Cost of Living, August 2015

Posted on September 8, 2015 by Kris Cunningham

Once in a while I do a cost of living report so we can see how we are doing. Also, many others want to know what it costs to live here and are very interested in our numbers. Of course, this is just us. Others may live in different places, have different lifestyles, and their spending could look quite different.

Basic/monthly expenses –
Rent $385
Electricity $41.46 (this is a pretty typical monthly bill. We have AC but rarely use it)
Cable (TV/internet) $63.29
Internet plan for two iPads – $22
Insurance for two cars (one full coverage, other liability only) $61.35
Gas for the cars $44
Phone $10.70  (I have a pay as you go phone. This should last around a month, and Joel talks less and rarely needs to buy time)
Skype $12 (we both have plans that allow unlimited calls to the USA)
Food $284.72

Total $924.53

If we had needed to refill a gas tank for the kitchen it would have been $5.12, but it usually lasts more than a month so we didn’t have to refill it this month.

Water and trash is included in our rent, but if we had to pay it would be $5.25/month for water, and $4.80 for trash pickup (twice a week).

Then, there are always a few extra things, many of them optional. I think the list this month was a bit higher than usual –

Beer and liquor $37.97
Printer cartridges $37
Bike repairs $17 (new axle, new stem – I think it’s called, for the handlebars, and new brake cables, parts and labor)
Painting class $50/month
Painting supplies $47 (should last me 3 months or so)
We took a quick trip to Panama City to pick up our cedulas. That cost us $129.76 ($42.40 for 2 round trip bus tickets, $56.67 for hotel, $11 for taxis, and $19.69 for the lunch stops – 4 meals)
Joel also spent around $130 for guitar parts – tuners and other things to rehab a guitar.
All of these extras added up to $318.73

Grand total $1243.26

Other cost of living reports can be found HERE.

Considering it cost us about $3000/month to live in Sarasota, Florida when we left in 2012, just the house, electricity, food, phones, etc, just the basics, I think we are doing much better here. We have seen some costs rise as they have everywhere, but we are still able to live well within our means. And, the bonus we didn’t expect, it is such a good life. If money was no consideration whatsoever, I would still want to live here. We came for economic reasons but the benefits have exceeded our expectations in many other ways.

Posted in cost of living, Panama | Tagged , , | 14 Comments

Watching Bananas Grow

Posted on September 2, 2015 by Kris Cunningham

I had no idea how bananas grew before I moved to more tropical areas. I knew what a banana plant looked like, but had never seen the flowers and fruit. There are some huge banana trees in the woods near our house, and a couple years ago we took some pups and transplanted them in our yard. We now have the second bunch of bananas in our own yard.

These bananas are really tall!

Here's Joel, a full size man to give you some perspective

Here’s Joel, a full size man, to give you some perspective

The bananas are always making new leaves, long slim green buds that unfurl into beautiful leaves.

A new banana leaf emerges - look for that long slim green part coming straight up from the plant

A new banana leaf emerges – look for that long slim green part coming straight up from the plant

Then, one day I noticed this

This bud does not look like a regular leaf

This bud does not look like a regular leaf (Monday, 8/10)

So, I decided to watch what this bud does and take a picture every morning.

Thurs 8/13, getting bigger
Sat 8/15. It is now turning downward.
while I was out there, I noticed the orchids on the orange tree were blooming
Sun 8/16
Also Sun 8/16, a rather odd looking bud
Mon 8/17, just starting to open up
Tues 8/18
Wed 8/19, the bud has opened enough to reveal little bananas!
Also Wed 5/19

Once the bananas started to appear they grew very rapidly!

Thursday 8/20. You can’t see them in the photos, but the bees are very interested in the flowers.
Also Thursday 8/20
Friday 8/21
Saturday 8/22
Sunday 8/23 The stem is getting very long.
Also Sunday 8/23
Monday 8/24
Tuesday 8/25
Also Tuesday 8/25
Wednesday 8/26. It is now only a week since we got our first peek at the baby bananas. Look how big they are now!
Thursday 8/27
Friday 8/28. I must have gotten up early that morning because the light is very pretty.
Saturday 8/29

Now, the bananas are starting to look fairly full size, and I don’t think the buds are going to result in any more bananas. From here it can take quite a while before they are actually ripe and ready to eat. I am not good at judging when to harvest time. I was just told they are ready when they are fat. I think we harvested the last bunch a bit early because they sat on the back terrace for quite some time but they eventually ripened just fine and were very yummy.

