but you will be safe". We paid $3 and again, we were just about the only people there. The music was blasting, we were dancing, and had a silly night just because we could. The only thing I really regret is using that Panamanian bathroom. Oh dear. I will leave it at that, and I will walk away. Problem was that Ty's had closed the door behind us, and when you have to go...
Excuse the typos or the rambling. Ray has fallen asleep. Today was a busy day spent with Clyde and Terry in Altos del Maria (we had a realtor take us in beyond the gates), and we met Tonya Coronado (attorney) who had wonderful information to share. That will be posted another day! It is an early day for us tomorrow. We are hitting the road at six am to head to Penenome, Las Tablas and Pedasi. Jeff and Denise are in Pedasi so we may just stalk them a bit :) Ciao for now!
AND WE'RE BACK!
I am on a netbook about to write a bunch of stuff, great stuff, about our trip to Panama so far. The past 48 hours have been super busy and so enjoyable, and I will ramble. Of course I will. I write like I talk! But the netbook is super small and challenging, and this I have to have patience with. There's that word again. Before I get ahead of myself and start writing about everything that happened today, I will go back to Saturday and perhaps chop this post up a bit. We'll see. Where to begin.
Oh, and at the end, I will add pictures (once home and they are uploaded). For now, I want to stay ahead of the game and just start posting about our adventures.
As usual, we set out for IAD (Dulles Airport) at six am on Saturday. We arrived to a line at the COPA check-in counter, but it was more luggage taking up space than people. Once at the counter, we both noticed that the ticket agent ripped up our first set of boarding passes, but we didn't ask why. We walked away no longer in the seats we had reserved many months ago--17 D, E (the exit row). We had been bumped up to 7 D,E. Thinking we were "all that and a bag of chips: we just thought we were moved up to Economy Plus or something special again like the flights we had last weekend to Key West and back home. We wandered the airport in search of breakfast and stopped at the same bagel place we ate in six months ago. Service was so slow, the bagels were burning, but once the toaster oven was figured out, the woman seemed to be able to spread cream cheese on the bagels quickly. While waiting at the gate, I asked the gate attendant why our seats had been changed (because now being on our netbook we could see we were not bumped at all.), and why we were now sitting in an aisle seat and middle seat (row of three--ugh). The reason for the change was because "you must speak Spanish to sit in the exit row". Funny that an attendant at the check in counter could just tell by looking at us that neither one of us in fluent in Spanish and that on our last trip, all four of us sat in the exit row (when my sister and nephew went along for the trip) both ways and nothing was said then. According to this gate attendant, there weren't any other aisle seats available. Lesson learned. Question why they are ripping up the paperwork when the ripping begins. Annoyance one after this happened was that there were two empty seats in the exit row (both aisle seats!) and that we were seated (me rather) next to a one year old. Yay for me. The baby was very cute, but...
The flight ended up being non-eventful. The movie was good ("Pitch Perfect"--funny), the baby was good and her mother was super sweet. I just dislike the middle seat! Lunch was tolerable, and the plane landed thirty minutes early. Immigration has changed in that we now had our picture taken and all fingers printed upon entering the country.
The car rental place, Budget, was empty, and the female employee spoke very good English this time. Last time, no English spoken. Off we went to buy our toll card, we put ten dollars on it at the first booth and got away from the airport fast! No traffic! What!?
