Loose ends (Wednesday - Thursday)

The rest of the week is rather a blur from my current vantage point (Oh to have written about it immediately!)

I packed.  And repacked.  And repacked.  And found the scale to weigh the luggage but couldn't read it because it was obscured by the bags themselves.

I went down to the University of Panama with Lydia to meet with a Ngobe woman and a psychologist about what projects might be interesting to the Ngobe.  We discussed a number of things, such as the need for the women to learn Spanish so they are not dependent on their men, the possibility of creating some sort of touristic situation to draw money to the Ngobe (much as the Embera and the Kuna have done), and a number of other ideas that swirled around the table.  In the end, it became obvious to me that we need to begin any project with a careful (and ethnographically focused) Needs Assessment.

On the way home, Lydia drove past several key landmarks I wanted to re-visit to photograph.  Barber shops!  Cell phone dealers! School kids! Produce vendors!  Oh my!

The best thing was the chance to have one last meal with the Maduros!  On Thursday night, I went down to their already-familar apartment to see Emita ("Mademoiselle, Missy, Emma), the ruler of the family, and her minions, Martha May, Carlos, Emily, Essie (Edward was at work).

We were all going to go out to eat.  But, as the time grew long, Emita got hungry.  NOW Mom!  And that "witching hour" that seems so universal with babies was upon us.  So Emily and Emita had to pass on dinner.  The rest of us, however, climbed into Carlos' car and went off to eat at Napoli - a wonderful "institution" that has luscious Italian food.  Yum!  It was not only delicious for the mouth, but also for the soul.  This very special family has made me feel welcome in Panama to such a degree that I feel like I am now part of the family.  I will miss them more than I can say!

Day of the Three "C's" (Tuesday)

Today was defined by three different "C" words:  Colleagues in the morning, Canal in the afternoon, and Chicken at night.

1)  Colleagues.
We started by heading over to UTP so my colleagues and friends there could meet Anna Rachel and vice versa.  After talking about her for so long, it was nice to actually show people that she does, indeed, exist.  As a proud Mama, I enjoyed the chance to observe her poise and to see her (great) skills esp. at navigating social situations in a different language.  I enjoyed giving her a picture of where I've been spending my past four months as well.  She even took a picture of the Masters students' Affinity Diagram from the "Speedy Bead" User Research project.

2)  Canal:

As in "The Panama Canal" of course.  It's just not possible to come here and NOT see the Canal.  So in the afternoon, we set out to visit it.  Even though I've been there 3 times, it's still amazing.  And fascinating.  Each time I learn something new also.  This time, it was that my body is 76% water according to one of the exhibits.  Not sure what that means - especially since all it took besides the weight was your age and gender - but there you have it.  And I guess that means I'm officially "all wet."

But out on the Observation Deck, we watched several ships go through the Miraflores Locks, and saw how the water levels drop (since in the afternoons, ships are coming down from the Atlantic side to the Pacific side) and how the ships power forward in the locks, guided by the trusty "Mules" - still my favorite part of the Canal.

No trip is complete without photos of this all happening in real time, so here are some of Anna Rachel's shots - as well as some photos to prove we were there.

  

3)  Chicken.

Of course, this was only one of the many defining elements of our amazing meal with Martha and Carlos Maduro as well as their amazing daughters, Emily (and Edwin and Emita) and Essie (and Charlie).  First, the food.  Martha is famous for her great meals, as I can attest from an earlier visit where I shared a meal with the same crowd (sans Anna Rachel) and tonight was no exception.  Simple, yes - chicken with pasta, creamed chicken, salad.  But luscious!  And dessert was too - frozen  mini Snickers bars.  Yum yum yum!

(L to R) Carlos, Anna Rachel, Essie,
Martha (missing are Emily, her
husband, Edwin, and Essie's
beau, Charlie)

The REAL defining element of the evening was the incredible family who invited us into their home and to their table, and who treated us like long lost family.  Their warmth and intelligence swirled around us and we talked about all manner of things.  We had one particularly hilarious conversation about Panama's seemingly ubiquitous "Push Buttons" - hotels you rent by the hour, which give you total anonymity.  You pull into a garage where you push the button to close the garage door, open the room, and then, when you are done doing whatever it is you do during your time (ahem!) so they can check the room to make sure everything is OK before they push the button to open the garage door - all without having to interact with anyone.  You can imagine what they are used for.  There's no particular stigma about going to a Push Button - and we were regaled with tales of funny happenings at Push Buttons, as well as a more serious discussion of their value in a country where there is very little privacy for adult children who often live with their parents until they marry, and for their parents too.  Everyone knew the locations of them - in fact, there's a locally famous street with many of them (stay tuned for a tour on Sunday!) and one of their friends gives her address as being "between the McDonalds and the Royal Garden Suites (a well-known Push Button)"  

When the time came to say good-bye, Carlos and Martha drove Anna Rachel and me to 2 different pharmacies and helped me get some inhalers and cough suppressants (not to mention cough drops) to take care of my cough that has been building the past few days.  They went well out of their way and spent quite a lot of time helping us.

