Departing Panama

Wow, this time went by so much faster than I anticipated! Although I am ready to begin the next exciting chapter in my life, I am not ready to say good-bye (or rather, ¨see you later¨) to all the wonderful friends (and family) I have made here in Panama. I would really like to take some time alone when I get back to the States to sit and reflect on all of my experiences here, the emotions I have felt, how I have grown (and in what ways), and the people that have touched my heart. My desire to begin writing a book (well, that I have already begun to write) is being prompted more and more in my spirit, and I think as I take time for reflection of my past experiences, not only in Panama but in other countries (including my own), I believe the web my life has spun thus far will paint a beautiful and glorious picture (thanks to God). I am blessed beyond words, and for that, I am grateful! Thank you all for sharing so much of this richness with me.

Visit to Pedasi & Chitre

Wow, what an incredible trip to the Pacific side! My brother came out to visit for vacation, and we accompanied some Rotarians to the town of Pedasi & Chitre. We first went to the Pollera Festival (the famous cultural dresses that the women wear....very extravagant and very costly). That evening I gave a short presentation at the Chitre Rotary Club. On Thursday, we went out fishing. Our friend, James, caught a 30 pound yellow fin tuna, which we ate the next day as sushi. Nothing like freshly caught sashimi! Delicious! We left shore that day at 7am and returned around 2pm. Even after applying SPF 50 two or three times, I still managed to get sunburned. Uh! But what an incredible day! We saw a whole group of dolphins that came swimming up to our boat, playing in the water and swimming incredibly fast in and out of the water right under our nose. There must have been at least 40 dolpins total, including those in the distance. Then, as if it doesn´t get any better....a huge hunchback whale jumped out of the water in front of us, and I just so happened to get a great shot with my camera. Incredible! On Friday my brother and I hung out for just a few hours at a beach called El Toro. We wanted to go to Isla Iguana and do some snorkeling, but our group accidently left us behind when they left for the beach to depart to the island. Oh, well. Next time. Friday night we enjoyed an incredible meal at the Chitre Rotary President´s home. People here are soooo hospitable! They are truly wonderful folks - everyone I have met. On Saturday night, we attended the annual Rotary ¨Toma,¨ which is where they induct and swear in the new Rotary President for the year. I met more incredible folks and enjoyed another great meal and great live music performed by a local group (all one family with amazing talent). When we dropped my brother off at the bus stop on Sunday to get back to Panama City....well, that is a long story that involves frustration. The people are truly wonderful here, but customer service....sometimes it doesn´t exist. At least it didn´t that day at the bust station. It was crazy insane. Everyone gave us a different story. And what should have taken 10 minutes took about 2 hours. Fortunately, my brother made it on a bus after all and safely arrived to Panama City and then back home. My whole experience here in Panama has all been bittersweet....it will be hard to leave in less than 2 weeks, yet I am looking forward to the next chapter in my life! I can hardly believe I will be back in the States in less than 2 weeks. This journey to Panama has been an unforgettable experience!

More School Visits Today

I had the opportunity to deliver more school supplies today with Rotarians of Boquete and my friend, Dina. The kids are so precious and so appreciative. One school we visited was VERY remote and far, far, far...well, I guess it seemed much further than it was because we drove there and the roads were terrible. We all felt like we were riding a roller coaster in slow motion for about an hour. And to think that the children walk that far to school every day! It was interesting to note that at one school, a handful of parents even showed up to show their appreciation to Rotary for supplying their child(ren) with school supplies. Each school has students that stood up to either thank us verbally or in a song. It was great!

Today I am extremely tired, and it is only Tuesday. I am so happy I am taking yoga classes, though, because they really help calm my body and mind. Love my yoga class!

On Friday morning I am looking forward to visiting a clinic with a Nutritionist here that works for the Health Dept. She is going to expose me to the dire needs of the community and with specific populations. That should be really quite interesting. I will update you on how that goes.

The Days are Flying By!