We arrived to Casa di Pietra B & B around five pm. Give or take two hours later. Luis, the owner, came out to greet us in the parking lot and had Jose show us our room. We were told to pay "whenever and happy hour is tomorrow night when a few more guests check in from six to eight pm". Having never stayed in a B & B before, it has been a good change for us. Ray says staying here reminds him of staying with his grandparents for the summer months in Southwestern Virginia. The windows were always open, the bugs came and went, and there was just an overall easy feeling to it all. I do not like bugs (there are tiny one's, possibly no see-um's that I see, around the sink in the bathroom). I simply solved the problem in that every time I wipe myself with an Avon Skin So Soft Bug Guard Plus wipe, I wipe other things down, too. I haven't seen the tiny creatures where I wipe (or so I tell myself). When living in Panama, this will take getting used to, but I will have screens on my windows. There aren't any screens in our room. I also keep my mosquito guard bracelet on my nightstand. This way if they try to get under the mosquito netting, they will change their mind. Again, it is all in my head. BUT! The first night (and we have been told this is unusual--because we showed up apparently) the winds were maddening. There was no way anything could have been flying around outside! And the only coming in was that fabulous breeze! Once checked in, we headed to Pinocchio's for some pizza (excellent!) making the mistake that "ajo" is not at all olive oil, but garlic. Duh. Our pan y ajo was delicious garlic bread, and the pizza was heaven. The crust was wonderful (can you tell that I haven't had bread or pizza in forever!). There is a fair in town for four days, fireworks were being shot off (it doesn't have to be for a fair though), there was a carnival-like train giving pedestrians rides to and from, and we were exhausted. So many people out walking and biking. We hit the bed by nine pm. I did get my hour back from losing it last week, since Panama doesn't observe daylight saving time.
So that is that about our first day getting to Panama and enjoying a few hours in El Valle. Next up--St. Patrick's Day in Panama!
Oh, and at the end, I will add pictures (once home and they are uploaded). For now, I want to stay ahead of the game and just start posting about our adventures.
As usual, we set out for IAD (Dulles Airport) at six am on Saturday. We arrived to a line at the COPA check-in counter, but it was more luggage taking up space than people. Once at the counter, we both noticed that the ticket agent ripped up our first set of boarding passes, but we didn't ask why. We walked away no longer in the seats we had reserved many months ago--17 D, E (the exit row). We had been bumped up to 7 D,E. Thinking we were "all that and a bag of chips: we just thought we were moved up to Economy Plus or something special again like the flights we had last weekend to Key West and back home. We wandered the airport in search of breakfast and stopped at the same bagel place we ate in six months ago. Service was so slow, the bagels were burning, but once the toaster oven was figured out, the woman seemed to be able to spread cream cheese on the bagels quickly. While waiting at the gate, I asked the gate attendant why our seats had been changed (because now being on our netbook we could see we were not bumped at all.), and why we were now sitting in an aisle seat and middle seat (row of three--ugh). The reason for the change was because "you must speak Spanish to sit in the exit row". Funny that an attendant at the check in counter could just tell by looking at us that neither one of us in fluent in Spanish and that on our last trip, all four of us sat in the exit row (when my sister and nephew went along for the trip) both ways and nothing was said then. According to this gate attendant, there weren't any other aisle seats available. Lesson learned. Question why they are ripping up the paperwork when the ripping begins. Annoyance one after this happened was that there were two empty seats in the exit row (both aisle seats!) and that we were seated (me rather) next to a one year old. Yay for me. The baby was very cute, but...
The flight ended up being non-eventful. The movie was good ("Pitch Perfect"--funny), the baby was good and her mother was super sweet. I just dislike the middle seat! Lunch was tolerable, and the plane landed thirty minutes early. Immigration has changed in that we now had our picture taken and all fingers printed upon entering the country.
The car rental place, Budget, was empty, and the female employee spoke very good English this time. Last time, no English spoken. Off we went to buy our toll card, we put ten dollars on it at the first booth and got away from the airport fast! No traffic! What!?
