March 27, 2011

Just came back from a visit with a couple who are good friends and that were “house sitting” this past week. The house is RIGHT on the beach with a fabulous view of the mountains. That must have been a “terrible” sacrifice to have to live in that house for one entire week!!! But we went to spend the day with them on Saturday and I don’t know if I have ever been in a more beautiful, comfortable spot in my life! Ace even had a terrific time running on the beach with no leash and with four other dogs. Only problem is that no matter how safe it is during the day, night time can be a problem when the “bad guys” roam the beach looking for places to rob. That is a problem in a country where there is such a discrepancy between the people that have many things and people who have nothing. But I suppose it is a problem in the U.S. as well. But here you can have bars on your windows and doors, which I suppose would not be allowed in U.S. due to fire codes. Everything here is built with cement block or poured concrete, so the termites can’t eat it. Building anything out of wood is crazy around here. But looking at some of these buildings here, they could withstand any tornado or hurricane, yet no worry about those here in Panama.
Wayne and I were taking a walk along the beach and met a Panamanian couple with two very large dogs. Apparently, I showed concern for Ace, my little 11 pound mutt, and they looked at me and said there was no reason to worry., They joked that their dogs were Panamanian dogs, therefore did nothing. Poor commentary on the country I suppose. But we had a wonderful day and marveled at the beauty of creation.
Last Tuesday, I had an unexpected day off school. I guess a beloved Vice President from years ago passed away. The President of the Panama called a national day of mourning and all business, offices, schools, etc were to shut down for the day. However, one construction company got permission from the government to continue working and did so. Well, the residents in a local neighborhood nearby demonstrated (common occurrence in Panama) because it was to be a day of mourning and the residents went into the streets to block traffic. The police had to come and arrest several people. Riots / demonstrations seem to be a form of entertainment for many here.
One thing we have noticed around here is the lack of automatic dishwashers! Never really gave it much thought until recently, but you just don’t see them in many places. We haven’t missed one because there are just the two of us. Wonder if it is the fact that many people have maids (really inexpensive to hire around here). Kitchens in most places are really small (unlike in the U.S.) as well. However, many houses and condos have a maid’s quarters. In the States, you wouldn’t buy a house without a dining room, but here you wouldn’t buy a place without a maid’s quarters. I still do not have a maid. Can’t imagine having one unless they cooked!