Day trip to Anton Valley, Panama

We made a day trip from the resort in Farallon to Anton Valley (El Valle and Valle de Anton depending on the map you are reading) which is in the crater of an extinct volcano. We visited El Nispero, a small “zoo” with 100 species of animals and 180 species of plants. This is the only place in the world where you can find the critically endangered Panamanian golden frog. Then on to an area called El Macho Spring for a short, cool hike through the forest and across several suspension bridges to the 35 meter El Macho waterfall. Finally we visited the handicrafts market for a little shopping. The almost-perfect climate -- about 80F throughout the year, thermal springs, waterfalls, hiking trails and easy access to Panama City (about 2 hours away) have made Anton Valley very popular with city folks looking for a weekend getaway as well as foreigners looking for a peaceful retirement haven. The houses are very large and the grounds are immaculately manicured…our guide for the day said you could expect to pay about $70 per square meter for a property in town and as little as $10 m2 for one on the slopes of the volcano.

Vacation at the Royal Decameron on Playa Blanca

Every 90 days we need to leave Costa Rica for a minimum of 72 hours to maintain a visitor status. So, after spending 3 months with no windows, hot water only in our “suicide shower,” and an outdoor “bathroom suite,” we decided to spend a week at the luxurious, all-inclusive resort of Royal Decameron in Farallon on the Pacific coast of Panama. We took one bus from Atlantic to Pacific side of the country (there are no roads going down the Atlantic/Caribbean side of the country) and spent the night in David. The next morning we took a second bus to Farallon – an enjoyable and scenic 5 hour trip. The tropical resort features 9 pools, 9 bars, 2 buffets and 8 specialty restaurants (Thai, Seafood, Steak, Italian, Sushi, etc.), a casino, and of course the thatched palapas scattered along the white sand beach. In addition to trying each of the above, we also went ocean kayaking and scuba diving. The various pool and beach bars offered an array of fruit drinks as well as beer, wine (nothing to write home about), and just about anything else you wanted. Although I saw very few people who smoked, the bars also offered free cigarettes! It seemed that 95% or more of the guests were from Latin America with Spanish as the main language. We met one family from Florida and that was about it from the USA. Canada seems to be well represented in Panama as well as Costa Rica and we were asked on occasion if we were from Canada. We also walked down the beach to the fishing village of Farallon past a beach restaurant with a very large Canadian flag. Guess the Canadian dollar is still doing well. The photo showing thatched buildings on the beach was a view from our room. The other resort photo shows me in Lobby 1 with one of the “Carnival” characters. Panama is well know for their Carnival festivities in February – we’ll have to make sure to return and see the action in person! The last picture shows Gordie on the beach just past one of Noriega’s former weekend homes (he is climbing the rocks and is hard to pick out). When the US invited Noriega to live in Florida the people of Panama ransacked anything of value from this home which now sits in decay…the other homes in the neighborhood are fantastic however.

The “89” butterfly

Nature is truly weird. Here is a photo of a butterfly that was on the inside of our shower curtain (there is a clear section to the curtain). Gordie took the picture from the outside. You can clearly see the number “89” on the butterfly’s wing. Is that strange or what? I wonder if they each have their own number.

Our “new” security system

Well, it’s been almost 3 months since we moved in and as you can see all 5 puppies are fine and still here…oh yes, the “mom” is here most of the time as well. They do create quite a stir when someone walks or rides a bike by the house.

"Ice Cream Beans" -- Sweet treats from nature

Note: have found out that these are called "Ice Cream Beans."

The trees are very large, the pods are very large and although I have no idea yet what they are called, I do know that they are very popular among ticos. The pods are quite long as you can see in the photo. Once you slash the side with your machete you can break the pod open over your knee. Inside are dark brown seeds covered with a white "fuzzy skin." You put the whole seed in your mouth and eat the sweet outer fuzz (spit out the remaining seed. They really are quite tasty!!!

Saturday odds and ends...

We spent Saturday morning in Puerto Viejo starting with a visit to the local farmers' market. I was pleasently surprised to find homemade (and delicious) tofu, cheese and organic chocolate in addition to the normal fruits and vegetables. We then stopped at a new restaurant/juice bar at the beach specializing in fresh-fruit concoctions, herbal teas, coffees as well as more traditional selections. The food was delicious, the service impecable and the view excellent. We will stop back often! Also stopped at the ATM which is near the local emergency clinic. As you can see from the photo, this clinic handles all "normal" medical problems as well as some that are more unique to this area!

Across Panama by bus

We are back from our 3-day tourist visa renewal trip to Panama. We left by bus from Changuinola which is only a few kms across the border from where we live. For the most part the buses are 28-passenger vans – all very new and very comfortable. We traveled south along the coast sometimes parallel to the islands of Bocas del Toro. At Chiriqui Grande we headed up through the mountainous rainforest and the Comarca (autonomous territory) Ngobe Bugle. There were several “villages” along the sparsely populated trip. Almost all homes included a thatched building (see photo). We reached David (our final destination) in about 5 hours. The provincial capital (Chiriqui province) of David is a major shopping and transportation hub. Food and lodging were very inexpensive…basic hotel room with private bath but no A/C ran $16.50 per night, breakfast of scrambled eggs, toast, coffee was less than $2.00 per person; another dinner which included one hamburger with fries, good-sized shrimp cocktail, garlic bread and 8 bottles of beer came to $13 plus change! Cold beer was available at the front desk of the hotel for 60 cents each which could be enjoyed on the balcony overlooking Parque Cervantes across the street (see photo). On one evening there was a free concert with regional musicians and dancers at the park. The trip was short but gave us an opportunity to see parts of Panama that we had never seen before.