Patty Z

Santa Catalina – Panama Days 9-11 The drive from Bocas to Santa Catalina took longer than expected due to the bad weather I mentioned in my earlier post. It was still raining the morning we left Boca Town and continued raining all the way through the mountains. About ½ hour into the trip we were stopped in a line of traffic due to a tree down in the road, caused by high winds from the night before. No one could tell us how long we would be there, so we hunkered down not knowing what to expect. A few crossword puzzles later ( hour and a half), the road was cleared and we were on our way. The rain continued until we crossed the last mountain range and started driving toward the Pacific. Located on the ... read more

Wednesday - 2/28 Good news, we didn't get lost today! Of course we only went to to the beach, but we made it there without asking directions! We traveled on Tuesday from San Carlos to Pedasi, and it was slow going due to road construction between Chitre' and Los Tablas. Panama is building a new highway, which is about 90% completed, and to keep traffice at a safe pace, they have set the speed limit at 40 km or 25 mph. That added an hour to our previously planned 3 hour trip. Arriving in Pedasi we found a quiet little fishing village about a mile off the Pacific coast. It is clean, quiet, quaint and a melting pot of nationalaties. When we arrived at the B&B where we had reservations it was locked up tight, so ... read more

Sunday, February 24th Playa El Palmar, San Carlos We arrived in Panama City last night at 7:15 pm.(EST) right on time. The flight was six and half hours long but we can't say enough good things about Copa Airlines. The plane was new, with mini televisions in the back of each headrest that offered four new movie releases, movie classics, sitcoms, comedies, and games. Also, we were pleasantly surprised when the crew served lunch and dinner as well as complimentary wine, beer and soft drinks. We highly recommed Copa Airlines in your future travel plans. Tocumen International Airport is modern and easy to navigate. We made it through customs in no time at all, and found Budget Rental Car located right outside the doors that exited customs. The car rental representative was very nice and helpful, ... read more

Today was the last day we could dive, since we have to have 24 hours between our last dive and flying. We woke to a partially sunny day, very little wind, but it was cold, or cold for Belize maybe 65 degrees. Natives were dressed in winter coats and stocking caps, as we walked to the dock to catch the boat in our shorty wet suits. I have wanted to dive a site called The Christ of the Abyss since we arrived, but the seas were too rough. Also there isn't a mooring site there so they have to "eyeball" the location, drop you and then follow your bubbles to where you eventually come up. So that's what they did, we rolled off somewhere near (we hoped) the site and started the swim to where the ... read more

We experienced something this week, that has never happened to us before in all of our travels. The loss of a loved one is hard enough when you are in the U.S., but is the most helpless feeling there is when you 1,000's of miles from home. Wednesday, December 28th my nephew's wife died suddenly after a short illness. She was a lovely young woman with so much life ahead of her, and leaves behind a husband, a 5 year old son and a 17 year old daughter. Barb you are loved and will be missed by many. With the sad news from home, our hearts were not into beachcombing or diving for a few days. Today we awoke to a beautiful day and learned Reef Adventures was going to go "north" to dive which is ... read more