Paradise Found

On my recent trip to Panama I had all sorts of great experiences. The people are extremely friendly, even to a Gringo with little or no Spanish, the food was superb – especially the cuatro leches at Las Barandas, and the countryside is beautiful – especially El Valle and Boquete. There were a number of other key experiences and observations I had which I thought I should pass on:

1. The Rain – some people don’t like rain, and when it rains in Panama, it really pours. It wasn’t rainy season when I was there, but it was still rainy. This is much more than tank rain – as we would call it in Bermuda – i.e. rain that fills your water tank – this rain would fill your water tank in a matter of minutes. But the rain is good for a number of reasons: you can’t really drive very fast when it is raining, it helps alleviate the heat in some of the hotter areas, and the rain is warm – which means it keeps everything lush and green.
2. It’s a Small World – the more I travel, the more I realise this. We found a great little restaurant at the airport in David called Bernards. It turns out the owner (Bernard), was born in Handcross, East Sussex, just a stones throw from my UK pied-a-terre (in Cuckfield). He was very hospitable, and the food at Bernard’s is probably the best in David.
3. Don’t be put off by first appeareances – Upon arrival at the Aeroperlas desk at Allbrook Airport in Panama City to check in for my flight to David, the model plane they had on display was missing propellor blades. I was hoping that it was not an accurate representation of the plane I was about to get on. Fortunately, the plane had it’s full complement of prop blades, I was provided an in-flight snack, and I arrived safely at my destination. In fact, it was probably a more comfortable flight than the one from Miami to Panama City with American Airlines (but I guess there is no surprise there).