The Panama Adventure

100 Days

Posted on June 3, 2014 by Kris Cunningham

What can you accomplish if you commit to working on something for 100 days? That’s what Give it 100 is all about. Make a 10 second video of yourself working on your project and post it to the site. Do this every day for 100 days, and see how much better you are at the end than you were when you started.

You can find all sorts of projects on the site, but the majority of people seem to be working on getting healthy – diet and exercise. I fit that category and have been biking for 100 days. People can follow each other and leave comments which I’ve found very helpful. When you know people will wonder where you were yesterday, you are less likely to slack off.

Yesterday was my day 100, and I celebrated with a 3 hour, 31 mile bike ride! There is no way I could have done this in the past. I remember when a 30 minute ride was a big deal, and now it’s a day off. My legs are stronger, my weight is inching down in spite of a cruise and other holidays (and the eating that goes with them) and I’m feeling good.

When your 100 days are done you have the option to still continue for as long as you wish. I will be continuing. I enjoy the people I’ve met on the site, and I love the benefits.

If you’re curious about me on the site, click HERE. I can’t video and ride at the same time, so I try to stop somewhere along the way and video my surroundings for 10 seconds. If I wasn’t biking that day, I’ll fill the slot with a video of what I was doing so my page is a collection of videos of all sorts of things.

I just thought I’d share this site in case any of you might find it helpful to keep yourself on track with anything you are working on. You can post videos of yourself learning Spanish, cleaning the house, practicing yoga, learning ukulele, or anything you can imagine!

Posted in Panama | 12 Comments

Boca Chica

Posted on June 2, 2014 by Kris Cunningham

We spent Saturday night at the Seagullcove Lodge in Boca Chica. We had been there before and really liked it, so when an Oferta Simple deal was available I bought it.

I have written about this place before (click HERE) Our last visit was many months ago but not only were Marcello and Luis still there, they were very happy to see us again! As before, the setting is really beautiful, the accommodations are excellent, and the food is really good.

Panamanians often don’t travel much. My friend and neighbor Haydeé has lived in Boquete and David almost all of her life, but had never seen Boca Chica. I figured we needed to change that and bring her too. Her husband was supposed to come but suddenly was swamped with work, so I convinced her to come without him. It was as much fun sharing her experience as it was enjoying our own there.

The most fun part of this visit was when we hired a water taxi to take us out for a tour. The islands out beyond are very rocky and wild, and so beautiful!

The view from the main lodge is really beautiful.

Check out the big flower bud on this banana.

Bromiliads in the trees.

The dock down below,

I came across this little iguana on the path.

Off we go in the water taxi.

A fishing boat.

Rocky shore line.

The fishing boats may look funky and rusty, but they are working boats.

There were many small islands like this

Many of them were mostly rocks

The sky was gorgeous

We had a perfect day to go out!

Interesting rock arch on the end of this island

We also saw a number of these little sandy beaches. It would be fun to go for a swim and then explore the island a bit.

At first I didn’t know why he was getting so close to this island, until I saw this interesting opening

It was like a cave going through the island!

As we headed in another direction, we were going the same direction as the waves. Our driver rode one of the waves like we were surfing!

There were so many interesting rock formations, like the islands had been squeezed up from the depths of the earth.

As we returned, some great clouds started to form.

That’s our hotel on the left. You can pick it out by all the little red roofs of the cabanas.

Coming back in to the dock, the water was glassy smooth.

Before we headed home, we had to take one last walk down to the dock and look at the scenery again.

There are lots of crabs and hermit crabs in the sand.

what a nice place to hang out!

We were told that there are whales right out there in that water you can see from the hotel! I have already bought more Oferta Simples, and we plan to go back in August. Hopefully Haydeé’s husband can come also, and we will go out in a boat and see if we can see some whales.

It’s really nice to have such a lovely spot so close to us. Even when you are retired there are chores and daily things you do, so it’s nice to get away where there is nothing to do but enjoy yourself.

Posted in Exploring the Area, Panama, travel | Tagged Boca Brava, Boca Chica, Chiriqui, Panama, Seagullcove Lodge | 14 Comments

Weekly Photo Challenge: Twist

Posted on May 30, 2014 by Kris Cunningham

Weekly Photo Challenge: Twist This week, share a photo of something that says “twist” to you. It might be that perfect ice cream cone, a yummy bit of liquorice, or something unexpected that surprised, shocked, or startled you.

