Family visitors

Me, Nancy, Mom, and Dad in Boquete after some delicious pizza.
The waterfall near my house!
Women in traditional dress after the English class party.

Mom near my house. Maybe I do live in a pretty place.

My mom and dad and Aunt Nancy came to Panama in late July.

I was leaving the Project Management Seminar in Cocle province on Friday with my community counterpart Elieser, so we hitched a ride back to the Comarca with my family’s rental car, which saved us several hours of bus travel. Elieser got to take part in his first American style road trip – car packed to the brim with bags and wet bathing suits and peanut butter.

We stayed in my community in my luxury accommodations for three nights. I had an English class party planned for Saturday. My adult students made rice and beans and we made macaroni and cheese. We then had a short ceremony including a welcome, a prayer, student self-introductios, and songs (ABC song by kids and Jingle Bells by my family and me) all in English. Afterwards we handed out certificates to students displaying how many of the 12 classes were attended. The class party was a success because there was food to spare! I also took my family to go swimming in the nearby waterfall and to visit my host families.

One night my family and I headed over to my neighbor/host sister’s house to learn how to make (and eat) a sweet pudding called “pesada de nance” out of nance fruit which is in season. My host mom was there as well, talking in her native language which is called Bugleri to her daughter. The Bugles are another smaller indigenous group who live in the same mountain region as the Ngabes, but have intermarried so much with the Ngabes that their language is almost lost completely in my area. My Bugle host mom didn’t learn Ngaberi untilafter she married her Ngabe husband at age 14, and later learned Spanish when her first son was attending school. Only my host mom’s oldest children can understand Bugleri. My 12 year old host sister said, “Bechi, my mom can say something to my older sister Araceli in Bugleri, and then she can translate it to me into Ngaberi, and then I can translate it to you into Spanish, and then you can translate it to your parents and aunt into English. That sure would take a long time!”. I am continually impressed that my host mom is trilingual and most people here are bilingual.

Next we headed to Boquete, the coffee capital of Panama, and also one of the largest US expat retirement communities in the world. And I can see why, because the mountainous climate is perfect and it seems like all of the Panamanian workers in the town speak decent English. The first thing we did when we arrived there was order some coffee in the town center (which cost about as much as I spend in a week in site). It really is beautiful there but based on the number of gringos I saw, I didn’t really feel like I was in Panama anymore.

The next day I left my family to their own vices so that I could attend a training session in Panama City. I was selected to be a co-facilitator for the new Environmental Health group in September, so I had to be trained on how to be a trainer (dress nicely, comb your hair, be positive, etc). I am excited to meet the new EH group in their 3rd week in country when they are still starry eyed and eager to learn. I will be teaching them about running meetings and interactive teaching techniques.

After my family enjoyed another day in Boquete and then went snorkelling at Coiba Island off the Pacific coast, they met up with me in Panama City. We saw the Old Town(Casco Viejo) as well as the Miraflores Locks in Panama City. We also took a day trip to see the Gatun Locks and a fort on the Carribbean side of Panama. It was my first time seeing the Carribbean (Atlantic) Ocean since I have been in Panama! I have yet to swim in it.

It was great to see my parents and Nancy again and they were very easy to accommodate. Now everyone in my community keeps asking when they are coming back.