Panama Day 1: Getting to Panama City

Although I will try to blog daily, I doubt that will happen.  Instead, I will blog when I can and do a day-by-day account of my trip and add pictures when I can.  Once I get home I will update everything and add a full photo journal.

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Of all the airports I have been through around the world, I still think that Tampa International is one of the nicest and most convenient.  Ticketing is on one level, departures and arrivals on another level and baggage claim on yet another… all functions separated from each other.  A tram takes you to the gates and parking is a convenient, short walk away.  The airport is always clean and presentable.  I arrived at about 5:30 am for my 7:15 am flight and there was absolutely no line for security.  One of the things I really appreciate about TPA is the free wi-fi.  Miami charges for internet access as does Atlanta, the other two airports I go through most often.

I usually print my boarding pass at home but for some reason could not on this trip.  I was dreading having to go through the ticketing area even though I have had few problems with American Airlines in the past.  Although these self check-in terminals are supposed to be intuitive, I can never seem to figure them out.   I needn’t have been concerned as I was met by an agent as I walked up to the kiosk and she walked me through the process.

Once I got to my gate I realized that I was not wearing the long-sleeve T-shirt I had planned on wearing.  Planes can often get cold and I usually wear a long-sleeve shirt over another shirt just in case.  Tampa was fine and even the flight was OK, but Miami airport was freezing.  Idiot.  On this trip the long-sleeve shirt was intended to do double-duty – keep me warm on the airplane and to be worn at night to protect against mosquitoes.

Even though I have been through Miami airport a million times, I always forget how huge Terminal D is, the main American Airlines terminal.  This terminal is so large that there is a skytrain with 4 stops between the various sections and 2 Admirals Clubs.  On this trip the timing between flights was perfect.  I had about an hour’s wait before boarding so I had plenty of time to get to my gate, stop in the men’s room and re-arrange a few things in my carry-ons.  I checked my email on my Blackberry (again, no free wi-fi in Miami) and checked the weather in Panama City (90^o with a chance of thunderstorms).  For some reason I could not pull up Bocas on Weather Underground.

Coming into Panama City

Once on board and en route to Panama City, the two and one-half hour flight was uneventful.  I did, however, remember one of the other reasons I like flying American over Delta.  American seats have a handy adjustable headrest.  I brought my blow-up neck pillow since I figured I would want to catch an hour or so of sleep (and did) but the pillow was unnecessary.  Fortunately the temperature on the airplane was considerably higher than in the Miami airport.

So far on this trip my only gripe with American is that although I checked seating about twice a week before flying, I could not get a seat more forward in the plane.  I figured that the plane must be fairly full – not even close.  I would guess that only 25% of the seats were filled, so why couldn’t I choose another seat prior to departure?  The only thing I can think of is that there were large blocks of seats set aside for consolidators and were just not made available.  Anyway, the flight was better than expected because I had three seats all to myself and was able to stretch out and be comfy.

Crossing the t's and dotting the i's for my trip to Panama...

The only items left on my planning list  were choosing a hotel in the Azuero Peninsula, a place to stay should I decide to spend a night in the area of David or Boquete, and selecting the tours I will go on to see the canal and hopefully to visit an indigenous village in the jungle. 

I'm running short of time with only a few days left before I leave, but I promise to list lots of tour sites to help you with your own trip to Panama once I return! 

As I suspected I would, I ended up making a reservation at Hostal Dona Maria in Pedasi.  Arriving on Sunday is good timing because they are completely booked over the weekend.  With only six rooms, Hostal Dona Maria reminds me of the B&B I owned in Key West. 

As far as a tour of the canal goes, I looked over a lot of web sites, sent a few emails and finally ended up booking a tour through the American Airlines website.  It just a Grey Line excursion, but I didn't think that a simple viewing of the canal requires anything really special like a one-on-one escorted tour.  I was amazed that I American had so many offers on their website, but for what I was looking for this turned out to be the best deal.  By the way, the car I rented through Thrifty was also done through the American site.  While I did not get a better price than that offered on the Thrifty web site, I did earn extra Aadvantage frequent flier miles.

For my trip to visit the Embera tribe, I chose Embera Village Tours.  This group is not the cheapest, but they came highly recommended by Trip Advisor and looked the best of the tour companies I looked at.  This is an all-day tour.  We'll drive about an hour or so to a boat ramp where the Embera will meet us and then go up river about 45 minutes in a dugout canoe. There will be presentations on the Embera culture, tradition and crafts followed by a traditional lunch, and a hike in the jungle with one of the village elders to learn about medicinal plants. There will also be a show of their traditional shamanic and celebratory dances and music (I hope this is not hokey… like the luau shows in Hawaii) before heading back down the river and returning to the city.

And finally, I booked my usual car service for my trip to and from the airport here in Florida.  For short trips I just park in long-term parking because it is quick and easy.  For longer trips, like this one, it is cheaper to use a car service and it is nice to know that a friendly face will be there to pick me up on my return.  If you are in the Tampa/St. Petersburg area, I highly recommend Jack -- you can reach him at World Corp Travel.  If Jack can't take care of you personally he will get you set up with another service.