Sunday 8/30
Monday 8/31
Tuesday 9/1, now one day short of two weeks since we first saw the little bananas. Now they look pretty much full size, though it will be weeks yet before they are ready.
Another on Tuesday 9/1

Another interesting thing I didn’t know – when a banana tree has fruit it will die. But, by that time it has probably grown a least a couple pups. This particular tree is a pup of the last one that produced fruit. It now has a very large pup, a medium size pup, and a very little one that is just emerging from the ground. You can see the two larger ones in the photo with Joel at the top of the post, to his left (your right).

You will notice that these bananas are red. They are a different variety which my neighbors call “manzana” (apple). I cannot find any information on the internet using this name, but a search for “red banana” brings up bananas that look like these. They have a slightly different flavor and texture but they are really good, maybe even better than the yellow ones, in my opinion. Maybe we just like them better because something you grow yourself is always special.

Posted in food, fruit, Panama | Tagged , | 10 Comments

Buying Herbalife in Panama, and getting various things done

Posted on August 29, 2015 by Kris Cunningham

There are so many wonderful things about this country, but once in a while there is a hiccup. Add my less that stellar Spanish on the phone and it can get very… umm … interesting.

My California daughter sells Herbalife.  She tried it and was thrilled with the results. She met a lot of other people who were also having outstanding success at losing weight, or just being healthy and feeling good. I eat healthy and bike many miles but every ounce is attached to my body with superglue and won’t leave, so I figured why not? I’ll give it a try and see what happens.

But, I am in Panama. Herbalife is sold here but how do you access it? There is a website but beyond some very general information it refers you to your associate. My daughter called the main office in California and they said to call on the phone to sign up. So, I call on the phone. In two minutes I am frustrated with the gal’s rapid fire Spanish and hand the phone to Cedo, who later explains she was told I need to use the website to sign up. *sigh*

Then, I noticed the little link where associates can sign in. I call my daughter and get her log in information and voila! She is logged in to the Panama site with access to all the products, literature, and anything else you would want. So, I get to thinking…. I can sign up on line using the USA site. Once I get my number and password, I can then go shopping at the Panama site.

It works! Everything goes as planned. I buy only a couple things just in case they fall into a black hole, and then it goes to the payment instructions. No, you cannot use your credit card. You can either go to Banco General and pay, and then scan and email that receipt. Or, you can transfer money from your bank to their account.

I put in my order and pay by money transfer, and wait. Nothing happens. A few days go by and I email. Nothing. I email again, and then I finally email with stronger wording that my USA associate cannot help me and they must tell me what I need to do for the next step! The reply comes – send us the receipt (why didn’t it say this in the instructions for money transfers??). So I email the scanned receipt and am told it will take three days because money is going from one bank to another. But, I did this last Friday and it is now the following Thursday. The next email says – your products have been released.

OK, now what?? I email again, and again and again.  How do the products get to David? How do I get them? Again, finally, when I am about to give up and enlist someone’s help on the phone, a strongly worded email gets a reply – your products have been at Servientrega since the 6th, and here is your tracking number (it is now the 14th). *sigh* OK, fine. I bike down to the office the next morning and pick up my box without a problem.

Now I am ready to order what I will need for the month, and I know I had better not wait until the last week or two! I place my order. I print out the transfer receipt, scan it and email it on Friday morning. Three business days should land on Tuesday. I email on Wednesday… nothing. I email and resend the receipt on Thursday. Your products have been released.

I should have gone to pick them up yesterday but I have a really rotten cold and anything that can wait is being put on hold. Then, in the afternoon, my phone rang. It was the Servientrega guys looking for my house. In a few minutes a white van pulled up with two nice guys who handed me my box, had me sign the receipt, checked my ID (oh how I love pulling out the cedula!), and went on their way.

