We had our follow-up appts with the Dr. to review our test results and finish the rest of the physical. The girl handed us our results and said to have a seat and in a few minutes we both went back to see the Dr. I have never had a doc go into such detail explaining each result. (used to be an x-ray and lab tech, so kind of overkill, but still respect that he takes that kind of care with patients) He wrote my scripts and did the usual exam stuff on both of us. We went out to pay before we left and the office girl went in and talked to the doctor to see what we owed. Nothing! So, the $12.75 each that we paid the first time covered it all. It’s refreshing not to fill out HIPA forms or any forms really. Your records, results, x-rays etc. are yours to take with you. They keep everything on computer. The first time we went in just to make appointments I didn’t take my list of meds and allergies since I didn’t expect to be seen right then. The doc says no problem, just email them to me.
We were overdue for a PriceSmart
trip to the city. We stopped to see if we could spot the white pelican that's
been reported there. We did manage to find the one lone white pelican at the
mud flats. We have seen people scale down the rocks to get out to an island out
there, so we decided to try it. We managed to get down without killing
ourselves or incurring serious injury and got closer to where there were a lot
of pelicans on another island and there he was. There was another guy there and
he pointed him out to us, but he’s pretty hard to miss. They are much larger
than the brown pelicans and of course all white with a pinkish bill. They do
have some black markings on their wings that can be seen in flight. He was
laying down and still pretty far away to get good shots, but we at least we got
to see him. We have seen white pelicans before, but just not in Panama. They
are rare here as they normally don’t come this far down. I guess he was blown
off course or just not too bright. There were also lots of Wood Storks, Egrets,
Ibises and other water birds. We climbed back up the rocks and there was a
helpful older Panamanian gentleman that gave us a helping hand for the last
step up. I’m sure he was thinking “crazy old gringos!” As an update, the white
pelican was reported near us (in Punta Chame) so perhaps he is migrating back. I
hope so.
White Pelican hanging out with the Brown Pelicans
Southern Lapwing
various Egrets
We then went to Albrook mall
for lunch at Leños y Carbon before making our stop at PriceSmart. We forgot our
membership card so we had to have them give us a temporary one for the visit.
Greg’s Spanish really comes in handy. We stopped at Panafoto on the way home
looking for any of the 3 cameras I have on my list to check out before buying a
new one, but neither there or PriceSmart had any of them. We stopped at the Do
It store to buy a new fan and a stop at the new Arrocha Drugstore to pick up
some supplements. Then we drove home with less than hour to get ready to go to
Picasso. Another fun evening with good friends.
For our group lunch we chose
Jennifer’s favorite Chinese place in Penonome. There were 8 of us this time.
Jim & Jennifer, Adam & Mary and Rick & Francine and us. Food was excellent and the company was too.
Jim & Jennifer invited us to their house for dessert as they live close by
in Anton. Very nice afternoon. We left early for the drive to Penonome to do
some birding and on the way home we stopped at the Rice fields for some birding
and an Otter ran across the road. It was really smokey from the burning done in
the dry season. Here's a few of the birds we saw:
Crested Caracara
Savannah Hawk
Eastern Meadowlark
female Red-legged Honeycreeper
Every once in a while a
“Panamaism” makes us laugh. Greg was trying to do some banking online with
Banco General and they had redone their system and his password would not work
and had to call and get it reset. He did find someone that spoke English and in
resetting the password they also needed to update his security questions. One
of the choices was “What brand of tuna do you buy?” I wouldn’t buy a can of
tuna if it was the last thing on earth to eat…..much less be picky about the
brand…..too funny!
