Aloha

Hello one and all... I have been getting less and less interested in my writing lately, as you can tell. So...I will not be writing for a while. Steve and I'll be going home in May for a few weeks. Bonnie and Sylvia are graduating and I have lots of face time to try to make up with family and friends. I may re-start the blog some time this summer. We will be back in Panama early June and it will be for an undetermined length of time-- this is our life for a while.
For now, aloha!

Bastimentos Boat Races

Saturday afternoon we boated over to the second annual Isla Bastimentos Boat Race weekend. The purpose of the event? ---to bring the entire Bocas del Toro community together for a fun weekend of water sports and raise money for the local community.  Picture the leeside bay of Bastimentos Town, also called Old Bank-- a turqoiuse blue pool about 15 feet deep, with star fish on the bottom. On shore are many concession tents and colorful flags. In the water are numerous boats of all kinds, many selling drinks and food. People bring flotation toys and blow up mattresses and anything they can use for fun in the water.  The boats gather in the center of the bay and the races happen in a circle around this, which makes it really fun to watch. In addition to motor boat races there was cayuco jousting, lumberjack log rolling, kayak relay races, cayuco paddling contest, diving for dollars, greased pole climbing, and blind dinghy races. The weather was beautiful and it was the place to be on a balmy weekend. (for more info and photos just google).

picture taken from second level of Jampan houseboat

Red Frog staff having a great time



 friends on the dock dancing



coming home into the marina- large boat is
the Akula, a british yacht

picture taken on hike yesterday- I am drawn to scenes that feel like abstract or still life compositions

breaking water on the point

(Steve and I decided to take a little mid day hike yesterday to break up the work day and enjoy the fine weather. These are a few of the pictures we took).

I'm off to patch some holes in a wall then meet our project construction manager and gardener to discuss landscaping for a newly completed house.  Hope you all have a wonderful week! 

more pictures

adolescent sloth hanging out in small palm tree at marina

sloth in tree 

sunset over Bocas Town, from deck at Cosmic Crab restaurant

bird  on beach

jungle meets sky

seaweed on sand-
effortless abstract art

friendly bird at local restaurant

that's my post for today-- I'm really tired and picures are so easy!

everyone loves pictures

dear Addy age 14 months-- no explanation needed

pool workers Hans and Laki (they came all the way from Maui to help out) blowing gunnite cement onto the rebar frames

this is how pineapple grows-- cut the top off and plant it and it takes about
18 months to grow a bunch of new pineapples fromthe old top--
this is the first baby

these are beautiful beach days...
crystal clear water, waves you can see through, really fun body surfing

the big lump is a huge sloth we saw when we were walking
in the jungle last week

a medium sized boa constrictor hanging around a tree by the hostel-
this one had just shed its skin

little time to write today, but knew you would enjoy seeing what I have been up to!

Reconciliation

Reconciliation. What a sweet word that is. My first memory of it, as THE word to describe a radical coming together and forgiveness, was in the context of the South African experience. I hope my use of the word offends no one, as I know this situation does not approach the years of suffering and lack of hope of Apartheid, yet what happened in our marina is a much milder form of that same human condition of separation and judgement.  And the resolution of our little problem here also comes under the heading of small miracle.
Yesterday I was feeling badly that I had exposed what was going on at the marina, as though I was telling tales out of school. I was incensed over the whole thing and also I felt it was a part of my experience here and I didn’t want to gloss over it. Well, ironically,perhaps my expression of my feelings in this blog gave me some permission to talk more freely about it with others and not to adhere to my usual northern European reticence about discussing such things (idle gossip, you know). At lunch I brought it up with a marina resident not directly involved and got his take on it.  He gave me a little piece of the history that I personally had not understood. He also told me that things were starting to settle down a little bit. And I tentatively suggested to him that maybe the marina residents group just needed to get a little rebellion out of their system and were now ready to just go with the flow of the rules. He thought so. And then I dipped my toe in the water of “what if?” What if the Dockmaster talked with the couple that had been ordered to leave (and who were now starting to leash their dog) and felt out the possibility of reaching a new understanding- a recognition of this experience as a mutual learning and a first time of enforcing the rules. Perhaps then there could be apologies all around and the page could be turned back (let’s rescind the order to leave) and ahead to “we all have figured out that we value what we have here and we want to make it work.”  Hmmm, he said, and nodded.
Anyway, I ran into the Dockmaster 2 minutes later and asked if that might be a possibility. And he smiled and said he really would like to do something like that.
The next I heard about it was later in the evening. We were at dinner at the beach and this couple was there. They were all happy – and apparently that’s what happened. The Dockmaster is no longer perceived as evil incarnate-- in fact has started some real friendships--and everyone gets it that the rules are for real. Each of us had our own little part in making it happen. I think the thing had run its course, there was a softening and opening, and everyone helped each other get the last little way. Who could ask for a better miracle?