Wow, I only have less than one month! I can hardly believe it. Today when I attended the Rotary meeting, we were already making plans for my ¨going away party.¨ Crazy how time flies. My days have been filled full of wonderful things. Last night I had a presentation at a Rotary Club meeting about 45 minutes from here; it went pretty well (thanks to my translator friend who emailed me my speech in Spanish.....hey, I am not fluent yet.....a woman can ask for help, right?). But wow, trying to prepare a simple PowerPoint is really quite frustrating without my laptop. My friend lended me hers to prepare it, but the whole program was in Spanish, and it was taking me forever and a day to make simple edits. So I went to an internet place that has 2 computers in English. They had the program, so great! Well, it froze up on me again and again....so I tried the other computer. That one, too, froze up on me again and again. Sigh! I am looking forward to buying a new laptop when I get back to the States. One of the directors at my school lended me his laptop, so I finished it quite quickly. So it all worked out....just a lot longer than I anticipated (and actually while I am typing this blog at another internet cafe, I have already had to move to another computer because it froze up on me - it gets a bit frustrating....now this mouse doesn´t work...oh, well). Anyway, I have a couple more presentations before I leave...they are pretty short and sweet...only about 10 minutes. I have just shared some of my work and volunteer experience, my involvement with Rotary, and my future goals and endeavors. It is great to network with some many folks with such varied backgrounds. One gentleman last night offered to show me ¨the real Panama¨...meaning the povery-stricken neighborhoods here. I may have time this weekend to do that.

This morning (and Tuesday morning as well) I took a yoga class that my friend teaches here. It is fabulous because we have the class at a woman´s beautiful home outside on the tiled and covered terrace overlooking the beautiful trees, flowers, etc. with all the birds singing in the background. There are only 4 of us, so it is absolutely wonderful and a great way to start my day. I have decided to take her classes every Tuesday and Thursday morning. Oh, and my friend is planning a yoga retreat to a nearby beautiful beach one of these weekends. I am really looking forward to it!

Next Tuesday, I will be travelling with a few Rotarians to distribute more school supplies to a few other schools. One of them is very remote and will take us awhile to reach. I am looking forward to it! It is so gratifying to see the smiles of children! On Saturday I will be travelling with my host family to the nearby city to go shopping for a formal dress. My host mother´s niece is having a fancy wedding on the 18th in Panama City, so we each need a ¨fancy¨ dress. On Sunday I am planning to make lasagna for my host family. It should be a good weekend with not too much activity. The following weekend, though, we need to catch the bus after my classes (after 5:30pm) and take the bus about 6 hours to Panama City. Every weekend here is different and filled with something news. When my brother comes in a couple weeks, we will see yet another part of the country. Apparently, the beaches are the best around for surfing (not that I will be surfing). There will also be a pollera (the famous cultural dress) festival there, so I am looking forward to getting another rich taste of the Panamanian culture.

Hope everyone is in good health and good spirits! More updates later.

4th of July

Rotary is simply fantastic! I attended the annual "Toma" meeting in the morning at a beautiful setting. They swore in the Rotary President of Boquete and recognized other Rotarians for their service. What a great group of dedicated folks! I am impressed. It was also great to meet other Rotarians who showed up from around the country. I was invited to speak at a couple other meetings in other cities. So I have a presentation booked for this Wednesday night and then another on the opposite side of the country in a couple weeks. I am so honored to represent Rotary and have really enjoyed meeting so many people dedicated to service above self. It makes me teary-eyed sometimes to know that there are so many caring people in the world who are striving to make this world a better place. Rotary is the best! (Picture: Boquete Rotary Club President giving his speech)

On the evening of the 4th, I celebrated with a couple of friends at the top of a nearby mountain here. There are many gringos who live here, so there were a lot of 4th of July celebrations here (believe it or not). It was very relaxing, and the few fireworks they had were spectacular, given that the volcano was in the background. Very beautiful! (Picture: fireworks with the volcano in the background)