What a great surprise! especially when I didn’t feel like doing anything, especially driving all the way to the other side of town, and these nice guys bring my box to my front gate. Thank you Servientrega guys! (no, I don’t know why this one got delivered and the first order did not.)

Just in case you think getting anything done here is a nightmare, I can tell you about getting new plates for my car. I went to the insurance company to pay for another year. She had the paper waiting on the desk (did they just figure since it expires at the end of the month I would be coming by?). I wrote them a check, they printed out new paperwork, and I was done.

Then, I go to a shop for the car inspection. There are three people ahead of us so we check email and hang out for a while until it is our turn. The guy has me park the car in the special space out front. He checks the tires for tread, takes photos from the front, side, and back, collects $11, prints out the inspection form, and I am done.  (heck of an inspection, eh? Every light on the car could be broken and the brakes not working LOL)

I know better than to try to do anything at lunch hour so I go home for lunch, and make copies of everything (one can never have too many copies so before going anywhere, make at least a couple copies of everything!). Then, I head downtown where I have to wait about 3 minutes. I hand in my inspection report, the original and a copy, pay my $36, and take my receipt to the other window. The lady has me write my name and phone number in a book, hands me my new plate and inspection sticker with my paperwork, and I am done. The whole process was done in a day and was very easy.

I also went to the bank. My updated credit card arrived (thanks to my California daughter who manages my US mail). I figured after all that Herbalife shopping I should replenish the bank account, and also get some cash. I present my credit card to the teller…. noo…. lo siento… you have to use the ATM machine. OK, no problem. I’ll use the one right over there. But she says wait? See this phone number on the back? You need to call them and tell them you are in another country. Have you ever done this before? (I have been using my Schwab card for three years to access my funds). So, I go to the ATM, it spits out cash, I go back to the teller and put some in checking and some in savings, and the rest in my wallet. Done! There was also no waiting in the bank, and they have always been extremely pleasant and polite to me.

Most things aren’t crazy here. Maybe that’s why something like this is frustrating. But, I am getting better with the Herbalife ordering process and even had two nice guys bring it to my door! That’s not all bad for sure.

TIP = this is Panama. Sometimes that’s all you can say.

Posted in culture, Getting Things Done, Panama | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 18 Comments

Art Class

Posted on August 28, 2015 by Kris Cunningham

One of the nice things about retirement is having time to do some interesting things that you couldn’t fit in while you were working. My friend Hydeé visited one day and mentioned an art school close by. It sounded interesting so we decided to check it out.

Then, she got busy. She works full time and also takes university classes, and then the car needed some expensive repairs. But, by now the idea had been rolling around in my head and I really wanted to go, so I decided to start by myself.

I really like the teacher Prof. Víctor Aguirre Chirú, but unfortunately he seems a bit elusive on line so I haven’t been able to find examples of his work. There is one of his paintings about half way down this page. There is also a Facebook page for the school, the Centro de Arte José Cáceres O. here.

The school has music lessons as well as art classes. There is a fairly large room to the left for classes and performances, and other rooms to the right for lessons. The art area is in the back, and the professor lives upstairs.
It was quiet one evening so I took a couple pictures of the art area.
Usually this area is full of kids of various ages and the occasional adult.
The professor is doing something along the back wall, and one of the adults works on her painting on the right.
While you work, you get to look out on this beautiful backyard. If the kids get restless or tired of working they can run around in the yard or play on the playground equipment.

The teacher did show me some of his paintings in his smart phone, and I love what he does with light and shadow. What I saw looked vibrant and alive. But, I have a ways to go and a lot to learn before I can do anything close to that. The first month of class was drawing in a sketch pad with charcoal pencils.

My first class! He drew the flower in the upper left, and I attempted to copy it.
More drawings to copy. I can make a very funny looking apple!
A still life – he drew part of the one on the left and I copied it on the right. This apple is a bit less funny looking than the last ones.
This assignment – pumpkins
Then he drew what he said was a very special flower, and I finally figured out that it was a lotus!
That was the spark I needed. I found a photo of a lotus from my Florida pond and tried drawing it.

Little by little I could feel it getting slightly easier. The teacher says it takes a while to develop the communication between the eye and the hand. He also worked with me a lot on brightness and shadow. For a drawing to look right it has to have more contrast, more light and shadow than in a photo. Everything of mine looked pretty flat until he prodded me in the right direction.