I saw an interesting display
in the supermarket which was a display of sunscreen with a row of tampons down
the middle?!? I thought it was a fluke until I saw the same exact display in
another store. “protection display”? Toss in some condoms and I guess you have
it covered. LOL
On our morning walks we saw
at least 7 Spectacled Caiman on shore of a small pond. Saw the male
Red-breasted Grosbeak in the woods and a bunch of other birds since the trees
are fruiting. Our Ovenbird is still here. I suspect any day now he will
continue his journey home and delight other birders along the way. Canada or
somewhere in North Eastern U.S. Lots of activity on the Sendero Eisenmann. (the
Ovenbird is now gone as I update this at the end of the month)
at least 7 caiman on the shore
Red-legged Honeycreeper - male
male Rose-breasted Grosbeak
male Red-legged Honeycreeper
female Red-legged Honeycreeper
Rufous-capped Warbler
artistic mushrooms growing on tree trunk
Lance-tailed Manakin - male
Pale-eyed Pigmy-Tyrant
Great-blue Heron
Streaked Flycatcher
immature male Orchard Oriole
Golden-fronted Greenlet
Palm Tanager
Yellow-bellied Elaenia
Blue-Gray Tanager
young Osprey with a fish
immature male Lance-tailed Manakin
immature male Lance-tailed Manakin
flowers along the trail
We made a short half day
trip to the Altos del Maria area. Despite being told all we have to do is tell
the guard that we are there to use the birding trail, he would not let us in to
that neighborhood. We saw a ton of birds as we drove around the surrounding
area. We saw probably 20 or more different species, though no new ones for our
list. We intended to go partway on the road to Chica’, but missed the turn and
ended up exploring this area instead……
female Red-legged Honeycreeper
flowers
male Summer Tanager
female Summer Tanager
Red-legged Honeycreeper & flower
Yellow-crowned Euphonia
Yellow-crowned Euphonia
We went to El Valle and saw
a lot of birds, though no new ones. We are just shy of 300 different species,
so it gets harder and harder to find new ones. We saw a couple toucans, lots of
Flame-rumped Tanagers, a Blue-headed Parrot, Long-tailed Flycatchers, Kingfisher
and more. We had lunch at Casa Tortuga. Tasty
paninis and roasted potatoes.
Black-chested Jay
Black-chested Jay
Green Honeycreeper - male
Green Honeycreeper - male
Tennessee Warbler
Crimson-backed Tanager
Crimson-backed Tanager
female Seedeater
Female Yellow-faced Grassquit
Variable Seedeater
Thick-billed Euphonia
CASA had a fun St. Patricks’
day party at Louise’s bohio. It was potluck and there was so much good food. We
remarked that normally there is at least one thing you don’t care for, but
everything was fantastic. Always interesting people to talk to and it was a
great afternoon.
Louise & Clyde
my favorite sign on the road to Punta Chame
Black-bellied Plover
Our group dinner was at
Malibu here in Coronado and most of us loved the food, a couple had dishes they
weren’t fond of. The same 8 that went to the Chinese lunch were there. Two
couples had just come back from Cartagena, Colombia so we got to hear all about
that. They had planned to take the ferry, but it was canceled due to “weather”.
More than likely it didn’t have enough passengers to make it worth the while to
go. So, they ended up spending the night in the city and flying the next day.
They had a great time touring and it reset their clock so they can drive for
another 3 months. (still in the process of getting their residency visas) I need to remember to take photos.......
We met a really nice couple
on our Alaska cruise a few years ago and they are coming to visit us and check
out Panama. Carol & Dave will tour on their own for a couple of days doing
a city tour the first day and the ferry trip through the Panama Canal on
Friday. We will go to the city on Friday and spend the night at the Marriott
since we have a free stay to use up before it expires. Saturday we are doing a
day tour with them that is a combo of Monkey Island, Lake Gatun and the Embera
Indian Village. We will spend the night at the condo they rented and then bring
them out to our area to show them around on Sunday. Monday I set up a realtor
to show them a few condos and more of the area here, before driving them back
to the city and then to the airport. It’s a short trip, but should give them an
idea if Panama would be for them.
We are almost packed for our
trip to Coiba Island.
Here is our proposed
itinerary:
March 23 to 27
Drive to the Azuero
Peninsula about 3 and a half hours up the coast and spend the night at
Heliconia Bed & Breakfast. http://hotelheliconiapanama.com/ Tanager Tourism Heliconia Bed & Breakfast
Spend one more night at Heliconia B&B.
They have walking trails on their property so we will explore there before and
after the tour.
