July 30, 2012

I DID NOT write this. It was an editorial from the Panama Visitante  Newspaper (July 26 edition) that we read.   We loved reading this article, because most every word is just so true.    When we were back this summer, we experienced everyone one of these except for the Police officer one!!  Hopefully we don’t have that experience but it is doubtful  if you live here. 

When my lovely wife and I were visiting Italy recently, people we met, fellow travelers, divers, tour guides, waiters – even pickpockets  -- they all naturally asked us where we were from. We got a big kick out of saying “Panama”.  The look on our newfound friends’ faces was almost always confused surprise.
Since most people in the world don’t know much about Panama, they don’t know what language is spoken or what the natives look like, so even though we spoke with an “American” accent, most were reluctant to fire back “Oh no You’re NOT!”

The point is we are expatriates, which is simply defined as people who reside in a country and a culture other than that of their upbringing. 

My wife and I were very lucky and sold our house some and then we “jumped off the cliff” and came here. We do  not have anywhere in the states to be from and saying you are “from the States” is a bit vague if not downright evasive, at least from where we are standing these days.

So how do you know if you are a true expat or not?  One way is to go back to your country of origin and see how you feel.  How does where you used to live compare to where you are now?

You know you have become a TRUE expat, when you are “back” because:

...you are annoyed in US airports at having to pay for a cart for your bags.
….you catch yourself saying “gracias” instead of “thank you”.
…you find US traffic structured in an overly-orderly manner.
….the road lanes and parking spaces seem inordinately oversized.
…you have to remind yourself not to bribe police officers
…you just can NOT believe that you have found a parking space at the grocery store or the mall.
…everything seems manicured – not only people’s front yard and public parks, but parking lots, median strips, the roadside, farmer’s fields.  Everything.
…you have to remind yourself not to bribe police offices.
…you say hello to strangers on the street AND wonder why they DO NOT say hello back.
…you head for the local supermarket and spend hours walking around because there is so much more choice.
…you can’t read in a coffee shop or on the bus because all the English being spokenis distracting
…or you find yourself eavesdropping on nearby conversations just because you can!
….you think gas prices in the US are low
…you realize you are NOT the tallest person in the country anymore.
….you get tired of people asking you “So what is it like??? Is it scary???
…you count the days until you can go “home”. 

July 21, 2012

Been a long time since I posted on this blog!   Will try to get back "at it"!
But this is an article that Wayne found on the internet.  We both laugh when we read it because we have seen everything in this article and it is right "on target"!!!

Honking car horns are a way of life in Panama.  They are most important when traffic is totally stopped, there is absolutely no place to go, so everyone honks their horn.  Most Gringos are conditioned to think that if they hear a car horn, they have done something wrong or are in danger. Not so in Panama.  It can often mean, “I am coming by on the left”, or “Do you want a taxi?”(if walking) or “You are really hot”(female walking).  Panamanians love their car horns.



Traffic Lanes

Panamanians will make a traffic lane out of anything.  Road shoulders, sidewalks, literally any place that can support four tires (and sometimes only 2) can be a traffic lane.  There is no regard to the fact that at some point the shoulder will disappear and all traffic must merge into actual lanes thus making the traffic jam way worse than it actually had to be.



Open Holes in Sidewalks

Throughout Panama there are numerous open, unmarked holes in sidewalks.  You have got to love a country where the philosophy is: If you are too stupid not to fall into an open hole, then you deserve what you get.



The Canal

A main source of pride for Panamanians is The Panama Canal.  Rarely is a country so dependent on a single source of income.  And Panamanians appreciate it.  To work at the canal is one of the most sought after positions in the country.  Working at the canal immediately vaults a Panamanian into an elevated social status.



Employment

Panamanians are extremely proud of the low unemployment rate in Panama.  The unemployment rate  hovers around 4%, the lowest in Central America.  It matters little that there are maybe 4 people doing the job of 1, everyone is employed and proud of it. You realize this if you go into the Do It Center on Sunday and there are literally 2 clerks on each isle trying to “help” you as you pass through.

