Coffee anyone

This is the last special event of the trip. This is the the final week(that sounds ominous).
This week will be spent sucking it ll in,golfing and saying goodbye to our new friends.


Volcan is a beautiful green,lush,perfect climate to grow anything.  I'm glad we took the trip.This is the place to be a farmer.

The volano blew 500 years ago (it is due to go again,apparently although it is not on the active volcano list)and all the ash went southerly. We all know that volcanic soil is full of nutrients and receptive to growth. Anyway..I digress.

So here's the scoop as relayed to us by Emily at Janson farms here in Volcan Panama. All coffee comes from Africa. That's right Africa.

The indigenous coffees were all transported from Africa. The further up,in elevation, the less the yield. So it is more expensive but the bigger the "cherry",therefore there is more sugar.
The skin of the "cherry" is super sweet and high in vitamin C and it makes a great fertilizer after it is dried. The nitrogen content is very high.

The actual coffee beans(there are two in each cherry) is inside the fruit itself. It takes 5 years for a coffee plant to produce a fruit,so don't be in a hurry if your a farmer.I guess it like gensing,which takes 7 years.
The coffee tree has to be pruned to allow picking. If not, it grows to tall. The Panamanians are very short after all. Laugh now.

So here's the process in pictures and condensed for the reader.

After the cherry is picked it goes through a skinning machine to remove the outer layer.
Then it sorted by size.That's important at the roasting stage so all the beans are roasted the same.
That makes sense but did you think of it before?

Then the beans are dried in the sun.They contain about 30 % moisture. This is reduced to approx. 11%.

Then they are dried and the hull removed. The drier is 100 degrees F. They use the hull to fire the drier as it burns easily and it produces good heat.

The beans are then bagged and aged for 3 to 6 months. The beans are then purchased by a broker ie. Starbucks Tim Horton's etc. and roasted to their specifications. Each end user requires specific roasting requirements. Most North Americans prefer medium roast,apparently.

After the aging process,the beans are then bagged and shipped out to the consumers(brokers).

Here,at Janson farms,each batch is approx 100 lbs and is roasted in these small batches. The light roast is approx 20 minutes. The medium is about 30 and dark roast about 40. They tasted just awesome.

Janson farms have their own roasting facilities and roast their own as well as their end users by request.
Quite a bit goes to Denmark and Holland.

They label,open,fill,weigh and box each package by hand. It is not efficient to be sure, but it is" by hand".

Did you know there is an expiation date. 2 years. That's it, From picking to the last date.
That's not a lot of time considering the bean ages  up to 6 months. So the coffee you buy on sale is likely close to the 2 year mark.

There is an International competition and last year Janson won second place in the "Geisha" coffee category. This is a very specific bean and cannot be fairly compared to the standard Arabica or Robusto bean. Panama produces great coffee.

We got to taste different "Geisha"(that is actually a language change that makes it appear Asian but it is actually Ethiopian)  coffees and I preferred the natural,sun dried,coffee the the water cleaned coffee.

I found the latter very fruity. I did not like the espresso either. The straight up natural was my preference by far.

So go taste your Costa Rican,Hawaiian,Panamanian coffees and savour the flavor of Africa.
You will likely want 100  percent Arabica beans(higher elevation, lower yield) as opposed to the Robusto(low elevation, very high yield)as there is much more flavor and quality control in Arabica. You only need a very small percentage of Arabica beans in Robusto to make the coffee blend"legal".

That's probably more than you wanted to know but it just proves that I was paying attention.
You may want to experiment with your own blend now.

See you.

Only 2 more weeks!!!!

I'll bet the winter was long. Eh????

I have already driven through Gualaca on the way to Los Planes. I know the way now.
Why pay $30 each when we have a car. Good thing too. The tourist bus trip there is 3 1/2 hours,you stay there for 4 hrs and come home. The same day!

We now know the easy way, and,there are(by Panamanian standards)good roads all the way.

What an adventure the other way. I am glad we did experience that. Whew!! You saw the pictures.