I guess the real word to define the evening is "Family" - but heck, that doesn't start with a "C", so it will just have to stay "Chicken."

Tomorrow - we arise EARLY to fly to San Blas!  Gotta sleep in a hurry!

The Soul of the City (Sunday)

We began our morning at Balboa Union Church where I showed off Anna Rachel to my friends there.  A number of good friends have already left (notably Patricia, Grace and Gerry), but Martha May was there, as well as other folks I know less well.

Then, we went over to the Mercado de Mariscos for ceviche.  It's always a treat to eat fresh ceviche there, and this time, the market itself was full of vendors and fish of every type, color and size.

And then, ceviche!  We shared a combo and a languistino (large shrimp)  Unfortunately, it seemed like the "crab" in the combo was actually imitation crab, but it was delicious nonetheless.

From lunch, we set out for Casco Viejo.  We started at Plaza de Francia and had a shaved ice.  The yellow jackets swarmed around the sugary syrups but he seemed unafraid of stings.  Perhaps he knew that they would much prefer the sugars to him?  But we shied away.  Our shaved ice was fabulous however.  Anna Rachel got maracuya (passion fruit) and I got pineapple and coconut.  Both were yummy!

 

We walked up the stairs to the Paseo las Bovedas which runs along the top of the sea wall built by the Spanish to protect the city.

The view is wonderful.  

  

We had a lovely conversation with the young artist from Peru who Sewellyn and I met when we were here 2 weeks ago.  I purchased one of his pieces, a Peruvian turquoise and copper wire necklace, for Sewellyn and had a lovely conversation with him, which ended in warm handshakes and a gift from him of 2 macrame bracelets for Anna Rachel and me!

I really hope Sewellyn likes her new necklace!

We continued our walk, past a stall with some of the loveliest molas I've seen in Panama including up in Kuna Yala.  We tarried briefly, but kept walking.  I bought a hat to replace my original one which totally disintegrated in the dryer (don't ask!)  We saw more molas and then Anna Rachel realized that one of the ones we saw at the first stall was something she would love.  We walked back up and she bought it - but the edges weren't complete yet because it was one that the woman was still working on.  They said to give them 15 minutes or so - so we wandered off again.  Even in the shade it was oppressively hot and we both were sweating (there is no lady-like way to say that) profusely.  My new hat was soaked around the hat band and AR had sweat rolling down her back.  But we were having lots of fun.  When we went back up, they weren't quite ready, so we sat under their tarp and I chatted with them about Kuna Yala.  We asked about their names, and the woman went so far as to embroider her name on the mola!  A unique and wonderful reminder!

We dallied as we walked down the Paseo in a shady arch of trees, but the heat was only slightly better.  The breeze coming off the ocean, however, was welcome!  We cooled down a little and then set out to explore Casco Viejo.  We wandered - finding a restaurant that Itzel mentioned was great (further confirmed by the NY Times) but it was closed until dinner, we we walked some more, looking at the buildings - restored, in the process of being restored and not-yet-restored - and marveled at the overall feel of the neighborhood.  There were remarkably few people walking about - whether because of the heat or because of other pressing matters.  Last time when Sewellyn and I were in Casco Viejo, there was a football (soccer to you Americans out there) match and much activity.  The craft market that was in the Cathedral Square the last times I've been there was also missing.  But it was lovely to have the views and the camera angles pretty much to ourselves.

We decided to find a place to drink and found a lovely cool bar where we sat for quite a while as we cooled down a bit and then sipped frosty cold pina coladas.  Such decadence!  

A few more streets and pictures later, we grabbed a cab and returned home, tired, sweaty, and happy.

In the evening, we took advantage of the fact that I can get both Panamanian and American films through Netflix because I set up my VPN before leaving the States.  We watched "The Help" - a really terrific movie that Anna Rachel had never seen.  Like I was the first time, she was crying by the end - it's that good!  I also did a beading project while watching.  So it was a lovely evening!

Some of our pictures from Casco Viejo:

             (These are close-ups of peeling layers of paint - oddly romantic and atmospheric)