Bike Racing in Chiriqui

Posted on November 30, 2014 by Kris Cunningham

We got so lucky today!! There have been bike races going on all week in the area, but I didn’t know exactly when and where so it was total luck today that we got to see the last stage of the race.

We were biking south and about to cross the Pan-American highway when we noticed a vehicle coming down the highway with lights and sirens, followed by a couple other vehicles and then, a whole group of bicycle racers!!

We continued on our way, happy to have seen them, and headed to the south part of town to visit a friend. When we arrived at the main road in south David, we again heard the vehicle with lights and sirens. Could it be the racers again? Yes indeed, and we were waiting to cross the very street they were coming down!

The bikers head towards us!
The first of them pass our spot.
Then more of the group passes us.
They are followed by vans and cars with extra bikes and some media.
The ambulance brings up the rear. I hope it was never used!

We were so excited to be right there on the race route! I’m so used to my dirt bike with its noisy tires, but when these bikes passed us they were silent – no tire noise, no sounds of metal, no heavy breathing, nothing, just silence as they flew by us.

Little did I know we weren’t finished yet. As we headed home I saw a crowd at the Parque de Madres (Park of Mothers) so we went to check it out. They were holding the final ceremonies for the winners!

When we arrived at the park there was a large crowd milling around.
Award ceremonies were in progress on this stage.
Everything is better with some gorgeous women to help! (and there is no shortage of gorgeous women around here)
I’m guessing this was the finish line.
And, I’m guessing this man was the overall winner.
I wonder if the other man is the 2nd place overall winner. At one point they were holding up the cup together. I’m not sure why they “dressed” the statues in the park.

The race is called La Vuelta International a Chiriqui 2014, and it has been happening every year for 34 years. When I learned the name from the stage backdrop I was able to look up some information. This is no small or easy race!! I saw cyclists mentioned from Panama, Columbia, Ecuador, and Nicaragua. Another article said that at least six countries would be represented.

The event lasts 10 days with a different stage on each day for a total of 1069.8 kilometers.

  1. The first day was time trials from David to Boquerón, another town up the road. If I am reading the results correctly the winner came in with a time of 36.31 for 31.1 km.
  2. Day 2 – 132.8 km- David, Dolega, Porterillos, Dolega, Concepcion, David. One time I made it to Dolega and thought I was something because it is almost all uphill and there are a couple killer hills between here and there. Porterillos is probably twice as far and high as Dolega. It looks like the winning time was 3:14:24
  3. 80 kilometers – a circut through Concepcion and Bugaba, so this would have been fairly flat, at least compared to the day before. Winning time 2:02:17
  4. 127 km – David to Boquete which is again up in the mountains. I have a dream of biking this route! It is about twice as far as my big ride to the beach, and it’s almost all uphill. The winning time was 2:56:32  This is about 50 minutes less than it took me to go half that distance on mostly flat roads. Joel happened to be driving to Boquete that day and saw them going uphill, and said they were powering up at very impressive speeds. I can only imagine how fast they were coming back down!
  5. 134 km, David – Cerro Punta – David. Winning time 3:38:13. I have driven this route and our little Hyundai struggles to make it up there. Never in my wildest dreams and if I was 40 years younger would I imagine biking this route! This is serious uphill climbing to one of the highest towns in the province.
  6. 138 km from David to the Costa Rica border and back, fairly flat, must have felt like a day off after yesterday. Winning time 3:00:41. So, this is about the same distance as yesterday, and they were able to climb serious mountains taking only 38 minutes longer than traveling on fairly flat roads? How fast do they power up those mountains??
  7. 154 km – David, Conception, Los Planes, David.  According to my map this route goes west, and then east of David and uphill, but not like the mountain routes of a few days ago. Time 3:55:38
  8. 132 km from David to the Costa Rica border and back again. Apparently the route was modified because of some road construction, so it is slightly shorter than day #6. 2:59:14
  9. 25.1 km up and down the highway, individual time trials, fastest time 39.7
  10. 84 km – 12 laps of a circuit around David (so this is what we saw today).  At this point there are no times posted on the websites.

I am so excited to have seen these men, and to think how strong they must be to have done all these races! I am excited and inspired. I didn’t see any women participating though, which I think is unfortunate.

Now that I know what to google, I am going to mark my calendar so I can watch more of this next year.