I didn’t have to think too hard about this one! There is a new and unique building in Panama City which came to mind immediately.

Taken in October 2012 as I was traveling through Panama City on the way to my new home.

Taken on a very recent trip to Panama City, showing the building in the context of the busy city.

Posted in Panama, Photo Challenge, photography | Tagged Panama, Panama City, photography, postaday | 4 Comments

Javier, the Rambala Caretaker and Nature Guide

Posted on May 29, 2014 by Kris Cunningham

We visited the Rambala Jungle Lodge last December just before Mother’s Day. At that visit Javier helped us get our things to our cabanas and then took off so I didn’t see much of him. He and a couple friends have a years old tradition of serenading every mother in town for the occasion, so he was anxious to get on his way. I did, however, get to see and explore his house a bit which I posted about in this blog post. I had never seen such a basic and simple house up close and found it extremely interesting.

On this visit, the house is basically unchanged. But, this time I was able to talk with Javier quite a bit and learn more about his life. I’m not sure how old he is but he has three children in their 20’s, one grandchild and another on the way. He is from Nicaragua where he worked as a tour guide taking people around in carts drawn by water buffalo. Next, he moved to Costa Rica where he was also a tour guide, this time leading horseback rides. From there, he came to Panama. The people in Costa Rica want him back but he is very happy where he is now and wants to stay.

Javier has a nice block house in town with electricity and indoor plumbing. He says he goes there to do his laundry and watch TV – documentaries on nature and wildlife. But, it is noisy in town – neighbors, babies, dogs, etc. He is happier at Rambala. He has his radio and his reading material (again, nature and wildlife), and loves the quiet and being so close to nature. He says he often goes out hiking at night just to see the different animals that come out after dark. His passion has always been the outdoors and wildlife, and he loves sharing this interest with others.

This is the “front room” and the sleeping loft is above. (note the steps in the log to get up there)

This is the kitchen. There is a gas burner and shelves on the other side.

The view from the back

View from the side. The window opening is the sink / washing up area. The guy in the hammock was there to do some cutting and trimming, and was apparently waiting for Javier to return and give him instructions.

I only took a few photos this time since Javier was on site and I didn’t want to be a pest. Check the previous post though for many more photos. I should have asked him what he eats and what he cooks. This time, like last time, there didn’t seem to be any food around that I could see. It certainly doesn’t look like my kitchen where you could probably live for a month if you had to!

None of it looks like my house. He has a roof that protects from the elements. He has a water hose, gas for cooking, and an outhouse. This, and his radio and reading materials, and the jungle, and he’s happy. Of all the things I’ve seen so far in Panama, Javier and his house have give me the most to think about. I’ve passed many similar homes on drives around, but I’ve never had the opportunity to get to know the people or look at the homes up close so for me, this was a big part of my experience at Rambala.

As aside – I have to mention too that the people in the countryside are amazingly strong. The lodge and cabanas are all built with wood from trees that have died and fallen naturally in the jungle. The lumber was cut on site and carried out by hand. It was challenging for me to hike around out there, and I know how heavy that wood is. I cannot imagine carrying lumber through the jungle! I saw a little of this when I saw the guys carrying lumber on their shoulders as we were hiking out of the area.

I also got to feel Javier’s strength first hand when I was making my way up a steep and slippery spot and lost my footing. He grabbed my hand and hauled me up about 4 feet like it was nothing, and I’m a lot heaver than he is.

Javier is in his element!

He may not very big but he’s tough, and smart, and has a passion for life, and a kind heart. I don’t think I could live that kind of minimalist outdoor life myself but I can certainly respect those who do. “The rich are prisoners and the poor are free”. I’m not sure where I heard that but there is truth in it. We strive for so much but where does it really get us?

Thanks Javier for sharing yourself, your story, and your time in the jungle with all of us.

