The shed was finished this week, except for some final painting. The local tradition, when the roof goes on a building, is for the owner to provide the workers with beer and mondongo (tripe). After advice from our friends here, we decided to forego the mondongo and give the workers beer and money ($5 each). The workers didn't seem to miss the mondongo at all.
While in Panama City earlier this week, we found more wonderful grocery stores. I say tell everyone:I haven't done any site seeing in Panama City but I know every grocery store in the city. These last two were J ewish delis (have found three so far), with a great vegetable selection. Also, from our hotel in Panama City, I can walk to New York Bagels and treat ourselves to great lox and bagels, along with buying bagels to bring home.
The ship with our household goods had to divert itself to other ports in order to avoid the hurricanes in the Atlantic. Instead of the promised 3 September arrival, the ship is now schedule for 17 September. Unfortunately for the import agents, they forgot to inform us of the missed arrival date so we had a one-sided, unhappy conversation with them. We are now getting regular status reports. Once the ship docks, it will be another week before we get our stuff, due to customs procedures. We are now expecting our stuff to be delivered to our house around the 24th of September, just when we have visitors. Naturally.
Speaking of visitors: Nigel and Gill from Portugal and Donald and Sarah from the US are arriving in Panama City on Saturday the 22nd. We plan to go meet them, spend a couple of days there, and then come up here for a couple of days. Tommy's birthday is on 25 September. One of the best restaurants in Panama in here in El Valle, so we will be going there for the birthday dinner. For all our foodie friends: "best" in Panama is probably at "B" elsewhere. Still good, though.
The little local library is so neat, and is funded by contributions from the wealthy Panamaians who have weekend houses here. The library has a small, but certainly adequate, English language section. On Saturday mornings, several volunteers teach English classes to the school age kids. I went a couple of weeks ago, to show one class the magic of Google Earth, which fascinated everyone in the library. A big favorite was Disneyland.
The library also shows movies, via DVDs. On Friday nights, the movies are in English with Spanish subtitles; the reverse happens on Saturday nights. We like this little event! Some weeks the movies are good and some weeks they are bad. Some weeks we get surprised, like last week when the advertised movie, "The Holiday", was replaced with some awful Jackie Chan crapola. One of our friends walked out as soon as we confirmed the replacement; he gets the smart guy award.
I think I mentioned that I was teaching myself to make paper, using our household's recycled paper. My efforts were okay but not great. Luckily, one of our new friends here is a papermaker, using plant material. She had me over for a papermaking session; what fun and I learned alot. And what a mess we made.
The weekends here are lots of fun, with more stores open and with lots more energy in the town. The market, which is famous throughout Panama, has much nicer produce on the weekend, and there are more artists/craftspeople selling their stuff. The pottery pot man is also here on the weekends, and we have lots of his pots and saucers. There are several pottery places along the road up to El Valle; one of them has large pots similar to the ones Cynthia gave us for our Portuguese house. We had to leave those big pots in Portugal, and will replace them with ones from one of those pottery stands.
There was a big drama here two weeks ago: a fairly influential couple from the US was vacationing up here, staying at one of the fancy hotels. The guy of the couple decided to go walking on one of the mountains; when he didn't return within the expected time, his wife notified the hotel owners who started mobilizing search teams, some volunteer and some paid. This poor guy was found two days later (!) by the local Indians, who made a basic stretcher to lift him out and carry him down the mountain to the waiting ambulance. Apparently this couple has enough influence to get Jimmy Carter called President Torrijos (of Panama) to ask him to ask the US to send helicopters (the US stated policy is to not send helicopters unless requested by the host nation...except when it suits them otherwise). Panama didn't request US help, but it didn't matter because the mountain is so steep and jungley that there is no place for a helicopter to land (the Panamanian rescue service did send a helicopter but it couldn't land). Anyway, the guy had at least one fractured leg (some stories say two legs and an arm were broken), was taken to a hospital in Panama City, and is okay now.
I just went outside to close the gate and the frogs are talking! El Valle is home to the golden frog, in case you didn't know. I don't know if the ones I hear are the famous golden guys, but they sure are making noise!
Talk to you later!
Friday, September 14, 2007
Wednesday, August 22, 2007
August 22, 2007: Donald's 60th Birthday!
Today is Donald's 60th birthday, which he is celebrating in Florence with Sarah and two other friends. May the celebrations be long and lusty!
Hurricane Dean hit Mexico, Belize and Guatemala yesterday. The news is full of Mexico's damage, but we can find little about Belize and Guatemala except that Ambergris and Caulker Cayes were evacuated, as was Belize City. Corozal apparently took a direct hit; we remember it as the first place we camped in Belize. It was extremely low lying and right on the water. It was so incredibly poor and ramshackle when we were there; just can't imagine it now and how the people are coping.
Well, it has been a while since we talked. We have the workers here again, building our "shed" so that we can store a lot of our stuff when it arrives, which is currently projected for sometime in September. We decided to build the shed first, since it will take about five months to build Tommy's workshop (which we will get started as soon as the shed is finished). Today the shed reached a height higher than the mason's arms, so he made his version of a scaffold: a rickedy board, perched over two cinder blocks, piled on top of two oil drums. Well, it seems to do the trick!
Our visa applications have been filed! It took over three months to collect all the papers and have them authenticated in their countries of issue. Christopher handled the US papers, and easily handled the undocumented (on the internet and telephone records) move of the Panamanian Consulate from San Francisco to San Diego. Getting documents from Portugal started with Hans and Justina obtaining the required reports, and then our lawyer in Lisbon taking those reports from office to office. This took over a month (!), and cost you don't want to know how much money. He also had to deal with offices which had moved, telephones which were disconnected (with no forwarding numbers), broken copy machines which caused days of delays, bureaucrats who didn't know what was required....unbelievable! At this moment, we are not sure which is the worst bureaucracy: the US, Portuguese or Panamanian! And then, naturally, we had a week of absolute hell when we discovered that the Lisbon lawyer had sent our papers through Portuguese "fast" mail, rather than by FedEx or DHL, as we had requested. The reason we requested the use of these courier services is that Panama has no postal delivery by the postal system: everything goes to a general delivery post office (such as in El Valle), or to a post office box. And the "system" is said to be completely unreliable and corrupt. However, our lawyer in Panama City put his staff to work to find our package and, after a week of searching, the package was located. Champagne time!