I got my information from Mundo_Panama, La Estrella, and the Claro Blog. Claro is one of the big cell phone providers in Panama and apparently a big sponsor of the race.

 

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An Honor

Posted on November 29, 2014 by Kris Cunningham

My friend and fellow blogger has an article in the local magazine from his area. I think this is very cool.

oldsalt1942's avatarOne More Good Adventure

Back the last week in September our little community of Boquerón celebrated the feast day of its patron saint San Miguel. A little old man, Jorge Luis Ríos, who lives just up the main road from me said he was putting together a small magazine and he wanted me to write an article for it. He and I talk a couple of times a week and he knows that I was a newspaper reporter way, way, way back, and I lent him the Spanish version of my book which he said he enjoyed. He must have because every time we are on the bus together going in to David (DahVEED) he tells everyone around that I’ve written a book.. Sr. Ríos is a radio journalist reporting on farm news for Radio Chiriquí. So, I gave him about a thousand words in a little article titled “Mi Boquerón” (My Boquerón). He produced a 14-page…

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Empanadas

Posted on November 28, 2014 by Kris Cunningham

Cooking instruction and fun in the kitchen continues. Cedo makes great empanadas! Last week she came over and taught me how she does it.

It starts with chicken and corn. Cook two chicken breasts and grind about 20 ears of corn.

Cook the chicken with onion, garlic, Maggi builion, culantro, and a package of tomato sauce
Maiz nuevo – it can be found in most of the little produce markets, but I have found the best deal is to buy it from someone selling it out of their truck. There always seem to be a few trucks by the side of the road the goes north just west of the old McDonalds.
Clean off the silk and cut the corn off the cobs
Run the corn through the grinder
It must be totally ground with none of these bits of solid corn left, or the bits will cause holes in the empanadas when they are formed and cooked.

Next step is to prepare the filling

Finely dice the potato, some onion, and some green pepper (or other colors if you have them for looks)
Saute the veggies until they are soft
Add the shredded chicken meat
Strain the cooking liquid from the chicken.
Add the liquid to the mixture and cook down until there is little liquid left.
You can add a handful of raisins if you like. I like a bit of sweetness that they add.

Now, it is time to prepare the shells and fill them. For me, this was the hardest part. I was always tearing something and repairing holes.

Knead the corn until it is very smooth, adding a bit of water if needed to make it soft enough.
Take a ball of dough and pat it into a flat circle
Pinch the edges until they make a slight bowl shape. Cedo could do a half dozen of them in the time it took me to do one!
Put in a spoonful of filling, and fold it together to form a pocket.
Pinch the edges together and then use a finger to make the scalloped edge. It took me a while to get the hang of this too. I suppose you could do anything you like with the edges as long as the pocket is totally closed.
Empanadas ready for frying

Now, they are ready for frying! Keep them covered with a towel so they don’t dry out while they are waiting to go in the oil.

Fry them in enough oil so they can float freely, and don’t crowd them in the pot. She tested the oil by dipping in an end of an empanada and if it sizzled, the oil was hot enough.
Fry until golden, drain on paper towels, and they are ready!

Ingredients:

  • two chicken breasts (can be made with other meat if you prefer), cooked with the following, and then de-bone and shred the meat.
  • couple leaves of culantro
  • half an onion, sliced
  • couple cloves of garlic, sliced or smashed
  • couple cubes of Maggi bullion
  • half a green pepper, sliced
  • packet of tomato sauce
  • 20 ears of corn, cut off cobs and finely ground
  • For the filling – one cooked potato
  • 1/4 diced onion
  • 1/2 diced green pepper
  • handful of raisins (optional)
  • vegetable oil for frying

As with any recipe, you can change things to suit your own tastes. These are a fair amount of work and I tend to avoid fried foods, but for an occasional treat these are really good!

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Weekly Photo Challenge: Angular

Posted on November 27, 2014 by Kris Cunningham

Weekly Photo Challenge: Angular  To me, angular brings to mind many man made things, but sometimes it is found in nature too.