Then, I was off on the bike trip. He promised we would start painting when I returned!

My first painting. You will recognize it from the pencil drawing earlier.
This is a sunset scene from a photo I took at Playa Hermosa in Costa Rica on my bike trip.
This is the river behind my house, again from a photograph I took. He worked with me a lot on making more contrast with light and dark, just touches here and there but it really made the painting start to come alive.
This is what I am working on currently, again from a photograph. I found this photo of batik fabric on line and I liked the colors and designs.
Now, this painting looks much better. I still need to add details to the fish in the lower left but it is getting closer to done.

Next, I think I’m going to tackle colored glass bottles on a windowsill. I want to start creating my own ideas instead of copying photos, though I will need photos of various bottles to get me started. That should be quite challenging and give me a lot of opportunity to work with light. I like photography a lot but this has been a very interesting new medium. I like using the colors and mixing them, and I also like the ability to add some texture. Drawing is OK but painting, yes, that is doing it for me.

I also enjoy the classes. Most of the students are kids, some as young as four. There is one little girl who is so adorable I just want to squeeze her and take her home.  The little ones are usually given pencil drawings to color in, hopefully staying more or less in the lines. They have some sort of soft crayons and the little girl usually has a much paint on herself as on the paper.

There is another lovely eight year old who loves practicing her English with me. She and some of the older kids do some really remarkable work. Many of them are working on very large paintings with a considerable amount of skill! Maybe when parents pick them up I’ll have to ask if I can take some photos of them and their work.

I like retirement!

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A Farm Report

Posted on August 22, 2015 by Kris Cunningham

I hadn’t been to my friend Cedo’s farm for quite a while, so I was very interested to see how everything was going up there. She told me there are 11 new calves, and there are more on the way. Sure enough, there were cows everywhere!

Cows were hanging out in the milking/feeding area. They spend quite a bit of the day here relaxing, listening to the radio, eating, and thinking about making lots of milk.
More cows in the milking area.
There were a few relaxing behind the milking building
Others were beside the building. Cedo says she wants to put a roof here to cut down on the mud and keep them cleaner and more comfortable.

Of course, while we were there I had to visit the pigs. This visit felt slightly different though. One of them recently ended up in various freezers and on various dinner tables, including ours. I don’t think I have ever eaten an animal that I had met previously. I know they are raised for meat so it didn’t feel too weird, but I also didn’t witness or take part in the process of converting it from one of these to packages of meat.

The piggies seemed happy to see us.
There were two litters of little ones.
These babies were running around enough that it was hard to get a decent photo of them.

It was strange to see the chicken area empty. Apparently, a while back, there was a problem with coyotes or something killing chickens, so the remaining chickens were brought down to Cedo’s back yard where they are happily running around and laying eggs, well except for the rooster who is happily running around, crowing, and keeping an eye on all the ladies.

It seemed like there were calves everywhere, and I’m sure I missed a few of them.

The beautiful little calf was downhill from the pig area.
This one was behind the chicken area.
This one was way downhill from the pigs.
This one was beyond the milking area in the area for the youngest calves. Here they can be watched and they have a building to go into at night with a light to keep the bats away (yes there are blood sucking bats here and a bite can make a calf sick)
There were a few more down the hill from the milking area, and these three came up to see if we had anything interesting for them.
These two are looking rather thin. The caretaker explained that they have just been weaned and aren’t eating enough regular food. Cedo is going to give them some supplements and extra help though, because she doesn’t want them losing weight.

So this is a little bit of what things are looking like at the farm these days. (sshhh, don’t say this too loud, knock on wood, cross fingers, etc etc) Things have been going smoothly. No one has been seriously sick (though Cedo has brought up medicine on a regular basis for one thing or another), no one has died, and nothing has broken. We are much luckier here than in other parts of Panama because although we aren’t getting a normal amount of rainfall this season, at least we are getting enough to keep things going. In the Azeuro Peninsula many animals are dying because of lack of rain and not enough water or grass to eat.