Here is their description of our tour:
“While snorkeling near Coiba, you are often surrounded by
hundreds of fish, mostly by small plankton-eating fish such as sergeant majors
and scissortails. The reefs are inhabited by morays, butterfly fish, angel fish,
parrot fish, hawk fish, tile fish, moorish idols, wrasses, white-tipped
reef-sharks (harmless) and many others. Occasionally, you may encounter a huge
snapper, grouper or a nurse shark on the reef. The reefs are also home to
turtles, mostly hawksbill and olive ridley turtles, but green turtles and
loggerheads have been seen as well. The edges of the reef are often visited by
blue-fin trevally and other species of jacks, trevallies, rainbow runners and
occasionally schools of black-tail barracudas (harmless) also make a pass along
the reefs. Wahoo, yellow fin tuna, sail fish and marlins roam the deeper waters
of the park.
We
leave the hotel at 8 am for the 5 minute drive to the harbor.
We
leave around 8.20 am for Coiba. The boat travels along the northern shores of
Cébaco Island, passes Santa Catalina and then straight to Coiba. En route you
may see pelicans, frigate birds, terns and dolphins.
We
arrive at Coiba around 11 am, depending on the tide and the currents. We check
in at ANAM and head out to snorkel near Granito de Oro. This islet is famous
for the turtles and large schools of reef fish. Later, we walk the Sendero dos
Monos, looking for monkeys and forest birds. This path leads through the
primary forest. Back at the ANAM camp, there is time to explore the trails near
the camp We visit two other reefs. At Isla Machete we often find
octopus, snappers and white-tip reef-sharks, as well as small rays. The site at
Cocos Island is good for moray eels. In the afternoon we do a trip in the
mangrove. Here you may see all sorts of water birds and perhaps an American
crocodile. After that we walk the sender los pozos, which leads through
secondary vegetation, forest edges and some primary forest to some hot springs.
This is a good place for monkeys and the endemic Coiba spinetail. We will be
back at ANAM late in the afternoon.
We pack our gear and put everything in the boat. On the
way out we snorkel at one more reef, which has a nice drop off where many fish
hang out. After that we travel back to hotel Heliconia, where we arrive around
noon. A light lunch and a shower will be waiting for you and thenwe say good
bye. The guide will adapt the program to the tides to make sure you get the
most out of your visit and will also adapt the program to the specific wishes
of the group. We can also design a tailor-made trip for you and your group.
On
land we often see the Coiba endemic species of howler monkey and agouti (a kind
of guinea pig on high legs). White-faced capuchin monkeys are also around. And
then there are of course many birds… The scarlet macaw is one of the most
striking but is only relatively often seen in the months January to March.
Other interesting birds are the endemic coiba spinetail, the lance-tailed
manakin, the red-rumped woodpecker, bare-throated tiger heron and the king
vulture. Out at sea, you can see brown and blue-footed boobies, terns,
magnificent frigate birds and occasionally galapagos shearwaters.”
About Coiba National Park:
Coiba National Park is a
marine reserve off Panama’s Pacific coast located in the Gulf of Chiriquí.
(Nacional Parque Coiba) It served Panama as a penal colony. Coiba Island was Panama’s version of Devil’s
Island. From 1919 to 2004, the penal colony on Isla Coiba was home to the
country’s most dangerous criminals as well as home to many who found themselves
on the wrong side of the political struggle. At its peak, The Coiba Island
Prison housed 3000 inmates in about 30 camps spread around the islands.
“Los
Desaparecidos” was the name given to the hundreds or even thousands who
disappeared in Panama under dictators Omar Torrijos and Manuel Noriega, never
to be seen again. It is believed that many of these unfortunate individuals
either ended up in unmarked graves near the Coiba’s penal colony or to have
been dismembered and fed to the abundant shark population in its surrounding
waters.After the fall of the dictatorship, Coiba resumed its role as a criminal prison camp rather than political prison. The prison is now closed. The prisoners have been relocated to other facilities.
Coiba
has 97 of the 147 species of birds found in Coiba National Park. Coiba is a
refuge for Crested Eagles and Scarlet Macaws. The beaches and waters
surrounding Coiba have leatherback, hawksbill, olive and loggerhead turtles.
We also
may see the Coiba Island Agouti, the Mantled Howler Monkey, opossums and
white-tailed deer. Over 30 varieties of bats call Coiba home.
My next post will be a review of our trip.
Until next time……
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