But, I did forget,or maybe they just got worse in a month, how bad the road was, especially around Fortuna. They must not get any Panamanian tax dollars. It should be perfect there because of all the local and tourist traffic. There is no other way to get to Chiriqui Grande or Almirante.

We finally did make it to the Caribbean ocean.

Almirante,is an interesting town with interesting surroundings. They say you can't judge a book by it's cover,but I might need that cover in some parts of town. It was just $3 a day in a secure,fenced facility. Why you might ask do I need secure surroundings? Good question. You decide for yourself.

Let's talk about the "banos" at the water taxi station. Nice..a hole in the floor right to the gulf. No toilet bowl for me anyway. Aprille did have a bowl. LOL.

So it is raining,most of the time. Our water taxi,we just missed one, has no windshield or side skirts, we get rain soaked, and you know how Aprille and speed do not mix. So...there is no consideration how we are to get back home. 30 minutes as fast as the boat can go,which was pretty fast. The operator had no respect for our request t go slowly. None what so ever. She was a real trooper I have to admit. This picture was taken at Del Drago beach but it exactly the same boat.

Bocas del Toro here are the pictures.

This is the Grand Bahia

There was a lot of history there. Originally,it was home to the American Fruit Co. It was built in 1904 as their offices. The building itself is all wooden construction,so you will here people next door and in the hallway.

La Iguana-restaurante/night club/bar is approx 200 ft away.The music is played very loudly,disco,thumping music from 1000 pm  until 330 am. we are unable to sleep. I actually got dressed,went down to the street, It was impossible to stay in bed.. Then there are the locals at Bocas Barnaq,just below us, as well. So....between the two issues it was VERY,maybe even extremely noisy. The locals were only noisy till about 2 am.

Switch rooms the next morning. Management is apparently,and without success, trying to deal with the problem at the La Iguana.
It helped....a little. I would never stay here again because of that.  Even toilet paper in the ears and covering with a pillow did not help. Drink lots. It may help you sleep.

There were some good things. The staff was wonderful,the breakfast was great and the rooms were very comfortable and clean..but...

We spent a lot of time on the 2nd floor balcony being entertained,just people watching, by the tourists and locals

The food in the local bars and restaurants was just outstanding, we saw quite a few of them, and the town itself is very quaint and touristy.  The Reef restaurante,right across the street from the hotel was just one example.The good(our view and the Reef restaurant) the bad(La Iguana) and the ugly(right next door),to the north.

2 days is enough though.

On Friday, we take the local bus to Del Drago beach.$5 return each, on our way to La Estrella beach the bus ride there was very interesting.   We had scouted the surrounding area thoroughly Thursday night. Good for us.

We arrived at the central park early. That was clever. By the time we left, the bus was nearly full. On the way there,we spoke to a couple on the bus from New Zealand(she was originally from Toronto) and they are making their way through Mexico,central and southern America,they have been in Isla Colon for 4 days and it has done nothing but rain.

Today is just perfect. Lucky us. They have some very strange weather patterns here.

On route,we stopped for three big bags of ice,and many locals loading on plantains, chain saws, mixed gasoline mixed body odors and unwanted contact,and surprisingly.. no..goats. By the time we arrived at Del Drago,there was no..and I mean no...room,to squeeze on anyone or anything else.

Good thing we did not rent bicycles. It was 18 km of,it seemed,all up hill, of, you guessed it,really bad roads. It is an easy,great nature walk to La Estralla . It is a great walking,snorkling, relaxing clean clear water Caribbean beach.

Beautiful.

The canoe here is in day 5 of construction and is made from a single log brought over from Bastimente.

I did not see one star fish. LOL.

The bus trip home was a real treat.We had return tickets,so a local tourist van drove us,he knew what we needed to get home..so..no extra fee and we saved a 20 minute wait and a crowded bus. So what did we get? A vintage  van with hardly any springs in the seat a nice driver and a ride right to the hotel.

In spite of the noisy experiences at the Grand Bahia, we had a wonderful time there.