We also had an unexpected treat on this visit, a pavo de campo (a wild turkey, Panama style).  There were two of them running around in the grass beside the driveway up to the farm. Cedo says people like to find their eggs and give them to the chickens who will raise them with their own chicks. People eat them but the meat is harder and has a different flavor. I think they are just very pretty birds!

I took quite a few shots and managed to get a couple where you can see the bird clearly.
Look at the beautiful, elegant tail.

It was a good day, and we came home with lots of things – chayotes (a nice squash veggie, one of my favorites), bananas, firewood, plantain leaves, bijao leaves (yes, tamales are planned!), and a few starts of otoe for me ( also knows as taro. It’s a root vegetable that I like a lot, and the plants are also very beautiful).

Speaking of rain, we are having a downpour so I should publish this and log off just in case! Thank you clouds for the rain.

Posted in Exploring the Area, food, Panama | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

Pan-American Highway Construction

Posted on August 21, 2015 by Kris Cunningham

The highway between David and Santiago in Panama has been under construction for quite a while. It is a huge job. They have been working hard and getting a lot done. We could see quite a difference from the last time we went through there.  But there is still a lot more to do so this job won’t be finished for some time yet. One of my big concerns is the cyclists that come through this area. I worry about their safety in heavy traffic, often with no shoulder or space to get out of the way.

The biggest concern is the part between David and Santiago because there is no alternate route. We took the bus to Panama City last week so I took the opportunity to take photographs. On the way out we were in the second row looking through a windshield with cracks, and on the way back we were in the very front seat of the upper level so until it started to get dark, it was a great place to take photos.

Setting off from David, the construction begins before you even get out of the city.
Many areas have no shoulders or gravel shoulders, and there is a lot of navigating through lanes marked by movable markers.
Sometimes traffic is routed on the old road, and sometimes on the new road. There is heavy equipment on the move which sometimes interrupts the flow of traffic.
There are many bridges in various stages of construction.
Lane changes are very common.
Another bridge, this one partly finished.
Parts of the highway look very good with both lanes paved, dividers in the middle, and even painted lane markers. A cyclist could ride on the almost finished new part.
There are other parts where traffic is on the old road, and the other side is too torn up for riding.
I think it is really cool to see the bridges under construction
another stretch with the unused side looking very good. A cyclist could make good use of this.
This was taken on the way back. The sun was getting low in the sky and the light was shining off the road.
Another bridge under construction. The clouds were really pretty that afternoon.
There were a few areas that were only one lane and construction was going on all around you. Thankfully these were few and delays for one lane rows were short.
Even if the bridge is getting close to done, the approaches on either side need to be built.

Just east of Guabala and the checkpoint, there is an option to take route 5 through Sona and on to Santiago. It is a bit longer and there are more hills according to cyclists who have taken this route, but it is very scenic, has much less traffic, and is safer than continuing on the highway.

But, for those who want to see what it looks like on the highway between Guabala and Santiago, here are some photos.

The traffic on this trip spent quite a bit of time on new road, and it was such a pleasure to ride on a smooth and comfortable road.
The other side of the road was in various states of construction.
There are a lot of bridges needed, and it is a lot of work to make even one.
There is a bit of highway where work hasn’t even been started yet but it was far less than when we made our last trip through here a few months ago.
There are areas of heavy machinery working on the sides of the hills by the highway, and no shoulders or spaces for cyclists.
Here they are making the huge concrete beams that will be the supports for the bridge up ahead.
It looks like the road is built with rocks, then finer rocks, and gravel, and then finer gravel, and so on gradually building up until there is a smooth and solid base that can be paved.
A water truck sprays down the base
This area looks almost finished
Other areas are full of detours
This is leaving Panama City. Between the city and Santiago you can expect four lane road all the way. The shoulders are in various states of smoothness but at least with four lanes there is a way for traffic to get around cyclists.
This is outside of Penonome. There are a lot of new windmills here that I’d never seen before. I think windmills are very cool!
Now we are on the return trip, and road construction starts again before you are even out of Santiago.
More detours, but I enjoyed some pretty scenery as well
I think the worst roads are west of Santiago. Traffic is still driving on parts of the old bumpy road just to remind you how bad it is, and how happy we are to be getting a new highway.
The old road is so bad that traffic is all over the road trying to avoid the potholes and big cracks. We won’t miss this at all!
More old, cracked, bumpy road, but also some very pretty scenery.
We were stopped for a minute while this fuel truck made its way across the highway.
At one point they had a whole factory set up. It looked like it was made to crush rock and make the various grades of gravel.
These strange looking machines were chewing up rocks and spitting out gravel.
As the afternoon wore on the clouds and scenery became more and more beautiful.
I think I photographed this bridge from the other direction the day before. Yes there are some significant hills to keep the cyclists challenged.
pretty clouds!
I just like the way the light shines off the pavement here.
A very lucky shot of a guy on his horse crossing the highway.