Yesterday, I did a day hike with a group of about 20. It was organized by a local gym here. We drove about an hour and half north and then hiked a couple hours back into a small pueblo called Fortuna. It is a remote setting, and the people have no electricity. They were very kind and greeted us with smiles and had food prepared for us....a large serving of white rice, a slice of cooked plantain, and pork....all rolled up in a huge banana leaf. It was delicious, although I am not a huge fan of pork, so the hungry dogs there were well fed. The children there sang us songs and a young boy and girl wore traditional garb and did a short traditional dance for us. It was so adorable! So many special moments here in Panama. I occasionally find myself stepping back a bit, observing my environment - taking it all in, and thank God so much for the privilege of being here to enjoy the people, the culture, everything! Many teary-eyed moments. And the beauty here is simply breathtaking! I love Panama! (Pictures: Children that danced for us; view from the hiking trail on my way into the village)

Bocas del Toro last weekend

I took the bus up to Bocas last Saturday morning...caught the 5:30am to another city, then took that bus for a total of about 5 hours, then a boat to Isla Colon. So arrived at about noon. It is quite warm there, and the city is a bit dirty. But there are many beautiful beaches. My friends and I went to Red Frog beach on Saturday. The water felt great! They had a shower there to rinse off the salt water after swimming...just our luck that they turned the water off before we were finished swimming in the ocean. So we resorted to rinsing off with our bottled water. The kids at the beach entrance were so adorable! They saw that I had cookies in my bag, so they kept approaching me asking for cookies. We also fed the many stray dogs there at the beach that were hungry. They were actually quite friendly and very cute! All in all I had a great time in Bocas with my friends. It's a great place to visit, but I was ready to go home to a cooler climate after 2 days. We all kept flagging down a taxi to give us rides just to ride in an AC vehicle and get out of the heat. Anyway, it was fun! What really impresses me about this country are the people. They were all so friendly on my bus ride up...making sure I got on the right bus...making sure I got off at the right stop...flagging down a taxi driver for me....making sure I got on the right boat. Truly nice and friendly!

Yesterday morning I went for a great hike to a couple of waterfalls with some friends. It was really beautiful! Today is a holidy here, as they are inducting a new president. So I went with a group of students to the hot springs again and then to the river to swim. They swam; I slept. Wow, I was really tired today. It was nice having a break from class.

Well, I have homework to get done and will be having dinner soon with my host family. I tried to upload some new pícs on here, but this pc I am using at the internet cafe is insanely slow. So I hope to add them next time.

Visited Paradise Gardens Today

Today was a blast! All of the students took a field trip to Paradise Gardens here in Boquete....amazing exotic animals, plants, flowers, the whole nine! It was so beautiful! I kept thinking of my nephews and thought they'd really get a kick out of it. One of the students, Amy, is a volunteer there, so she was kind enough to introduce us to the various animals and told us each of their names and a bit about their history. Because today was the last day of class for a handful of students, they each shared at the end what their experience has meant to them. Their teacher from our Spanish language training school began to get tears in her eyes....wow, this program is really touching and so wonderful! I am gonna be a wreck when I leave. I have really bonded so much with everyone....students, teachers, my family. This is really a special place.

(Mis profesoras)

So tomorrow I decided to head to Bocas del Toro to the island of Isla Colon. A few of my friends left today up there. You take a 4 hour bus ride for less than $10 and then an hour boat ride to the island. I had class all day today, so I am gonna head out early in the morning....around 6am...and meet them up there. We've got an apartment for the weekend. Should be a good time. Heard the beaches and food are great! I'll be in good company, too, so I'll have a great time regardless. We'll head back late Sunday afternoon.

Oh, and sushi night last night was great! A fellow student from Denver (se llama Witt), as well as a few other helpers, prepared some really great sushi for a group of about 20. Thanks, Julio, for inviting us to your home! It was so much fun.

Okay, I'm off to eat a late dinner, do my homework, and pack for tomorrow's trip. Have a great weekend everyone!