Marina Madness

It seems that most of the foreigners who come to settle in Bocas del Toro are extremely independent , as well as adventurous and self-reliant. That’s a good thing, because you would never survive here for more than a vacation without those attributes. Now, if you also arrived here by guiding your boat over the ocean by yourself, you probably feel pretty capable and like you want to call your own shots. Many boaters who live in this off- the- beaten path paradise, on islands off of islands, also have a little bit of a crazy streak. This can mean lovable eccentricity, creativity and generosity, and it can also venture into the realm of varying levels of social dysfunction.

Well, there are a few residents here at our marina that have been skating along the line between independence and the above mentioned dysfunction (no, not THAT kind).  The marina, now 20 months old, recently enacted some rules to make it a more consistently pleasing place to live for all of the marina residents. These are kindergarten -type rules such as: keep your pet on a leash and under control at all times, clean up after your pet, no storing of personal belongings in common areas, no solicitation on the docks, etc. Seems pretty simple, but there are a few of the more than 50 residents that disagree with the rules and have been expressing their way- past- adolescence angst loudly  over the past several weeks.  They insist that these rules infringe on their ability to have an open, warm and welcoming community.   

The rule that they really hate is that you have to keep your pet on leash at happy hour. Seriously!!  They feel they should be able to have their pets wandering freely at happy hour, nuzzling and licking whoever they want to. Sorry, to me this is just gross. I don’t want to wonder what that warm wet thing between my knees is while I am sipping drinks with pieces of fruit and little paper umbrellas in them.  What if they slobber on my hand as I am about to grab a chip with salsa? Will the owner have some hand sanitizer at the ready so I can continue to shove food in my mouth with abandon?

To protest the rules, one of these dissenters is having his dog leave piles in the middle of the dock and lift his leg on the utility poles.  Another resident moved his meat smoker so that it blocks easy passage down the dock. Then there is the couple that is broadcasting on VHF that this marina is a terrible place and who would want to live here, blah blah blah—but, of course, they don’t leave because really it’s the best marina in the province. These are, I hate to say, old hippies and they look like old hippies.

Now, I love old hippies- in fact, I am married to one. However, lots of old hippies have aged into mellowness and wisdom rather than approaching the world with a chip on the shoulder and a semi-paranoid belief that all authority is suspect, except your own. They seem to want to enjoy the beautiful surroundings and new dock, but they want it their way, with no regard for the facts that they do not own the marina, they did not create it, they don’t have to maintain it, others live there, too, and they do have a choice to stay or to leave.  They seem to be choosing to stay and to make others want to leave. 

Well, leave they will--verbal warning, written warning, then out of here—that’s the sequence of events in the real world.  So hopefully they will move on to other places to try to make their lives work better than they did here. Who knows? Maybe they will find a little marina without rules and live happily ever after. I hope so. Meanwhile, I am sick and tired of the whining and (yes) name calling. Come on!! Most of us left junior high at least half a century ago!

Possums and People Pleasing

Well, for a Sunday off, I have been working a lot. First of all, there are three different houses that have guests arriving today. Part of what I do is I visit each house prior to check- in to make sure that everything says, “welcome- you are going to have a great time.” First, I want to eliminate unpleasant surprises for guests, such as caymans (small crocodiles) swimming in their pool (only happened once). And even though the house may have been cleaned less than 24 hours ago, you never know if some birds left tokens of their presence on the porch floor, or if a bunch of palm fronds dropped onto the patio, etc. Second, I put out the cushions for the outdoor furniture, make sure everything is in place inside and out, and just make sure the house is inviting and looks and smells clean. It is one way I monitor the performance of my staff. And it makes me feel good to know that things are as nice as we can make them. If the guests are staying for a week or more (or if they are a VIP) I also leave a welcome basket with Abuelo rum, pineapple juice, guava jam, yucca chips, a few other local treats, and some fresh cut flowers. I buy the items once a month and keep them in my kitchen cupboard, put the baskets together with a handwritten note, and cut the flowers along my way. I usually use fresh ginger for bouquets because the flowers are plentiful, very colorful and last for several weeks.