Given my schedule before I leave, this will likely be my last post before the trip.  I would like to say that I will make blog entries as I travel, but my Belize trip proved that it is difficult to do and still get the most of my trip.  I'll post a few times while on the go and do a day-by-day accounting of my trip once I return.  

My hotel choices in Bocas del Toro, Azuero Peninsula and Panama City...

My apologies to those of you who have been following my plans for the Panama trip. I have been so consumed by work that I haven't had time to keep you up-to-date let alone have the time to breathe.

Anyway, I have made quite a bit of headway. I have made my booking at Hotel Olas in Bocas del Toro, confirmed my reservation on Aeroperlas Regional airline, and I re-confirmed my Thrifty car rental to be picked up at Tocumen International airport. I had to wire my first night's payment to Hotel Olas via Western Union. I am paying $70.00 per night but the international wire fee was $15.00!!!

I still don't have a hotel picked out for my days in the Azuero Peninsula, but I have narrowed my choices to just a few. I decided against staying in Chitre on the northern end of the Peninsula and instead I have been looking at lodging establishments in Las Tablas or Pedasi. All the Las Tablas and Pedasi establishments have AC, wi-fi, etc. I am waiting on two more emails confirming rates and then will make a decision.

Hotel La Luna and Posada del Mar near Las Tablas are both attractive properties at about the same rate. Posada del Mar is a small B&B right on Uverito beach and is offering rooms at $66.00 per night. While not directly on the beach, Hotel La Luna is close by, has a pool and is a whopping $1.00 per night cheaper. La Luna's rates includes the 10% hotel tax but does not currently take credit cards.

In Pedasi, further to the South, El Sitio Hotel is right on Playa Venao and has a restaurant on site; they even have a surf report on the website. I may have to take surfing lessons! Rooms at El Sitio start at $90.00. Casita Margarita looks like a charming B&B with room rates starting at $99.00 and comes highly recommended on Trip Advisor. Casita Margarita claims to be in walking distance of most everything in Pedasi. Hotel Villa Romana is another boutique B&B with their Junior Suite at $99.00 and includes a continental breakfast. The one that really interests me in Pedasi is the Hostal Dona Maria. Located on the main street of Pedasi, this is a cute, six-room place with rooms at $40.00 or $50.00 including tax and breakfast. While the others in Pedasi look nicer, I think Hostal Dona Maria is more likely to attract my kind of people… the kind of folks I would go out to dinner with and set out to determine the best beer in Panama.

In Panama City, I made a reservation at the Country Inn & Suites in Amador to the west of Panama City proper.  Country Inn is not particularly quaint and it is a little more than I wanted to pay, but the location is incredible -- right on the canal and I will have an ocean front room from which I will be able to see not only the canal but also the Bridge of the America's.   A couple of other hotels I considered are Balboa Inn and Las Vegas Hotel.  Both of these would have been less expensive and had their own advantages, but I just couldn't give up being right at the beginning of the Panama Canal.  Since I won't be spending much time exploring  Panama City, I didn't see much point in staying in the city.

The only items left on my planning list are choosing a hotel should I decide to spend a night in the area of David or Boquete and selecting the tours I will go on to see the canal and hopefully to visit an indigenous village in the jungle.  I promise to list lots of tour sites to help you with your own trip to Panama!

My final days in San Pedro...

Sunday morning I slept in a bit and had the Belizean breakfast at El Divino, the wonderful on-site restaurant at Banana Beach.  It was a simple but delicious meal of black bean mash, watermelon, eggs, fry jacks, orange juice and dark Belize coffee.   Mike was originally supposed to meet me at 10:00 but emailed me that he was running late so I went for a swim in the warm Caribbean and just laid on a lounge chair looking out over the sea and the waves breaking on reef in a white, frothy line about three-quarters mile off shore.  The beach at Banana Beach is much better than I remembered.  Yes, there is turtle grass in places but the dock for the hotel next door (Mata Rocks Resort) is easily accessible and runs about 80 feet into the ocean.  It was a very pleasant time just soaking in the ambience of the ocean lapping against the sea  wall.

The Cloisters and golf cart parking lot

Mike showed up at 11:00 and we spent a relaxing afternoon with no real plan in mind other than to wander the North end on the other side of the bridge and stopping many places for a beer (so much Belikin and so little time).   First stop was a beach bar before you reach the bridge.  Mike introduced me to the proprietor  and we spent some time talking about the general state of real estate on Ambergris Caye.  Once we hit the road our first stop was at the Cloisters where Mike lives and, of course, had to get another beer  at the Funky Monkey Bar and Grill.  The Cloisters is fairly new and needs some landscaping, but the units themselves look nice and appear to be of quality construction.

Next stop was Captain Morgan's, which I was curious about because they routinely have units for sale.  It is a nice property and very large.  Parts of the resort are probably in the neighborhood of 20 years old and they are still building.  There were a fair number of folks in the pool and at the bar.  We went into their little casino where they have a good variety of table games and slots.  There was not a lot of action going on but it was in the middle of the day on a Sunday so I was not expecting large crowds of people fighting for the chance to throw money away. 

Yeah... It would be tough to look at this every day.

