August 29, 2010

We had one of those “lockdowns” Friday right at the very end of school. But, there was a funeral in the cemetery behind the school for one of the “bad guys”. Apparently someone heard what they thought might be a gun shot. One teacher who was sitting outside and could easily see into the cemetery only saw one of the men take a leak on a tree. Yuk. Thankfully, the kids were all in classes. Granted, there was a high fence between the school and the cemetery, but yikes. Lockdown was only just a few minutes until they realized there was no danger, but certainly didn’t want to take any chances.
Saturday, we went to what is becoming one of my very favorite places in Panama City. Cinco de Mayo is just fun. Lots of people, LOUD music, vendors. The street is blocked off from traffic for people to walk. Check out the pictures. Lots of the Kuna women there. You can see them in the fabric store where the most colorful fabrics are sold. If only I was a seamstress. Fabric is so cheap here and such beautiful colors. Because the country is really trying to eliminate smoking, the price of cigarettes is very high. High for everyone, but especially people who are poor. So there were vendors on the street with an open pack of cigarettes and a lighter. They sell them ONE at a time. Not one pack, but one cigarette. I guess lighting it is a free service. Lots of vegetables are sold by vendors as well. The only problem is trying to carry things. There is no parking, so I guess all these people must live in the area. But pineapples are 3 for a dollar! Cucumbers were 12 cents. But you have to consider that we drove to the mall and then took a cab from there.
There is a picture of the Coca Cola Café. It is told that this café is the oldest café in Panama, the first place in the world that Coke was served outside the United States, and the only café in the world with Coca Cola in its name. It has been around since 1875. Lots of history, although now it is a favorite hang out spot for the working class.

August 25, 2010

Kids told me yesterday that Panama has a LAW that ALL students must wear uniforms. I guess it isn’t a school’s decision. CCA (my school) has what I think are pretty nice uniforms. If you go to the mall, you see literally tons of kids walking around in their uniforms of many types. Most I don’t like. Our kids wear knit polo shirts with the school emblem on them. But the elementary kids have one color, middle school another, high school yet another color and the seniors have black ones. Then they can wear capris, long pants, or skirt (knee length) in black or beige. The kids look nice. I have YET to see the dress code broken. No shorts, no capris that come to the knee or above, no holes in pants. Jean day is every other Friday and NO holes. So far into week 4 and I have yet to see a dress code infraction. Wonder if that will happen eventually? But yes, we do have the cell phone infractions. Guess that problem is universal and no one has yet to figure out the solution.
We found a veterinarian yesterday that was in a location we could actually find without being led there first. Not easy when the directions are” turn when you see a “pinkish” house, another turn when you get to the house with the large tree in front, and then blab blab blab”. Who would ever think there might be street address and street signs? But, the vet spoke perfect English, although the receptionist spoke none. Charades worked, but not very well. We just wanted to meet a vet in case Ace needed one quickly and to get recommendations about dogs living in the tropics. Good news is there are no fleas here, rabies in dogs is non-existent, and no Lyme disease. Yet there are a lot of other diseases that ticks carry and there are LOTS of ticks. So, she gave us a 30 minute lesson on ticks. Yikes. She suggested Ace be shaved close for the time being, so we can easily see them and know what to look for. Later, once we are educated, we can allow his hair to grow a “little” longer.
I realized that in Cincinnati, one of the first things I said to Wayne everyday was “Did we get anything interesting in the mail?” When he picks me up after school, I tend to want to ask that same question to him out of habit, I guess. So, seven weeks here and NO MAIL. I mean, there just isn’t mail. Mail delivery just does not happen, likely impossible because there is no rhyme or reason to street names or numbers. So, no political stuff, no junk mail, etc. Weird??? You bet. However, utility bills do get dropped off at your house / apartment by a company courier. If you do need to receive mail, you have to rent a post office box. The school allows us to use their courier service that happens once a week for letters but who writes letters anymore??