Well, we'll come back in a few days. Right now, we want to get snacks ready for folks who are coming over for a drink. Take care!
Hurricane Dean hit Mexico, Belize and Guatemala yesterday. The news is full of Mexico's damage, but we can find little about Belize and Guatemala except that Ambergris and Caulker Cayes were evacuated, as was Belize City. Corozal apparently took a direct hit; we remember it as the first place we camped in Belize. It was extremely low lying and right on the water. It was so incredibly poor and ramshackle when we were there; just can't imagine it now and how the people are coping.
Well, it has been a while since we talked. We have the workers here again, building our "shed" so that we can store a lot of our stuff when it arrives, which is currently projected for sometime in September. We decided to build the shed first, since it will take about five months to build Tommy's workshop (which we will get started as soon as the shed is finished). Today the shed reached a height higher than the mason's arms, so he made his version of a scaffold: a rickedy board, perched over two cinder blocks, piled on top of two oil drums. Well, it seems to do the trick!
Our visa applications have been filed! It took over three months to collect all the papers and have them authenticated in their countries of issue. Christopher handled the US papers, and easily handled the undocumented (on the internet and telephone records) move of the Panamanian Consulate from San Francisco to San Diego. Getting documents from Portugal started with Hans and Justina obtaining the required reports, and then our lawyer in Lisbon taking those reports from office to office. This took over a month (!), and cost you don't want to know how much money. He also had to deal with offices which had moved, telephones which were disconnected (with no forwarding numbers), broken copy machines which caused days of delays, bureaucrats who didn't know what was required....unbelievable! At this moment, we are not sure which is the worst bureaucracy: the US, Portuguese or Panamanian! And then, naturally, we had a week of absolute hell when we discovered that the Lisbon lawyer had sent our papers through Portuguese "fast" mail, rather than by FedEx or DHL, as we had requested. The reason we requested the use of these courier services is that Panama has no postal delivery by the postal system: everything goes to a general delivery post office (such as in El Valle), or to a post office box. And the "system" is said to be completely unreliable and corrupt. However, our lawyer in Panama City put his staff to work to find our package and, after a week of searching, the package was located. Champagne time!
Well, we'll come back in a few days. Right now, we want to get snacks ready for folks who are coming over for a drink. Take care!
Wednesday, May 23, 2007
El Valle, Panama, May 23rd, 2007
Wow! So, we were heading down the mountain on Friday, May 11th and our lawyer called to say that the house contract was ready to sign, whenever we were. Well why not on Saturday, we all agreed. So we did, and wow! was it easy! That afternoon, Tommy and I taxied around Panama City, buying a washer, dryer, a new stove and an exercise machine. The new stove is a luxury, for sure! And, per Cynthia, the exercise machine a necessity.
The following day, Sunday, we headed back up the mountain and met the sellers of the house, who handed over the keys and we moved in. Incredible! The house is about six months old, and still has a few things unfinished or needing fixing/improvements. It has four bedrooms and three baths, plus a maid's room and bath (!), which is now the exercise area. It is a great house, which makes up for the smallish lot. The house came fully furnished, with mostly new stuff, including linens for the beds, as well as a TV and DVD player which doubles as our stereo system. We'll give back much of the stuff when ours arrives but for now, we couldn't be more comfortable. And, we should say, the sellers have gone out of their way to make sure that we had enough of the right stuff. They will eventually be our neighbors because they are building a replacement house on the lot behind us.
We have had electricians, plumbers, builders, etc. here for the last week. It is amazing how little you can get done, when you have all these guys around (Skip says that it is like herding cats). Last week they kept all their promised appointments; this week, no one has showed up ... including the national telephone company. Fortunately, we were well trained in Portugal so this kind of stuff doesn't bother us as much as other "estranjeiros", who freak out if someone is 10 minutes late.
The garden is small but beautifully planted. We are adding plants to screen ourselves from the neighbors (way, way too close) as well as to give ourselves some privacy. There are also quite a few herbs (lots of basil, parsley, and rosemary) but eventually I want to expand this part of the garden. There is no coentros (cilantro) or lemon grass anywhere I can find so we are going to have to grow it.
By the way, "we" don't add the plants...for the first time in our lives, we have a gardner who comes 10 days a month to maintain the garden and cut the grass. We also have a maid (another first) who comes once a week, today being her first day. We are going to have to start making messes because she finished all her work (including windows) within six hours.
It is hot and humid here, and the rainy season has just started. And boy! Does it rain! This little internet place has a tin roof, and the noise of the rain on the roof makes it impossible to have a conversation here. At the moment, this is part of the charm as your man Tommy loves to say.
TwoBaby is thrilled to finally have a place of his own! As he did in Portugal, he talks to everyone who comes in the house. He and I were up early this morning, to watch the sun come up. We also watched a frog, hopping around the front terrace. Two didn't chase the frog but did investigate the frog's path/smell after the frog had hopped off. We are grateful that TwoBaby is an old, well fed cat because he hasn't gone after any of the birds which visit us each morning, chirping us awake.
Tommy is busy, cataloging all the refreshment stops. There are very few "bars" as we know them, but plenty of cafes which serve drinks. And there are two miserable concrete structures which are known as the beer gardens. I prefer the cafes any day.
El Valle was once the crater of a vulcano (a gazillion years ago). The town itself is flat, which is ideal for bike riding. I couldn't resist: I bought a bicycle. But because I have a really good bike which will be coming with our household goods, I bought the cheapest one I could find here. What a piece of junk! I have already had two blown tires. Everyone just shakes their heads and says "Chinese" because this bike was made in China. They say the same about the light bulbs sold here in El Valle. Now we all know that China produces good products, but the worst ones (i.e., with no quality control) seem to end up here in Panama.
Tommy visited the post office today to find out our address. It is:
Tommy and Barbara Camph
General Delivery
Province Cocle
El Valle de Anton
1001
Panama
We may also get a post office box in Miami (there are three different companies here, offering this service). Apparently this is a good thing to have for such things as Amazon shopping.