Finally, we got to Coco Beach Resort.  Mike and his partner  Daniel Hartin have an office at Coco Beach (the ReMax Property Center)  and are the official agents for the property.  This is a high end property built by developers who know quality.  The bar staff are great (yes, we had another beer or two) and the new three-level restaurant that is nearing completion is gorgeous.  The units have custom-made Belize mahogany cabinetry and plans that make good use of light and high ceilings.   A lot of the landscaping is in place and I look forward to seeing the resort in a year or so… plants grow so quickly in the tropics that I imagine it will have a whole new feel to it when I go back.

All good days must come to an end and after Mike dropped me off back at the Banana Beach, I took a dip in the pool and then walked towards town to have dinner at  the Blue Water Grill.  I had an excellent grilled grouper with sauce of sautéed tropical fruit that was out of this world. 

On Monday I again walked into town and had breakfast at a Cuban place, mainly for the coffee.  The breakfast was just OK and was overpriced.  But that's what you get in the center of town.  I had fun feeding the resident iguana who was partial to watermelon and bits of toast.  I walked around town to check out the signs in the banks -- all of which confirmed that they were closed for Pan-American day but would be open tomorrow.  Back to Banana Beach for some time on the beach.  I caught a nap between beers and listened to the breeze rustling through the palm fronds.  After a suitable chill out period I rented a golf cart and headed to the South end.  Last time I was there I walked quite a ways south, but having a cart made it possible to cover a long distance in a short time.  The roads in the South are in much better shape than the North. 

A croc in the lagoon south of San Pedro.

I continued past condo developments like La Brisas, Hol Chan Reef Resort and Miramar Villas until I just couldn't go any further without a swamp boat.  There are quite a few nice single family homes in the South and many small condo projects with 4-8 units. 

Tuesday  morning finally arrived.  I checked out of Banana Beach and had myself dropped off at Scotia Bank at 8:15.  The young lady at the desk had no clue I was arriving but didn't let that fluster her.  She got ahold of my contact in Belize City and we got the paperwork done so it can all be forwarded to the Central Bank for review.  The main thing was getting the signature card done because that had to be signed in front of witnesses in a branch location.  With the business part of the trip finally done, I dropped my bag at Tropic Air across the street and set out for a last hour of exploring.  Although I did not go in, I noticed that there is a big store aimed at the hotel and restaurant business.  I'm sure many good things can be had there.  I also stopped by British Caribbean Bank and Belize Bank just to pick up brochures and business cards -- just in case.

My flight to Belize City was uneventful and I bought the obligatory trinkets with the last of my Belize dollars.  I finally arrived home in St. Petersburg around 11:00 p.m. to a band of hungry cats who welcomed me home.

My weekend trip to San Pedro on Ambergris Caye, Belize

Here is a run-down on my quickie trip to Belize.

Saturday:  I got up at the ungodly hour of 3:30 am to catch my 6:00 am flight on Delta to Atlanta and then on to Belize.  As usual, Delta found a way to screw things up.

If you print your boarding pass at home the night before departure and there is an equipment change, you have to re-confirm your seats at check-in or the gate.  OK, that makes sense, but if they encourage you to use self service options like printing your boarding pass prior to arriving at the airport,  wouldn't you think they would give you a warning regarding this?  Or suggest that you print your boarding pass in the morning so that it is closer to your departure and any equipment change would be taken into consideration? Or at the very least couldn't they make the announcement at the gate more than 30 minutes before departure time so that half the plane isn't in line waiting to re-confirm seats at the time they start boarding?  Those actions would all make sense so I do not expect Delta to even consider them.  The actual flight to Atlanta was fine and surprisingly, it was on time.  Of course the plane that was taking us to Belize was late getting in and we barely got off on time.  The good news is that the right side of the plane was only two seats across and I had a seat to myself for the approximate three hour flight to Belize City.

Leaving Philip Goldson Airport on Tropic Air

By contrast, once I arrived at BZE (Philip Goldson International Airport) I waltzed through immigration in 10 minutes.  I had no checked baggage so I made a hard left turn just past immigration and went around the corner to customs.  Being one of the first to go through, there was no line.  I remember last time that the customs guy was downright surly, but this time was a different experience.  The customs agent asked if I was bringing in more than $10K in cash (I wish  had that kind of money) or any liquor or tobacco.  I responded appropriately and gave the customs form to a man sitting on a stool next to the exit.  When you leave the customs area you either go to the right to get to the taxis and rental cars, or go to left to the airline counters for ticketing and check-in.

Both Maya Island Air and Tropic Air have people standing at the entry to the check-in hall with print outs of who their passengers are so they can get you processed very quickly and efficiently.  If they can get you on the next flight, they do and expedite your processing.  As it turns out they could squeeze me on the next flight, so I called my buddy Mike and confirmed he could pick me up at noon instead of 1:00.  I got checked  in and went through their version of TSA, proceeded into the departures hall where I waited a whopping 10 minutes before boarding my Tropic Air flight to  San Pedro.

