Santa Fe

We're here in Santa Fe, a small town way up in the mountains near Santiago, about a 3 hour bus ride from Penonome. I'll start where I left off. Our last night in El Valle, we went to that restaurant opening, which turned about to be a bigger deal than we originally thought. Not only was it a restaurant, but it was also a community center and hang out spot for the local residents, something the town was lacking. There was a big opening ceremony, with a live band, children singing, and fire twirling. Definitely a big event.

The next morning we woke up before 7 to catch the bus to Santa Clara, a nearby beach, because the person working at our hostel told us there was only one bus a day in the morning. However, as usual, everyone has a different answer for everything. A bus passed us and told us there was no bus to Santa Clara and we had to switch busses. After we got on our second bus and told them to let us off at Santa Clara, they ignored us and kept driving until the person sitting next to us informed us we'd passed Santa Clara at least 3 km ago. So we jumped off the bus, crossed the highway, and started walking along the Interamericana, determined to get to the beach. One bus passed us and looked at us like we were crazy gringas walking along a highway in Panama (which we were), but the next was kinder. After chuckling at us, they picked us up and drove us the 2 minutes by car to Santa Clara. When we finally made it to the beach, we were soaked with sweat and ready to jump in. The Pacific Ocean was really warm and although we all got a little burnt, we definitely enjoyed our first official day at the beach. The highlight was probably sitting in the restaurant when three huge motorcycle men dressed in leather bought us 2 rounds of beers. After Rose kindly told them I was the only one without a boyfriend, one of the guys proudly announced that I was his future wife and sat with us for a while. But hey, if I have to sacrifice for some free drinks, it's worth it. It also gave us a great opportunity to practice our Spanish and make more facebook friends (this is my second Panamanian one). And was invaluable in the memories it gave us, including the one of us with 3 men in leather in front of a motorcycle.

Finally, exhausted and filled with chicken fingers, the cheapest and only option of food on the beach (another sacrifice), we hopped on a bus to Penonome and arrived at our hotel, finding a room cheaper than the hostels we previously stayed in, air conditioned and with a private bathroom! We played cards, walked around to find dinner, and called it an early night. I was disappointed that my friend from school never contacted me, but was exhausted from the long day of traveling and beaching to do anything about it.

This morning, we woke up and got breakfast. On our walk back, I heard someone yell Marlee from a car. It was my friend Jackie, recognizable as the other group of gringos in the city. Although it was only a short visit, I'm glad we happened to be in the same place at the same time. It's crazy how small the world is sometimes.

Then, we took an hour and a half bus to Santiago, switched onto another bus to Santa Fe, and arrived here another hour and a half later. Luckily for us, it has been pouring the entire day, our first day with so much rain. Hopefully, it will clear up by tomorrow so that we can take a tour of the local coffee producer and see the surrounding waterfalls. Our hotel is even cheaper than last night and we're the only ones staying there. AND it has hammocks. We can't complain.

Rose would like everyone to know that she doesn't have malaria yet, but she is still lactose intolerant.

We are still amazed that we've managed to take busses successfully so all of these places and fill our days with fun activities. People here are so helpful and friendly, offering to walk us to restaurants or tell us when to get off the bus. Definitely a different culture than in the United States. Lots of Panamanians have also been complementing my Spanish, saying things like, you don't have a north american accent, or your spanish is very good for someone from the US. Not to brag or anything.

Feel free to comment on these posts so that I know people are reading it and I'm not talking to myself! Thanks!