Hot Springs Last Night....Sushi Tonight

Last night my friend, Dina, invited Amy (a fellow student in my class from Australia) and I to visit the hot springs with her boyfriend and her brother and friend who were visiting from.....guess where?....the Bay Area! Great group of people! It was fun, although I have to admit that the hike from where we parked to where the hot springs was located was a bit more than I expected. It was pitch dark (and not all of us had flashlights), quite muddy, and lots of slippery stones and rocks. Anyway, we made it and the water was nice and....well....hot. I utilized for the first time my ¨pee standing up¨ thingies.....wow, what a brilliant idea for women! Ladies, check it out.....for all those times you're in the woods, or at a nasty public restroom, or camping, hiking, whatever, and nature calls....¨pee standing up¨ is your solution! It is a cone shaped funnel that allows a woman to....well....pee while standing up. Check out the website sometime - a distant cousin of mine actually invented it. Thanks! Brilliant! Wish I had more with me. Okay, anyway, so the hike to the hot springs was interesting. I enjoyed everyone's company. And it's always great, too, to meet people in another country who happen to be from the same city (or area...in this case, the Bay Area) that you are from. Kinda made me miss the Bay! I will visit there soon, though.

Okay, so tonight I am off with a group of other students here to go to one of the school director´s home for sushi. There are no sushi restaurants here, but one of the students used to be a sushi chef in Denver, so he is gonna give it his best shot with the fresh fish here from the market. I will be sure to take my GNLD digestive enzymes beforehand. Man, I miss sushi!

Not sure what the plan is yet for the weekend. I was hoping to travel with my new friends to Bocas del Toro (northeren Caribbean part), but I may not be able to because I have classes til late afternoon and they will be departing a bit earlier. Maybe next time. If not, I am planning to hike Saturday morning for a few hours with one of the Rotarian ladies and some other women. I also have an accupuncture appointment. If I have enough time, I will head over to the nearby city of David with my host mom to shop for a long formal dress. I need one for here niece´s wedding coming up in July.

Alright, I am off to say hello to ¨mi familia¨ before I leave for dinner. Ciao!

Week 4 Already!

Wow, time is flyin´ by! We celebrated Father´s Day here last weekend. My host mom made a nice traditional Panamanian dinner (a mixture of rice, chicken, and veggies) and invited a few other guests. We bought my host grandfather a couple new shirts and a couple pairs of socks. He reminded us not to purchase him any more pajamas, as he still has new ones hanging in his closet....lol. Apparently, he´s received pajamas many times in the past as gifts. One woman that came to dinner is a beautician and trimmed my hair for a whopping $3! I was a bit freaked out at first because I´m quite particular about getting my hair trimmed....¨only a little¨ is sometimes interpreted differently. But it turned out nice regardless, and I am happy with it.

My days seem to be full every day. I now take 6 hours of class most days, as I am trying to ¨make up hours¨ due to my illness last week. Plus, I will be taking 3 days off in July when my brother comes. We´ll be travelling to another city on the other side of the country called Pedasi. It looks quite beautiful, and I am looking forward to it. I had dinner with a Rotarian on Sunday night (the food was delicious!....I had smoked fish with veggies and cheesecake for dessert....yummy!), and he showed me tons of amazing pics of his ventures to that side of the country. The fishing there looks incredible!

I am SO GRATEFUL that I am feeling better. Man, there were a number of folks at the school and in general that have been getting sick with a nasty cold. The seasons are opposite here, so they´ve just begun their winter. It rains every day (usually in the afternoon until evening), so the climate change may be a factor. I bought a handful of pure essential oils and have been using them daily on myself and have used them on others, too. They are pretty powerful. Yesterday, I went to an accupuncturist again (and will go 2 more times for an immunity boost) and got a 1-hour massage, too. Wow, my muscles have been tight....neck, shoulders, pecs. I was given a handful of stretches to help me out, so I am going to practice those daily.