Usually, this pre-rental check is a fun thing for me and takes just 15 minutes to complete. Today- NOT. One of the houses had a funny smell to it. I looked around and sure enough, there were a few small stains on the ceiling of the laundry room, and a very sharp odor, indicating possums in the ceiling. The possums are funny little animals, unlike the big possums in a temperate climate. These little guys are about 5 inches long with longer tails, they hop around like mini kangaroos and can squeeze into surprisingly tiny spaces. And they are not shy around humans. Last year we were here sitting on the veranda looking out at the ocean. Steve had found a big bunch of bananas that day and had left them on the porch floor. While we were sitting there 3 possums hopped across the veranda, right under our feet, to get at the bananas. YIKES!  I do not like rodent- like creatures. I am sure I shrieked loudly. And I do not want any guests have to deal with them. This is a sporadic problem in about 4 villas here-all of them located at the edge of the jungle. We find and plug the entrance hole and then repair the ceiling, but this process takes 3 days or so, therefore not time to complete before the guests arrive. So we upgraded and moved them to a bigger better house at no additional cost to them. We are in the people pleasing business, after all. They come here to vacation and we must do what we can to hold up our end of the deal.

I had a simply wonderful day yesterday.  I went back over to Bahia Roja to check on their plans to rebuild the 3 houses that burned down. Right now those 3 families are doubled up with other families. If they cut wood from the mangrove it will take them several years to rebuild. If we can help them get the building materials they hope to rebuild within 6-9 months. Ideally each house will be ~ 15 x 20 feet, with treated wood flooring and walls (termite proof) and metal roofs—estimated materials cost $5000 each. The Red Frog Foundation hopes to raise $10 k to help them with the cost of materials and transportation. If you can help, please send your tax-deductible contribution to Red Frog Foundation, c/o Joy Clem, Treasurer, 960 Springoak Way, Stockton, California 95209. Put Bahia Roja in the memo line. (Sorry we aren’t set up for online donations).

At the end of my work day, all of the staff got together for a farewell lunch for Magjuly, who is going on maternity leave until the end of May. I cooked Panamanian food for us- sautéed beef, frijoles, rice, beet and potato salad, beer, pineapple juice, and coconut bars for dessert. We met in the crowded little office and had a wonderful time. Most of them have a rather ribald sense of humor and know how to make fun out of nothing (telling stories and jokes that one wouldn’t dare tell at work in the U.S.). I feel very connected to each of them and really enjoy our teamwork—I am very lucky.

Janelis, Licinia, Enilda, Aurelia, Onecimo, Javier, Kadir, me, Magjuly, and Anselmo

I finished the day with a long swim and some body surfing. It was so lovely and warm and relaxing! Steve is at a Subway meeting in Florida until Tuesday so I am "batching" it this weekend.

Well, all for this week. Have a good one, each of you! I know it may be hard to read about fun in the sun when it’s so cold up north, but I have to tell you I DO miss the cold and snow. Think “crisp, invigorating, definite seasons.”  You don’t have nonstop rain or chronic mildew or crocodiles in your hot tub! You are in the most difficult  part of the winter so do remember to do something really fun this week to keep you going!!

From Gypsies to Jungle Walking

On Saturday afternoon I got a call that a motor boat bringing tourists over to the beach had hit a little kayuko (dugout canoe) just outside the marina. Those affected had been fished out of the water and were down on the marina dock—could I please go down?  There were 2 young women, one pacing on the dock and the other seated in a chair holding her right shoulder and whimpering. She was being capably evaluated by another Mary, who lives on a boat called Twilight, in the marina. Mary was an emergency medical technician running with ambulance crews in New York City for over twenty years. She had a sling on the young woman and was discussing options for evaluation (boat to next island, then probably a ferry to the mainland hospital). I stayed in the background, since one rule of first aid is”too many cooks spoil the broth.” And in a situation like this experience and credentials decide who the cook is. Then a tall thin man arrived in a dinghy (from his boat further out) -- “I am a retired orthopedic surgeon and I would be happy to check her out.” He was very calm, took over the evaluation and 5 minutes later pronounced in no uncertain terms, “ I am sure that you have no broken bones. If something was broken there would be far more swelling. Take some Tylenol and rest for several days and then you’ll be fine.”  I was a little surprised at the black/white nature of that statement, as was one other gentleman nearby, who was muttering under his breath about x-ray vision. Of course, one characteristic of most surgeons is the ability to make quick decisions and the willingness to do so, which not all of us have and can be a very good thing sometimes. And unless they are god, sometimes they will be wrong. In the circumstance on the dock there was no reason to make a scene-- easier to just quietly tell the patient that if their arm continues to bother them / is getting worse rather than better it would be wise to go to a hospital. Long story short- we learned that the next day she did go the hospital and there was a broken bone that required surgery and a pin. Hmmm. We all make mistakes. Lucky this one didn't cause major harm- just postponed needed care. 

