Getting ready for Panama
Trip Start
Nov 27, 2008
1
7
Trip End
Dec 06, 2008
Denver,
Colorado,
United States
Monday, November 24, 2008
We're both back to work tomorrow morning and we are counting down to Thursday morning when we leave on an 8 a.m. Continental flight # 642 to Houston where we layover for 2 hours 21 minutes before leaving on a 1:45 Continental flight # 888 to Panama City, arriving a 6:57 p.m.
There we will be met by a representative of The Balboa Inn, http://www.thebalboainn.com/, a small B & B that will be our home-away-from home
day 1
. Dan had registered us with yahoogroups.com where we asked for advice from others as to the 'not-to-miss' areas of the country. We were approached by Thorwald Westmass and Gina Da Silva of The Balboa Inn and really liked what we heard (quiet, safe, intimate with great service and breakfasts -- very important feature for Ann). Our brief highlighted itinerary is as follows:~~ We will be at The Balboa Inn starting on our arrival Thursday the 27th.
~~ Friday we will get our bearings and do an informal tour of the Canal area
~~ Saturday a.m. we are leaving many of our belongings at The Balboa and heading off on a ferry for an overnight on the beautiful tropical island Taboga
http://www.cerritotropicalpanama.com. Our treehouse room has ocean and jungle views. We will "loll" here until Sunday afternoon when we head back to The Balboa Inn in Panama City.
~~ Monday is going to be very fun. We have made arranagements to visit the Embera natives with the American born wife of one of the tribesmen. http://www.emberavillagetours.com This is sure to be an experience rich in culture and will give us the flavor of the people that inhabited Panama before the building of the canal.
~~ Tuesday morning we temporarily give up our room at The Balboa Inn and fly to Boquette to spend the next three days in the cooler volcanic area where we can do some bird watching, hiking and enjoying the hospitality of our hosts at The Coffee Estate Inn. www.coffeeestateinn.com Hmmmm
day 1
. . . imagine waking up to brew coffee that grew outside of our door. We look forward to a tour of the grounds as well as the renowned "date night" where the owners who are acclaimed chefs (and transplants from British Columbia) will deliver a cooked meal to our bungalow with flowers and candles. The Inn only accomodates 7 guests in their 3 bungalows which will make this a very special place indeed. We will be picking up our rental Rav 4 at the airport in David -- the entryway to Boquette.~~ Wednesday at 7 a.m. we are being picked up by a nature generalist guide, Terry, who will take us for a half-day exploration as we learn about the birds of the area and the flora and fauna. Wednesday afternoon and Thursday we will take our hosts up on their offer of maps of the area as we do our own exploring by car -- stopping for short hikes here and there.
~~ Friday we are returning our car to David and flying back to Panama City where we will hopefully try out some eatery that can't be missed that we hear about along in our travels -- neither Dan nor I can resist talking to strangers (ask my kids)!
~~ Saturday we begin the journey back to Denver leaving Panama City at 9:40 a.m. via Continental # 889 arriving in Houston at 12:54, passing through customs in 1 hour 41 minutes before catching a 2:35 p.m. Continental flight # 1557 that will land us back in Denver by 4 p.m.
~~ Sunday: Laundry, groceries and preparing to return to work
This is sure to be a wonderfully exciting vacation with lots of activities punctuated with relaxing "down" time
day 1
. We look forward to sharing our experiences via this Blog. C'mon along . . .Current -- Friday afternoon 4:30 EST from Panama City
We arrived in Panama City last night a little after 7 p.m. in a pouring rainstorm. After clearing customs, we were met by a taxi driver engaged by the Balboa Inn to take us to our B & B. Very interesting and made me wonder . . .why did I choose this place? Yes, it was clean but the room was about the size of my office at work with a small bathroom attached. No table to put a suitcase on and door moldings that didn't quite make it to the frame leaving a gap both at the door to the hallway and into the bathroom. Hmmm, cozy?? We asked the cab driver that brought us from the airport to please take us to a restaurant so we could get some dinner. We ended up at a nice open aired "Palapa" -- kontiki type -- restaurant where we decided what to eat by pointing at some clams at another table that looked good. It turns out they were very yummy lightly-garlicked clams served with some soft also-lightly-garlicked bread. That and about 3 glasses of wine each, made me feel a bit more eager (OK -- at least willing) to return to our B & B. Our next taxi driver turned out to be a god-send as "Fabio Munoz" (not at all like the Fabio that you might imagine!) not only took us back to the Balboa Inn but also agreed to return to pick us back up at 11 a.m. this morning as I had already decided that we were not going to stay at the Balboa Inn for the duration of our time in Panama City! It wasn't more than minutes before we fell into bed, with the rain pounding outside, that we were asleep soundly until about 9 this morning!
