I went to a trip to the grocery store this week, and a clerk asked me something. For whatever reason, that moment made me realize how my Spanish speaking skills lag. It caused me to wallow in self pity realizing how bad my Spanish speaking skills are and how much I miss speaking with my friends and the world without it being a struggle.
Friends. There are only two people I regularly communicate with in person-one being Robert, and another whom I see one time a week for an hour-none that I would dare consider having a girl talk with. I miss those friends in person. Robert reminded me of the similar struggles I had when moving to Arizona. To clarify, I was not missing Arizona or Oregon...or the US for that matter. I think I was just missing having a close girl friend I could talk to/hang out with in person and also being able to efficiently communicate with the outside world. It was a good reminder that if Spanish is a barrier, go talk more! I know this should be easy, but it is not uncommon for expats who have lived here for years to speak minimal Spanish.
Tuesday was our big day for Panama City. We drove people we knew to the airport and also needed to get a towing hitch put on our car. This made for a long day. We woke up at 3am and began heading for the City, passengers and all by 4:15am. The drive took over three hours to the airport-something for any visitors to look forward to! The tow hitch was going to take approximately four hours to complete. Robert and I decided to get a ride to the nearby McDonalds for breakfast.
Their menu was more simple than I last remember seeing it (not that I frequented McDonalds in the States). No matter, I always get my usual Egg McMuffin with no ham. People often ask if things like McDonalds tastes the same as it does back in the US. I can say that my breakfast tasted the same. One thing I found unique is that McDonalds sells chicken beyond the chicken nuggets!
Eating here did not take long. Robert and I were tired but ended up exploring an old town of Panama called Casco Viejo. A hotel in this area was used during the shoot of the James Bond movie, Quantum of Solace, which was dubbed to be Hati and Bolivia. This little piece of Panama City was founded in 1519 by Spaniards and the Catholic church. However, Captian Morgan sacked the original city in 1671, and it was rebuilt and founded a couple of years later. Casco Viejo, spanish for "Old Town," can be identified by its beautiful brick roads and old buildings-many which are being restored. It is also known for it's cathedral, which was abandoned until a major renovation began in 2003.
Although many restorations are occurring, you can still find original walls that were built with the intentions to detour pirates (Maybe Johnny Depp will pay a visit?). You also get stunning views of the main part of Panama City along with the view of ships heading into the Canal.
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| A scenic bypass followed by ships in the distance. The difference between high and low tide on the Pacific side can be as much as 20 feet. |
This area also offers the perfect opportunity for anyone looking for a souvenir. There is an abundance of shops that offer something for everyone. There is a row of tables, which made me think of somebody in particular who could spend hours in this spot alone!
Needless to say, I fell in love with the old charm feel of this area. There seemed to be a lot of urban/chic and upscale dining options. I will definitely come back to visit, but moving here would not be an option. After walking and exploring, we decided we had our fill and wanted to go back to check on the progress of the car. It was done soon after-just in the nick of time to get ahead of city traffic making our arrival time at home close to 5pm.
Panama has new license plates for cars every year, which means you have to register your car every year. I have been told that people who do it themselves sometimes only do it once, as it can be a time-consuming and stressful endeavor. There are locals that are familiar with the process that can be hired to renew the registration for you. Our car needed to be registered so we could legally drive our car without the worry of it being impounded. It took a few days to get (and some minor hurdles) but it was kind of cool to have a new license plate. These license plate numbers stay with the cars, so it is important that the numbers from your old and new license plates match. Here are some plates from previous years:
Over all, life is still good. We continue to get more and more rain, which is very much needed at this point. Unfortunately the waves have not been very good for surfing, which marks about four weeks since we have gone out. I am going crazy and am hoping surfing is like riding a bike. The upcoming week will require us to go to the city in order to proceed with getting our drivers license. That should be another exciting adventure since driving in the city always is.
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