An aside on the identity of these young women in their early twenties-- they are sisters, came from Argentina by themselves, and live in Old Bank, the small town on the other end of this island. They make a living by selling jewelry on the beach. Steve and I fondly call them gypsies, as “their people” are not from here, they have long dreadlocks and evidently live on a shoestring (a very short one). The day after the accident, the less injured sister was out in another kayuko and there were several snorkelers in the water around her. They were trying to recover their jewelry—all was lost when the boat crashed in the side of their kayuko and they were pitched into the water. By the way, a picture of the kayuko will be hung at the dock and some new buoys with verbiage to the effect of "watch the ____ where you are going and slow down" will be installed. The boat driver was unlicensed and will lose his boat.

An update--Several weeks ago I told you about the fire at the neighboring indigenous village. Last week I told you about the fundraiser at the marina, where over $2K was raised to help the 45 residents affected by the fire. This week the issue is how to really help them. The marina people talked about just dividing the money up and giving the cash to each individual or to the parents of affected children. The thought was that they would spend the money to replace the items lost in the fire--- bedding, clothing, and cooking equipment, etc. and giving it to them was much simpler than trying to micromanage the money. There were many who were adamant that they should have the freedom to do as they wished with the money. Then the conversation in the marina turned to "what ifs"… what if the women and children don’t get any of the money, what if the money is used for alcohol, or even just for a bunch of fun? (heck- you know how some of us can tend to view that).  Since they don’t have bank accounts, what if they decided to save some cash for a bigger purchase- how would they do that? Clearly we needed more information. So yesterday several of us went to the village and met with the elder there, Pedro Santo. We heard more details of what was lost—a generator, a boat motor, 3 cooking stoves and propane tanks, in addition to the other items we knew about. He told us about their plan to rebuild the houses and total lack of resources to do that. We asked he and his daughter to compile a list of building materials they need, we will get the list today and then we can see how we can help, between the marina and resort.  I have a feeling the people in the marina will decide to buy building materials and stoves rather than hand over wads of cash. Will keep you posted.

Enough stories of drama and woe.  My current exciting project is reading a book called “Tropical Nature.”  Or maybe I should say this IS drama, but of a different kind. It is about the tropical rainforest-about surprisingly weak soil, symbiosis between fungi and trees, foraging in the canopy, light gaps created when giant trees fall, and about epiphytes, those tangled ferns, mosses, orchids, bromeliads, vines and cacti that live suspended in other plants, and what some would say makes a jungle a jungle. I am taking notes, learning lots of big words and bigger ideas and will be doing some major jungle walking to see the living demonstration of what I am learning. I hope to condense my experience into something written for people to use on a self-guided hike through the rainforest.  And I want to get the first version done in the next 8 days, so better get cracking!

See that lump to the left? a sloth hanging out





Robert and Norma (brother and sister in law) with us at the beach bar this week

riding our new trail



Bacon and french fries, Clyde and Vern, or juggling bowling balls

A few weeks ago I thought to myself,’ life here is settling down, we’re getting into a pattern-- this is the new normal.’ I wondered if I was just really accustomed to life here, FINALLY, or had the last few weeks simply been devoid of the usual Bocas craziness? Our friends Kevin, Janelle, Larry and Wendy were here from Minnesota and things were pretty mellow. But, reality to the rescue-- no more had that thought entered my mind, than I got called to the scene of a guy who walked into a door and broke his nose. A few days later a surfer got chopped in the forearm with a surfboard fin.  And the day after that the neighboring village lost 4 houses to a flash fire. No one was hurt, but 3 families lost all of their belongings and are now sleeping with their neighbors.
The next morning, Thursday, I had to go into town for supplies and stopped at the Pirate restaurant on the water for breakfast. I almost laughed out loud at one section of the breakfast menu, well represented by the entry “bacon, french fries, toast, and butter.” (No, the section was not titled “everything you want to eat but hardly ever do).” Anyway, I thought, ‘what the heck” and ordered the above. It came with a fried egg, so I did have some protein with my fat and salt. It was quite delicious -- I ate it all and enjoyed it immensely. I wasn't hungry for the rest of the day!