An electrical tower down the road.
There is no shortage of these cell towers around the city.
A commercial center under construction.
I’ve always been interested in all the metal and angles of these electrical stations.
A beautiful tree has some interesting angles.
A grain silo in the country
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A Farm Report

Posted on November 25, 2014 by Kris Cunningham

I visit my friend Cedo’s farm now and then, and since her family are far from here it is helpful if I post some photos for them. I also learn more every time I go so it’s very interesting for me. I will probably be posting farm reports now and then so feel free to click on by if you are on farm overload.

It was an absolutely gorgeous day last Saturday. If I hadn’t been driving I would have been snapping photos all the way. It was sunny, everything was green, and the mountains looked spectacular. It was one of those days of postcard and tourist magazine photos so we really enjoyed the drive.

Cedo has six cows being boarded at another farm so they have access to lots of grass. She wanted to see them so she called the guy from that farm. While we waited for him to arrive she started checking things on her farm.

Cedo checked the calf who had been having problems with diarrhea. At one point she was skin and bones. She looks much better now but the diarrhea seems to have returned and her tail end didn’t look so good.
The pigs were very excited to see us, thinking we might be bringing lunch. It was health check time though, and Cedo is afraid they have some parasites because their eyes don’t look right and they are losing hair from their skin on their hips.

Soon, the guy from the other farm arrived in his truck/taxi, and off we went. It is interesting that in Spanish there are three words for cows – one for a calf (tenero/a), one for a cow (vaca or toro), and another for a mid size cow (novillo/a). The cows we went to see were mid size, and will be considered adults once they have had calves.

It looks like a pretty nice place for cows.
Cedo was thrilled that these cows look very healthy and happy.
Six of the cows are hers.
While she talked to the guy caring for them, I used the time to snap some photos. It’s a gorgeous area and the owner has done a lot of really nice landscaping.
Everything is lush and green, and so beautiful. I can see why people like to live in this area. It’s higher so it’s cooler, things grow here that don’t grown down at sea level, and it’s so beautiful.
There was one spot where you could see the ocean in the distance.
The house belongs to a women from the US. She has lots of land so she rents it to the caretaker, and he in turn charges people to keep their cows on this land.

After the visit to the other farm, we returned to Cedo’s farm to continue making the rounds.

Next, we visit the young cows on Cedo’s farm. There is also a cow who is expecting very soon so she is hanging out with the young ones.
They were very interested in us until they realized we didn’t bring lunch. Cedo calls the caretaker to bring lunch, and then make some other calls.
The caretaker was very popular when he arrived with lunch.
It is always something! This cow has an eye infection.
One other also has an eye infection. Cedo says this must be treated quickly before it spreads to the others, and left untreated it can lead to blindness.

These young cows are growing up and need more grass, so Cedo made some calls to find them a farm with enough grass and a source of water where they could be boarded. She was successful and they should have been picked up on Monday. She is also concerned about the cow who is due to deliver soon. Another went into labor a couple weeks ago with an especially large calf she was unable to deliver. The vet went out to help, but they were unable to save either the mother or the calf. Not only is this very sad, it is also a big financial loss. We are all hoping the next delivery goes much better!

Next, it is off to check the grass.

As we walk to the other side of the farm the views are so pretty I couldn’t resist taking some photos.
Our destination – a field of grass that was planted a few months ago. It was growing well so it has been added to the rotation of fields for grazing. It seems to be doing well after grazing, and Cedo ordered some fertilizer to help it along.
Another view of the grass in this field.
Cedo makes more phone calls. I snap more photos.
Mora berries in another field. The are very tart but very tasty. They are not so good for cows though, so Cedo instructed the caretaker to “fumigar” which at first I thought was bug treatment, but is actually treatment to kill unwanted plants.
Another view of the ocean in the distance.

The other side of the farm is checked and we make our way back to the milking area where the cows are eating lunch. Thankfully the bull is also eating lunch tied to a railing so we didn’t have to worry about him on our outing. When we returned he was surprisingly mellow and didn’t object to our presence.

The cows are eating lunch, chopped grass sprinkled with molasses – yummy.
The noisy geese make the rounds, honking all the way. They are the farm watchdogs.
One of the cows was not eating and looks thin. She was put in this space for examination of her mouth. Nothing wrong was found there, so Cedo calls the vet for advice.