We arrived to Casa di Pietra B & B around five pm. Give or take two hours later. Luis, the owner, came out to greet us in the parking lot and had Jose show us our room. We were told to pay "whenever and happy hour is tomorrow night when a few more guests check in from six to eight pm". Having never stayed in a B & B before, it has been a good change for us. Ray says staying here reminds him of staying with his grandparents for the summer months in Southwestern Virginia. The windows were always open, the bugs came and went, and there was just an overall easy feeling to it all. I do not like bugs (there are tiny one's, possibly no see-um's that I see, around the sink in the bathroom). I simply solved the problem in that every time I wipe myself with an Avon Skin So Soft Bug Guard Plus wipe, I wipe other things down, too. I haven't seen the tiny creatures where I wipe (or so I tell myself). When living in Panama, this will take getting used to, but I will have screens on my windows. There aren't any screens in our room. I also keep my mosquito guard bracelet on my nightstand. This way if they try to get under the mosquito netting, they will change their mind. Again, it is all in my head. BUT! The first night (and we have been told this is unusual--because we showed up apparently) the winds were maddening. There was no way anything could have been flying around outside! And the only coming in was that fabulous breeze! Once checked in, we headed to Pinocchio's for some pizza (excellent!) making the mistake that "ajo" is not at all olive oil, but garlic. Duh. Our pan y ajo was delicious garlic bread, and the pizza was heaven. The crust was wonderful (can you tell that I haven't had bread or pizza in forever!). There is a fair in town for four days, fireworks were being shot off (it doesn't have to be for a fair though), there was a carnival-like train giving pedestrians rides to and from, and we were exhausted. So many people out walking and biking. We hit the bed by nine pm. I did get my hour back from losing it last week, since Panama doesn't observe daylight saving time.
So that is that about our first day getting to Panama and enjoying a few hours in El Valle. Next up--St. Patrick's Day in Panama!
Friday, March 15, 2013
PANAMA TAKE TWO
Work is done. Ray is on his way home. My bags are packed (I didn't want to ruin my manicure by packing today). Carly is on her way home (I didn't want to take time away from our visit either to be packing). She has a job interview and is attending the Fairfax County Education Job Fair tomorrow. It is being held at a high school about one hour from our house. Her plans are to come home tonight (she is student teaching all day but hopefully she can leave earlier than later), visit with us of course, go to the job fair, I think meet up with her boyfriend who lives in Fairfax area, and head back to school Sunday. She returns home again the week of Easter. One of these days, she will make it to Panama with us! School just keeps getting in the way! She would love to teach north (Boston area), but who's to say she might get a job offer tomorrow in Northern Virginia! Fingers crossed. That would be wonderful! Not graduated yet, but have a job lined up. And Northern Virgina (thirty to forty-five minutes north of where we live now) would not be bad at all. Lots of singles working decent jobs, and educators are paid a tad bit better than in this county (Stafford or even Prince William). Visiting would be easy (provided she wasn't still living at home and found an apartment), and then she can move away to Boston (when we move to Panama). Sounds perfect.
Snow is predicted north and west of here tomorrow morning. Our flight is at nine am out of Dulles International Airport which is north and west of here. Unsubstantial snow, I am thinking, but let's not forget last week! No snow, and our flight was still canceled! It is supposed to be forty- fifty degrees this coming week with many days of rain. Coronado, Panama is supposed to be ninety degrees during the day, but apparently March came in like a lion and the winds are crazy! No good hair days for me.
Let's see how our plans actually go when visiting Panama this week. First, we check into the Casa di Pietra B&B.
We have the farmer's market Sunday morning in El Valle to visit (we went during our last trip, but it was a weekday), lunch and a party to attend on Sunday with our friends, Clyde and Terry (www.AlongtheGringoTrail.blogspot.com). Monday we are meeting with a lawyer to review our VISA options based on our circumstances and a realtor who will take us into Altos del Maria development. Tuesday we will hit the road to Chitre, and hopefully Pedasi, but I can't make any promises that we will get that far with our day. Wednesday is check out day and into Manglar Lodge Palmar, and beach time.
Snow is predicted north and west of here tomorrow morning. Our flight is at nine am out of Dulles International Airport which is north and west of here. Unsubstantial snow, I am thinking, but let's not forget last week! No snow, and our flight was still canceled! It is supposed to be forty- fifty degrees this coming week with many days of rain. Coronado, Panama is supposed to be ninety degrees during the day, but apparently March came in like a lion and the winds are crazy! No good hair days for me.