Posted in culture, Panama, travel | Tagged Javier, outdoor living, Rambala, Rambala Jungle Lodge, simple living | 6 Comments

Hiking at Rambala

Posted on May 29, 2014 by Kris Cunningham

One morning a small group of us set off for a hike in the jungle, led by the caretaker and hiking guide Javier. He has made a path up behind the main grounds of the Rambala Jungle Lodge that leads through the jungle and up to the top of the hill. I thought this was a wonderful experience guided by someone who not only has a lot of knowledge, but a great love for the jungle and everything that lives there. Again, photos can only give you the barest idea of what it really feels like to be out there.

Javier is ready for us to get going.

We spot a helicopter damselfly. It’s beautiful on the leaf, but when it flies it is a whirring of blue and black wings (thus its name). They are quite large and very beautiful!

Javier is in his element!

These rocks are so huge we made Brenda stand in front of them for some perspective.

Whoa, look, we found something!

One of many beautiful ferns.

No hike of mine would be complete without a cool bug on a leaf.

Eric and Javier check the water lines while Mariah stops for a drink of water.

It’s hard for a photo to convey the untouched beauty and wildness of this place, or the enormity of some of the trees.

Another look at the stream running through the area.

The bumpy vine looking thing is monkey ladder. Javier said it is good for the kidneys and is sold for a high price for medicinal purposes.

Just a pretty purple palm frond.

The story is that a previous owner planted this bamboo high in the jungle, and now it has turned into a massive clump of beautiful bamboo.

We make it up to the top and view the valleys and meadows below.

We can see the neighbors cows on the other side of the hill.

One of the Rambala horses, Negro, comes up to greet Javier.

Javier thumps on a fence post where the bullet ants live. You do NOT want to get bit by one of these.

We probably spent a couple hours hiking, a lot of it climbing up muddy, rocky paths. I am so glad for my good hiking shoes and the hours on the bicycle. My legs held up fine. My poor old knees weren’t so happy for a couple days but nothing major.

I’m so lucky to be here. I could have stayed in the US and worked another 10+ years. By then I probably couldn’t do these things. I also wouldn’t have met Javier, who will be the subject of my next post.

And to close, check out the leaf cutter ants at work. Apologies for the video quality. I had my Nikon which is not made for video work. The first bit is them climbing down a vine, then they are going through the leaves, and in the last bit they are heading up the other side by the path.

Posted in Exploring Panama, insects, Panama, photography, travel, wildlife | Tagged Bocas del Toro Province, Hiking, jungle, Rambala, Rambala Jungle Lodge, wildlife | 6 Comments

Last Stop, Rambala

Posted on May 28, 2014 by Kris Cunningham

Our last stop in our travels was the Rambala Jungle Lodge. We had been here before so I knew what it was like, and I was really looking forward to going there again.

Jungle Lodge doesn’t fully explain what this place is about. I probably can’t either. It is one of those things you have to experience. The place is near Rambala, a town on the north side of Panama in Bocas del Toro Province. If you are high up enough you can see the water of Chiriqui Grande.

Eric and Linda (the owners) have carved a bit of living space out of the jungle. There are cabanas so you have a roof over your head and mosquito nets to keep out unwanted night visitors, but otherwise you are literally in the jungle. There is no electricity. Water is from the mountain stream. Anything else must be carried in. It is one thing to experience Panama from a city or block house, and quite another to be out with nature in the big outdoors.

The view from the front of our cabana.

Our bed, more or less outdoors except for the roof.

The bathroom. That is the sink straight ahead. There is a composting toilet on the right. (works great – odor free)

The outdoor shower is on the right.

You can tell we’ve been out and about.

The grounds are beautiful, and it was interesting to see different flowers and plants this time. (our last visit was in December). Here’s are some photos, in no particular order.

This is only one variety of many heliconia that are growing on the property.

That’s our cabana up there.

I don’t know what these were but they were sure pretty.

A pathway up the hill.

We had fun swimming one afternoon! The water was pretty chilly but if you are hot it feels very good.

There is the water of Chiriqui Grande in the distance.

My camera tended to fog up in the morning sun after being cooled in the night air.

One the way home, hiking out back to the car.

Of course there are always interesting bugs and critters!

There were four tree sloths, two of them with babies.

I was trying to photograph a spider and found this unique bug under the lodge.