So, farm visit results – one calf with diarrhea, pigs with parasites, two calves with eye infections, and one cow who doesn’t want to eat. The recommended medicines are on hand at the farm except for one of the recommended meds for the cow who doesn’t want to eat. We stopped by the dairy coop on the way back to get it, and Cedo took the bus back up yesterday to deliver it. She said at that time the cow was eating better and looked like she would be OK.

Farming is a tough job with a narrow profit margin. Food, vitamins, minerals, medications, boarding at other farms, illness and loss of animals, weather, and other factors all affect the bottom line and some farms in the area don’t make it. I asked why she doesn’t just rent the farm to someone. She said she did that in the past and it didn’t go well. Renters just don’t take care of things like an owner, and it took a considerable amount of cleaning up and repairing to put the farm right again after that. So, my friend isn’t exactly kicking back in her retirement years, but that also has its good points. She definitely keeps active and involved with life.

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Building a Bridge

Posted on November 23, 2014 by Kris Cunningham

There is a bridge over the Pan-American Highway here, and we have enjoyed watching the process from breaking ground to the traffic now driving over the new bridge. It has been fascinating!

July 2013, big equipment showed up on either side of the highway.

These big diggers started digging holes on either side of the highway, and circular structures of rebar were left sticking up out of the ground.
Then, the structures became circular structures of cement.
The structures grew and became pillars of cement.
Then, the pillars became part of the supporting structures for the cross beams that were to come.

Supports were built on the pillars on either side of the highway, and then came the part I found most exciting! There is a large space up the road where they built huge beams of rebar and cement. Then, these had to be trucked down to the construction site and put into place.

The beams came down driven by a truck at either end, one going forward and the back one going backwards. The beam is so long you can barely see one truck on the right, and the one on the left is hidden behind the crane. Imagine the skill of these drivers!
The beams are then lifted off the trucks on either end by two cranes.
The beams are carefully lifted up and put in place on their supports.
What an exacting process! Each one was carefully put in place by the crew of workers.
Beam after beam was brought down and put into place, and the bridge started to take shape. Those piles of flat pieces of cement were later used to span the spaces between the beams, and became the foundation of the surface of the road.
The same process went on over on the south side of the highway.
More and more beams were put into place.
The day arrived when it was time to divert traffic and put the beams in place to span the highway.

One by one the beams were put into place, and then large, flat pieces of cement were placed on top to span the spaces between the beams. These became the foundation for the surface of the road.

The workers were men, but women were also represented in the supervision and engineering.
Supports were added along the sides to make a walkway for the workers. Here, welding equipment is being lifted up to the bridge.
The cranes were kept busy bringing up equipment and materials. Here a big bundle of rebar is being lifted up to the bridge.

The pictures make it look like one stage quickly followed another but this work actually took months. It took a long time to put all the cement pieces in place for the road surface, build the walls along the sides, then finish and smooth everything. And, we were only looking from below and we didn’t see all of the details.

We enjoyed watching so much that this location was always a destination on our bike routes. The workers came to recognize us and always waved and greeted us, and I had some interesting conversations with some of them about the project. I usually asked when they would be finished and got an answer at least a month further out than the last time I asked. 😀 Work stopped for a while when there was a nation wide strike by construction workers but otherwise, there was always a lot of activity at the site and things steadily moved along.

The bridge has a road surface! It looks like things are really starting to take shape up there.
A lot of work is going on with the side walls and other things above that we can’t see.
The workers with their yellow shirts remind me of worker bees. I was glad to see that they always had safety equipment when they were working. I don’t think I ever saw anyone up there who wasn’t fastened to something to protect them in case of a fall.
Work started on the approach to the bridge. The ground was dug down a long ways, and then rock and gravel was brought in, carefully layered and tamped down, over and over until the space had a very solid base.
The side walls look done, and work seems to be concentrating on the approaches to the bridge.
The approach is looking ready for finishing!

The weeks go by, the work moves forward…  We drive over bridges every day without a thought to all the engineering, materials, and many many man hours that go into constructing them! We really came to admire the skill and dedication of these many workers.

One Sunday when the workers weren’t there, Joel ventures up on the bridge to check it out from up top! (shh, don’t tell the security guard who was keeping watch underneath 😀 )
Our first view of the city from up on the bridge.
Work continues – getting the approaches ready for paving.
Cement is poured to fill in the gaps between segments. Walls on the approach section are in progress.
Cement is being poured on the approach sections.
Pipes are installed to handle drainage when it rains.
Paving starts!!