August 23, 2010

Went to Price Smart (which is the same as Costco in the states) the other day. Decided to eat lunch there. Their little snack bar is exactly like the one in Costco except Price Smart sells fried chicken as do most places in Panama. I was about 9th in line. Everyone in front of me got fried chicken and fries. Humm, you wonder why the people down here have difficulty with their weight like Americans. When I got to the counter to order and asked for Ensalada (Salad), I don’t think they knew what to do! At least I don’t ever have to worry they would sell out of the few they make daily. Also, we were bummed out because as large as the store is (smaller than Costco, though) they had run out of cases of water in small bottles, large canisters of peanuts, and peanut butter. Just simple staples that we needed to purchase this week. I have heard that if you find what you want, get a lot because there is no guarantee they will have it next week. I guess they often don’t order more until they run out, then place the order and it takes forever to arrive from wherever. Inventory is not in their vocabulary.
Found what I consider a “gold mine”. I needed a haircut and a friend suggested “Suzannes”. Suzanne has owned and operated her shop for 26 years, is Chinese, and is known for the fastest haircuts in town. And indeed, it was. 5 minutes for 5 dollars and I bet one of the best haircuts I have ever had. I only walked in with my one word, “corte” (cut) and my game of charades, but it got the job done. Another challenge faced head on!
Sunday, after church we wandered around downtown. Beautiful area, as you can see from the pictures. Sunday is the day to go into the city, since there is little traffic. I frankly don’t know what the locals do on Sundays, but they aren’t on the roads (thank goodness). But when Ace and I were taking a walk just before dark last night (which is 6:30 here) the park was packed with people. It seems strange to see so many people in the park as it was getting dark out, but hey , it was still only 7:00 pm. I still have trouble seeing it get dark so early in the summer.
Interesting pictures. See the one of the Kuna Indian woman. All the women dress in these beautiful colored outfits. Apparently, they are the shortest people outside of the pigmys. Also note the pay phones. You find those all over Panama. Something you just don’t see in the states anymore.
Ace and I went out for a short walk last night and met a gal here from Trinidad. Our walk ended up over an hour as we walked with our new friend and once again got to hear someone’s story who only think about Ohio as a foreign country. What fun to meet all these international folks.
Well, it is basketball season here all you sports fans! Soccer season is in the spring (is spring is really a season here)

August 19, 2010

Interesting to watch the trash men around here (WHEN they come). Trash pickup is “supposed” to be at least 3 times a week. It happened the first two weeks we were here, but certainly not since. At times, the trash does start to pile up. Anyway, there are at least five men with each truck. Some toss it up, others on top rip open each bag and search through it. Funny, because we tossed a few things that REALLY were trash, yet these guys carefully look through every bag seeking “treasure”. Some of these items probably supplement their income. I wish I could have brought them all the stuff I “thought” was trash that we tossed in Cincinnati prior to moving.
In talking with some of my students today, I found out that Panama has a 9:00 pm curfew for anyone under 18. If they go to a movie, a dance, whatever, their parents MUST pick them up (or their chauffer) Some say it is heavily controlled, others say it isn’t. So, the kids get their “cedula” or national identify card when they turn 18 which means they can stay out after 9 AND drink. Our lawyer told Wayne a story of a girl who had to wait a few weeks after her 18th birthday before they issued her card (typical system here) and she was about to lose her mind. That card means way too much freedom for some of these kids.
Speaking of drinking, some of the grocery stores are like a stand up bar. While samples of food, etc. are given out like in the stores back in the states, samples of alcohol are also plentiful (wine and liquor). Those vendors don’t seem to be without “samplers”. The women shop, while the men stand in line for samples and sometimes block the aisles.
After no rain for several days, the skies let loose on Monday just before leaving for school. Roads were flooded and little cars were off to the side, since they couldn’t make it through the downpour (which was why we were told to get an SUV). It only lasted an hour or so and was over, but oh my. I mentioned it to the secretary at school that I have never seen such a downpour of rain. She just smiled and said “WAIT until November”. OK, guess this one really wasn’t that bad.
Had my first Panamanian “Meet the Teacher” night Tuesday. Not much different than the ones at CHCA. Just that, as I was waiting for the parents to all gather in my room, most of the parents were speaking Spanish. But this school brings most of the teachers from the states, so their children can learn English correctly, so I imagine they realize many of the teachers are not very fluent in Spanish.