Our cell phone is (country code 507) 67 38 47 20. When the telephone company decides to appear and install a phone, we'll let you know the land line.
Crazy stuff, hm?
The following day, Sunday, we headed back up the mountain and met the sellers of the house, who handed over the keys and we moved in. Incredible! The house is about six months old, and still has a few things unfinished or needing fixing/improvements. It has four bedrooms and three baths, plus a maid's room and bath (!), which is now the exercise area. It is a great house, which makes up for the smallish lot. The house came fully furnished, with mostly new stuff, including linens for the beds, as well as a TV and DVD player which doubles as our stereo system. We'll give back much of the stuff when ours arrives but for now, we couldn't be more comfortable. And, we should say, the sellers have gone out of their way to make sure that we had enough of the right stuff. They will eventually be our neighbors because they are building a replacement house on the lot behind us.
We have had electricians, plumbers, builders, etc. here for the last week. It is amazing how little you can get done, when you have all these guys around (Skip says that it is like herding cats). Last week they kept all their promised appointments; this week, no one has showed up ... including the national telephone company. Fortunately, we were well trained in Portugal so this kind of stuff doesn't bother us as much as other "estranjeiros", who freak out if someone is 10 minutes late.
The garden is small but beautifully planted. We are adding plants to screen ourselves from the neighbors (way, way too close) as well as to give ourselves some privacy. There are also quite a few herbs (lots of basil, parsley, and rosemary) but eventually I want to expand this part of the garden. There is no coentros (cilantro) or lemon grass anywhere I can find so we are going to have to grow it.
By the way, "we" don't add the plants...for the first time in our lives, we have a gardner who comes 10 days a month to maintain the garden and cut the grass. We also have a maid (another first) who comes once a week, today being her first day. We are going to have to start making messes because she finished all her work (including windows) within six hours.
It is hot and humid here, and the rainy season has just started. And boy! Does it rain! This little internet place has a tin roof, and the noise of the rain on the roof makes it impossible to have a conversation here. At the moment, this is part of the charm as your man Tommy loves to say.
TwoBaby is thrilled to finally have a place of his own! As he did in Portugal, he talks to everyone who comes in the house. He and I were up early this morning, to watch the sun come up. We also watched a frog, hopping around the front terrace. Two didn't chase the frog but did investigate the frog's path/smell after the frog had hopped off. We are grateful that TwoBaby is an old, well fed cat because he hasn't gone after any of the birds which visit us each morning, chirping us awake.
Tommy is busy, cataloging all the refreshment stops. There are very few "bars" as we know them, but plenty of cafes which serve drinks. And there are two miserable concrete structures which are known as the beer gardens. I prefer the cafes any day.
El Valle was once the crater of a vulcano (a gazillion years ago). The town itself is flat, which is ideal for bike riding. I couldn't resist: I bought a bicycle. But because I have a really good bike which will be coming with our household goods, I bought the cheapest one I could find here. What a piece of junk! I have already had two blown tires. Everyone just shakes their heads and says "Chinese" because this bike was made in China. They say the same about the light bulbs sold here in El Valle. Now we all know that China produces good products, but the worst ones (i.e., with no quality control) seem to end up here in Panama.
Tommy visited the post office today to find out our address. It is:
Tommy and Barbara Camph
General Delivery
Province Cocle
El Valle de Anton
1001
Panama
We may also get a post office box in Miami (there are three different companies here, offering this service). Apparently this is a good thing to have for such things as Amazon shopping.
Our cell phone is (country code 507) 67 38 47 20. When the telephone company decides to appear and install a phone, we'll let you know the land line.
Crazy stuff, hm?
Wednesday, May 9, 2007
El Valle, Panama, May 9th, 2007
Woops...it has been awhile! We did go back up to Lake Arenal, and spent another two days looking at properties. There were two great pieces of land, overlooking the lake. We left the area, feeling really good about the people and the place. This time, on the way down to San Jose, we stopped to look at Volcan Arenal. Our bar of choice had seats looking directly at the volcano, who chose to erupt and throw some lava down our side while we were sitting there. This is truly an amazing experience! So primevil, so out of control, so stark and fascinating. You expect to see dinosaurs at any moment!
We spent the night again at the Belen RV trailer park, and the next day headed south (unfortunately, through San Jose...ugh!), arriving in the Dominical area late in the afternoon. What a drama, getting into the campground! Our van was too high for the first entrance, so we were directed to the back entrance, where metal lines had to be held up with poles to give the van enough clearance! The owner was extremely accommodating, and made a difficult situation good. What a gorgeous beach area is Dominical! This apparently is a great surfing area, so once again, we were the oldest folks around. We found a super restaurant nearby, and had great fresh tuna for dinner.
The next day we went back up the highway, so that we could visit Pete and Mary Jo's house at Tres Piedras. We were 40 minutes getting down to the valley floor, on a difficult road for our van, but when we arrived at their caretakers' house, we were welcomed with great enthusiasm. Irma, the wife, took Barbara wading across the river and up the grass driveway to the house. What a great location! And what terrific people are these caretakers. They cut us two pineapples to take along, and invited us to return when the river was low enough for the van to ford (in the "summer", which would be January or February...the season reverse is difficult to get used to.) Tres Piedras is a bit of magic!
We continued along the coastal highway, which was absolutely beautiful and the road in great condition. We spent the night at the Bunka Lodge, about 60 km from the border. We had our own little guest house, which was so well equipped and laid out that we took measurements, thinking to copy it if we were to build a guest house.
The next day we crossed the border, and you all know our feelings about borders so enough said. We had intended to spend the night in David but after an hour of being rejected at the hotels (all full!) we continued on to Boquete, which is a mountain town and much, much nicer than David. We found a hotel which gave us our own cabin (which we are really liking!) and started exploring. We found a jazz club! We liked Boquete a lot so spent the next two days looking at houses, and did find one we liked.