May 27, 2012

Link to a movie about the rug!

Not my story but certainly an interesting one that I saw on another blog.  But this is so "Panama".

Before I left Panama last May (2011), a 4'x6' shag rug appeared on the sidewalk in front of the Banco General parking lot off Via Argentina. When I returned in November, the rug was STILL there. Throughout the year I've watched the women in orange clean AROUND the rug, people walk over it, cars drive over it...but no-one's bothered to move it to the trash can, located no more than 5 feet away.
I decided that one of my last acts, before leaving Panama this May, would be a proper disposal of the rug. It was soaking wet this morning and too bulky to squeeze into the trash can but at least it's now off the sidewalk. My friend, Dixon, memorialized the event for me.



Rare time where there were two CRUISE ships in the locks at the same time



The breakfast place for dozens of parakeets that sing to us every morning



Mangos mangos mangos  EVERYPLACE



Beautiful flowering trees



Beautiful trees


Another long weekend.  Got notice on Friday that Monday was going to be a National Day of Mourning for a guy that died that had been president for 8 months many years ago.  This happened once last year as well when a guy that had been president for only 24 hours had died.    This is sort of like snow days that I will have down here - that unexpected “day off”.    But a day of mourning means: NO loud music, No Parties, No alcohol sales in restaurants, bars, or stores.

Some pictures here. One is a tree that we walk under every morning. The unique thing about this tree is that it is FULL of parakeets.  Dozens of them. Adorable little green parakeets that are feeding off the berries in the tree. It is just so neat.  The sound brings back memories of walking through the pet department at WalMart where all the birds are singing.   It is impossible to capture the birds on my iTouch so doubt that you can actually see the birds.  They don’t seem to like to sit still for a picture.
Now that rainy season had come again, trees are beautiful.  Flowers all over.  Never have I seen so many flowers in my life.  Absolutely breathtaking.

Another picture is one of the canal with two cruise ships in the locks. Generally there are always two ship but never two cruise ships.

Another one is of one of the millions of mango trees.  Mangoes are literally everyplace now and daily I see a new unique ways that the local people try to harvest them in the park.  Various ways include standing on their cars, piling things up to grab one, tossing various things in the air to knock them down, never ceases to amaze me how they get those things out of the tree.     But the trees grown everyplace here and mango are loved.  Apparently there are over 100 varieties of them
Did you know that:  the mango tree is a symbol of love.

• Mango leaves are used at weddings to ensure the couple bear plenty of children (though it is only the birth of the male child that is celebrated - again by hanging mango leaves outside the house).
• Many Southeast Asian kings and nobles had their own mango groves; with private cultivars being sources of great pride and social standing, hence began the custom of sending gifts of the choicest mangoes.
• Burning of mango wood, leaves and debris is not advised - toxic fumes can cause serious irritation to eyes and lungs.
• Mango leaves are considered toxic and can kill cattle or other grazing livestock.
• Dermatitis can result from contact with the resinous latex sap that drips from the stem end when mangos are harvested.
• Every part of the mango is beneficial and has been utilized in folk remedies in some form or another. Whether the bark, leaves, skin or pit; all have been concocted into various types of treatments or preventatives down through the centuries.

April 30, 2012

Day off today. It is Labor Day here.  Actually Labor Day is May 1st (which is a Tuesday).  So it has been on our calendars from school since last August.  Everyone made plans for Tuesday being off. Then, on Thursday, the Minister of Education in Panama change the day off to Monday.  Then, on Friday, the government changed the day off to Monday as well for everyone.  Nothing like waiting until the last minute! 
Yesterday afternoon, we went to Pricesmart (our Costcos) for our weekly groceries.   Lines at the registers were 10/12 deep with everyone shopping for the holiday weekend.  Mostly, people’s carts were filled with beer and believe it or not, boxes and boxes of donuts.  Never thought those two would go together.