The landscape just South of Belize City

Mike met me at Tropic Air and we stopped at Banana Beach so I could get checked in.  Mike just recently got an iPad and asked me to pick up a leather cover for him.  I sent him a link to Amazon where he chose the one he wanted and I had it shipped to me last week and brought it 
with me.  Had he bought this himself he would have probably paid twice as much with shipping and the horrific import duty imposed by the Belize government.  We went to the Blue Water Grill (at the SunBreeze Hotel) for lunch and a beer.  We talked about what I wanted to do in terms of a real estate purchase and we agreed that while I am not ready to jump in at this point, it would be a good idea to check out the North end of the island to get a better idea of what I do or don't want and, at a minimum, rule out some options.  After a wide ranging discussion of  domestic and US politics, the state of the economy and banking, we agreed to meet on Sunday at 10:00 am to check out a few properties and, no doubt, conduct a serious investigation into the quality of Belikin beer. 

The beach at Banana Beach as seen over my toes.

Mike has been in San Pedro for only ten months and has already made enough in the real estate business to buy a condo.  He is still having problems with his golf cart and has paid a fortune in repairs but is on the verge of purchasing a used Polaris.  Mike also said that the Banana Beach ownership has changed.  The Canadian owners apparently were not able to meet their balloon payment and had to give it back to the previous owner that was holding the note.   It is obvious that there is some delayed maintenance that needs to be taken care of.  Most of it is little stuff but the kind of things that most people notice… rusting door hinges, the need for a good paint job on the doors and stained grout in the bathroom.  The wi-fi connection is still pretty bad so I logged in using the neighboring property's connection (Grand Colony).  Grand Colony is also under receivership.  I have not seen any of the rooms but I understand that it is supposed to be a pretty nice place.  It was originally a combination of time-share, hotel rooms and full ownership.  The Grand Colony property includes a very large section of land just to the North.  If someone had the cash to fully develop this property, the potential for a truly impressive property exists.

Saturday afternoon I walked into town and stopped to take a look from the outside of two properties that are currently advertised for sale.  Both Paz Villas and the Sailwinds condo property are just south of the Ambergris Lake Condos and are about a two block walk to the beach.  Paz Villas looks old and faded.  The pool is small and I did not bother to check out the basketball court and grill area because I was not impressed by the front of the property.  There was a broken down golf cart parked near the entrance and it appeared that some of the units were long-term rentals to locals.  The Sailwinds has great photos on the real estate web site, but the building appears to be built practically on the lot line with maybe a three foot setback.  The building looks nice, but it is right next door to a construction yard filled with heavy equipment. 

Coming in for a landing at the San Pedro air strip, Ambergris Caye

I noticed during the twenty minute walk into town that the place was dead; hardly any tourists around.  When I was here in February the town was jammed with people and all the shops were open and you could here music at the bars you passed.  Now a lot of the shops were "closed for renovations," which is always a euphemism for "we were under capitalized and have gone out of business" or "there is no point in being open during the off season, so we'll open back up when the tourists return."  As it turns out, a lot of people must have arrived on Sunday because there were a lot more people out and about the next day.  Walking through town I came across another property that has units listed for sale.  The Mayan Princess is in heart of town and while the rooms face the  ocean, in season it would be very loud.  I made a mental note to cross this property off my list of possible purchases.

After wandering around the central part of town for a bit I headed over to the central square to find a street vendor and dinner.  After checking out a couple of places I settled on two chicken burritos from a guy who swore that he had the best food in town.  After paying a whopping $5 BZ, I had to wonder if he wasn't right… they were really good and I certainly couldn't argue with the price!  I walked up the beach a bit further and then doubled back down to grab a couple of beers at Crazy Canucks before calling it a night.

I'll conclude my posts on this visit in the next few days.  I am slammed at work and have to do all of my month-end reporting before I leave on my trip to Panama on November 3.

Medical planning is important too...

I have had the good fortune to be able to travel a fair amount over the years. I have been places that require a certain amount of preparation and caution when it comes to disease avoidance and health care. Prior to spending a week in the bush along the border of South Africa and Mozambique, my guide insisted on knowing my blood type ahead of time "just in case." He also carried anti-venom for two different types of deadly snakes with us at all times. This was the first trip I recall that required taking an anti-malarial medicine.

Since that trip I have been to other parts of the world where Hepatitis A and Yellow Fever are a concern so being medically prepared for Panama was just a part of my normal planning. Those who have had to get special inoculations prior to traveling are probably familiar with the yellow WHO International Certificate of Vaccination. Some countries are quite insistent on knowing the status of your inoculations, while others are far more lax on this issue. Since you can't know for sure ahead of time, it is a good idea to keep it up-to-date and bring your Certificate with you.

Last week I went to get the last of my Hepatitis B shots (once you have had all three, you're good for life) and was advised that if I will be in the deep countryside or jungle areas of Panama I would need a Yellow Fever shot as well. I also found out that the Certificate itself has been updated, so I got a new one and the nurse recorded all of my current immunizations in it and pointed out that there are pages for other medications that I take on a regular basis. I filled that section out and had my doctor sign it; this provides me with an official record of my regular medicines so that it would be less likely that I would be questioned when traveling. There is also a place to list any medicines you may be allergic to. All of this information would be important if you had an accident, were bitten by something or became seriously ill while abroad.