Let's see how our plans actually go when visiting Panama this week. First, we check into the Casa di Pietra B&B.
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| http://www.casadipietra.net |
We have the farmer's market Sunday morning in El Valle to visit (we went during our last trip, but it was a weekday), lunch and a party to attend on Sunday with our friends, Clyde and Terry (www.AlongtheGringoTrail.blogspot.com). Monday we are meeting with a lawyer to review our VISA options based on our circumstances and a realtor who will take us into Altos del Maria development. Tuesday we will hit the road to Chitre, and hopefully Pedasi, but I can't make any promises that we will get that far with our day. Wednesday is check out day and into Manglar Lodge Palmar, and beach time.
Then we are thinking that Thursday (I think Clyde and Terry know this is the day) will be the day we will let Clyde drive Miss Daisy and Ray around town. His plans had been to take us to Capira, but anything goes, and I will go along for the drive. Whatever they want to show us, I want to see!
Friday is check out day again, and we are off to Panama City. We have a driver that will take us to Old Town Panama and give us a tour of areas we never saw on our last visit. We are staying at the Courtyard Metromall, again. And there you have it. Home on Saturday. I will post later if any of this happened, all of it happened or perhaps we got lazy drinking Ron Abuelo and Coke or Sangria poolside!
Tuesday, March 12, 2013
CATCHING UP WITH THE PAST, THINKING OF THE FUTURE
Flight canceled, airport changed, seats re-arranged, but all in all, my trip with Ray to Key West, Florida this past weekend was absolutely wonderful. From our hotel room being upgraded to a balcony room overlooking the pool (our 25th Anniversary--okay, so it's not until November, but we can celebrate it throughout the year, can't we?), the warm DoubleTree Hilton chocolate chip cookies given to us upon check-in, the convenient and free shuttle that took us to and from Duvall Street and Mallory Square (gorgeous sunset over the Atlantic) so we could walk for hours sampling Key Lime Pie along the way, sunny blue skies daily, cool breezes at night, and then to the wedding we were there to attend, my weekend was very special.
The hotel shuttle enabled us to meet different couples over the weekend. One young couple was a bit too stuffy for our liking (we were stuck with them waiting for the airport van to take us to the hotel), and they were just a little younger than us. We bumped into them a few times, and they didn't seem to converse with anyone along the way. Some people like to stay to themselves, but they seemed disengaged and a bit boring lol. Meanwhile, Ray and I were chatting with the motorcycle riding retired couple that lives in the Atlantic City, New Jersey area. And we "got to know" the retired teacher (35 years teaching) and her husband that were in Florida attending a wedding, also. Ray discussed Panama with the Atlantic City couple The husband stated that our country is going to hell in a handbasket. The wife's brother's brother-in-law is building a home on property he bought in Panama years ago. They are intrigued by our goal. They gave us their email. They want us to give them updates as the years go by and as we settle into Panama living. Those attending the wedding that Ray worked with for years (lawyers, office manager, billing specialists, secretaries, comptrollers that moved to other law firms or Ray had to gently lay off along with their wife or husband) are enthralled by our plans (how long have we researched, planned, blogged, etc). They wanted the details that we have now and when we get them along the way. They wanted to hear about what we have discovered and about our past trip and upcoming trip. They saw two people, best friends that truly enjoy each other's company, living life to its fullest now and wanting more soon.
It has been a while since Ray and I vacationed alone together (weekends at the lake house are a bit different). We, of course, love traveling with our daughter, Carly, other family members and friends, but when traveling alone with each other, we realize that much more that we can do anything and go anywhere as long as we have each other. Panama should be that much more for us next week. Sappy, I know, but true.