We are going to be so happy when the highway is finished! It’s going to be such an improvement, and such a pleasure. I suppose spending two days in a bus isn’t the greatest pleasure but it will be better when the road is smooth and the driver can make good time.

Why did we spend two days in the bus? We had a very good reason. We applied for cedulas (a permanent identification card similar to a social security card in the US) with the help of Luis, our guy in Panama City. He notified us that everything was done and they were ready for us to come in. We had to go to Panama City in person to check that all the information was correct, pay $65 each, and  get our pictures taken. We were told to wait one week and then check at the Tribunal Electoral here in David. We went in on Wednesday and as promised, our cards had been sent here and were waiting for us to pick them up.

We now both have cedulas! This is a step beyond residency and really makes us look and feel a part of this country. It also has a number that won’t change every time our passport number changes (which was our ID number before this). We didn’t have to get cedulas but I wanted to, just because it feels good and I love being a part of this country.

 

Posted in bus, Exploring Panama, Getting Things Done, Panama | Tagged , , , , , , | 10 Comments

Another Chicken Report

Posted on August 18, 2015 by Kris Cunningham

The chickens are now four weeks old, and they certainly have changed a lot in that time! They have gone from this at one day old

Cedo gives them one last inspection before we go out to do other errands.

to this, at two weeks old.

815chicks7

This is the chickens on the 13th, three weeks and three days old. They are pretty funny looking at the moment. The white ones have been eating a lot and putting on weight, where the dark ones are not as big but are growing more feathers.

The chicks are definitely bigger, but they aren’t very pretty with many of the feathers not yet grown in.
There are three dark ones. Cedo wanted to try them so I gave her a bit of cash to cover them, and now she says they are my chickens.
The older girls are starting to lay some eggs! Cedo found this one this morning.

 

I stopped by on Friday the 14th, and the chickens were out in the yard. Harry, Cedo’s son was here for the weekend and was helping to chase them back in their house. It is easier to clean their house with them out, and they enjoy running around but when no one is home to keep an eye on them they have to go back in their house.

815chicks4

The older, egg laying chickens are now in the side yard. Cedo was tired of them digging up all her plants and they can get in less trouble there. I saw some bits of feathers on the ground and asked what happened. They girls are able to fly over the fence so Cedo clipped their wings a bit so they will stay where they are supposed to stay.

But, the good news from the older girls is that more of them are starting to produce eggs. They are pretty small at this point but they are just getting started, and the eggs are expected to get bigger in time.

home grown eggs!

home grown eggs!

Today, the 18th, the chicks are four weeks and one day old. They have grown more feathers and look considerably better, and they continue to grow rapidly. Cedo says they also continue to eat a lot and raise a fuss if their feed container ever runs low.

They look much better with more feathers!
The brown chicken at the bottom of this picture is the only female in the bunch.

The older girls, fine looking girls that they are, they are all laying eggs now!

The hens hang out in the shade of the plants.

The hens hang out in the shade of the plants.

Look what I got last night! This is my first box of home grown eggs. I almost don’t want to eat them, but I’m also anxious to see what they are like. So, tomorrow, it’s home grown eggs for breakfast. Thank you chickens, and thank you Cedo for all the work taking care of them.