As a part of my preparation, I went to the CDC web site to read up on malaria prevention. I have usually taken Malarone but it is expensive and I hoped to find an alternative. There are actually many anti-malarial medications and the one you use depends in part on what section of the world you are traveling to because there are two main types of malaria. Mosquitoes are the main carrier no matter where you go so a strong mosquito repellent is a part of a good prevention strategy. Since I won't be spending much time in and around Panama City, an anti-malarial is a necessity.

You take most anti-malarials a couple days before traveling, daily while on your trip and during the week after your return. In parts of Panama certain strains of the bug have developed a resistance to chloroquine and the various forms of it, which reduces your alternatives to Malarone. I learned that because of my history of seizures I should not take Mefloquine so I was left with Malarone or Doxycycline. The Doxycycline is a bit of a bother because in addition to taking it before and during the trip, you have to take it for 4 weeks after the trip. The big advantage of Doxycycline is the cost. I figured out that I need 44 doses for this trip. The grand total at CVS was $3.74.

Back to Panama planning...

OK… So I got my Thrifty car reservations changed and I booked my Aeroperlas flights.  The first task was easy -- I just logged into their website, entered my confirmation number and went through the "change reservation" process.  In a matter of minutes I received a new confirmation number and had the details of my new reservation in my email in-box.

The Aeroperlas ticketing was a little more interesting.  The website is in both Spanish and English… until you get to the actual reservation part.  I speak just enough Spanish to order a café con leche or cerveza and to ask where the baño is to eliminate them both; beyond that I have zero Spanish language skills.  So now I am trying to fill out the form that will let me choose the flights I want and pay for my tickets while simultaneously making good use of the Spanish-English dictionary I bought a month ago.  I was tempted to call one of my Latin American friends but decided that if I am taking a trip there, I will have to learn to figure it out.  Many words are familiar enough to make an educated guess or you could figure out what they were asking by the context or where they were on the form.

Anyway, I got it done but what is hilarious is that the confirmation and itinerary are in both English and Spanish.  At least I was able to determine immediately that I had done it right.

The last two tasks left before I really feel settled on my plans is to book hotel rooms and tours of the canal and Darien Province.  I have researched lodging in Bocas del Toro, Azuero Peninsula and Boquete but still need to find a place to stay in Panama City.  Do I choose a hotel close to the airport or something in the heart of the city?  If the city, what part?  I will probably go to TripAdvisor and other sites to read about the experiences others have had to help in my research.  I suspect at least part of my decision will be influenced by the details of the tours I take.

A quick banking trip to Belize...

I have to make a quick trip to Belize to take care of some banking matters.  It turns out that some of the documentation for the accounts  I opened were not completed properly so they need a wet signature on a new signature card and a couple of other minor items to keep the accounts open.  At first I was upset to learn this but then I realized that the same thing could happen right here at home; the difference being that a trip to the branch in my case involves flying to another country.  I am still glad that I chose Scotiabank since it has a huge presence throughout the Caribbean and Central America in addition to the U.S. and could make future traveling a bit easier.

Having to make this trip presented a timing problem since I have already used all of my vacation days or have them obligated towards my trip to Panama in November.  Fortunately, Columbus Day is coming up on October 10, which is a bank holiday in the U.S. but not in Belize.  My boss agreed to give me a personal day for the 11th so I will fly down on Saturday the 8th and return on Tuesday the 11th.  I was able to get a flight on Delta with frequent flyer miles so my only cost will be a place to stay, in-country transportation and beer money.

I initially thought about renting a car and going up to Corozal to do a bit more investigation of that area while waiting for the branch to open on Monday morning, but ultimately decided to go back to San Pedro instead.  It will cost only a bit more for the flight over to Ambergris Caye than it would to rent a car (car rental prices are outrageous in Belize).

After checking around I got a good deal at the Banana Beach Resort for only $50.00 per night.  This is where I stayed in February and while I would have preferred to stay some place different just to try something new, the price was just too good for a decent room that has a good location (just a 15 minute walk into town) and it's right on the beach.  Quite honestly, it is worth staying at BBR just to have the conch ceviche at El Divino, the excellent restaurant on site.

I emailed the Re-Max realtor I had spent time with on my last trip, Mike Wilson, and he offered to pick me up at the airport.  I am flying this time on Tropic Air for no other reason than to check out the other domestic airline.  After departing Tampa at the ungodly hour of 6:00 am and making connections in Atlanta, I will arrive in Belize City around 11:20 am.  This should give me plenty of time to make it through immigration and customs with time to spare to catch my 12:40 flight to San Pedro.  The short hop across the Caribbean  to San Pedro should take 15 minutes or so unless we stop at Caye Caulker on the way.

As long as I am in town anyway, I hope to check out some of the real estate listings that look interesting.  Both Paz Villas and the Sailwinds condos are only blocks away from Banana Beach with Caribe Island Condos  just another mile or so further South.  The Mayan Princess is right in town and I can stop by after my banking business on Monday morning.  If I have time I might try to head north to check out Captain Morgan's and maybe even take a look around Sapphire Beach.  These properties range in size from a compact studio apartment up to a two-bedroom affair and prices come in at somewhere between $79K to $129K.  I doubt I would buy on this trip, but it is a good idea to continue to get the lay of the land and gain a better understanding of what my dollar will buy.