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| View from our room minus some spring breaker girls (sorry) |
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| Mallory Square Sunset |
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| Key Lime Pie Factory (Test #2--my favorite) |
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| Kermit's Pie (Test #3--Ray's favorite) |
It has been a while since Ray and I vacationed alone together (weekends at the lake house are a bit different). We, of course, love traveling with our daughter, Carly, other family members and friends, but when traveling alone with each other, we realize that much more that we can do anything and go anywhere as long as we have each other. Panama should be that much more for us next week. Sappy, I know, but true.
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| Top of Key West Lighthouse |
Wednesday, March 6, 2013
SNOWQUESTRATION BUST (and a long seventy-two hours)
At first, I started writing about how things, usually bad, happen in threes. But then, while trying to nap after this long day of nothing (read below), I realized I didn't want to pull negativity out of this past week. I wanted to see the good in what had happened and not the bad. Why jinx myself? This week we had an odd occurrence happen in the house. Late Sunday afternoon, it was still chilly in the house. While I was out dolling myself up with a haircut and color appointment, Ray was staying warm in the house with the heat turned up. To clarify this, we have propane gas. We keep the thermostat set to sixty-eight degrees while out of the house. We turn it up for two or so hours at night when home. We use the stove very little (there is a point to this part). We have been heating up soup and eating salads trying to watch our caloric intake for two vacations coming up (one happening tomorrow, I hope). Once home, I turned the heat up and about an hour after all of the adjustments were made, it dawned on Ray that we didn't have any heat. I was oblivious to it all, because I was drowning myself in scanning death and birth certificates along with fifty plus year old pictures I wanted on my flashdrive for when we pack up and move. We have dual thermostats, and the upstairs unit was running. We put a call into our HVAC representative. They would send someone out to service the unit, and since we have a contract with them, it would be to a cost of $170 (it was late Sunday, and they couldn't say if someone would show up at six pm or ten pm). About an hour later, a super nice serviceman named Tim called to possibly troubleshoot the problem with Ray. Seemed easy enough. The unit is seven years old, but they don't make things the way they used to now, do they? The problem wasn't solved. Ray couldn't fix it. Tim knew what it was then, and since he didn't have the part (a brand new gas valve part or something or other could be ours for six to eight hundred dollars), he recommended that we wait until Monday for his visit. IF he had the part, we would save $170 by not having him look at the unit until then. If he didn't have the part, it could take up to four days to get it. We have an upcoming trip to a wedding in Key West that was going to get in the way of that service call if the part wasn't available pronto.
The next hour (now seven pm), I lazily went upstairs to get into my pajamas. This is late for me. But with all the phone calls and trying to figure out the heating unit (okay, I can hold a flashlight pretty well), time just flew by. Ray had said that he cranked the heat up upstairs so we would stay warm overnight. Funny, the thermostat was still stuck at the original temperature of sixty-eight degrees. That unit wasn't working either. What the heck? Ray then went downstairs to turn on the fireplace (we have propane) and to call Tim back to tell him we had two problems. The fireplace pilot light was out, there was no pressure for the gas in the stove (really no flame), and we were OUT OF PROPANE. We had a salad for dinner and skipped the soup and didn't notice anything wrong with the gas stove. Ray called Tim back, Tim eluded to the fact that we shouldn't really run out of gas but this was the "he should not be named" company, and then Ray called that said company to deliver us some gas. Not the same service representative though and not the same attitude. "You want us to send out an emergency truck with gas?" Uh, duh. That would help. They would call us back. An hour later, no return call. Ray tried calling for two hours (now past his bedtime of eight pm), and the phone kept disconnecting on him. I kept telling myself that "when in Panama, I won't be cold, and I will expect these inconveniences, slow service or even lack of service, but I am not in Panama yet!". We fell asleep.