815chicks8

Posted in food, Miscellaneous, Panama | Tagged , , , | 12 Comments

Learning Spanish

Posted on August 17, 2015 by Kris Cunningham

Life is so much easier and more fun if you can communicate! Those of you who have followed my blog for a while know how I feel about learning the local language. You don’t have to speak perfectly or even close to it, but if you can make yourself understood and understand most of what is said to you, it’s a wonderful thing. There are people who speak English in various businesses around town but you can’t count on that when you need someone, so it’s much easier to get things done when you know some Spanish. And, best of all, you can be friends with the locals. My Panamanian friends are like sunshine in my life.

I took classes on line with Habla Ya for six months before I arrived and this helped me enormously. I thank the school and my teacher Yaira every day for my ability to communicate. Their teachers are very kind and patient, but also very professional and capable. They are running a special for expats in Panama right now, so check THIS LINK for details.  Even if you aren’t in Panama or close to one of their schools (Boquete, Bocas del Toro, and Panama City) you can take classes on line. This is what I did. I had class for an hour a day plus homework. That’s enough to pound a fair amount of Spanish into even my thick head.

Then, you need to find friends who don’t speak English. You are forced to use your Spanish, and listening helps so much with understanding. Local people can tell you about life here, the culture, food, where to shop, life stories, and explanations of things that are confusing. You can also hand them the phone on those days when your Spanish has just flown out of your head and a phone conversation is an exercise in frustration.

So, this is my rant for the day. Go learn the language in whatever way works for you. If you are like me though, and you know your teacher will be waiting to check your homework, you are much more likely to study every day.

P.S. I generally don’t promote businesses on my blog, but these folks made a big difference in my life here and have more than earned my support.

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Miscellaneous Pictures

Posted on August 9, 2015 by Kris Cunningham

I’ve been sorting through recent photos and found a few I would like to share.

815misc1

The flowers on this hedge were attracting a lot of butterflies.

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This was on July 19th. I think this was the hardest I'd ever seen it rain! It was incredible, and everyone's yard quickly flooded.

This was on July 19th. I think this was the hardest I’d ever seen it rain! It was incredible, and everyone’s yard quickly flooded.

Unfortunately we’ve had very little rain since then. We’ve had a few short rains and some sprinkles, but nothing like what is expected in the rainy season. It’s of so much concern that the canal is putting limitations on the boats that can go through, specifically on their draft or depth of water that they need. Each boat that goes through the locks uses water from Gatun Lake, and they are worried about the water levels in the lake. If we don’t get more rain they may increase the restrictions next month. The news says this is the driest rainy season in 100 years, and the El Niño weather system is causing a lot of this problem.

On another day we were in the car in the rain, and saw this interesting way of keeping dry on a bicycle.

On another day we were in the car in the rain, and saw this interesting way of keeping dry on a bicycle.

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Mariñon Corizon fruit on the ground.

Mariñon Corizon fruit on the ground.

One thing I like about Panama is all the fruit that grows here, and often you can find it on the ground or free for the picking. These fruits are a bit bland when raw, but cooked they are a lot like apples and really good. They had a short season of fruiting recently but I picked up a few bags full, and now have some cooked fruit in my freezer.

This woodpecker spent quite a bit of time pecking on this little twig hanging from the neighbor's tree.

This woodpecker spent quite a bit of time pecking on this little twig hanging from the neighbor’s tree.

Another fun thing around here is hunting for plants. There are various empty lots in the area and these are often used for trash from people’s yards. We have found a lot of pretty plants and cuttings from vacant lots. One had a lot of these heliconias growing and I couldn’t resist taking a couple sprouts. When the rains started this year they really started taking off, and now they are making these beautiful flowers.

The lobster claw heliconias started blooming recently.

The lobster claw heliconias started blooming recently.

One day I needed to see someone in either David or La Barqueta. Not being one to turn down a trip to the beach, I chose La Barqueta. It was a pretty afternoon and the waves were rolling in.

I am looking forward to home grown chicken. I bought a big chicken at the Saturday market, and I have bought the big chickens at the supermarket as well. You have to cook them more, especially the supermarket ones, but they have a great flavor. I have learned that I can cut them up and cook them in the pressure cooker. Then this chicken can be used in any other recipe, and you also get a great broth that can be used for soups and other recipes. I hardly want to buy the ordinary supermarket chickens any more.

I visited the chickens one morning and they were all huddled in the corner to escape the water while their chicken house was being cleaned.