While I am at it, and since I will have all my documents with me, I might just check out Belize Bank and Heritage Bank.  I can't hurt to spread my money around a bit for safety's sake.

Finally! A plan for my Panama travels...

I finally decided on my itinerary for Panama.

There is a flight on Aeroperlas Regional airline (the TACA affiliate) from Tocumen International airport in Panama City at 3:39 pm that puts me in Bocas del Toro at 5:14 pm.  I will have roughly three and one half hours to get through immigration and customs before the flight to Bocas.  That is probably way more time than I will need, but I would rather waste an hour on arrival than spend too much time driving over the next several days.

Arriving in Bocas del Toro late afternoon/early evening leaves plenty of time to get settled into my hotel, wander around town, grab dinner and have a few beers before enjoying a good nights rest at my hotel on the shore of the Caribbean.  I will stay in Bocas for three nights and catch the 8:45 am flight on the 6th back to Panama City and arrive at 10:20 am.  There are similar flights from the Albrook commuter airport on Air Panama at roughly the same cost, but I would have to pay $30 to $50 for a cab to get from one airport to the other and would gain nothing.

Once I am back in Panama City I will pick up my rental car and head west on the Pan-American highway towards Azuero Peninsula with stops in Coronado, San Carlos and Santa Clara along the way.  While I haven't yet figured out where in the Azuero Peninsula I will stay (Chitre, Las Tablas and Pedasi are all good candidates), it will be for at least three nights.  I'm leaving myself one day of flexibility so I could spend that roaming around David and Boquete, drive up to the Costa Rica border and make a side trip to Puerto Armuelles, spend another day in the peninsula or go back and take a closer look at Coronado and environs.  How I will use that "flex" day will be made once I am on the ground and have a better feel for things.

Finally, I will drive back to Panama City on Thursday the 10th and then spend the last two days seeing the Panama Canal and Darien before leaving at 8:00 am on Sunday the 13th to go home.  Arriving home in Florida around mid-afternoon will leave plenty of time to do the laundry and sort through the mail.

This plan feels good and appeals to my peripatetic soul; enough time to accomplish the goal of my trip while allotting enough time to just wander around and play tourist.  My next installment will address where to stay.  In the meantime I need to change my car reservations and book my Aeroperlas flights. 

Choosing a hotel in Bocas del Toro, Panama...

I still don't have my itinerary locked down, but I did quite a bit of reading and research over the weekend to narrow down the possibilities and that included searching for hotels.  Actually, some of the places I looked at don't really fit the description of "hotel" as much as B&B or guest house.  A number of the homier, less expensive places are family owned or just down right funky.  Since I am not looking for luxury, a place to lay down that is clean and has at least tepid shower water will be good enough.  I'll have my netbook with me so I'm not quite ready to settle for a backpacker's hostel (for security reasons), but one step above that is fine with me.

I'll start with Bocas del Toro.  There are a lot of really cool and funky places on the island and at reasonable rates.  Trip Advisor provided me with a list of lodging establishments to look at  and after reading through a lot of reviews and taking a look at their web sites I narrowed my choices down to three:  Hotel Olas, CalaLuna Hotel and Hotel Angela.

Hotel Olas is a colorful place (literally… the paint job is amazing) and is right on the water.  The rooms all have AC and include internet access as well as breakfast.  They keep their costs down by accepting cash only -- $40.00 per night for a standard room, $60.00 for ocean front.  From what I can tell, Hotel Olas is close to everything in town.

My other pick that is on the ocean is Hotel Angela.  With only thirteen rooms, Angela also offers free breakfast, a restaurant on site, AC in every room, internet and decent prices:  $50.00 to $80.00 per night.  Trip Advisor includes them in the list of establishments with internet but I didn't see it mentioned on their web site.  I sent them an email and got a response within about 30 minutes (a good sign in itself) assuring me that wi-fi is available throughout the property.

My last choice is not on the water, but still in the heart of town and only a block or so away from the ocean.  CalaLuna Hotel is an Italian owned property with a restaurant on site (they reportedly have excellent, authentic pizza), internet access and have rooms for as little as $45.00 per night.  They also have a small bar and a ping pong table.  One of the things about CalaLuna that may appeal to folks who don't sleep well with noise in the background is that the AC is a mini-split system instead of the through-the-wall units found in many inexpensive properties.  The advantage of the mini-split system is that they are quieter and probably more reliable than wall units.  Although, if they break down you can't just pop a new one in the wall -- they require an HVAC technician to fix them.

I am leaning towards Hotel Angela or Hotel Olas.  Both are really cool properties and appear to be clean and well maintained.  All of the properties offer to help with booking activities.  When I owned my B&B in Key West, all of the boats and dive shops paid an incentive for booking them.  I am not sure if that is the case here, but I know that most guest house owners took a lot of pride in booking the best activities in town and wouldn't let their guests go out on just any boat.  After all, their recommendation reflects back on them and they want every guest to be a return guest.

