MaryBea Gallagher

Boquete, Sept. 29, 2022; El Oasis Hotel

Buenas tardes from Boquete, and our hotel on the Caldera River.  While the rain pours down outside and the birds revel in the afternoon showers, it is the perfect time to do the laundry and tell you about our lovely hotel while Miguel catches up on reading. You might remember

Panama City to Boquete - September 23, 2022

We headed for the airport at 12:30 pm from our hotel thanks to a taxi driver who knew exactly where we needed to go and fit our 5 check-in suitcases and 5 carry-on pieces in what appeared to be a small car; you'd think he'd

Panama - Last day in Panama City Sept 22, 2022

We have arrived in Boquete, but I think I will tell you of our last day in the Sauna Season of Panama City yesterday.  Instead of going out to Casco Viejo (Old City) on Thursday as planned, we had a taxi take us to the MultiPlex Mall.  Casco Viejo is

Panama City Sept. 20, 2022

I am still sleeping over 15 hours a day, and due to the Panama City Sauna Season, we are not getting out much in the 9 hours I am awake and semi-active.  Therefore, I am not bubbling over with wonderous observations yet.  But, soon! Joseph has upgraded my understanding and

Panama - Arrived September 18, 2022

We arrived!  We left Seattle in a whirlwind just after midnight on September 16th and had a quick stopover in Atlanta before arriving in Panama City, Panama, around 2:00pm on September 16th.  Another whirlwind took us through passport verification, baggage claim, and customs, and then we caught a quick

August 2022 - Move Update

Countdown to September 15 liftoff!  We have ten days left in-country before our departure to Panama.  We have been focusing on emptying the house and storage.   Yesterday, my sister Kathy helped me to empty kitchen cupboards (intimidating for me!), and we got down to skeleton staffing of dishes required to

Panama Scouting - Day 26 - Miami; trip home

Hola from the Miami airport where I have decent Wi-Fi and an 8-hour layover.  I thought it would be a good time to pass on some observations about returning to the USA, even though we still are 5 hours away from home in Seattle. Today’s email is sponsored by

Panama Scouting - Day 25 Panama City - trip home

Hola from Panama City!   Today was a long, long day.  We were picked up at the hotel in Boquete at 06:55 and whisked to David so we would arrive two hours early for a domestic flight - really!  We got on the plane at 8:45 and waited and

Panama Scouting - Day 24 - Boquete; Last Day

Hello!  This is our last night in Boquete, and we spent the afternoon packing things up and checking in for tomorrow's flight from David (30 minutes to the airport from Boquete) to Panama City.   Today's post is sponsored by the colors Yellow and Blue - note

Panama Scouting - Day 23 - Boquete Flower Fairgrounds

Hola!  Buenas tardes desde Panama! Today, Miguel and I went to the fairgrounds to see the flower displays.  We missed the annual flower and coffee festival by one week, but the fairgrounds are open on the weekends for wanderers and events.  Today's event was a dog show, which

Panama Scouting - Day 22 - Boquete Neighborhoods

Happy Friday from Boquete!  Buenas tardes! We spent the whole day touring the neighborhoods around Boquete, and some in town, to see what areas we might want to live in.  We found three especially attractive areas. Boqueteno Brises (imagine an ~ above the n in Boqetena, and say Brises like Breezes

Panama Scouting - Day 21.5 - Cloud Forest Photos

Here are some photos that the tour guide for the Cloud Forest hike posted from Miguel's trip.  No resplendent quetzals seen, but that entices Miguel to take the official Quetzal Hike tour next time.  Mating season for quetzals starts in April, so we may have to wait a

Panama Scouting - Day 21 - Boquete Cloud Forest Hike

Hola!  Miguel told me I said hello like a Brazilera yesterday - apparently, they think the H in Hola is extraneous, too!  Spanish seems to me to be a see-and-say language, so what is that H doing there?  I have much to learn. Miguel got to go on his cloud

Panama Scouting - Day 20.5 - Boquete - Heliconia

There are so many different styles of heliconia, I am amazed at the variety.  They are like succulent flowers, in that they are waxy and thick.  They seem like they would last forever because they are waxy and look fake - not at all the delicately petaled flowers of Seattle.

Panama Scouting - Day 20 - Boquete Rebequet Hotel Room

Ola!  Buenas tardes!  Good afternoon! Today, we worked our way around town and accomplished errands.  I went shopping at the grocery store and the pharmacy - I got a big bag of fruit, juices, nuts, and cookies for $22.00.   We went to the tour office to pay $35 for

Panama Scouting - Day 19 - Boquete Notes

Hello from Boquete on a lovely Monday evening!   I am sending you a couple of photos from a tour we took, and then I have two short stories about my day. The first photo is from rock formations all around the area - this is old-time volcano country, and the

Panama Scouting - Day 18 - Miguel, MaryBea, and Red

Hello from Boquete! Attached are my Sunday photos - Sundays are quiet in Boquete, except for the church bells announcing masses.  Most stores and restaurants are closed, and after church, most people stayed inside.  The weather was in the mid-seventies this afternoon, and windy - I couldn't keep

Scouting Panama - Day 17 - Boquete sightseeing on our own

Hello and Ola from friendly Boquete!   Today I was able to attach photos of a hotel and the fine detail and workmanship it holds! We have been lucky to stay in good hotels, even this tiny one with only 9 rooms.  The detailed decor has been impressive, and each hotel

Scouting Panama - Day 16 - Moving to downtown Boquete

Hello from Downtown Boquete! Today I thought I would send you a photo of local handicrafts.  We stopped at this stand on the side of the road near the high-altitude coffee plantations, and next to the river.  You can see that at the front are children's dresses and

Panama Scouting - Day 15.5 -Boquete - the color White

The number of flower photos grows by the day - sometimes by the hour! White has asked to sponsor this evening's special break.  White flowers are not very common, perhaps because the bold colors all around make it necessary to compete, and white looks cloud-like in the cloud

Scouting Panama - Day 15 - Boquete Coffee Finca

Today we visited a coffee farm (Spanish = finca) near Boquete, at an elevation of over 6000 feet.  Every hillside was planted with coffee plants and trees to shade them.  We learned the twist-to-pick method used to harvest the beans and saw different types of coffee plants, including the Geisha coffee

Scouting Panama - Day 14 - Volcan and Las Tablas

Aloha!  Our trip to Volcan today was fascinating - it is on the opposite side of Volcan Baru (the major volcano, though inactive) from Boquete, and a much quieter and smaller farming community.  It took us about 2.5 hours to drive there, we had lunch and talked with an

Panama Scouting - Day 13.5 Boquete - The color Pink

I have taken over a hundred flower photos on this trip, especially since arriving in the mountains.  The color Pink asked to sponsor this colorful interlude. Thank you for watching, and thank you to all of the Pinks preening for the camera! MaryBea

Scouting Panama - Day 13 - Boquete Sightseeing and Rentals

Aloha from Paradise!   Boquete is an excellent environment; green, beautiful mountains, fresh air, and a great temperature.  When we got up this morning, it was 63 F, and at the height of the afternoon, it was 79 and comfortable.  We didn’t use the air conditioning in the hotel room,

Panama Scouting - Day 12 - Boquete Arrival

Buenos Dias from Panama!   We spent most of the day on the bus traversing the mountainous coast, but after a wonderful lunch on an empty ocean beach, we turned right and headed into the mountains.  We drove through the town of Boquete on our way to this delightful hotel Hotel