So, who are Clyde and Vern? They are our new acquaintances from a tiny island about a 10 minute boat ride from here. We headed down there today to check out an old house boat that we were thinking of buying to convert into a floating office for the marina. The house boat was tied off in front of this island where Clyde and Vern each have their own humble abodes. They are both Vietnam vets, one from Reno and the other from San Francisco. Clyde moved here 6 years ago, bringing along his hot air balloon, a Cessna 182 airplane, parachutes, and a welding shop. He survived being run over by a speed boat last year while he was snorkeling and has some big scars to prove it. Vern arrived a year after Clyde and built himself a nice little open air house. He lives in his speedo- who needs clothes? (He says he goes through about 12 speedos a year). Clyde and Vern offered us a nice visit and a cool glass of water. They have some big stories and a very beautiful place, in the jungle and on the water. We’ll be going back for another visit soon.

My neighbor and friend, Sue, and I-- last night at her house

I


The view from Vern's house, across the mangroves 

a self-peeling banana
 at Clyde and Vern's

When we got back to the resort we headed to the marina, whose residents were having a fish taco feed to raise money to help the native village that had the fire. The tacos were of smoked fresh fish. There was live music and even a juggler! His name is Ray and his boat is anchored outside the marina. When he got back from Viet Nam in 1971 there were very few street performers in San Francisco and Ray made street performance into a true art form. He made his living as a street juggler there for over 30 years. Today he performed for us and it was a real treat. He started with flaming torches and ended with 12 pound bowling balls. How’s that for an upper body workout?

Here is a little bonus, in case you're looking
for a nice dip to take to a party. Our cupboards
were pretty bare yesterday and we needed to take an
appetizer to a party last night-- here is what we came


Ray juggling bowling balls

up with:        Thai Curry Tuna Dip-

3 cans albacore tuna in water, drained and flaked with a fork

1 onion, very finely chopped

1. t each cumin and curry powder

1 t. red Thai curry paste

1/2-2/3 c. mayonnaise

2 T. freshly squeezed lime juice

Mash it all together to make a creamy dip. Serve with rice

crackers and raw vegies. Yummm.



how bizarre!

“As we now at 8:50 pm finish our work day (15 hours today), we both looked at each other and said “How bizarre!!”   How Bizarre-- wasn’t that a Robert Palmer tune? (I am gaga over Robert Palmer-- in fact I should go to Itunes and get some of his music, but I don’t have time right now)!! 

This has been the week from hell and the week from somewhere else (not quite heaven) all at the same time. First of all, let me say that it has been raining all week, except for about 6 hours. Of course, I don’t stay up all night counting the hours that it doesn’t rain, so I am not sure about the absolute truth of that statement, but suffice it to say that my impression, and I am sure the impression of our guests, is that the ark had better arrive soon because  The Rains are here.”

Well, I wrote the above on a dark rainy night between Christmas and New Years—the no man’s land of resorts. That week was something else AND it was also very rewarding because we actually handled it and had some amazing teamwork happening. We started every day around 6 a and the latest we finished was 11:30 pm on New Year’s Eve, just in time to ring in the new year. So, we survived our first resort holiday and it was hard and it was also pretty cool. 

Here we are several weeks later and I am finally getting back to write my blog. Bonnie and Sylvia arrived on January 2, and Tim and Tara and Addie came on the 9^th and they all left today. We had a wonderful time together, despite off and on rain. They especially enjoyed Turtle Beach, the cave tour and the zipline canopy tour. We spent lots of time just being together and cooking and talking. It was a wonderful time and we will miss them! But… more guests soon to arrive- tomorrow, in fact!

Again, we look at each other and say “how bizarre”- our lives, so different than they were last year at this time. And it’s ok, it’s fine, in fact. We are doing just fine. Maybe bizarre suits us better than we thought.

Sylvia and Bonnie riding on North Beach




Bonnie and Sylvia sitting on palm
that bends over
the beach

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Tim, Addie and Bonnie at Red Frog Beach

 

Addie, whooping it up-
that girl knows how to have fun!



Sylvia, Tara and Addie- dinner at the end of a long day



Sylvia and Bonnie kayaking to Old Bank