I visited the chickens one morning and they were all huddled in the corner to escape the water while their chicken house was being cleaned. I am trying hard to look at them as dinner, and not as long term residents. Cedo says all but one are roosters so they wouldn’t make good long term residents anyway. Can you imagine? 30 roosters?! 

We live on the north side of town above El Torronal, one of the most upscale parts of town. The lots and houses are large and there are many beautiful spots. We were biking down one of our favorite streets and there was a for sale sign on one of our favorite lots! Even if we could afford it, I don’t think I would want to live there. There are many trees and a pond so it’s hotter, less breezy, and more humid than other areas but to visit, it’s great. There are lots of fruit trees and other plants, and one of the giant ceibo trees that I love so much.

It is a very pretty spot. That’s the trunk of the ceibo tree on the left.
This small building looks like something for animals
On the back of the building we found this. What is it?! Maybe its a huge home for those wasps that make their homes out of mud?

I went biking back in the hills today where I hadn’t been in quite a while. It was a beautiful day, a bit cooler with some cloud cover, and I had a very good time. I like this little spot by the river.

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Volcan Baru was looking especially beautiful.

Volcan Baru peeks out from behind the hills and the clouds.

Volcan Baru peeks out from behind the hills and the clouds.

This is a bit of what I have been seeing in my daily life around here. It’s quite nice.

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Happiness

Posted on August 7, 2015 by Kris Cunningham

I wake up every morning and I am happy. I’ve been very fortunate to have a good life filled with a lot of happy things but even so, this is different. I don’t think I have ever been this happy on a daily basis for this long a time. What makes a person happy? Why do I feel like this? Is it possible for everyone to feel happy? Why is it that often people who have so little are so happy, where others who have so much find happiness elusive? What is up with this business of happiness?

For one thing, for me here, Panama has happy people. There are various polls ranking happiness and Latin American in general, and Panama in particular always rank very high, sometimes at the top. (See this article titled “Money Isn’t Everything”, and these poll results from Healthways).  I think it is easier to be happy when you are surrounded by happy people. It rubs off on you.

Recently, I happened across this TED talk on happiness by Shawn Achor, a Harvard psychologist. He says “We’re finding it’s not necessarily the reality that shapes us, but the lens through which your brain views the world that shapes your reality.”  and later “90 percent of your long-term happiness is predicted not by the external world, but by the way your brain processes the world. And if we change it, if we change our formula for happiness and success,we can change the way that we can then affect reality.” Listen to the TED talk to hear the rest. It’s very interesting. 

Mr Achor ends with some recommendations – 1. Write down three things you are grateful for. 2. Journal about a positive experience you have had in the last 24 hours. 3. Meditate, which helps your brain focus. 4. When you first bring up your email every day, write someone thanking them or praising them. If you take just a couple minutes every day to do one of these things, you can train your brain to be more positive which in turn makes you happier, more successful, and a more positive influence in the world around you.

This works for me. As a Buddhist, we are taught these very things. Buddhism is all about being happy, and we are taught that happiness doesn’t come from the external things we are told to strive for, but from our internal world, from our own mind.

An attitude of gratitude is a big part of happiness. I think this NY Time article by David Brooks explains this very well. He also talks about expectation, which may factor in to why some expats are not happy in their new country. If you expect things to be a certain way, if you hold things to very high standards you will probably be disappointed fairly often. But, if you take your world as it is and be thankful for everything it provides you, you are much more likely to be happy.

If you have trouble feeling gratitude, watch The Human Planet, a wonderful BBC production about people coping with the climates and challenges of nature where they live. I am so grateful that I don’t have to walk through the desert with my camels hoping to find that well, because if I don’t I will die of thirst. I don’t have to carry kilos of sulfur on my back while breathing toxic gases, or risk my life to find the fish in the rushing river to feed my family. It is amazing what many people have to do just to survive.

OK, enough deep thinking for one day. I just think it is shame that most of us aren’t given a proper understanding of happiness so we can have more of it in our lives. Not only is it good for us, it is good for those around us, and as expats it’s good for our adopted country and new neighbors.

Posted in culture, Miscellaneous, Panama | Tagged | 27 Comments