At the early hour of eleven pm, the phone rang. There's our call back! Ray slept through the ringing, and I actually heard it! The service man with the gas company was twenty minutes away. He told Ray that he just got our service call at that hour. He explained to Ray that the gas tank is five hundred gallons but it only gets filled to four hundred gallons to allow for expansion (reminds me of the same principles of the nitrogen and oxygen in the tanks that we use for the patients in our laughing gas, or nitrous oxide, at work). Our propane tank (which has never run out) needed a fill of 399.6 gallons to a cost of $1015. Ray called the company back to tell them the phones were not working (to see if they answered the phone now and to tell them off). Someone picked up on the first ring. She stated that they received our service call at seven pm and they put the call in to get us gas at a prompt time of ten pm! Unsure why they waited three hours. They were sleeping like we wanted to be? The next morning Ray called Tim's supervisor to give him great accolades to be filed in his record and called the gas company to go off on them. He was told by the supervisor (and extensively apologized to) that when the tank was filled mid-January, it wasn't really filled to the top (he also told Ray that the service man at that time could have just cut it off when he got cold or just filled it to what he thought we would use). Fortunately, we have such a huge credit being on a budget plan with this company, so we don't owe them that one thousand dollars. And they owe us a whopping $50 due to the guarantee of "you'll never run out of gas"! Oh and after the service man gave us the gas we needed, we then had to relight the pilot light for the hot water heater. I was exhausted holding that flashlight. (Ray had been outside in the cold at midnight while I watched from the window). When all was said and done, we hit the bed at one am toasty and warm. And the good is that we didn't need the gas valve thingamabob.
But before falling asleep we laughed because we were first told that we had had such a cold spell that we could have very well used up all the gas in the tank. Really? Two people? Working everyday outside the home? Eating soup? And also because there was a pending snow storm coming our way. The day before we were to fly out to that wedding I wrote about way up in the first paragraph! Bringing me to today. This morning I woke up at two am to snow! And a bit of it! They were calling it SNOWQUESTRATION. The biggest snow since our SNOWMAGGEDON three years ago. This was it! Twelve inches in western counties, ten inches for Washington, DC and maybe eight inches at my house! Ray took a shower and was headed to work. He leaves the house by 3:30am. Then, sense was smacked into him. He decided to do some work on his laptop, email the office manager and if they kept the office open, he would then drive in. Meanwhile, the Federal Government shut down, Metro and the rail system shut down. My office, slow to the punch, sent out word that we were closed at six am. Leading us to the next thing that happened this week. Our flight. Should we head out today? Try and fly out of Richmond instead of DC? Our original flight for tomorrow wasn't canceled. Do we sit tight? We made a few calls, we sat tight, and then the flight was canceled. We had to wait one hour or so before the representative (two out of three have been nice and helpful this past week) called us back. She could reissue tickets. We could still fly out tomorrow. A different airport. An hour earlier. Horrible seats. But we have a flight. This is all good, and the bride also managed to get on a different flight today at a different airport so we know she will be showing up to the wedding. (Groom is to leave tomorrow?) And by the way, the snow for DC was a HUGE BUST. Rain! Snow on the grassy surfaces. We tallied six inches of snow so far in my area (still snowing at three pm). There have been more than a thousand accidents up and down the highway in VA today due to the mess. All the cancellations and shut downs. Better safe than sorry.
While trying to nap, I reflected on my work week, too. My two days of it. I had a seventy-five year old patient come in that I have been treating for seven years. She comes in every six months faithfully. This was the first time ever in thirty years of learning dental hygiene and practicing it that I failed to give someone back her teeth! They just stayed cleaning in the ultrasonic while I daydreamt of Panama. The dentist didn't ask to see them either (so it's his fault, not mine). The patient didn't ask for them back (shows how much she must wear them). She does have eight teeth on the bottom, so I didn't hold onto all of them. That same day I had an 83 year old male patient due at one pm. I asked the other hygienist what she thinks of first when an elderly patient that is always at least twenty minutes early for his appointment pacing and waiting for me to seat him doesn't show up. And the phone number is no longer in service. We both said "nursing home or death". I waited fifteen minutes, and then I googled him. I was sad. I didn't lose his teeth. I lost him as a patient. He died the day after Christmas. The bad is that he was very lonely and had one remaining drunk nephew for a relative. The good is we enjoyed his dental appointments twice a year (I made use of that hour talking more than cleaning his six teeth!).