A Jesus Lizard, a different variety than we have near my house.

These Jesus Lizards are great because they freeze when disturbed, making them great photo subjects.

Some others found the poison dart frog and brought it back for the rest of us to see. When he was let go he was nice enough to pose for a moment before he hopped off into the undergrowth.

A golden orb spider, a very large spider. This one wasn’t polite enough to hang out where he was easy to photograph, or where the light would hit the web (which is supposed to be gold in the sunlight) but he was still a very cool spider.

A beautiful flag bug hanging out on the passion vine.

Another tree sloth in the tree.

I got lucky one morning and caught this sloth in the tree with the light hitting her (we know it’s a her because she is one of the moms)

Two different orchid bees. Eric put the paper towel out with a scent they like to attract them. He says they collect the scents and store them on their back legs so they will smell good enough to attract a female.

This orchid bee is quite large and very beautiful.

I saw this big critter hanging out on our door frame one morning.

A very lucky shot! The sloth stretched her front legs overhead (or underhead since she is upside down) just long enough to get a good shot of the baby hanging on to her belly.

Eric and Linda are becoming a wealth of information on the wildlife in the area, and love to point out everything they find. They said they have also been visited by a number of research scientists who want to study wildlife. One time they had a whole crowd who spent all night in the jungle looking for a particular frog! I know I have barely scratched the surface of what can be seen in their jungle.

Javier with the horse assigned the job of carrying our packs out to the car.

As we were walking out, two indians came along carrying long pieces of lumber like they were nothing!

Down the road, there is a herd of water buffalo.

I’ll leave you with some random videos I took while experimenting with my iPad. The next post will be some untouched jungle as we go hiking up the hill!

Posted in Exploring Panama, Flowers, insects, Panama, travel, wildlife | Tagged Bocas del Toro Province, flag bug, Golden Orb Spider, nature, Panama, Poison dart frog, Rambala, Rambala Jungle Lodge, Tree Sloth | 8 Comments

Walking around Bocas Town

Posted on May 25, 2014 by Kris Cunningham

Bocas del Toro is a province on the Caribbean side of Panama but when someone says “Bocas” what comes to mind is usually is the Bocas del Toro district and the islands. It’s a beautiful area with clear, warm, turquoise water, many islands with lush vegetation and sandy beaches, and opportunities for many recreational activities. The center of activities is Bocas Town on Isla Colon (Colon Island). It can be reached by air from Panama City or by water taxi from Almirante.

The town is a tourist destination so there are many hotels, hostels, restaurants, shops, and businesses offering excursions and activities. English is widely spoken, and you are likely to see people of every color and many nationalities. There is a very relaxed “anything goes” feel in town. You can dress however you like and ride your bicycle down the middle of main street without a care.

There are buildings and houses of every sort (though the fancy places tend to be a bit outside of town). What interests me and my camera though are the more funky and interesting places, so I set out with my camera for a walk around town.

There was a private house next to our hotel. There were many people there coming and going, and I’m guessing that some of them were in the business of taking tourists around in boats. At night there were often three or four boats tied up at this dock.

This is the front of the house next door.

All day the kids would play out at the end of the dock and in any boats tied at the dock.

We came across a dirt pile near where some construction had gone on. A closer look revealed a bunch of these blue crabs living there!

There is a fair amount of rain in this area so the cemetery had plenty of green along with the many flowering trees.

One of the many interesting houses. I like the weathered wood.

A bunch of vultures were very interested in something in the ditch. (We didn’t see anything though, so who knows what it was)

This pretty bird was also fishing in the ditch.

How much house do you really need?

Check out the kettle on the open fire outside on the sidewalk.

What interesting tile work on this house

Many houses are built up off the ground. I imagine it’s cooler and away from the ground water on rainy days.

This was behind a house, probably just a shed

I think these are breadfruit. We have jackfruit here which are similar but bumpy, and these fruits are smooth. There were quite a few trees in town but I didn’t see the fruit for sale. One of these days I want to try it.

One of the many shops, this one full of hammocks and bags, among other things.

Heading towards the park and center of town.

There were some Kuna Indians selling molas and other items.

These guys were selling guaba, a big hard bean sort of fruit. If you crack it open though, there is a delicious sweet fruit around the beans.