We had to take the ferry back to Almirante good thing we did not take the tour bus. We would be forced to take the water taxi back too.
The ferry to Almirante was better than expected. For one thing,it was only $1.00 for a 2 1/2 hr crossing. Secondly,there was a section for passengers and there was a(Panamanian lounge. It was not the Cheechamung to Manitoulin Island). It was quite nice.Except maybe for the single bathroom. They are really not big on North American standards. Always carry some toilet paper and hand sanitizer. That's all I can say.

Oh yea, we were supposed to sail at 2pm. The schedule says 3pm but we were told 2pm. We were there at 1230..so the wait was 21/2 hrs and the crossing was 21/2 so what's that? That equals 5 hours of numb bum. We did spend the last hour or so with a local,Diego, who was very interested in speaking English so I got to practice my Spanish too.

The last day we discovered La Buga. A very rustic,wonderful diver shop-restauant by the water that we would have frequented had we discovered it earlier.

Going home(we travelled almost the whole way in the dark) were encounter (almost nothing) but beautiful clear mountain weather. There was a little rain and fog at the top of the mountain before we hit the Fortuna Dam.  It is 180 km one way.Thank you!

Well, I did learn one thing on this trip. There will be no more adventures,especially if the event involves water travel.

We got home around 910pm and it felt great to be home. A glass of wine and a cheese sandwich. Ah.... the comforts of home.
Today I will cut and paste part of this blog and send it to Hotels.com,tripadvisor.com,facebook  and all my friends to warn them of La Iguana.

Fresh fish

So we found,a few weeks ago actually, a new place in town that sells fresh fish from the back of a pick up truck. Fresh Tuna, Red Snapper, Mahi Mahi and Corvina(sea bass). It was just wonderful.

Our cooker is coming in very handy. Look at this fantastic carrot cake muffins with fabulous icing.

I finally found smoked oysters.  My gastronomic life is complete.

It was a gym day today. On the way back,this is what we encountered.

I was time for an ice cream, but they were closed(15 minutes early),so...we had a change of venue, it was great ice cream and the treat came with music,and it was the same price.

We'll still go back to the Italian gelataria, you can't beat it.

These are the National police.There is no cruiser(few anyway) and they do not conceal the C8. They drive around on motor cycles. Small ones. Maybe 250 CC dirt bikes. I hope to get a better picture.

So we are almost regulars at the Pool hall. It's the same faces all the time. I had a beer and Aprille had a cranberry juice,go figure, the bill was $2.25. We only played two games because of the load music. So the two games cost $1.

We had experienced high winds,and on the way home, a tree had fallen across the  rd.  It was too heavy for one person,me,to move. An SUV came by a few minutes later,there was a man in the vehicle,but.... there were no  hitch or ropes or chains.The female called for some one to help but it would be 2-3 hrs for someone to come down. It was a useless effort.

I had two towels from our gym trip and I tried to tie them together and pull off the tree. So close. I just could not get the knot to stay tight.

So Aprille had a good idea. Our friend from the gym,Lonnie, lives just up the road and he had a large SUV. Let's go to his house.
He came down with a spool of rope, and in two minutes he was able to pull the tree off the road.
Thank you.
So the moral of the lesson. Have a length of rope in the car. Or..a swede(buck) saw. Both are cheap.

This week was a week for new tires on the car.Super. We went to Big Daddy's for a burger. OMG.
Fresh cut fries,onion rings that were home made and a fabulous burger. Yummie. Not the last time at this place.

I took another day to explore and I found the natural side of Baja Mono. What a treat it was. I took a lot more pictures but you get the idea. It is only minutes from Boquete.

Today,Tue. I went went to La Riena in town because Aprille needed so retail therapy. Guess what I found. A whisk. I have been looking all over and there it was. Silicone and all for just $3.00. What a life.

Tomorrow is a golf day. Whoppeee!

On Thursday we travel to the Caribbean ocean at Bocas Del Toro.Our  room is already booked at the Grand Bahia hotel. We are going to stay for two nights. More good times and of course pictures. Stay tuned

Time to go to Costa Rica

Well did I have a good idea. Let's have a local drive us to the "Frontera",the border, and let's park the car in the lot where we rented the car. Brilliant.