WHAT A WEEK! Or seventy-two hours that is. It can only get better. I will go to bed super early tonight, and hop on that plane so fast tomorrow! Sunny skies in Key West is good, and I suppose I can take the upper sixties-very low seventies degree temperatures forecasted. It's bound to be warm and sunny in Panama in a week?
The next hour (now seven pm), I lazily went upstairs to get into my pajamas. This is late for me. But with all the phone calls and trying to figure out the heating unit (okay, I can hold a flashlight pretty well), time just flew by. Ray had said that he cranked the heat up upstairs so we would stay warm overnight. Funny, the thermostat was still stuck at the original temperature of sixty-eight degrees. That unit wasn't working either. What the heck? Ray then went downstairs to turn on the fireplace (we have propane) and to call Tim back to tell him we had two problems. The fireplace pilot light was out, there was no pressure for the gas in the stove (really no flame), and we were OUT OF PROPANE. We had a salad for dinner and skipped the soup and didn't notice anything wrong with the gas stove. Ray called Tim back, Tim eluded to the fact that we shouldn't really run out of gas but this was the "he should not be named" company, and then Ray called that said company to deliver us some gas. Not the same service representative though and not the same attitude. "You want us to send out an emergency truck with gas?" Uh, duh. That would help. They would call us back. An hour later, no return call. Ray tried calling for two hours (now past his bedtime of eight pm), and the phone kept disconnecting on him. I kept telling myself that "when in Panama, I won't be cold, and I will expect these inconveniences, slow service or even lack of service, but I am not in Panama yet!". We fell asleep.
At the early hour of eleven pm, the phone rang. There's our call back! Ray slept through the ringing, and I actually heard it! The service man with the gas company was twenty minutes away. He told Ray that he just got our service call at that hour. He explained to Ray that the gas tank is five hundred gallons but it only gets filled to four hundred gallons to allow for expansion (reminds me of the same principles of the nitrogen and oxygen in the tanks that we use for the patients in our laughing gas, or nitrous oxide, at work). Our propane tank (which has never run out) needed a fill of 399.6 gallons to a cost of $1015. Ray called the company back to tell them the phones were not working (to see if they answered the phone now and to tell them off). Someone picked up on the first ring. She stated that they received our service call at seven pm and they put the call in to get us gas at a prompt time of ten pm! Unsure why they waited three hours. They were sleeping like we wanted to be? The next morning Ray called Tim's supervisor to give him great accolades to be filed in his record and called the gas company to go off on them. He was told by the supervisor (and extensively apologized to) that when the tank was filled mid-January, it wasn't really filled to the top (he also told Ray that the service man at that time could have just cut it off when he got cold or just filled it to what he thought we would use). Fortunately, we have such a huge credit being on a budget plan with this company, so we don't owe them that one thousand dollars. And they owe us a whopping $50 due to the guarantee of "you'll never run out of gas"! Oh and after the service man gave us the gas we needed, we then had to relight the pilot light for the hot water heater. I was exhausted holding that flashlight. (Ray had been outside in the cold at midnight while I watched from the window). When all was said and done, we hit the bed at one am toasty and warm. And the good is that we didn't need the gas valve thingamabob.