After two days in Boquete, we headed east and ended up in Santiago for Saturday night. On Sunday, we continued eastward, checking out beaches as we went. Our favorite was Santa Clara, which has white sand, a couple of casual restaurants and ranchos with hammocks. That night we ended up in El Valle, which is a mountain town where our friends from Silves, Rene and Tom Cosans, live. We spent Sunday night at a hotel and then met up with Rene and Tom on Monday, April 30th.
Rene and Tom took us to lunch at a neat local place (garlic shrimp...yum!). As we were finishing lunch, one of their friends came to the table and, after hearing that we were there to look at property, she announced she had something for sale and would show it to us that afternoon. She did, we liked it, Rene and Tom couldn't believe the value for money, we looked at it again the next day, made an offer, and here we are!
The agent is named Chola and she has 10 brothers and sisters, and they all have children. One of Chola's nephews is a lawyer in Panama City and he and his partners specialize in ex-pat matters. Chola bundled us up, took us to Panama City and for two days we did the visa stuff, the bank account stuff, and met the owners of the house in El Valle. Oh, and Chola found someone to take care of TwoBaby while we were in Panama City. The Chola universe!
So, now the lawyers are working out the contracts, our terrific bank (SRI Federal Credit Union) has already transferred the down payment, and we are on hold, waiting for a summons to Panama City to sign the promissory contract for the house. Wild, isn't it?
We spent the night again at the Belen RV trailer park, and the next day headed south (unfortunately, through San Jose...ugh!), arriving in the Dominical area late in the afternoon. What a drama, getting into the campground! Our van was too high for the first entrance, so we were directed to the back entrance, where metal lines had to be held up with poles to give the van enough clearance! The owner was extremely accommodating, and made a difficult situation good. What a gorgeous beach area is Dominical! This apparently is a great surfing area, so once again, we were the oldest folks around. We found a super restaurant nearby, and had great fresh tuna for dinner.
The next day we went back up the highway, so that we could visit Pete and Mary Jo's house at Tres Piedras. We were 40 minutes getting down to the valley floor, on a difficult road for our van, but when we arrived at their caretakers' house, we were welcomed with great enthusiasm. Irma, the wife, took Barbara wading across the river and up the grass driveway to the house. What a great location! And what terrific people are these caretakers. They cut us two pineapples to take along, and invited us to return when the river was low enough for the van to ford (in the "summer", which would be January or February...the season reverse is difficult to get used to.) Tres Piedras is a bit of magic!
We continued along the coastal highway, which was absolutely beautiful and the road in great condition. We spent the night at the Bunka Lodge, about 60 km from the border. We had our own little guest house, which was so well equipped and laid out that we took measurements, thinking to copy it if we were to build a guest house.
The next day we crossed the border, and you all know our feelings about borders so enough said. We had intended to spend the night in David but after an hour of being rejected at the hotels (all full!) we continued on to Boquete, which is a mountain town and much, much nicer than David. We found a hotel which gave us our own cabin (which we are really liking!) and started exploring. We found a jazz club! We liked Boquete a lot so spent the next two days looking at houses, and did find one we liked.
After two days in Boquete, we headed east and ended up in Santiago for Saturday night. On Sunday, we continued eastward, checking out beaches as we went. Our favorite was Santa Clara, which has white sand, a couple of casual restaurants and ranchos with hammocks. That night we ended up in El Valle, which is a mountain town where our friends from Silves, Rene and Tom Cosans, live. We spent Sunday night at a hotel and then met up with Rene and Tom on Monday, April 30th.
Rene and Tom took us to lunch at a neat local place (garlic shrimp...yum!). As we were finishing lunch, one of their friends came to the table and, after hearing that we were there to look at property, she announced she had something for sale and would show it to us that afternoon. She did, we liked it, Rene and Tom couldn't believe the value for money, we looked at it again the next day, made an offer, and here we are!
The agent is named Chola and she has 10 brothers and sisters, and they all have children. One of Chola's nephews is a lawyer in Panama City and he and his partners specialize in ex-pat matters. Chola bundled us up, took us to Panama City and for two days we did the visa stuff, the bank account stuff, and met the owners of the house in El Valle. Oh, and Chola found someone to take care of TwoBaby while we were in Panama City. The Chola universe!
So, now the lawyers are working out the contracts, our terrific bank (SRI Federal Credit Union) has already transferred the down payment, and we are on hold, waiting for a summons to Panama City to sign the promissory contract for the house. Wild, isn't it?
Sunday, April 22, 2007
Laguna del Arenal, Costa Rica, April 22, 2007
We did cross the border into Costa Rica on Friday the 13th. It was another hot, slow and corrupt border crossing. We paid $100US in bribes and fees (mostly bribes). On our way to the border, we were on a road which was extremely pot holed, so Tommy was playing "dodge the pothole". All of a sudden we were stopped by the Nicaraguan police, who wanted to fine us for zig zaging on the road! Due to my limited Spanish, this took a while to understand. While this was sinking in, the police stopped a Nicaraguan car and told them they were going to be fined; the Nicaraguan started arguing fiercely. Accordingly, we too gained some courage and start complaining about the "carretara muy mal". The police had enough of our act, and waved us onward. Hey, a minor victory is still a victory!
About 60 miles (or was it kilometers? can't remember) from the border we arrived in Liberia, a modest-sized town, where we stopped to go to a bank and grocery store. I found myself wimpering with joy, as I entered the air conditioned, modern grocery store with everything I could ever want! Boy, I guess it has been a while! Lovely! We stayed that night in a "decommissioned RV park" (whatever that means), and the next day drove down to the beach.
It was really too hot for us at the beach. After a few refreshments, we headed up into the highlands. As we drove into the Laguna del Arenal area, we were flabbergasted at the beauty and tranquility. We only stopped for a drink, and ended up spending the weekend there. This also happened to be the weekend of the local festival, much of it right in front of our hotel. That was great fun! One of the main parts of the festival was a "tope", a horse parade up and down the main street. The fancier riders got their horses to prance and dance. After several hours of this (mind you, refreshments were plentiful), the horses and festival goers went down the hill to the bull ring plaza, where there were lots of food stands, a merry-go-round, etc. etc., as well as the bull fight (for which we didn't stay). Lots of local color!
