Panama Update #26
August 10, 2008
This was the first day (Sunday) it really felt like we were living in a rain forest. Up until now it would rain for an hour a day and maybe drizzle some more. It would be overcast most of the day, except early in the morning, but the rain was not overwhelming. Today it rained for almost the whole day, since about 8:30 this morning. We didn't have any special plans for today. Nikki is still resting and catching up on some work since she did field work last weekend and didn't get much rest. At about 4:00 this afternoon we decided to go for a walk, even though it was still raining. We have a small apartment and just felt the need to go out to get some fresh air and a change of scenery. We brought our umbrellas but didn't need them at first because it was only drizzling. Over the course of the walk it started raining harder and thundering, so we were glad we brought them along. We walked over to the Canal Administration Building, which has a great view of the area. It is on the other side the Ancon Hill, where we live. We waited out the heavy rain under the porch roof of the building. From there you can see hundreds of the storage containers unloaded by the ships (or maybe they are waiting to be loaded). You can also see the small planes land at a nearby airport and have a clear view of the Bridge of the Americas, which goes over the canal and connects North and South America. While we were watching the scenery, a Panama couple who were also stuck in the rain asked us to take a picture of the two of them with the view of the canal in the background. We started talking with them in Spanish. I am happy now to find people who don't speak much English because it is such good practice for the Spanish. The woman was a medica (doctor) and the guy worked for the canal. They told us they were not married, but boyfriend and girlfriend. We told them jokingly that if they get married before next June to invite us to their wedding. They were very interested in Nikki's work and we talked about a lot of things. They said they would let us know if they hear of an apartment in the area. At one point they asked us what religion we were and were surprised to hear the answer. They said they are interested in the Jewish religion but don't know a lot about it because the Jewish community here is very closed. In the end we took a picture of all four of us and they promised to send it to us by email. Maybe we will be in touch with them and see them again.