Here is my typical weekly schedule:

Monday: 7am - wake up
7:30 - breakfast, shower, emails
10:15 to 12:15 - Class
12:15 to 1:15 - Lunch
1:15 to 5:30 - Class
Evening: dinner with my family, then homework

Tuesday: AM - hiking, emails
12:15 to 1:15 - Lunch
1:15 to 5:30 - Class
Evening: dinner with students at a host family´s home (usually mine), then homework

Wednesday: 7am - wake up
7:30 - breakfast, shower, emails or sometimes hike if I have time
10:15 to 12:15 - Class
12:15 to 1:15 - Lunch
1:15 to 5:30 - Class
Evening: dinner with my family, then sometimes watch a movie in Spanish at the school

Thursday: 7am - wake up
7:30 - breakfast, shower
9:00 - 10:30 - Rotary meeting
11:15 to 12:15 - Class
12:15 to 1:15 - Lunch
1:15 to 5:30 - Class
Evening: dinner with my family, homework

Friday: 7am - wake up
7:30 - breakfast, shower, emails
10:15 to 12:15 - Class
12:15 to 1:15 - Lunch
1:15 to 5:30 - Class
Evening: dinner with my family, then homework

Weekends: Laundry, homework, spend time with family and friends, hiking, crochet, errands, etc.

Alright....I am off to class. Hope everyone is healthy and well on that end! Oh, and I´ll try to get some pics up soon...maybe this weekend when I have more time. These computers I use at the internet places are soooooo sloooooow.

Feeling much better!

Wow, after a couple days of sneezing, congestion, the sweats and chills, and a slight fever, my health has definitely improved. I went to an accupuncturist this morning and will go back for 3 more rounds of "immunity boosters"....and probably a few massages. Those can never hurt :-) There is a spa just around the corner, and I was happy to find some pure essential oils. Unfortunately, I missed a day and a half of classes (bummer!) due to my illness, so I'll have to play catch up. Man, it becomes more and more clear to me why I am pursuing a doctorate in HEALTH Education....without our health, we can do nothing. I am really looking forward to my studies! Also, I was thinking (and hoping) that it might be possible to continue my Spanish studies while pursuing my doctorate. I'm really enjoying the language and would love to become fluent.

Tomorrow I will be celebrating Father's Day with my host family's father/grandfather. That will be nice. It's unfortunate that I will miss out on spending the day with my father at home, but my thoughts are with you, dad! Te amo mucho! (I love you very much!)

(My wonderful host family)


OH, and I have to add a few more picks from my hike a couple weeks ago. They are just beautiful!

(The famous Quetzal bird, rarely seen by hikers)

Frustrated yesterday but today is a new day

Wow, taking 5 to 6 hours of Spanish a day can be intense sometimes. Ya know, you would think I would have been prepared for TOTAL immersion when I was originally informed it it TOTAL immersion...lol...well, it hit me the most yesterday. I was in a class with 3 others and we are learning past tense verbs (preterito and imperfecto). Well, I just was not getting it. Imagine having only a bit of Spanish in high school...15 years ago (taught in English by the way) and then arriving to a school that only speaks Spanish....directions and everything. My famous response yesterday was...Estoy muy confudida (I am very confused). There is absolutely no English spoken in the classes. I think it is a good thing, but I have to admit that yesterday was a day of frustration. My teachers are really great, though, and we always have fun in class....there is not a day without laughter! A fellow student had a book on Spanish grammar and verbs (written in both English and Spanish) so I was able to make a few photo copies of some of the pages...helped me out a lot. I am discovering more and more what kind of learner I am. I am quite visual and need visual prompts. I am going to try to find a few resourceful books that can assist me in my studies.

Today I woke up a bit sick....sneezing, runny nose, and even quite dizzy this morning (yes, I nearly blacked out 4 or 5 times while trying to prepare breakfast). Aweful! BUT I am getting better and my mind seemed to work much better in class today than yesterday. I need to remind myself to be realistic and not to expect to be fluent in only 10 weeks.....but a woman can hope, right?