April 22, 2012

This week was a gentle reminder that we really do live in a third world country.  We were getting used to things going right.  This week changed that secure feeling.  Monday, our internet went out at home around noon.  It didn’t decide to come back on until evening.  Then, that same afternoon, the power went out at 3:00.  It did come back on for us at 5:00, yet others didn’t get it back until midnight. Then Wednesday, the water went off at school.  It finally reappeared after several hours.  Later, the electricity went out again in our neighborhood and for many, it lasted the entire day.   After all that, we had a rain storm that was so heavy that you couldn’t see the canal (which is across the street!). Once more, the electricity was off again on Thursday.   I guess it is bearable as long as you don’t lose all your services at the same time.  A/C is really necessary now that the dry season has ended and the humidity has returned.

There was an article in the news today that a new system for hiring teachers was being put in place this year. With the prior system, the way teachers were hired in a public school was you needed to have connections (lots of connections).  Along with these connections, you needed brides.  With all that, you got the best jobs in the better schools in the nicer neighborhoods.  Experience and excellence in teaching had little to do with your teaching appointment.   Also in the article, a student responded to the comment “you need an education to get into a good college”.  He just laughed and said, “No you don’t, bribes get you anywhere you want”.  Well, unfortunately, there is a lot of truth to that.

Another article I read which intrigues me greatly is that the Panamanian government is spending 26 million dollars to put a computer in the hands of every public high school student in the country.  Of course, there doesn’t seem to be an implementation plan that I saw.  The article went on to say that they did this in 2009 as well.  Those computers now are either missing, stolen, sold, etc.

April 15, 2012

Pictures: The cruise ship out the window of my classroom, and one over looking the playground at my school. Tough when you have a cold, it is late in the week and you are tired, and you go to work and see a cruise ship out your window! Just dreaming. Also pictures of COLD Michigan with my adorable granddaughter whol loved my ipad, and my son and our newest granddaughter!

Hummm, been awhile since I have posted to the blog. Actually, it is getting difficult to find differences. I guess we are getting used to the culture, the climate, the people, so things don’t seem as strange. Panama is becoming “home” to us. BUT, we still cannot communicate in Spanish, no matter how hard we try to listen to conversations.

We had a big swim meet a couple weeks ago for our school. Lots of parents, lot of cheering, guess it wasn’t much different than if I was in the states. But, what really got me was that in spite of all the trash bins/cans sitting around, people would toss their trash on the ground. Few took the extra couple of steps to toss it into the trash can. Again, I take it this is part of the “classist” mentality. There is always someone to clean up your messes, since most everyone has a maid. In the states, you need to buy a house with a dining room for resale value; here you must have a maid’s quarters in your apartment for resale value. I still do not have a maid! I would just as soon clean my own place.

Just came back the other day after spending spring break in the states visiting family. When we left, everything was brown, large cracks in the dry ground. Coming back from the airport it was all green. The rainy season has started and it took just a week to green things up. The humidity has returned as well. However, after being gone a week and the apartment being closed up, we had very little mold, which would be common after a week during the rainy season. Anyway, I am thinking I love this weather. My skin was so dry in the states and I had to use Chap Stick constantly. Here, not a problem. Granted, you have to enjoy the humidity. But, the humidity in Panama is not the oppressive type you encounter in the Midwest during the summerComing back to the heat and humidity was welcome after being “cold” in Michigan. Why, the temperatures got down into the 30’s and 40’s. Getting home from the airport was amazing. Instead of the typical horrendous Saturday afternoon traffic, the streets were empty. Apparently, everyone had left town for Easter weekend, which is another holiday where Panamanians head to the interior to spend time with their families.

Went to the store yesterday and encountered a bad traffic jam. Discovered, as we approached it, that someone’s car had stalled. It was on a road with a slight downhill, so it would have been super simple to push the car off to the side and out of the way of the traffic. But no, who would do that??? Instead, a couple of men had their tool box out and were working under the hood right there in the middle of the road, making traffic a bigger mess than it normally is. A simple shove of the small car would have helped immensely with the traffic situation. We had another couple in the car that had lived in a number of other foreign locations and they said that repairing broken down cars in the middle of the road is very common with absolutely no concern about blocking traffic.