These are occupied houses. The one on the right has some interesting painting on the outside.

What do you need to get by?

This is the bike shop where we rented our bikes. They also have a great selection of bike accessories. I bought a new seat for my own bike.

You can stay at this hostel and rent the tree house here.

The work looked very good on this new house. Check out the ladder though. I would probably break something trying to get up there on that!

A waterfront home not far from our hotel.

There is a small strip of land that connects the town to the rest of the island, and we saw a number of these houses in that area. The building on the right is a church.

We may think the houses look funky, but look at the view from there!

This is the end of my stories and photos from Bocas. Next, we were on to Rambala and the jungle for more unique and interesting experiences!

Posted in Exploring Panama, Panama, photography, travel | Tagged Bocas Del Toro, Bocas Town, Isla Colon, Panama | 10 Comments

Bocas, the Other Side of the Island

Posted on May 25, 2014 by Kris Cunningham

On our first full day in Bocas, we rented bikes and had a great time. The second day we decided to get back on the bikes and try to see a bit of the other side of the island. Who would have thought it would be so different over there!

We rode north along the beach to get to the fork in the road, and this time we went left instead of right. We quickly found we were in a very different type of area with hills, many tall trees, and lots of birds!

I was surprised at how different it looked here.

It was lush and green, and very hilly.

It was quite a change after the flat, sandy routes of the other side.

Unfortunately my bike wasn’t as good today. It refused to move from 7th gear, so I did a fair amount of walking up the hills. No matter though because it gave me more time to look around.

Trees in front of an open meadow in the background.

I just like this photo

A few of the tall trees.

An oropendula does his thing in the tree. He is the loudest bird you hear in the video. They do this calling, flapping, and bowing thing, have gold tails, which I suppose is how that get the name of the golden pendula. They also make very unusual large hanging nests.

This beautiful huge tree caught my eye.

Some areas were open meadows, and others were this thick, lush jungle.

This house was for sale. I’m not sure if all the goats come with it. They all sure had a lot to say!

We didn’t go far in this direction since it was a bit late in the day, and we had already spent most of the day before on bikes. I was very interested to see this much of the other side though, and maybe next time we can go the whole way. We were passed by a bus on its way to Playa Boca del Drago on the end of the island, so that would be another way to see the whole length of this side.

I’ll close this post with a bit of video. Listen to all the birds!

Posted in Exploring Panama, Panama, travel | Tagged Bocas Del Toro, Bocas Town, Isla Colon, Playa Boca del Drago | 10 Comments

Weekly Photo Challenge: Work of Art

Posted on May 25, 2014 by Kris Cunningham

Weekly Photo Challenge: Work of Art This week, share a photo of something that’s art to you. It could be some actual “art,” like a painting by your grandmother or the misshapen but perfect clay sculpture your child brought home from kindergarden, or something most people wouldn’t consider beautiful at all, but that has meaning to you. The important thing is that it’s art in your eyes.

I happened across these on our visit to Bocas del Toro, Isla Colon.

This is a bit of the wall around the cemetery in Bocas town. I’m not sure what it used to be, but now that it is faded and weathered I think it looks really interesting.

I’ve always liked graffiti. You don’t usually see it on an old boat beached just out of reach of the surf.

Graffiti on another wall near the beach.

Posted in Panama, Photo Challenge, photography | Tagged Bocas Del Toro, Panama, photography, postaday, Weekly Photo Challenge, work of art | 4 Comments

Panama City, Casco Viejo

Posted on May 24, 2014 by Kris Cunningham

On our recent trip to Panama City with my friend Holly, we had the pleasure of staying with Emma which was great because not only is she great company, she knows the interesting things to see in the city.

I had been to Casco Viejo a couple times. The first time was on our first visit to the country. We rented a car and got lost every time we set out, and one of our unplanned excursions was to Casco Viejo. The last time was more than two years ago on another visit when we hired a taxi driver to give us a tour around the city. This is the first time I have been there on foot.

Things have sure changed since our first visit! There has been a lot of renovation and many of the buildings are completed. It’s a really interesting area with lots of things to see, so walking is the perfect way to look around a bit.