I am amazed at how time if flying! Tomorrow is already Thursday, and the weekend is right around the corner. I just got word today that my brother will be visiting me here next month so I am so pumped! I am going to take 3 days off from my studies and travel with some Rotarians to the other side of the country. Apparently, there is some pretty amazing fishing. So that will be fun. There is also going to be a lively cultural festival taking place. So I am looking forward to that and to seeing a different part of the country.

Until later.....

In Panama for 2 weeks now

(Panama is SPECTACULAR!!)

Wow, it´s been 2 weeks now and SO MUCH has transpired. I was amazed at how fast I can get here to Panama from the States. I arrived in Panama City on May 30th, stayed at the Sheraton hotel (beautiful...wanted to spend more time there), and then took a flight to the city of David on Sunday morning, May 31st. I was greeted there at the airport by Jaime, one of the employees of Habla Ya school where I attend. From the moment I got to Panama, I was amazed at how welcoming people are, particularly with my limited level of Spanish. Anyway, after being picked up from David, we headed to Boquete - about a 40 minute drive. The beauty of this country is simply astounding! The exquisite variety and beauty of flowers, the coffee, the trees, the culture, the people, the food.....

(Friends at our weekly student dinner - this one was hosted by my host mom at the home I stay at)

(An afternoon with other students and "profesoras" at "Mi Jardin es Tu Jardin" - a beautiful flower garden in Boquete)

I was greeted by my host mother, Ali, and later met the rest of the family - my "sister" Nilena and my "grandpa", as well as the 2 dogs, Johnson and Brandy. I live in a modest home with my own room. I couldn´t have received a more welcoming and loving family! They are so great! Ali and Nilena wake up early every morning and have breakfast prepared for me. I then walk only a few blocks to my school and have language training classes for 5 to 6 hours a day. It´s been pretty good so far, but wow, it can get mentally draining, too. The staff at Habla Ya (where I study) are simply amazing and very professional! They are a lot of fun to work with and learn from. They also serve excellent Panamanian coffee all day every day free of charge...an added bonus. The school has also been a great place to meet folks from all around the world! I usually have dinner with my family in the evenings and either do weekend excursions (i.e. hiking) or simply relax (like this weekend). So far I´ve done the canopy zip line tour (amazing magnificent views!), a coffee tour (Cafe Ruiz) - very interesting to learn the whole process of how the best coffee in the world is made, and a day hike. I have yet to do the horseback riding tour, the beach island tour, and the hot springs tour.
(This is me on the canopy zip line tour - top and bottom pic)

(And this is my facial expression after stepping off a tall platform - a free fall and then a swing with amazing views of the mountain and volcano)

I´ve been attending the Rotary club meetings here in Boquete, and I am truly impressed at the level of service of the Rotarians. They are a WONDERFUL group of people (mostly from the US, actually) who have some really great projects going. I´m trying to network with folks about possible research opportunities while in my 3rd year of my Phd studies (for my dissertation). By the way....if you haven´t received the news....I´ve been accepted to a PhD program in Health Education in Illinois and begin my studies this Fall. There are many indigenous Indian groups here in Panama, and one project that is in the works is helping the mothers with nutrition, as there is an outrageous percentage of babies being born with deformities due to lack of proper nutrition, as well as other things (i.e. exposure to toxic pesticides). So we´ll see what turns up. I had the opportunity to visit 2 schools last week with 2 Rotarians to deliver school supplies to the children. It was great!

Okay, the internet cafe here is about to close...so I´ll have to write more later. Unfortunately, my laptop was stolen from my house on Friday. So I´ll have to make frequent trips to the intnet cafes to do my work and keep my blog updated. There´s SO MUCH more to tell. In a nutshell, I am so blessed to be sent here and am honored to represent Rotary! I´m having a very wonderful time developing relationships with GREAT PEOPLE IN PANAMA!!!