The town of Arenal felt good to us, with the right mix of gringos and ticos (as the Costa Ricans are called, and this nickname isn't derrogatory). The lake is incredibly beautiful, and there are lots of artists around. So on Sunday, we looked at land and houses for sale. Nothing was quite right. To jump ahead: we returned this weekend to look some more, and this time we did see two different parcels, either of which could work for us. We aren't going to put in an offer because we first want to see what Panama has to offer. But gosh, it is beautiful here!
In between the two weekends, we stayed in the San Antonio de Belen RV trailer park; this is right outside of San Jose, the capital. The park is run by a transplanted Californian, and its guests were either German or Californians (not just us). One of the Californians wants to return to Yuba City, which should be an indicator of how much time we have spent with him. One of the German couples had had their camper van shipped to North America and they had been travelling for almost a year. They were ready to finish their trip and go back home, had paid their passage (including the car), and had confirmed reservations on a freighter (this costs about 5,000 euros, one-way). The day of boarding, they were told that there was no room on the ship for them because the freighter was full of mangoes; perhaps there would be room on the next ship in two weeks. And they have no recourse! Life in the second world!
During our time in Belen, we got TwoBaby's papers sorted out. He first had to see a vet, get another shot, and then the vet had his papers verified and stamped by the Minister of Agriculture. We took those papers to the Minister of the Exterior, where they were stamped and signed. Then we went to the Panamaian Embassy, where the papers were stamped, signed and verified or some such bullshit. To do our part, we had to go into San Jose, which we found quite unfriendly and a bit too rough for our tastes, so once our business was finished, we took a local bus back to Belen.
This last week, the electricity has been cut three times for several hours each time. Apparently these were planned cuts, but no one around us seemed to know that. We have been told that the electricity company is doing this due to shortages, or, alternatively, in preparation for a rate hike.
We have been lucky so far with regard to the roads: they have been pretty good. And, contrary to Nicaragua, there is very little roadside trash (Nicaragua was terrible in this regard). As you drive around, periodically you see the following painted on the road surface: a square, and in the square is a heart with a halo. We were told this was a reminder to wear your seat belts, which you surely need here. The number one cause of death in Costa Rica is road accidents!
Our plan is to return to Belen tomorrow, and then on Tuesday, go to Pete and Mary Jo's house near Dominical, after which we will make our way to the border. Tommy's goal has been to get to Panama by the end of April so we should meet that goal (fingers crossed!).
Talk to you soon!
About 60 miles (or was it kilometers? can't remember) from the border we arrived in Liberia, a modest-sized town, where we stopped to go to a bank and grocery store. I found myself wimpering with joy, as I entered the air conditioned, modern grocery store with everything I could ever want! Boy, I guess it has been a while! Lovely! We stayed that night in a "decommissioned RV park" (whatever that means), and the next day drove down to the beach.
It was really too hot for us at the beach. After a few refreshments, we headed up into the highlands. As we drove into the Laguna del Arenal area, we were flabbergasted at the beauty and tranquility. We only stopped for a drink, and ended up spending the weekend there. This also happened to be the weekend of the local festival, much of it right in front of our hotel. That was great fun! One of the main parts of the festival was a "tope", a horse parade up and down the main street. The fancier riders got their horses to prance and dance. After several hours of this (mind you, refreshments were plentiful), the horses and festival goers went down the hill to the bull ring plaza, where there were lots of food stands, a merry-go-round, etc. etc., as well as the bull fight (for which we didn't stay). Lots of local color!
The town of Arenal felt good to us, with the right mix of gringos and ticos (as the Costa Ricans are called, and this nickname isn't derrogatory). The lake is incredibly beautiful, and there are lots of artists around. So on Sunday, we looked at land and houses for sale. Nothing was quite right. To jump ahead: we returned this weekend to look some more, and this time we did see two different parcels, either of which could work for us. We aren't going to put in an offer because we first want to see what Panama has to offer. But gosh, it is beautiful here!
In between the two weekends, we stayed in the San Antonio de Belen RV trailer park; this is right outside of San Jose, the capital. The park is run by a transplanted Californian, and its guests were either German or Californians (not just us). One of the Californians wants to return to Yuba City, which should be an indicator of how much time we have spent with him. One of the German couples had had their camper van shipped to North America and they had been travelling for almost a year. They were ready to finish their trip and go back home, had paid their passage (including the car), and had confirmed reservations on a freighter (this costs about 5,000 euros, one-way). The day of boarding, they were told that there was no room on the ship for them because the freighter was full of mangoes; perhaps there would be room on the next ship in two weeks. And they have no recourse! Life in the second world!
During our time in Belen, we got TwoBaby's papers sorted out. He first had to see a vet, get another shot, and then the vet had his papers verified and stamped by the Minister of Agriculture. We took those papers to the Minister of the Exterior, where they were stamped and signed. Then we went to the Panamaian Embassy, where the papers were stamped, signed and verified or some such bullshit. To do our part, we had to go into San Jose, which we found quite unfriendly and a bit too rough for our tastes, so once our business was finished, we took a local bus back to Belen.
This last week, the electricity has been cut three times for several hours each time. Apparently these were planned cuts, but no one around us seemed to know that. We have been told that the electricity company is doing this due to shortages, or, alternatively, in preparation for a rate hike.
We have been lucky so far with regard to the roads: they have been pretty good. And, contrary to Nicaragua, there is very little roadside trash (Nicaragua was terrible in this regard). As you drive around, periodically you see the following painted on the road surface: a square, and in the square is a heart with a halo. We were told this was a reminder to wear your seat belts, which you surely need here. The number one cause of death in Costa Rica is road accidents!
Our plan is to return to Belen tomorrow, and then on Tuesday, go to Pete and Mary Jo's house near Dominical, after which we will make our way to the border. Tommy's goal has been to get to Panama by the end of April so we should meet that goal (fingers crossed!).
Talk to you soon!
Thursday, April 12, 2007
San Juan del Sur, Nicaragua, April 12th
This place is a little slice of heaven. In many ways, it reminds of us what the Algarve must have been like in the 1970's. San Juan del Sur is a surfers' paradise (consequently, we are probably the oldest people in the town), with the smallish town built around a bay. The only thing between our hotel and the ocean is our favorite bar. No DWI's for us! Last night we had a lobster dinner...so good and so cheap!