The weeks roll by, the work continues, and things continue to take shape. After the dramatic part of putting the beams in place the rest of it seems to take so long, but it all has to be done and done right.

The paving looks like it is almost done, and yellow paint is starting to appear on the side walls.
Lights are being installed.
An on ramp is being built from the highway to the bridge.
The wall around the ball field is being moved and rebuilt to make room for another on ramp on the south side.
It sure looks done, but it still isn’t open. We saw later that they also installed barrier in the medians to prevent turning left on to the bridge for a few blocks on either side.

We went to Nicaragua in September. It looked so ready when we left that we were sure we would miss the opening. When we returned at the end of the month though, the taxi driver told us that it had just opened that day! We had such a great time driving over the bridge for the first time. How exciting after watching the construction for so many months.

The next day I am on my bike, I ride down there and sure enough, the traffic is driving OVER the bridge!!

The next day I am on my bike, I ride down there and sure enough, the traffic is driving OVER the bridge!!

I think the bridge has really helped the traffic flow on the Pan-American highway which has always been extremely congested in this area. Now, people can come and go from the road down from Boquete towards downtown without ever having to go on the highway. The on and off ramps remain unchanged and I haven’t seen anyone working there for some time, but I’m sure they will get finished eventually. The important part is done though, and the bridge is in use.

It has been so exciting for me to watch this whole project from the start to the present. I can only imagine the satisfaction of the workers and they look at the bridge and remember the part they played in making it happen. We sure appreciate all their good work!

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Weekly Photo Challenge: Achievement

Posted on November 18, 2014 by Kris Cunningham

Weekly Photo Challenge: Achievement This week, show us a photo that says “achievement” to you: people meeting a long-worked-for goal. Something tangible you’ve created. A view from a journey you’ve completed, or the stating point of a journey not yet made or a project you hope to finish. We look forward to being inspired!

1114achievement

This is not an outstanding photo by any means, but I think it fits the photo challenge for a few reasons.

First, it was taken in Panama. We spent years thinking, planning, and then finally moving here. It is an achievement to successfully move to a different country.

Second, this bridge was under construction for many months. This photo was taken the first time my husband went up on it. The construction of the bridge has been a big achievement, and it has been very interesting to watch the progress from the start (and there is a post with lots more photos in the works).

Third, the bridge is steep enough that it takes some effort to get up there, and it reminds me how well we have done riding our bikes. It is an achievement to improve your fitness and health at any age, but now that we are in our 60’s I am even more proud of our achievements.

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Making Tamales

Posted on November 17, 2014 by Kris Cunningham

I love Panamanian tamales! My friend Cedo thought it was time to make some, brought home a bunch of leaves from her farm, and we picked a day to cook together. I have tried to document the process here, hopefully well enough that you all could make them using these directions.

1. – chicken. I have developed a fondness for the gallinas duras (hard chickens) which are much larger chickens. They are tough and take more cooking but have a wonderful flavor. Any chicken can be used though (or any meat that you prefer).  To save time on tamale day, I cooked the chicken ahead of time.

This is half a chicken and is over 6 pounds.

This is half a chicken and it’s over 6 pounds.

A pressure cooker is a very useful thing. I put the chicken in the pressure cooker with about 4 cups of water, a chopped onion, a few sliced cloves of garlic, a couple Maggi bouillon cubes, a few culantro leaves, a handful of chopped peppers (the small ones – sweet, not hot), and a pouch of tomato sauce.

I just tossed the chicken in the pot whole, skin and all. This is two of those big half chickens, but we had enough left over chicken that I think one would have been enough.
Chicken with onion, garlic, culantro, and peppers for flavor.
These are the little peppers. Sometimes they are partly green, or all green but they all the same kind of pepper.
A couple option for pouches of tomato sauce.
Ready to cook
After an hour in the pressure cooker the meat was falling off the bones, and it smelled wonderful!

When the chicken was cool enough to handle I took the meat off the bones and put it in the fridge. Then I put the juice or broth in another container and put it in the fridge as well.

2. – corn. Tamales are usually made with maiz seco (dry corn – looks like chicken food. Boil in water until softened and proceed as with fresh corn). I really like maiz nuevo (new corn or fresh corn). It’s a bit more work but I think it is worth it.