August 15, 2010

Just completed the first full week of teaching. Goodness, do I have duties. Seems like every day something else is handed over that we spent years getting removed from our plate in CHCA. Back to the beginning! One good thing is that school is out at 12:30 on Wednesdays with the afternoon for department meetings and our weekly faculty meeting. At least a weekly faculty meeting isn’t so painful, since it isn’t after a long school day. Funny, last Wednesday though. At the beginning of the meeting, we were told that school would be out at 11:00 am Thursday due to the electricity company shutting off the electricity for who knows why. Then, by the end of the meeting the electric company called back to inform them that they would NOT be turning off the electricity. Happy faculty made unhappy in one short hour. No one knows what is going on around here. It is just funny. Now, there is some Panamanian holiday that lands on a Sunday this year. It is happening this Sunday. So no one knows IF it will celebrated on Monday. If so, schools have to be closed, but no one has made a decision yet. I guess it is someone from the Ministry of Education that actually makes the call, but that won’t be done until late Sunday. Someone that understands Spanish radio heard that the president of Panama said there were too many holidays and they were not going to give people that day off work and school. So, the jury is still out on whether Monday is a school day or not. Who knows?
CCA is a typical American school. Most teachers have their own rooms and the students move between classrooms. However, in a “typical” Panamanian school, the students stay in the same room all day and the teachers move from room to room. I guess they think that is a better way to do it, although with the results they get from the public schools around here, I wouldn’t think so.
Went to a ladies lunch on Saturday. Fun! There were 20 ladies there, all of whom have lived in Panama for years. I just sat and listened for 4 hours to all sorts of conversations, none of which I understood. Granted, it was all in English, but I had no frame of reference for anything. How interesting. But I did find out that in Panama there is an automatic 75 dollar fine if caught driving and talking on a cell phone. Frankly, with the crazy driving that goes on, I can’t imagine anyone actually doing that. Also, all places are non smoking. Even many of the outdoor parks are non smoking. You can’t even smoke on your patio of your apartment if the smoke goes into someone else’s patio. They are trying to get a law passed that you can’t even smoke in front of public buildings. Apparently, the doctors in Panama got these laws passed due to the high incidence of lung cancer.
When driving downtown today, I saw a man selling pencils and pens in the middle of traffic. Granted, there are lots of people selling in the middle of traffic, but he had no hands and not a lot left of his arms. But, he was trying to earn money and was not begging. The car of ladies that I was with all gave him money, just because he was at least trying to make a living. Really, for as many poor that are here, I have seen very few beggars.
There are a lot of long lines at the mall in front of stores where they check your packages. Most (if not all) stores will not allow you to come into the store with a package. So if you want to look around in different stores after you make a purchase, you have to check your packages in at the many “check your parcel“ places. Almost all the stores have such a place adjacent to their main door. We were there tonight and the lines were long. I think the Panamanians have just lived with waiting in line so much that they don’t seem to be bothered by the process. Personally, I have to think twice before waiting in line for 15 minutes only to go into a store and then wait another 15 minutes or so after I come out to retrieve my packages. On the other hand, after ALL the “stuff” we got rid of prior to moving here, we certainly do NOT want to start accumulating “stuff” again. We went to the mall only because our electricity went out again. After 2 hours w/o air conditioning, we needed to leave. For a country that electricity goes out infrequently, this is the 4 time in 6 weeks.
I think we are about to complete week six in a few days of our new lives in Panama. Still, there isn’t a day that goes by that we don’t have another adventure. There certainly aren’t as many as those early days, but still it is a mighty big learning process. My Spanish vocabulary is not growing like it should be, but my brain just can’t handle all the new things we experience, all the new things I am learning for my job, the new way of living, all the new people that I meet and trying to remember names, all my new students. Incredible, but fun!

Sunday, August 8, 2010

Found out this morning that there is a creek in our neighborhood that has interesting creatures in it. I just saw it as a pretty creek with running water and something to view and enjoy. Guess I will watch my step now. I heard that an 8 foot long alligator has declared it his home. Oh my. Don’t think I will wade in that place.
Wayne has had some rather unique traffic stories to tell lately. He has to come pick me up from school since we just have one car. Granted, school is only about a mile or so from our apartment and you know Janet and walking a mile is like walking across the street. But it is am impossible walk. Anyway, during his trips to and from school, plus several trips into the city, he observed:
1) Traffic lights, stop signs, one way signs and speed limits are mere suggestions. Plus, anyone on a motorcycle or scooter apparently does not have to observe any traffic laws and they can go thru lights and stop signs, go down between lanes of traffic or do just about anything they can to get to their destination sooner.
2) One micro second after a light turns green, people start honking. It is usually starts with about the tenth car in line.
3) If you allow one car to merge in front of you or make a left hand turn as a courtesy, you should expect two or three cars (maybe more) to immediately try and do the same thing.
4) If you linger too long trying to make a left turn into heavy traffic, someone from behind will go right around you and barge into the traffic ahead of you.
Our neighbor related a story that a friend had just gotten their driver’s license, but was rear-ended three times in the first thirty days. I guess she had done an unheard thing, which was to actually slow down when the traffic light had turned yellow. Apparently, drivers around here think that yellow means “speed up” and a light that just turned red means “floor it”.
Had open house at school on Wednesday. This not to be confused with Meet the Teacher night which is later. I must have spoken with over a dozen families and not two were from the same country. This place is truly international.
Had my first two days of school. So far so good. Kids are sweet. Behavior is excellent SO far but hey, isn’t it always those first few days. I am wondering what February will be like here. Obviously everyone won’t be sick with cabin fever, so will that really make a difference?
Went to the “Interior” today (which is considered anyplace in Panama outside of Panama City) after church to meet up with new friends. We drove up several thousand feet into the mountains and had a picnic lunch. It was absolutely beautiful. Pictures simply don’t do it justice. You could catch glimpses of the ocean beyond those mountains that you can only see when the clouds would clear. We had a wonderful time with more new friends, 3 of whom we didn’t meet until today. I can’t express how much fun it is to meet all these new people all the time. Afterward we headed to the Pacific Ocean (only took about 30 minutes) to a small fishing village. People were very very poor and the fish factory there really stunk. It sure was a different side of Panama.
Now back to the never ending job of preparing lessons. Everything being new this year means lots of time learning again and it is fun and challenging.