Gary and I begin on a clean, twisty road outside of Panama and try to find our way to Portorillos. After asking several locals a long the way and getting both yes’s and no’s, we knew it was up to us to discover the path for ourselves. We had a really nice ride in the mountains around Boquete. I think if I had brought my hammock I would have spent the night up there. It was a beautiful setting.
There is some really bumpy footage in parts of this video. I use 2 helmets and one of them doesn’t have a mount for the Drift HD on it. I’ve used it before on the handle bars and it came out looking much better, but for some reason this time it was really bad. So whaddha want? Your money back? Deal with it!
When my wife and I were in Panama City visiting family for Christmas we loaded up on some cheap toys to give to presents to the children at the small community where we first met. Work, and car trouble prevented us from making it out there until late March, but better late than never. Most of the gifts we purchased were $1.00. Lots of dolls for the girls, and I picked out toy cars, and sets of green
army men for the boys.
I hope people don’t think I’m trying to show off by filming my wife and I doing this stuff. The purpose of this video is to inspire others to do the same sort of thing. There are many people in this world who could use a hand, and sometimes it’s as simple as pulling over and saying, “Here ya go. Have a nice day.”
If you do get around to doing something like this try not to be discouraged when you don’t have enough for everyone. No matter what you bring, toys, medicine, clothing, or food these people can always use more.
Song is, “Love Letters” from http://www.danosongs.com
I just received the following email from Dave the turtle guy. I’ve made some videos out at his eco lodge. Turns out saving turtles is pretty frustrating business.
“Sunday, Feb., 12, 2012
Sorry that this is not a personal note written to each of you, but I
don´t think that I have the energy or the stomach to write this more than once. This latest news
has made me physically sick, and it may prove to be the last straw that this old camel can carry.
As you may already know, my North American neighbor, who goes by the name ¨Johncho¨, has an ¨Eco Tourism¨ project that he calls Mono Feliz. For many years I have tried to get him to stop his dogs from killing sea turtles and digging up turtle nests I have also tried to stop him from serving endangered animals to his guests, and many other un ecological things that are against the law but he continues to do anyway. Johncho lives with a Panamanian woman named Luzmila, and Luzmila has a brother named ¨Chombito¨. When Chombito had to sell his house in order to return some of the money that he had stolen from the town of Beja Vista, Johncho and Luzmila moved
this thief into a shack on the beach. This may not have been so bad but he is also one of the last full time poachers of threatened and endangered animals that are still making a living by hunting the last of the animals in this area. When Chombito moved to the beach, last November 2011, He
became the biggest problem that I faced in trying to save sea turtle nests, and adult turtles. In December when his three teenage sons came to stay with him for school vacation, Chombito stayed in bed and sent his boys to poach the turtle nests. I would have liked to have been able to take their pictures while they were robbing the nests, but I walk with a flashlight and they were
always long gone by the time I found the empty nests. To solve this poaching problem, I would take a book and sit on the beach all night. This severely cut into Chombito´s egg selling business and his solution was to go to the police and make a false report that said I have been threatening his children and chasing then, taking their pictures and using foul language. The only time that I have taken their pictures was when they were here with their mother and all the other children from the Beja Vista School, to listen to me talk about saving the environment and to release baby sea turtles. The part about me chasing them and using foul language does not even deserve to be addressed, but the police inspectors say that these children need to be psychiatrically tested to
determine the extent of damage my abuse has caused them. According to my lawyer my only defense was to file my own police report and try to have him sent to jail for filing a false police report, this has already cost me more time and money than I can afford. But what may prove to be the last straw came last night when I learned that the Mono Feliz Clan, the same people that have
been giving me the most trouble and who have been responsible for killing tens of thousands of turtles in the years that I have been trying to save them, has asked the governmental authority (A.N.A.M.) for permission to start a turtle incubation project. This permission would allow them to take all the nests they could find and also give them an excuse to be on the beach all night where
they could also take the adult turtles. I am so tired of the lies, corruption, and complete lack of ethics and honor that I am seriously looking for a way out of here. I do not want to walk away from 12 years of my life´s work, or my life´s savings, and so, I will continue with my environmental projects, and entertain the youth groups that want to come and hear my seminars, but I do not
think I can continue for much longer without monetary help and recognition from some influential organizations. One man working alone is easy to ignore. If you know anyone with some clout please point them in my direction.
Tue., Feb., 12th. I have just learned that another of the poachers, a man that I have been trying to have arrested, has also applied for permission to start a turtle incubation project. This man´s name is Chano, and he is one of the five men that beat and robbed me when I was taking pictures of them shooting monkeys almost 4 years ago.
Still hanging on, but not by much………….Dave”
In Panama there are hotels known as “push buttons. They are called this because typically you can pull up to a window, push a button, slide some money through a slot, get a key, and head to a room all without actually seeing a person. Everything is set up so the customer can stay anonymous. Basically they cater to people who are cheating on a spouse.
I stayed in a place like this in Mexico by accident once. Mitch and I shared a king size bed, and I’m sure everyone assumed we were lovers enjoying a night of bromance.
Cool thing about them is the garage. Which is only there to hide your car from prying eyes while you do your business. But it was nice to be able to park our bikes somewhere safe for the night.
http://bit.ly/waKPPE
For the Volcan Baru Adventure I wanted to do something special, so I turned the adventure into an interactive book. I’m pretty excited about how it turned out, and I think you will really enjoy it.
The book is has a lot of pictures, and video. Over 70 minutes of video that won’t be seen on youtube is embed in the book. Read a little, look at some photos, read a little, watch a video. With the magic of the iPad the book is very cool.
Lately in Panama the Ngobe have been protesting over mineral rights to their land. The government wants to build a large open pit mine in the Commarca, and the Ngobe are pissed off about it. They have set up a blockade near San Felix and no vehicles other than ambulances have been allowed through for 5 days. David is running out of gasoline, and Panama City is running out of vegetables. These blockades really screw up a lot of stuff for the country, but it’s the only way the Ngobe have to fight for the land. They are forced to inconvenience everybody in order to be noticed. I just hope it’s over soon, and no one gets hurt.
Albrook mall in Panama City, Panama. Is a pretty cool place to kill a day shopping. It looks like there are around 450 different stores all under one roof, and they are adding space for another 110 retail stores, as well as a desperately needed parking garage. I’ve heard there are plans to add a few hotels nearby too.
I like to stop for a visit anytime I’m in the Panama City area, but I rarely buy anything other than food. Sometimes it’s just fun to hang out in a huge place like that.
http://albrookmall.com/
Finally back on the bike after a little break down shut me down for about a month. Both my wife and I are glad I’m riding again. She notices a major increase in my grumpiness when I don’t have a bike to go out and hurt myself on.
In this video I talk about a few of the pet peeves I’ve developed over my year and 1/2 of living in Panama. I know there are a few people out there who look to my blog for information on what it’s really like to live here. Retail stores, government employees, overzealous security guards, and online shopping are a few that make the list.
While we were staying at the Ramaba Jungle lodge the owners Eric and Lyn broke out some tubes and we headed for the river. It was a pretty lazy ride, but it was very scenic and there were a few fast parts that were exciting. We saw some Ngobe mothers washing clothes and their babies in the river. Curious boys spear fishing for fresh water shrimp kept us company and swam next to us for a while.
It was a nice relaxing adventure, and a great activity on a hot Panamanian day.