Maiz nuevo - it can be found in most of the little produce markets, but I have found the best deal is to buy it from someone selling it out of their truck. There always seem to be a few trucks by the side of the road the goes north just west of the old McDonalds.

Maiz nuevo – it can be found in most of the little produce markets, but I have found the best deal is to buy it from someone selling it out of their truck ($0.15/ear). There always seem to be a few trucks by the side of the road that goes north just west of the old McDonalds. This looks like the sweet corn in the US but it is not. We don’t have those long days here that it needs to get sweet, but when used in Panamanian cooking I think it is really good.

The sellers will give you corn without the husk, but it is your job to clean off the silk, cut the corn off the cobs, and run it through the grinder. Last time we made tamales, Cedo cooked peppers, onion, and culantro in some oil and then broth, and put that all in the blender. This time though she showed me how to proceed without a blender. Just put the peppers, onion and culantro in the grinder along with the corn. This seemed easier and faster and had great results, so I think I will use this method in the future.

Corn, ready for the grinder.
Cedo tossed a couple handfuls of seeded and cored peppers in the grinder.
Then came an onion
and more culantro
A colorful mix is coming out of the grinder.
All ground and ready for the next step.

3. Prepare the leaves – The inner wrapping is plantain leaves. They need to be cut to manageable size and boiled to soften them. This is where it is nice to have two people. One can be washing, cutting, and boiling leaves while the other grinds the corn. The plantain leaves are rolled into a bundle and boiled in a pot of water. When one end is soft, turn the bundle other end up to soften the other end. The outer leaves are bijao. They only need to be washed, the stems trimmed, and heated quickly to soften. After the plantain leaves are boiled, that hot water is good for dipping the bijao leaves.

The bundle of plantain leaves boiling on the stove.
Dipping bijao leaves in the hot water to soften them.

(If leaves are unavailable, tamales can be made in tinfoil packets. The plantain leaves add an interesting flavor though, so use them if you have them. )

4. Put the broth in the ground corn – the broth was retrieved from the fridge and heated on the stove. Cedo is quite efficient in the kitchen and while I was busy grinding, she had the broth ready before I had a chance to watch exactly what she did. I know she flavored it up more with the red sauce and the adobo seasoning and when it passed the taste test, she also added oil (I’m guessing about 1/2 cup). When we made tamales before she added oil until the corn was “brillante” (shiny), and told me this is important to keep it from sticking to the leaves when it is cooked.

Red sauce, adobo, and vegetable oil.
Broth warming on the stove with some bits of meat and veggies that were cooked with the chicken. We ended up using about half of this (maybe 3-4 cups). The rest made a great soup later.
Adding broth to the corn. Cedo says it must be warm because it results in fluffier and softer corn.
Stir in the broth and the filling will be ready.

5. Prepare the meat and garnish – tamales also contain chicken meat and an attractive garnish of onions, peppers, and tomatoes. The veggies are chopped and sauteed in oil until soft. Before, slices of meat were added separately when the tamales were assembled, but this time shredded chicken was added to the veggies when they were cooked, and all was sauteed together for a minute or two. When we finished this part we realized we had forgotten the tomatoes. We decided at this point we didn’t want to backtrack and the tamales would be fine without them.

She sauteed onions, some red peppers, and a bit of green pepper in some oil.
Add the shredded chicken
Ready for assembly

6. Assemble and cook tamales – At this point you have your leaves (and some string), your corn filling, and your meat/vegetable garnish. Put a pot or two of water on the stove to boil (depending on how many tamales you are making) and start putting them together.

Cedo used a small frying pan as a base
Put a bijao leaf in the pan, and then a plantain leaf on top
Put a couple spoonfuls of the corn mixture in the middle
Then, put on some of the chicken and garnish mixture
Fold the top down, the bottom up, and then the sides in
Then, fold in the sides of the bijao
Fold the top down
the bottom up
snip of the stem end with scissors to make a neat package
Tie with string, and they are ready to go in the pot
Tamales in the pots. Notice the ones in the bigger pot are looking more cooked, while the others that hadn’t been cooking as long still have parts that look bright green.

Put the tamales in the boiling water. After 20-30 minutes when the lower part is no longer green, turn them over so the green part is down in the water. Continue cooking another 10-20 minutes until the wrapping is “chocolate” and there is no more green. Don’t worry about over cooking because that does no harm.