One of the curious things I found in many lodging web sites throughout Panama  is that they proudly proclaim that they have orthopedic mattresses.  Apparently Panamanians place a high value on a good night's sleep!

A few of the other web sites I used to read up on Bocas del Toro as well are Panama Info,  Extreme Panama and what touts itself as the "official" Bocas del Toro web site, bocas.com.  Panama Info covers all of Panama and includes information on hotels, restaurants, activities and has regional descriptions of the country and much more.  Two other websites that include information on Panama but are really geared towards future expats like myself are Escape from America Magazine and The Escape Artist.

Next up will be the information I found on lodging establishments on the Azuero Peninsula including Chitre, Las Tablas and Pedasi.

Bocas del Toro by air or by ground?

As I have worked on the itinerary for my Panama trip, I have tried to find ways to save time by flying between some towns or flying to a town in the west and picking up a rental car.  For instance, I thought if I could fly to Bocas del Toro and then pick up a rental car I could save quite a bit of time and still see the same territory.  One of my concerns is that I don't like the idea of leaving my rental car on the mainland while spending a couple of days on the islands.  There are flights to Bocas del Toro on the commuter airlines, but no rental cars in any of the nearby mainland towns so that idea is out.

OK… what about flying to Bocas del Toro and then on to David and pick up a car there?  That is doable, but the flight from Bocas to David is around $250.00 and there is a $180.00 drop-off fee to pick up the car in David and return it in Panama City.  $430.00 is a lot of additional cost just to save a few hours. Plus, if you add in the time waiting at airports to the flight time, you really don't save that much.  When all is said and done, the savings would cost me $75.00 to $100.00 per hour, which makes the decision pretty easy.

There is one other alternative.  I can fly round-trip from my arrival airport (Tocumen International in Panama City -- PTY) to Bocas on Aeroperlas Regional (a TACA affiliate) for $234.00.  If I were to arrive at Bocas late afternoon of the 3rd and go back to PTY the morning of the 5th or 6th I could pick up a car and still explore the area from roughly Coronado to Puerto Armuelles over the next several days before returning to Panama City to check out the canal and do a one-day trip to Darien Province.

It looks like there are two reasonable choices for what I want to see and do:  1) Fly to Bocas del Toro and back and then explore the whole south coast by car or 2) Use the original plan of getting a car in Panama City and doing the whole trip on the ground.  At least my choices are getting narrowed down.  I've got less than seven weeks to get everything nailed down and I'm starting to get a bit nervous.  I did a lot of research over the weekend on lodging in Bocas and the Azuero Peninsula, I'll be sharing that information next.

Have map, will travel...

One of the things you need when traveling in a foreign country is a good map... especially in the hinterlands.  If I am driving around the back roads of California, Florida or Minnesota and get lost I could just stop and ask some one for directions.  I can do the same in Panama but will they understand what I am asking for and will I understand the answer?  Even if I spoke fluent Spanish I think a good map would be wise.

On my trip to Belize I got a really great map made by the German map makers, Borch GmbH; it is heavy duty and small enough to use while driving yet big enough to show the details I needed.  Unfortunately, Borch doesn't make a map of Panama.  So I went to Amazon and ended up buying three maps.  Trust me, I didn't want three maps.  The first one I got is the National Geographic Adventure Map.  Sounds like just the thing for a trip that will take me to the four corners of Panama, right?  Well, it is a good map (waterproof and tear-resistant) but it is also big enough to keep a family of four totally dry in a Cat 5 hurricane.  I will use it extensively before going and bring it along, but it is not the kind of map I want sitting in the passenger seat of my Suzuki Jimmy as I head down the Pan-American highway.

So I went back to Amazon and bought two more maps:  The Panama International Travel Map and the Mapi: Panama map.  The second one is exactly what I was looking for -- complete yet handy and durable; this is the one that will be next to me in the car.  The International Travel Map is much like the National Geographic map, but not quite as good.  Fortunately the two maps together cost only about $15.00.

I have the National Geographic map spread out on the dining room table and I'm trying to figure out my route.  Now I just need to figure out if my initial plan is still a good one or if, now that I have the maps, I should use an alternative.   Until I finalize my itinerary I can't make lodging reservations or set up meetings with realtors.

"Map out your future - but do it in pencil.  The road ahead is as long as you make it.  Make it worth the trip." -- Bon Jovi

Airline options for intra-Panama flights...

As I come across new online resources for my Panama trip I will be sure to share them here.  My itinerary continues to develop and  it occurred to me that maybe flying in to Panama City and immediately catching a plane to Bocas del Toro would save some time if I could pick up a car in BT and then drive south to Chiriquí Province and from there follow the coast back to Panama City.

Is it possible?  I don't know yet but I did come across three local airlines that may make that an option.  First is Nature Air, which is a Costa Rican airline that seems to only have flights from CR to Bocas del Toro.  This won't work for me this time but could be an option for short hops to and from CR on future trips.

The second airline is Air Panama.  Air Panama has a varied fleet of 15 aircraft ranging from the 9-passenger Britten Norman Islander twin prop to the 50-seat De Havilland Dash.  They serve 22 locations throughout Panama.  The only drawback for my particular needs is that they fly in and out of Albrook airport, which is the commuter, general aviation airport of Panama City and I am not sure of how much time it takes to go from one to the other.

