In Panama, Halloween as we know it seems relatively new. There is some trick or treating, but it seemed like the kids thought it was odd. The parents were excited though. I don't even have kids who trick or treated and I loved it. Dean's work had a festival last week for little kids.…
The air conditioning units are being serviced today. Have I explained how the A/C works here? We live in a concrete house so there isn't central air. No ducts, no vents, no moving air from room to room. Each room has it's own unit, like this: You turn the air on in the room your…
We sold our home, packed our stuff, hugged a million friends and headed to Panama. Next week will be the first time any of us have headed back to the U.S. Neil and I are making a quick trip. School holidays give Neil 6 days of California sunshine (hopefully). Looking forward to seeing friends, eating…
The first morning I woke up in this house, I went downstairs, made myself a cup of coffee and wandered into the living room. I looked out the front windows and nearly dropped my coffee: Masked men in coveralls with machines strapped to their backs were striding down the street shooting billowing clouds of smoke…
Bill paying is an interesting process here. Without a mail system, no bills in the mail. Some bills come by email. Some are put in your door. Some you are just supposed to know to transfer money to the correct account. And due dates don't seem to be consistent. Fortunately, penalties seem to be just…
No photo. My apologies, but this past weekend's wildlife sighting was a crocodile. He grows ever larger in my mind. There's been lots of rain and a particularly heavy downpour had the creek/river tributary behind our house was flowing. That tributary flows behind our house and keeps going to a nearby lake. Around the corner…
I realized when I wrote the last post I hadn't told you about our monkey visitors. That papaya tree in the backyard is paying off in animals. There is a lot of noise coming from the rainforest. As Californians, we aren't good at identifying these noises. We usually assume it's a bird. After each good…
We have had our fair share of animal visitors lately. Every time a papaya drops from the tree in back we get more. Neil is hoping for a black jaguar. I'm hoping for a toucan. When I saw a papaya had dropped over night, I wondered what we might see today. I'm pretty sure jungle…
Good morning! The president has declared a national holiday in Panama today. School is cancelled. Government offices closed. Let the celebrations continue! Panama made it into the World Cup 2018. Last night's victory over Costa Rica gave the country its first ever spot in the World Cup in Russia. Travel agencies are advertising round trip…
My dad was born in China to missionary parents. My grandparents along with their children left China at the end of World War II after spending almost two years in a Japanese-run internment camp. My Grandma Baltau learned to make gyoza and scallion cakes there (though she used lard and white or brown onions).…
The Yerems in Panama 