So Fiona from Value Motors asked around and Franklin, who works there too,and who is almost fluent in both languages, would drive us there,on Sunday, in our car with our gas and pick us up on Tuesday at 5pm.

The best of both worlds for $50. This obviates a local bus ride to David and a local bus to the border.Times two with the return.

Okay,that done I booked a room on line.

We were told to go to Pavone Beach,beautiful beaches,a surfing mecca and because it is much closer to Canoas(the border crossing). I'll make a long story short. However,there were NO vacancies in Pavone,it was very expensive there too and it was actually further from the border.

The hotel listings on hotels.com are confusing. The first place we booked was Hotel Zima. It looked good. But...it was not even close to Pavone. It was 3 hours from Golfito! Anyway I got my reservation refunded.

Here's a tip. Call the hotel. It's easier,faster and more convenient. Quote the on line price and you will probably get that too.

So I looked again. This time with a lot more knowledge of the local geography. I found Banana Bay resort and marina. Beautiful on line. I book it. Only $90 a night including a full hot breakfast. More to come.

Border trucks to go to Costa Rica were lined up for ....miles...I am not kidding. That's how archaic the paper work is. It was a 2 to 5 day wait to get across the border. I wish I had a camera handy. One truck actually had a hammock set up.

Thank you Franklin. He was familiar with where to get stamped out,from Panama,and where to get stamped in to Costa Rica. It was easy(when you know how) It really was an easy crossing. With the duty free being right there,you could freely walk around between Panama and Costa Rica till you were ready to get your passport stamped formally,or not if you were only there to shop. It is a totally free border for the people on foot.

The taxi ride to Golfito was $50 at first, then the same driver quoted $40. He might have gone to $30. Anyway we took the bus.
$4" por ambos" for both of us! It took about 1 1/2 hrs. A great way to see the country side.

It is very green,very hot,poorer,and there is very dense jungle compared to Panama.

Of course we are right in the middle of two bus stops in Golfito. Good thing I was paying attention or we would have missed our stop. So we had to walk a 1/4 mile. Big deal.

We arrive at Banana Bay. Our reservation is confirmed and what a treat. The best we could have hoped for. Here is our view from our room.

What a sunset.

The rooms are clean and modern. There is air conditioning(trust me, you need it). There is free bottled water,internet,TV and a great setting over the bay on a pier with a small sitting area. There are two..hot tubs,albeit they were being cleaned and there fore not available.

The restaurant,the food and the bar are fabulous. What can I say. Nice.

The first day we walked to town to enjoy the heat and the new surroundings. I think we found a new place to buy by the water.

Just kidding LOL

The second day I took the "Lancha" launch to Puerto Jimenez. Beautiful place to visit but I wouldn't want to live there.
There was a restaurant called Parrot Bay and there were dozens of live parrots in the woods there. Unique for sure.

Beautiful beaches and cold beer.

I had a Greek salad and a beer.$11 US.
The boat to cross over to the island was $4. To get back(albeit much faster) it was $6.

It's just too humid to really enjoy the day. When we were out I noticed there were 23% taxes, the overall prices can not compare to Panama.

We had a great time there.

Getting out of Costa Rica was also easy. Oh yea,there is a $7 tax to get out of Costa Rica for each person. Another money grab. Oh well.

So we go to the ATM to get money for the border crossing to Panama. We need $500 each and proof of our plane ticket home and of course our passport stamped out of Costa Rica.

So....the chip card does not work in the ATM. We have to go into the bank. Take a number... after you are wandered and your backpack and purse are cleared by the two guards there. We had to wait for about 10 minutes.

I go to the wicket to get my $500. No problem right? Wrong. We are already stamped out of Costa Rica. We technically can not get any money because we are no longer in the country. But the teller is more than helpful and..to make a long story short(sound familiar?).. we get the money. Yea!

We get to the Panamanian border and we are first in line. They look at our passport,take our picture,look at the copy of the return flight and we are in. They did not even ask for the money.
We actually had over $1,000 US in cash.

