Still in Panama City
I have made up my mind with regards to the whole Carnival dilemma. Gonna keep focused on my mission, and join in whatever goes on wherever I am. That keeps it simple. I hope I don´t end up stuck somewhere with nowhere to stay though. So the plans are shaping up, have been in touch with more boat owners about sailing over to Colombia from here. I imagine it won´t be too long before I get something sorted. I have looked into doing it a more local stylee route which involves a domestic flight to an isolated little town that is nothing more than a lonely military outpost on the Carribbean sea, from there you have get your exit stamp then catch a launch to a similar place on the Colombian side, get your entry stamp, another boat to another little trading town, and bus up to Cartagena where I want to go. Three days in Guerilla-y country, fairly safe though so people I have spoken to say. All the flights are booked up for a week and a half though. I don´t really want to be here that long, as the only thing I still want visit is the Miraflores lock system on this end of the Canal, which is just a couple of hours outing.
The pictures below tell the story most of my time in the City. Other than those sort of things there isnt much going on here. Cant find any good info about music venues, although a Canadian friend is hanging out with a local photographer chap today, and promised to glean what info she could from him.
Sunday at the park was so nice. I walked from here, as it wasn´t far on the map and the buses don´t go there. It turned out that I had to negociate industrial areas and motorway junctions on foot, I was determined though and stoically ignored all the taxis beeping and trying to encourage me to flag them down. Eventually I got there, and do you know for a wonderful place in the city on a Sunday during four hours there I saw eight other people! What pleasure. I have been with people day in day out for weeks, sharing rooms, (wrote Frooms by accident.... I mean who shares a Froom, honestly?) sitting on buses with people, fending off street vendors etc etc. So it was bliss to wander in the jungle undisturbed for a few hours. There wasn´t much wildlife about, I guess they were all passing the midday heat in nice cool holes, or eating ice cream on Via España. One little monkey did show his tail, but was gone before I could recruit him for Jim´s simian Militia.
There is a wonderful nursery where they breed all sorts of trees and plants from the park for various reforestation programs. Next to the nursery strangely there was a large collection of beautiful Bonsai trees, I saw lots of colourful birds fluttering among them so went, camera at the ready and stationed myself under a minature maple. After a minute a man quietly appeared from one of the low concrete buildings nearby with some bananas, which is what was attracting the birds. he smiled quietly at me, and proceeded to put more of the fruit up on the fence, then crouched gently nearby. Occasionaly he would tap me on the arm to point out a particularly bright little fellow, but other than that we just sat among the Bonsai and watched. A very tranquil experience indeed. After that I made for the view point at the top of the Park where you can see the city layered between the forest and the sky with a tiny strip of sea inbetween almost obscured by the haze of mans ejected fumes. More Panama city contrast. I gave in when I was ready to go and caught a taxi back home, mainly because my feet were hurting from wearing actual shoes for the first time in over a month!
Yesterday I went on a boat to a little island called Isla Taboga out in the pacific with four Canadians who are staying at Zuly´s too. The trip out there was really good, we saw dolphins, a whale, and millions of sea birds, Pelicans and Gulls mainly, with the odd brown booby for good measure. I was awestruck by the amout of shipping waiting round to transit the canal, whatever way you look there are masses of enormous boats lying at anchor just waiting- Interestingly they were without exception freight vessels, nothing military in sight. When we got there it was very picturesque, but 7 hours before the boat back was too much. Once the sun got high it was too hot to do much roaming and exploring, and other than sit on the beach that is all there is to do there. I get far too bored just sitting in the sun. The sea had just a hint of diesel to it from all the ships in and out of the canal just over the bay, so swimming round in the water wasn´t as pleasant as it might have been. Maybe in different company it would have been better, not that they were a bad bunch, just on another wavelength. My greatest achievement of the day was quietly leaving ajar the door to a cage with three bored looking Amazon parrots in it. I doubt they would have had the motivation or flight feathers to go far, but I thought even if they just got ten minutes breathing in the breezes of freedom on top of their cage it was better than nothing.
That´s about it for now apart from political intrigue in the hostel, with both sides confiding in me, but there is no need to air such dirty laundry here. Take care of yourselves everyone, and do post comments or send me emails, as I would love to hear what you all think, and hear news of what is going on in other worlds, as well as being assured I am not spouting into thin air!
The pictures below tell the story most of my time in the City. Other than those sort of things there isnt much going on here. Cant find any good info about music venues, although a Canadian friend is hanging out with a local photographer chap today, and promised to glean what info she could from him.
Sunday at the park was so nice. I walked from here, as it wasn´t far on the map and the buses don´t go there. It turned out that I had to negociate industrial areas and motorway junctions on foot, I was determined though and stoically ignored all the taxis beeping and trying to encourage me to flag them down. Eventually I got there, and do you know for a wonderful place in the city on a Sunday during four hours there I saw eight other people! What pleasure. I have been with people day in day out for weeks, sharing rooms, (wrote Frooms by accident.... I mean who shares a Froom, honestly?) sitting on buses with people, fending off street vendors etc etc. So it was bliss to wander in the jungle undisturbed for a few hours. There wasn´t much wildlife about, I guess they were all passing the midday heat in nice cool holes, or eating ice cream on Via España. One little monkey did show his tail, but was gone before I could recruit him for Jim´s simian Militia.
There is a wonderful nursery where they breed all sorts of trees and plants from the park for various reforestation programs. Next to the nursery strangely there was a large collection of beautiful Bonsai trees, I saw lots of colourful birds fluttering among them so went, camera at the ready and stationed myself under a minature maple. After a minute a man quietly appeared from one of the low concrete buildings nearby with some bananas, which is what was attracting the birds. he smiled quietly at me, and proceeded to put more of the fruit up on the fence, then crouched gently nearby. Occasionaly he would tap me on the arm to point out a particularly bright little fellow, but other than that we just sat among the Bonsai and watched. A very tranquil experience indeed. After that I made for the view point at the top of the Park where you can see the city layered between the forest and the sky with a tiny strip of sea inbetween almost obscured by the haze of mans ejected fumes. More Panama city contrast. I gave in when I was ready to go and caught a taxi back home, mainly because my feet were hurting from wearing actual shoes for the first time in over a month!
Yesterday I went on a boat to a little island called Isla Taboga out in the pacific with four Canadians who are staying at Zuly´s too. The trip out there was really good, we saw dolphins, a whale, and millions of sea birds, Pelicans and Gulls mainly, with the odd brown booby for good measure. I was awestruck by the amout of shipping waiting round to transit the canal, whatever way you look there are masses of enormous boats lying at anchor just waiting- Interestingly they were without exception freight vessels, nothing military in sight. When we got there it was very picturesque, but 7 hours before the boat back was too much. Once the sun got high it was too hot to do much roaming and exploring, and other than sit on the beach that is all there is to do there. I get far too bored just sitting in the sun. The sea had just a hint of diesel to it from all the ships in and out of the canal just over the bay, so swimming round in the water wasn´t as pleasant as it might have been. Maybe in different company it would have been better, not that they were a bad bunch, just on another wavelength. My greatest achievement of the day was quietly leaving ajar the door to a cage with three bored looking Amazon parrots in it. I doubt they would have had the motivation or flight feathers to go far, but I thought even if they just got ten minutes breathing in the breezes of freedom on top of their cage it was better than nothing.
That´s about it for now apart from political intrigue in the hostel, with both sides confiding in me, but there is no need to air such dirty laundry here. Take care of yourselves everyone, and do post comments or send me emails, as I would love to hear what you all think, and hear news of what is going on in other worlds, as well as being assured I am not spouting into thin air!
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