Tomorrow we expect to cross the border into Costa Rica, and then head south towards Liberia and the Nicoya Penninsula. We expect to spend the weekend there, and then head for San Jose (the capital of Costa Rica) because TwoBaby has to have specific papers, verified by the Panamaian Embassy, in order to cross into Panama legally. Everyone advises us to forget about the papers, and bribe our way across the border. Our decision still hasn't been finalized. We'll see how we feel next week. In Costa Rica, we hope to visit Pete and Mary Jo's place (although they aren't there, and Pete just reported that the river is not passable in our van). Lots of adventures ahead of us!
Before we came to San Juan del Sur, we spent a day in Granada. What a fabulous place! It is picturesque, it is clean, has lots of history and is very easy to get around. We took an hour-long buggy ride around the town, with our driver doubling as a tour guide. And didn't you want to know that there are 12 Catholic churches in Granada? We would be happy to return to Granada, particularly if the baseball championships were going on!
Granada is on Lake Nicaragua, which is HUGE! This lake is part of the passageway for the proposed canal project to link the Pacific and Atlantic oceans. We had heard rumors that the Japanese were funding this project, but those could be just rumors.
Speaking of funding....as one drives around, particularly on the miserable back roads, you see lots of billboards which credit various countries for funding to fix the roads. Countries so far are Japan, Denmark, Holland and the EU itself. And this is funny...on the potholed back roads, you will come across kids with shovels. They are filling in the potholes, and as you drive near them, the kids are pointing to the pothole they just filled. Of course, some money is expected.
Contrary to several guidebooks, the beer through Central America has been great. Tommy likes wine with dinner, and that has been mainly from Chile, and a few times, from Argentina. The food hasn't been that terrific except for special dinners like last night. But here in Nicaragua there are these little treats called rostillas, which are corn bread rings. Some of them are plain and some have cinnamon, and they all are delicious!
We have been surprised by the great differences among the countries, and how the changes are immediate rather than gradual. There is no place like Guatemala, with the colorful weavings and crafts. The people in Nicaragua have been the friendliest so far. The scenery changes dramatically every thirty miles or so.
So, tomorrow...onto to Costa Rica!
Tomorrow we expect to cross the border into Costa Rica, and then head south towards Liberia and the Nicoya Penninsula. We expect to spend the weekend there, and then head for San Jose (the capital of Costa Rica) because TwoBaby has to have specific papers, verified by the Panamaian Embassy, in order to cross into Panama legally. Everyone advises us to forget about the papers, and bribe our way across the border. Our decision still hasn't been finalized. We'll see how we feel next week. In Costa Rica, we hope to visit Pete and Mary Jo's place (although they aren't there, and Pete just reported that the river is not passable in our van). Lots of adventures ahead of us!
Before we came to San Juan del Sur, we spent a day in Granada. What a fabulous place! It is picturesque, it is clean, has lots of history and is very easy to get around. We took an hour-long buggy ride around the town, with our driver doubling as a tour guide. And didn't you want to know that there are 12 Catholic churches in Granada? We would be happy to return to Granada, particularly if the baseball championships were going on!
Granada is on Lake Nicaragua, which is HUGE! This lake is part of the passageway for the proposed canal project to link the Pacific and Atlantic oceans. We had heard rumors that the Japanese were funding this project, but those could be just rumors.
Speaking of funding....as one drives around, particularly on the miserable back roads, you see lots of billboards which credit various countries for funding to fix the roads. Countries so far are Japan, Denmark, Holland and the EU itself. And this is funny...on the potholed back roads, you will come across kids with shovels. They are filling in the potholes, and as you drive near them, the kids are pointing to the pothole they just filled. Of course, some money is expected.
Contrary to several guidebooks, the beer through Central America has been great. Tommy likes wine with dinner, and that has been mainly from Chile, and a few times, from Argentina. The food hasn't been that terrific except for special dinners like last night. But here in Nicaragua there are these little treats called rostillas, which are corn bread rings. Some of them are plain and some have cinnamon, and they all are delicious!
We have been surprised by the great differences among the countries, and how the changes are immediate rather than gradual. There is no place like Guatemala, with the colorful weavings and crafts. The people in Nicaragua have been the friendliest so far. The scenery changes dramatically every thirty miles or so.
So, tomorrow...onto to Costa Rica!
Saturday, April 7, 2007
Jinotega, Nicaragua, April 7th
Wow! We are in Nicaragua, in a little town in the highlands, about 100 miles north of Granada. Since this is Semana Santa (Easter week), we have been trying to stay away from the populated areas to avoid high prices and scads of people. We are staying in a lovely, fantastic, what a surprise! little boutique hotel with terrific staff and a gourmet restaurant. We decided to give ourselves two nights here, since we were all suffering from too much travelling and too many border crossings. We will probably leave tomorrow for Granada.
To back up...we left Xela four days later than planned because Tommy came down with bronchitis. The hotel found a doctor, who made a hotel call and proscribed antibiotics and four days of bed rest. We left on Thursday, March 30th. Tommy, who had been imaging maneuvering the car out of the garage (for two weeks), had no trouble at all. As we drove south out of Xela, we saw the lush harvest gardens which supply organic produce to the USA, and nonorganic produce to the rest of Central America.
We chose to drive on CA 2 (not CA1, the Pan American Highway), which parallels the Pacific coast line. This road is in much better condition than CA 1, but we still endured tremendous traffic jams (for no apparent reason). Our last night in Guatemala, we camped in a water park (how about that Greg and KG!), which was set up for RVs and camper vans with electricity and water. They just forgot to tell us that the park and restaurant closed at 6pm, so we had a lovely dinner of crackers that night! (Once the park closes, the gates are locked and you are there for the night.)
The next day, we crossed into El Salvador. The crossing, even though we hired someone to help us, took much longer than expected (about 2 hours) so we were a bit late finding a place for the night. We ended up in a town called Acajutla, which is on the Pacific Ocean but could only find one hotel with secure parking, our primary concern. Although right on the ocean, this hotel was a true shit hole, so we slept in the van and were careful not to use any of the facilities. Repulsive. This next morning we were encouraged to leave by 9am, so that the hotel could rent out its rooms to beach goers.