Then, take them out, open one, and eat a tamale!

Yeah! The corn that was a bit soupy is now fairly solid and covers the chicken and garnish. But, it is there in the middle.

Yeah! The corn that was a bit soupy is now fairly solid and covers the chicken and garnish. But, it is there in the middle.

Tamales keep well in the fridge for probably up to a week. They can also be frozen. I was told that they come out as good as new when thawed, but none have lasted long enough to get frozen here. Cedo says they should be warmed in hot water, or a covered frying pan with some hot water. The microwave will make them gummy. I warm them in the microwave and they seem to do fine, but I am careful to only heat them as much as necessary and not overheat.

Thank you for bearing with me through this long post. Some people have suggested that a book of Panamanian recipes would be an interesting thing to put together. This is a bit of an attempt in that direction. I see I need measured amounts, an ingredient list, better photos, and I must watch Cedo more closely so I don’t miss any steps. But, Cedo has recipes handed down in her family for generations, she is an experienced cook (had her own restaurant for many years), and in this digital age it can’t be that hard to put together an e-book. So, we shall see.

I am open to suggestions so leave me a comment if you see something that can be improved. If any of you can use these directions to make your own tamales, I will be very excited! (and, of course, happy to “test” your results if possible 😀 )

Posted in food, Panama | Tagged , , | 25 Comments

Los Ramos Says Many Thanks!

Posted on November 13, 2014 by Kris Cunningham

An update on what is happening in Los Ramos, Nicaragua, the town worst affected by the mudslides. The people want to say thank you for all the help, and I want to personally thank my friends and blog followers who helped.

Posted in Panama | 1 Comment

The Month of Holidays

Posted on November 12, 2014 by Kris Cunningham

People joke that nothing gets done in Panama in November because there are so many holidays! Maybe, but things get done like celebrations, parades, fun, and days off to enjoy.

The month began with Día de Difuntos on Sunday the 2nd. This is a quiet day when people honor the dead, reflect on the loved ones who are no longer with us, and visit cemeteries to leave flowers.

Monday the 3rd is the celebration of independence from Colombia. We have been hearing the marching bands and drums practicing for weeks, and this is the first of the holidays with big parades. I went last year in David and and watched the whole thing, four hours worth! It was great fun to see all the bands, all the young people dressed in their finest, and the very professional marching band performances.

Tuesday the 4th is Flag Day celebrating the flag that first flew in November 1903 after the separation from Columbia. Here is an article with a bit more about the holiday and the flag. On my way back from my morning ride I stopped by the Parque de las Madres which I knew was the starting point of the parade. Young people were lining up, and then bands started playing and baton twirlers twirled and people in traditional dress swirled their skirts and everything started happening as each group rounded the corner to the parade route. What fun!

Wednesday the 5th is is the final day of celebration of the separation from Colombia. It is especially significant in Colón because in 1903, the Panamanian officials there prevented Colombian troops from getting on a train bound for Panama City where they planned to thwart the Panamanian independence.

Monday the 10th is el Grito de La Villa de Los Santos, or the shout in the Villa of Los Santos. The history says that in 1821, a peasant woman in Los Santos was the first to raise her voice for independence from Spain. There are celebrations of this event in Los Santos as well as in other areas of the country. I stopped by the Parque de las Madres in David again to watch the beginnings of this parade. I like it especially because there are oxcarts, traditional dress, and traditional bands and music.

 

Oxen are dropped off at the car wash to get attached to their carts.
Girls in their beautiful dresses wait for their turn to start down the parade route. There were also a few dressed as mirror devils – https://epiac1216.wordpress.com/2009/11/19/the-mirror-devils-of-panama/
If your girl is small, you can bring her in a stroller.
More people make their way to the start of the parade.
Girls check their iPhones and chat with the policemen while waiting for their turn to start.

And, there is more! November 28th is independence day from Spain with more parades and celebrations. And, then comes December with Mother’s Day, and then the Christmas and New Year’s holidays. Summer also begins in December with time off from school, various fairs and events around the country, and time for people to relax and enjoy the dry weather. There is no shortage of things to celebrate in Panama!

 

Posted in culture, Panama | Tagged , , , , , | 9 Comments