The third option is Aeroplas Regional airline and they fly through both Panama City airports.  Using my idea above of flying to Bocas del Toro, I would have a several hour layover in the airport before continuing on to Bocas del Toro and arrive around 5:15 pm.  Now if I can get a car there that might be worth the $116.00 for the flight.  This is definitely worth checking out.

Since most of the major car rental agencies operate in Panama along with some local groups I have never heard of, I would think that renting a car in Bocas del Toro would be an option.  Using this strategy could save me a couple of days travel and allow me to spend more time really looking at the areas I am most drawn to.

I'll let you know what I find out.  Either way it makes the most sense to spend the last few days in and around Panama City so that part of my initial plan remains in tact.

The world's best places to retire?

The September edition of International Living magazine includes their annual Retirement Index and I am glad to see that two of my top choices are ranked near the top.  Now, as IL readily admits, the rankings are based on a weighting of eight factors and then totaled, but the various factors and how important they are to you is what is most important.  Would I make a decision based on this index?  No way -- but it does provide interesting indicators of how countries compare against each other.

The index categories are:  real estate, special (retirement) benefits, cost of living, culture, health, infrastructure, safety/stability and climate.  The scoring for each of these items is based on data provided by multiple sources including international and individual government abstracts.  Each of the categories have huge areas of interpretation and giving a single number to a whole country clearly is not meaningful since every country, even tiny little Belize, has wide fluctuations within its borders.  For example, giving a single number to "real estate" regardless of whether you plan to buy or rent and regardless of where within that country you intend to live is a bit absurd.  But, as already noted, the comparisons between countries still warrant a look.

The top five countries by total score are:  Ecuador, Mexico, Panama, Spain and  New Zealand.  The index only lists 23 countries but does include many of the other destinations I have under consideration such as Costa Rica, Columbia, Brazil, Belize, Honduras and the Dominican Republic. 

An example of the difficulty I have with some of the scoring is in the area of climate.  Mexico is assigned a score of 99 while Belize is assigned a score of 62.  I don't get it.  The two countries are right next to each other; both have highlands with more moderate temperatures and both have Caribbean coasts that are warm and humid.  Is it the Pacific coast that is so much better?  Honduras is just to the south of Belize and rates an 83.  Again, something seems amiss here.  Another area I have a problem with is assigning a number to "culture."  Granted, France (with a score of 100) has a great culture -- a great history, amazing food and wine, widely acclaimed museums, etc.  But to assign a 75 to Uruguay seems a bit much for a country that has great colonial architecture and is frequently referred to as "little Europe."  Anyway, you get my point.

Since IL provides the annual Retirement Index to subscribers I won't reproduce it here, but you can get a copy by subscribing to their Postcards, an email teaser to their magazine and special reports.  It doesn’t cost you anything and before becoming a subscriber myself, I found many intriguing articles and information about locations I had not really considered before.  Yes, they occasionally try to sell you special seminars and other information, but just ignore those if you are not interested and let your mind wander to exciting new places with each email you receive.

Dealing with the details...

Well…  August was a busy month.  In addition to dealing with my health issues I had three weeks of continuing education at work so I was a bit off my usual routine.  I followed that up with a four day trip to Key West and I am now back on schedule and beginning to work on the details of my trip.

I picked up a bit of information from my friends Craig and Joyce, who used to live in Panama for a while as an interlude to their sailing.  We met up with a couple of their friends (ex-military) who also used to live there and continue to make occasional trips to Panama City.  Based on their collective feedback I gleaned the following general pointers:

• Colon is a cess pit full of crime and other than some cool colonial architecture, there is not much to see.
• The canal and its workings are a must see.
• Since I am looking to see if I can live here, concentrate my time and efforts on the Pacific side.

• A guided trip to the Darien jungle and possibly a visit to the Embera tribes would be worth while.
• Bocas del Toro and environs is worth the trip.

Once I returned from KW, I booked my airline tickets (30,000 points on American) and will arrive at Tocumen airport outside of Panama City at about noon on November 3.  I also made a car rental with Thrifty for $192.00 including taxes and fees for the 3rd through the 12th; I reserved the same vehicle I used in Belize -- a Suzuki Jimmy.  I depart Tocumen at 8:00 a.m. the morning of the 13th.  I am thinking of spending the last few days in and around Panama City, so I may reduce the total time of the car rental since it may be more practical to rely on taxis and tour operators on those days instead of driving around a major city I am unfamiliar with.

I made the car reservation with my Citibank AAdvantage card that earns American Airline miles and covers the CDW.  I also bought travel insurance through American Airlines for a pittance (I think it is about $25.00); the insurance is through Access America, which is a reputable travel insurance company and has been around for a long time.

So now I just need to figure out what areas to visit, how much time to spend in each place and what side trips to take.  Once I have an itinerary, I can book hotels and research restaurants, etc.  I bought a couple of road maps on Amazon.com today and that should help in figuring out distances and time of travel.

I will also correspond with two or three realtors to set up half day property viewings to get a feel for what is available and at what price.