But before falling asleep we laughed because we were first told that we had had such a cold spell that we could have very well used up all the gas in the tank. Really? Two people? Working everyday outside the home? Eating soup? And also because there was a pending snow storm coming our way. The day before we were to fly out to that wedding I wrote about way up in the first paragraph! Bringing me to today. This morning I woke up at two am to snow! And a bit of it! They were calling it SNOWQUESTRATION. The biggest snow since our SNOWMAGGEDON three years ago. This was it! Twelve inches in western counties, ten inches for Washington, DC and maybe eight inches at my house! Ray took a shower and was headed to work. He leaves the house by 3:30am. Then, sense was smacked into him. He decided to do some work on his laptop, email the office manager and if they kept the office open, he would then drive in. Meanwhile, the Federal Government shut down, Metro and the rail system shut down. My office, slow to the punch, sent out word that we were closed at six am. Leading us to the next thing that happened this week. Our flight. Should we head out today? Try and fly out of Richmond instead of DC? Our original flight for tomorrow wasn't canceled. Do we sit tight? We made a few calls, we sat tight, and then the flight was canceled. We had to wait one hour or so before the representative (two out of three have been nice and helpful this past week) called us back. She could reissue tickets. We could still fly out tomorrow. A different airport. An hour earlier. Horrible seats. But we have a flight. This is all good, and the bride also managed to get on a different flight today at a different airport so we know she will be showing up to the wedding. (Groom is to leave tomorrow?) And by the way, the snow for DC was a HUGE BUST. Rain! Snow on the grassy surfaces. We tallied six inches of snow so far in my area (still snowing at three pm). There have been more than a thousand accidents up and down the highway in VA today due to the mess. All the cancellations and shut downs. Better safe than sorry.
While trying to nap, I reflected on my work week, too. My two days of it. I had a seventy-five year old patient come in that I have been treating for seven years. She comes in every six months faithfully. This was the first time ever in thirty years of learning dental hygiene and practicing it that I failed to give someone back her teeth! They just stayed cleaning in the ultrasonic while I daydreamt of Panama. The dentist didn't ask to see them either (so it's his fault, not mine). The patient didn't ask for them back (shows how much she must wear them). She does have eight teeth on the bottom, so I didn't hold onto all of them. That same day I had an 83 year old male patient due at one pm. I asked the other hygienist what she thinks of first when an elderly patient that is always at least twenty minutes early for his appointment pacing and waiting for me to seat him doesn't show up. And the phone number is no longer in service. We both said "nursing home or death". I waited fifteen minutes, and then I googled him. I was sad. I didn't lose his teeth. I lost him as a patient. He died the day after Christmas. The bad is that he was very lonely and had one remaining drunk nephew for a relative. The good is we enjoyed his dental appointments twice a year (I made use of that hour talking more than cleaning his six teeth!).
WHAT A WEEK! Or seventy-two hours that is. It can only get better. I will go to bed super early tonight, and hop on that plane so fast tomorrow! Sunny skies in Key West is good, and I suppose I can take the upper sixties-very low seventies degree temperatures forecasted. It's bound to be warm and sunny in Panama in a week?
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| Seven am in March! |
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| Before the first shoveling (nine am) |
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| We had five inches at noon, and total so far is six or seven inches. |
Friday, March 1, 2013
PANAMA 1970
But back to the picture search--- I didn't find any really big deal pictures. One was of my sister and I standing on the grounds of the hotel and another in the pool but not really of the pool (and too far away to even notice us). There is a wonderful picture of the bar, Sloppy Joes. We ate breakfast there daily. Yes, first we had eggs or pancakes, and every morning we finished it off with coconut ice cream. Funny, I don't remember what my parents had for breakfast, but now I think I can come up with a few things in liquid form (it was five o'clock somewhere!). Okay. Picture taking in the seventies wasn't the greatest. People got in the way, they were blurry and far away, and there were too many taken of unknown places without labels and not enough with people in them.
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| Infamous bar (and yes I do know about the scandal with original owner from the 1990's) |
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| Fred. Dad. World Traveler. |
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| Miraflores Locks (had to scan pictures keeping them in the album, since they are STUCK permanently) |
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| Eppleton Hall--a paddlewheel tug boat built in England 1914. It traveled to San Francisco via the Panama Canal. In service 1914-67 ASSUMING this is not the same Eppleton Hall. |
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| Maybe my parents took a boat trip on the Gatun Lake? Maybe that is my dad up front. |
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