Waking after a great nights' sleep and knowing that breakfast was waiting for us downstairs, did wonders for my attitude and outlook for our first full day in Panama
day 1
. We were the last ones down to breakfast so didn't really get a chance to talk with many other guests but enjoyed one fried egg each, a piece of toast and some limp but tasty bacon along with some excellent coffee which made me feel much more positive about how the day would unfold. We talked with the manager about the fact that we were not going to stay and she was very gracious about understanding and apologized that "something had come up" and that their plan to put us in a larger room got side-railed by someone elses' agenda. Who knows? She did, however, suggest two other quaint but more upscale B & B's in a recently renovated area called Casco Viejo. At 11 a.m. sharp, Fabio came to pick us up and off we went to Casco Viejo. Unfortunately, there were no rooms available where we wanted to stay but a manager at one of those two Inns suggested the Bristol Hotel (which I had read about in my earlier research and knew that it was topnotch) and she even called ahead for us to be sure they had a room for us. That is where I am writing from now after more of a day with Fabio at the wheel! This hotel is much more to my liking!! Yes -- it is still raining but our room is quiet, comfortable and roomy.
Because of the rain and knowing that it wasn't exactly the day to go sit in an outdoor cafe and watch the ships go through the canal, we decided to have Fabio take us to the Albrook Mall. Now understand . . . Dan won't even go with me to the mall in Denver but this trip to the Albrook Mall was his idea
day 1
. We had a fabulous lunch at some Argentinian Grill -- Lenos Y Carbon -- place in their food mall where we received a sizzling platter of steak, sausages, pork chop, grilled chicken and chicken breast plus a salad and grilled plaintain (the Argentinian Special) -- it was only an order for one person but plenty of food for both of us. Dan had chosen our selection by stopping one of the food deliverers and asking her what it was! Dan took some photos of the waitresses delivering the food to the tables and I will turn this over to him shortly to input his pictures of everything so far. We continued to walk around for the balance of the two hours we had before meeting back up with Fabio. Dan tried on some Panama Hats but we couldn't find one that was just the right size -- we'll just have to keep trying!!Fabio then took us to a market where we picked up some wine, rum for Dan, a couple of fresh baked rolls and swiss cheese so we could have a snack before going out to dinner later tonight.
I now write as Dan watches westerns on TV in spanish as he sips his first rum cocktail. He is happy and so am I -- we accomodate each other very nicely!!
We are going to cancel tomorrow's trip to Tobago -- why go to the beach when it will still be raining -- especially when it means taking a 12 mile boat ride to get there?? We did find out that the Coffee Estate Inn in Boquette is back open and expecting us on Tuesday so we have confirmed those reservations but may stay here in the city for the interim. We're considering taking a train ride that will take us along the canal but that is all still vague until I finish typing this first real entry and settle down with the glass of red wine that was just poured for me.
If anyone needs us, the best way to reach us is by calling the Bristol Hotel @ 507-264-0000 and ask for room 402. If we aren't here, the call will automatically forward to the cell phone that is provided to us by the hotel (nice, huh)? I will now sign off and turn this over to Dan to import photos that hopefully he will at least let me label before he sends!!
Love to all,
Annie (Mom)
Comments
Traveling to Panama
I am sure you will enjoy your trip to Panama. My wife and I have been traveling here since 2003. We return to the US tomorrow for 6 weeks. We own an organic vegetable farm in western Panama. I am sure you will enjoy your trip to Boquete and your stay with Jane and Barry. We have stayed there many time and always enjoyed it. But be aware that a major flood went through Boquete on Sat. evening and took out completely or damaged bridges and getting around town is much more difficult today than normal. Hasta luego. Ron at Finca Santa Marta
You made it!
We're happy to hear that you made it safely to Panama and have found a hotel that is to your liking. Hopefully, it will stop raining so that you can see more of the city. Have fun!
Re: You made it!
Thanks Honey. We are really enjoying ourselves in spite of the weather. Just being on vacation without distractions is wonderful. Also -- don't let me forget -- I am reading the BEST BEST BEST book that I will forward to you as soon as I'm done. It is 'the Story of Edgar Sawtelle' -- I can't wait to share it with you. Hope you both and THE BOY are all doing well.
I love you all,
MOM and Granny Annie