Panama- Playa Ermita

30 December 2019

I am celebrating mum’s birthday on this sleeping fishing village. Last day of the year (almost) and it feels like a year that was really really full. Well, it is not just a feeling, the year WAS really really full 😊

I am going back a week on my writing. Ready for the central America leg! Hecti was waiting for me with SalSolcito at the airport, Panama city. He had shipped her from Colombia before flying to Australia and then arrived to Panama a few days before me to pick her up and bring it to the airport. Before that we spent a week in Bs As with our parents and friends. We used to also take the time to go to theatre and restaurants but we are not doing that anymore. A pity, as I loved that part of going to Argentina but everytime we go now our friends are busy/tired and we too! Moving from one place to another in Baries has become a real nightmare.

Panama city struck me a weird place. Very USA. Huge shopping centers spread on one floor, the façade imitating some kind of universal studios place. All I can see is consumism, incredible tall buildings (and so many of them! I asked Hecti “how many people live here”? as I am confused) mand just a block away the place turns sour, dirty, dangerous and poverty hits you on the face. My first impression of the people is that they are very friendly, saying hello when crossing path with you, slow pace, helpful. I want to escape the city. Is also extremely hot, with 90 % humidity! I need the beach! But before we left, we managed to do a nice bike ride that took us to the Panama Channel. It is really impressive. We spent the whole afternoon waiting for the big ships to arrive so we could see the waters coming back and down, the gates, the little carriages pushing it along. And it was raining, like I found out later every single day does.

Panama city - old town

Chame

We didn’t get to the pointy end, as we were lured by the promise of a desert white sand beach! Among mosquitos and other kind of insects, we still loved this little gem. End of the road. People only during the day, very relaxing. The perfect spot for our habitual ritual of cleaning and organising that take place everytime we come back after a long trip away from Sal Solcito. We missed her and the lifestyle we created for us. And it has become the place to come back to that allow us to survive all the hours of flying , the craziness of the cites (both Sydney and baires), the work, the intensity of being and then say goodbye to the family. We stayed in Chame for 3 days! I said to Hecti that I noticed how our modus of traveling has changed. We now spend more time in some places (unheard of a few years ago!). We are moving slowly now, knowing that we only have a few months until we fly again, so why bother hurried up?

El Valle

The heat finally pushed us out, and into the valley. Looking for some bushwalk and hike we found La india dormida. 3 days later and still can’t walk! A hike of 300 mts elevation was all my heart needed to be happy and all my legs needed to be walking like a wooden puppet! We slept on a great piece of grass next to the firefighters. Huge breeze and a difficult sting from an insect had my arm swollen into a disproportion form! Getting to know then the hospital in a nearby town was another level of experience!

And so back to Playa Ermitas, considering where to go next…

We received this new year (2020!) in Playa Ermitas, playing dominos with the locals, BBQ sausages, red wine in a plastic cup, a little breeze, an absolute perfect night. We were advised of the craziness that was took place on the 1 of January. From 4 am onwards hordes of cars, people, extreme loud music and beers descended to the beach! We tried to get some sleep and when we tried to open our door it was almost impossible! We were surrounded! Walked then about 200 mts on the beach just to be able to sit quietly, enjoying the day while we waited for things to calm down. That happened around 6:00 pm and we were left with so much rubbish around us that it was really upsetting. I did grab a paper box early on and picked up every can or bottle that was left on the beach but with almost thousands of people and millions of cans it was a nonsense task.

Playa de desembarcadero

Instead of staying on the panamerican highway we continue our drive though some little towns until the heat took us back to the beach, where we found the perfect spot at Pedasi, where the boats crossed to Iguana Island.

A quick bike ride on the beautiful beach to wait for tomorrow and the promised to cross to the island…which we did! So glad that we decided to go as the water was as clear as I have ever seen and the colour of the sand as the whitest as a I ever seen and even Hecti managed to go snorkelling!

Playa Venao

Next stop…boogie-boarding.  Oh my! Haven’t done that for at least 20 years! But you couldn’t tell as helped by the glorious perfect and gentle waves we bogyboarded like pro! This beach was really great for us, the perfect laid back atmoshpera, a surfers paradaise. That night, so happy the tiredness didn’t let us sleep…hahahah One more day here, to do a power walk, arms work with our elastic bands and a glorious sunset sitting on swings on the beach.

Cañas

Unbelievable (would that be the proper headlines?) Continuing with our positive energy and desire to keep our fitness high it was time for our kayak to have a spin. We knew that this area had plenty of mangroves and it was a great place to paddle. We left at 11:30 our SalSolicto on the banks of a big lagoon that goes out to the ocean on one side and a couple of rivers further down on the other side. It was really hot and very windy. WE managed to paddle up to what appear to be an isle. A French couple, doing a “sea change” has bought a hostel/restaurant/huge piece of land…a turtle nursery areas a few cabanas and that is their life! We continue our paddling down to the mangroves and into the river, where our way become narrow and narrow until we couldn’t go any further. I kept saying to Hector “this looks like a horror movie, I am waiting for a monster to appear somewhere in between these branches”. Coming back at 4:00 the windy was still strong, the zig zap paddling meant longer distance to cover. Arrived back and cherished jumping on the water and staying there for a while just to refresh ourselves. We were cleaning our kayak when a couple stopped near us, the woman hurried up the shore and start talking photos of the water. (???). And then, she shows us the video…a crocodile!!!! The head almost 50 cm long!. While driving away Hecti and I laughed as our plenty of jokes but I swear just the thought of paddling/swimming there with crocodiles made me really nervous!

Nothing better that a fisherman on the deserted road selling glorious fresh fish to make me forget about the episode! We kept driving until we arrived at Playa Guanico and then to Playa Cambutal.

Las Tablas

It was then a great occasion, one that we were going to miss but with the changes we made, we are now ready for festival! “El desfile de las mil polleras” was more impressive that its name, 200.000 women dressed in typical dresses marching on the town. People from all Panama comes to celebrate, and even with the heavy heat, heavy skirts, heavy jewellery and heavy make up… the women did not disappoint!

Playas Las Lajas

Our beach crawling continues. I enjoyed this so much. We truly find every single beach very different to each other. It is difficult to explain but we do! The only problem with this one was arriving on a Sunday lunch time. I believe I haven’t seen so many local people holidaying on one stop since Cali, near the river. That and in Chile (name???). Those were the only places in 6 years! So braced ourselves for a dirty, pack Sunday while reassuring each other with “by tomorrow no one will be here”. And it was true! On Monday , minus the super loud music from the boots of one or other car (very much like disco fever) we had a maginificent beach all for us. Magnificent. Probably the best we have seen here. Water temparute I guess 26/27 degrees. Full waves ( like Necochea!), long and wide….our 3 days consisted on bike rides, waves rides, BBQ, power walk, elastic bands and relax! Pure joy.

16th of January 2020

Changing gears! After going back and forward on our heads with dates, visas, flights, etc and more etc…we took a change as we are picking Patricia and Carlos in Costa Rica! I am leaving Panama just for now, the sense that we haven’t finished here is strong. Is not only a sense, we definitely haven’t finish here! But the nature of our trip means that when B & A baby arrives and we are flying back home we will turn around and come back here to leave SalSolcito and then we will have another crack to this great country…which has been very good to us.