With such an early start, we decided to take the guidebook recommended Ruta das Flores, a road going up into the mountains. It was beautiful and cool, and so lovely that we stayed in a little hotel in the middle of a coffee plantation. We had our own cabana, complete with hammocks on the porch. It rained during the night...our first rain since we left California! What a terrific little stop!
Our third night in El Salvador was in Zacatecoluca, a rather miserable, though lively, market town. In order for us to pull through the driveway into the parking area, the owner had to move his taxi and open the rubber curtain across the driveway. The van and TwoBaby were great curiosities to the owner´s kids. The local bank was also the internet cafe. This was located right on the main square, which was surrounded with market stalls selling food and everything else imaginable. Our hotel had cable TV, so Tommy watched the final game of the NCAA tournament (sorry about your team, Greg!).
The next day we stopped at Playa El Cuco, where we had planned to stay at a beach resort. Unfortunately for us, the resort had doubled its prices due to Semana Santa so we continued down the road til we found a small sign for quartos. The rooms were disgusting so we talked the owner into letting us camp in the van, under palm trees, about 100 yards from the ocean. It was magical, complete with ceviche for lunch and fresh fish for dinner, both prepared by the owner´s wife. Again, we were the curiosity of the day to the local kids and chickens and turkeys, which were wandering around the property. The property itself was huge, with palm trees and three medium sized dwellings, disgusting as they were. And it was right on the ocean. We asked the price of such a property, and were told it would be about $250,000US. Not that we want to live there!
On Wednesday, 4 April, we crossed from El Salvador into Honduras at El Amatillo. This border crossing, no matter which way you are going, has the worst reputation in Central America. It is hot, it is slow, it is expensive, it is absolutely horrible. We hired a guy with a Michigan shirt to help us, but even so it took us almost 3 hours and $100US to get into Honduras. The guy with the Michigan shirt had lived in the US for about twelve years before he was deported (we were too chicken to ask him what he did).
About 60 miles from the border, we found a brand new motel (two weeks old!), complete with huge swimming pool, a bar and a restaurant. We had to stop. The people here were extraordinarily helpful and friendly. This was the first place with satellite TV (previously TVs had been cable), and it was amazing how many US channels were available (not that there was much interesting to see). During the night we lost electricity and the TV, due to a terrific rain storm, complete with thunder and lightning. Fortunately, the electricity came back on after about 20 minutes, so we didn´t suffer in the heat and humidity. During our 24 hours, or so, in Honduras we were stopped by four security/border patrols, and one which asked to see our emergency triangles. Oops...no where to be found in the van! (The question is, how can you sell a $25,000 van and not include triangles). The cop said we would have to return to Choluteca (about 60 miles westward) to pay the fine. We must have looked so pathetic that he finally let us go (no bribes). We stopped the first possible place and bought the two required triangles.
And then on Thursday, we crossed the border into Nicaragua. Our guide, Carlos, ran around, getting all our papers signed and bribes paid (yes, we are not too proud to pay the border bribes!), so the whole process only took about an hour. We headed eastwards, towards Esteli, which sounded great in the guidebook. It wasn´t so great, but we needed a place to stay since it was getting late in the day. We rejected the best local hotel, and went to the best restaurant, which was on a hill, overlooking the town. We talked the restaurant owner into letting us camp near his restaurant. This area was patrolled by his security guard, so we felt safe and were happy to get to our van after a good dinner. The guard said something about us having to leave early in the morning but we told him we were leaving at 9am. WRONG! At 5 am, he pounded on our doors, saying we had to leave because his boss would be coming soon. Arguing didn´t help...he had the gun (he didn´t point it at us, we just knew we was in the position of power). Obviously, I need more Spanish lessons to find out where our communication with the restaurant owner went wrong.
So, we were up early with no real plan. We head up into the highlands to the "City of Mists", Jinotega, which is about 100 miles north of Granada, and found this terrific hotel which allowed us to check in at 9am in the morning! Also staying at this hotel, is a youngish Texan, who is developing a first world style subdivision (urbanization) near here. The houses are much cheaper than Panama and Costa Rica, and he said that sales were great. Could be bullshit, but maybe not. It is lovely up here, and the Nicaraguans we have met have been so nice and friendly with lots of smiles. Yesterday we went for a drive to the lake and were stopped by the cops, who asked to see our papers. Oh shit! This was the one time we didn´t have them with us because we had unburdened ourselves of all that stuff and left them (inadvertently) at the hotel. After lots of explaining, the cop smiled and let us go on. Lucky, weren´t we.
We wanted to tell you about "Auto Hotels", which we have seen all through Central America but mostly after we left Guatemala. At first we thought that these were like North American motels. However, after looking a bit more closely and reading about these auto hotels, we realize that they are not motels as we know them. Picture a cinderblock courtyard, with about 10 to 20 one car garage type openings. There is a curtain across each opening. Apparently, you drive into this garage opening, the curtain is closed and you and your honey have the privacy to do whatever you want. Some of these places look quite desparate, and some look very fancy, and they all charge by the hour.
So many of the people we have met have been deported from the US, after living and working there for years. One gets a whole different feeling about "illegal immigration" into the US after travelling in these parts. So many of these immigrants are the main financial support for their families. In fact, 15% of El Salvador´s GNP is due to funds sent by the immigrants. That was one reason that El Salvador now uses the US dollar as its currency.
Time to go....talk to you soon!
To back up...we left Xela four days later than planned because Tommy came down with bronchitis. The hotel found a doctor, who made a hotel call and proscribed antibiotics and four days of bed rest. We left on Thursday, March 30th. Tommy, who had been imaging maneuvering the car out of the garage (for two weeks), had no trouble at all. As we drove south out of Xela, we saw the lush harvest gardens which supply organic produce to the USA, and nonorganic produce to the rest of Central America.