We had a quick Subway sandwich a beer at the Red Dragon in the duty free section and we are picked up by Franklin. Smart boy. He paid $1US for someone to watch the car for 15 minutes. That way we got to keep all our car parts,and maybe even our car.

Only 5 weeks to go!!!!

This is a real carrot. So..does it look like a bird?

The picture below is Frank's cabin's. We we're on our way to the hot springs in Caldera. Ostensibly the hot springs(were to try to get rid of my cold)" tengo un resfriado"(I have a cold) but this was a great day. We relaxed by the pool and had a picnic lunch and met the owner. Frank(go figure) he is 75 and he took us down to see the tree house condo. You can rent this tree house,by the Caldera River. It is Tarzan in the 21 century. Too bad I didn't have a camera. The cabins here rent for 85 US$ a night. With all the amenities.

I showed the Caldera back road for Aprille to see.It is almost as bad to get to the hot springs.
You'll see.

This is a Boquete side street 1/2 a block from the police station. It's still old school here. 

Nice. It won't last long I'm afraid. Too many Gringo's. Oh ya. There's a hotel right across he road. Forget sleeping in. When is check out?

Here is our score card for the golf.  We were tied for 2nd with a 63

.
I actually won the straightest drive too. There was a misprint I was only 16 1/4 inches and they put down 60 1/4. The winner???? was 30 1/2 inches?? from the line. Shit!!  But I did get a bottle of rum. Whoppeeee!!!! 
But I have the satisfaction to know I actually won.Our 4 some from left to right Herb,Frank,Micheal and Tico

We have to go to Costa Rica(as you already know) and it looked good for Drake Bay." drakebay.com"

scratch Drake Bay.

It will take 5 hours,2 taxi;s and a water taxi to get there(x2 to get home) and it will cost....if we get the 4 day package,1200 US$ just to stay there. So....that equates to somewhere in the vicinity of $2,000 US. 

Not on my watch.

Just more fun things

While we were in Panama city it was the full moon celebration. We were told there would be 1,000's of drums (of every description)on the lawn at the  university. We would have liked to go but that would be another taxi ride and there was only so much time. It would have been fun.

On our return home we attended the Boquete blues and jazz festival. What a blast. Music from all around the globe.

 Switzerland

Columbia

U.S.A.

Panama City

Next to us, at the jazz festival, we met Fred and Susan from Selkirk N.Y. great couple. He is a good golfer too.
We met for golf on Tue. and I shot a 91(that could have been an 88 easily).Damned that 12th hole.  I played with the same ball from 1st tee to the last putt on 18. That is...here...a real accomplishment.

We met again as a couple a week later. The girls stayed home and the boys went golfing. It was not good for me that day and Fred shot a 92.

Farewell to John. He's heading back to Del Rey Florida.


Local(residents and workers on the golf course) golf tournament set up by Xavier(he works at the pro shop). Our team shot 1 under and came in 2nd. out of 10 teams. We won $60 (total) and gave it to the 2 Panamanian workers on our team.

We are now educated about the sporadic and ubiquitous fires. This practice, has apparently gone on for hundreds of years.  It is a very antiquated method of controlling the weeds and undergrowth. They just burn out. Go figure. It really is quite scary.This would be a major forest fire concern in the north.

The big picture below was taken Fri.night(the 20th) and it was taken from our lawn towards a town 10 miles away way to town.

The small fire was just down our road way on the way to town(about a week ago).Thankfully it did rain that day and the fire was extinguished.

We saw the channel 11 news and caught the Friday the 13th at Port Dover at minus 14. Really? A warm spell?


Valentines day was a nice quiet day at home with a great Paella Marisco.

Went to David on the 19th Feb. Lunch at Sabroson(same as Boguete) Fried rice with vegetables and chicken,roasted chicken, beans and salad... $6.38. With real cutlery and plates. Not food court fare.

Aprille bought a new blouse. We thought it was 50% off $20 but for what ever reason it was $5.35.

So drugs for sale or coffee from Juan Valdez. You choose.

Thank goodness for the gym and bakery. Lots of good stories and acquaintances. Our local hang outs at least three times a week