Panama Update #130
February 6, 2009
This morning Laurie and Pat caught a taxi at 6:30 AM and caught the Canal Train to Colon. It is a nice ride, costs $22, and only takes about an hour. On the ride you can see the whole length of the canal. It only returns once a day, at 5:15 PM, so they took an express bus back which only costs about $3 and takes about 2 hours. That bus returns about every 15 minutes all day long.
After that they went to Albrook Mall to buy a few things and got back to the apartment about 1:00 PM. Then they went off to meet Pat's friend who owns the B & B in Cerro Azul. They will ride with her to the B & B. Both of them will return to Panama City on Sunday. Pat will go directly to the airport and return to Chicago and Laurie will return to our apartment for another week. She wants to do some volunteer field work next week but nothing is planned at this point.
A friend of ours, Renato, from Quito, Ecuador, leaves tomorrow. He has been here about 6 months. We met him when in the dorm when he first came. I hung out with with last fall when Nikki was on the 3 week research boat trip to the Kuna Yala region. It is a funny place to be when so many people you meet are coming and going. The friends we have had the longest and who are still here are the more permanent researchers on staff.