We chose to drive on CA 2 (not CA1, the Pan American Highway), which parallels the Pacific coast line. This road is in much better condition than CA 1, but we still endured tremendous traffic jams (for no apparent reason). Our last night in Guatemala, we camped in a water park (how about that Greg and KG!), which was set up for RVs and camper vans with electricity and water. They just forgot to tell us that the park and restaurant closed at 6pm, so we had a lovely dinner of crackers that night! (Once the park closes, the gates are locked and you are there for the night.)
The next day, we crossed into El Salvador. The crossing, even though we hired someone to help us, took much longer than expected (about 2 hours) so we were a bit late finding a place for the night. We ended up in a town called Acajutla, which is on the Pacific Ocean but could only find one hotel with secure parking, our primary concern. Although right on the ocean, this hotel was a true shit hole, so we slept in the van and were careful not to use any of the facilities. Repulsive. This next morning we were encouraged to leave by 9am, so that the hotel could rent out its rooms to beach goers.
With such an early start, we decided to take the guidebook recommended Ruta das Flores, a road going up into the mountains. It was beautiful and cool, and so lovely that we stayed in a little hotel in the middle of a coffee plantation. We had our own cabana, complete with hammocks on the porch. It rained during the night...our first rain since we left California! What a terrific little stop!
Our third night in El Salvador was in Zacatecoluca, a rather miserable, though lively, market town. In order for us to pull through the driveway into the parking area, the owner had to move his taxi and open the rubber curtain across the driveway. The van and TwoBaby were great curiosities to the owner´s kids. The local bank was also the internet cafe. This was located right on the main square, which was surrounded with market stalls selling food and everything else imaginable. Our hotel had cable TV, so Tommy watched the final game of the NCAA tournament (sorry about your team, Greg!).
The next day we stopped at Playa El Cuco, where we had planned to stay at a beach resort. Unfortunately for us, the resort had doubled its prices due to Semana Santa so we continued down the road til we found a small sign for quartos. The rooms were disgusting so we talked the owner into letting us camp in the van, under palm trees, about 100 yards from the ocean. It was magical, complete with ceviche for lunch and fresh fish for dinner, both prepared by the owner´s wife. Again, we were the curiosity of the day to the local kids and chickens and turkeys, which were wandering around the property. The property itself was huge, with palm trees and three medium sized dwellings, disgusting as they were. And it was right on the ocean. We asked the price of such a property, and were told it would be about $250,000US. Not that we want to live there!
On Wednesday, 4 April, we crossed from El Salvador into Honduras at El Amatillo. This border crossing, no matter which way you are going, has the worst reputation in Central America. It is hot, it is slow, it is expensive, it is absolutely horrible. We hired a guy with a Michigan shirt to help us, but even so it took us almost 3 hours and $100US to get into Honduras. The guy with the Michigan shirt had lived in the US for about twelve years before he was deported (we were too chicken to ask him what he did).
About 60 miles from the border, we found a brand new motel (two weeks old!), complete with huge swimming pool, a bar and a restaurant. We had to stop. The people here were extraordinarily helpful and friendly. This was the first place with satellite TV (previously TVs had been cable), and it was amazing how many US channels were available (not that there was much interesting to see). During the night we lost electricity and the TV, due to a terrific rain storm, complete with thunder and lightning. Fortunately, the electricity came back on after about 20 minutes, so we didn´t suffer in the heat and humidity. During our 24 hours, or so, in Honduras we were stopped by four security/border patrols, and one which asked to see our emergency triangles. Oops...no where to be found in the van! (The question is, how can you sell a $25,000 van and not include triangles). The cop said we would have to return to Choluteca (about 60 miles westward) to pay the fine. We must have looked so pathetic that he finally let us go (no bribes). We stopped the first possible place and bought the two required triangles.
And then on Thursday, we crossed the border into Nicaragua. Our guide, Carlos, ran around, getting all our papers signed and bribes paid (yes, we are not too proud to pay the border bribes!), so the whole process only took about an hour. We headed eastwards, towards Esteli, which sounded great in the guidebook. It wasn´t so great, but we needed a place to stay since it was getting late in the day. We rejected the best local hotel, and went to the best restaurant, which was on a hill, overlooking the town. We talked the restaurant owner into letting us camp near his restaurant. This area was patrolled by his security guard, so we felt safe and were happy to get to our van after a good dinner. The guard said something about us having to leave early in the morning but we told him we were leaving at 9am. WRONG! At 5 am, he pounded on our doors, saying we had to leave because his boss would be coming soon. Arguing didn´t help...he had the gun (he didn´t point it at us, we just knew we was in the position of power). Obviously, I need more Spanish lessons to find out where our communication with the restaurant owner went wrong.
So, we were up early with no real plan. We head up into the highlands to the "City of Mists", Jinotega, which is about 100 miles north of Granada, and found this terrific hotel which allowed us to check in at 9am in the morning! Also staying at this hotel, is a youngish Texan, who is developing a first world style subdivision (urbanization) near here. The houses are much cheaper than Panama and Costa Rica, and he said that sales were great. Could be bullshit, but maybe not. It is lovely up here, and the Nicaraguans we have met have been so nice and friendly with lots of smiles. Yesterday we went for a drive to the lake and were stopped by the cops, who asked to see our papers. Oh shit! This was the one time we didn´t have them with us because we had unburdened ourselves of all that stuff and left them (inadvertently) at the hotel. After lots of explaining, the cop smiled and let us go on. Lucky, weren´t we.
We wanted to tell you about "Auto Hotels", which we have seen all through Central America but mostly after we left Guatemala. At first we thought that these were like North American motels. However, after looking a bit more closely and reading about these auto hotels, we realize that they are not motels as we know them. Picture a cinderblock courtyard, with about 10 to 20 one car garage type openings. There is a curtain across each opening. Apparently, you drive into this garage opening, the curtain is closed and you and your honey have the privacy to do whatever you want. Some of these places look quite desparate, and some look very fancy, and they all charge by the hour.
So many of the people we have met have been deported from the US, after living and working there for years. One gets a whole different feeling about "illegal immigration" into the US after travelling in these parts. So many of these immigrants are the main financial support for their families. In fact, 15% of El Salvador´s GNP is due to funds sent by the immigrants. That was one reason that El Salvador now uses the US dollar as its currency.
Time to go....talk to you soon!
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