After catching up on a few of my busy friends Carri, who is canning her garden and taking care of a newborn and Amy with her saga of being a Christian landlord and raising her army I feel a bit guilty about being on a month long vacation. But I've done the canning and tomatoes, cucs and peppers thing years ago.  So I experienced that already.  Landlord I doubt that I'll ever be.  But I am not busy, for just this month I am doing nothing, no school, nada.  I do feel a bit guilty.  But what am I to do? I am in a foreign country, do not speak much Espanol and am trapped in an apartment on the 9th floor with 4 kids who aren't very adventurous.  I offered them to catch a cab (last trip I was ripped off by being charged $4.50 after accepting without bargain a $4 price) to Albrook mall (a huge mall that also serves as a terminal for buses going into many directions) and drvie to a beach 9about 1 1/2 hrs). From the station we get dropped at we'd catch another cab to take us to the beach where we'd pay $2 a person to enter a beach area with showers and bathrooms. Do you blame them for being not very adventurous?  I am fine in the apt nto spending money on taxi rides and tickets, etc but my dh thinks we should be a bit more advernturous and explore the country.  Now, we are in the rainy season. It rains here any time of the day (unlike the www's quotes of short afternoon rains).  Last Sat we tried to get a cab twice, unsuccessfully.  Totally. It was pouring cats and dogs on and off, mostly on, all day long.  I had to improvise dinner without much food in the pantry (cupboard) or fridge (huge empty machine).  I had some eggplants and 2 cans of tomatoes and some onions, i was lucky to find a few small peppers that my girls didn't notice among all those mangoes. The eggplant pasta turned out so good.  I just sauteed the onions with the garlic and eggplant, added peppers , later added tomatoes and just mixed the concoction with some bow tie pasta.  DH hates the word eggplant and thus, eggplant dishes aren't very popular in our household, but due to the rain no other dish could have been served. ANd it was so good. I ate too much of it and was afraid the carbs will hurt my sleep. But I slept indeed!

Going back to those mangoes.  Yes,  my fruit drawer is still full of those after picking them at a local park with a sweet homeschool family.  Deysi was the first one to welcome me to Panama. She is Panamania who lived and Hsed in the US.  So neat!  She is a great mother and homeschooler. She filled me with so much info about her contry of birth.  Her kids are very sweet and kind. My oldest ds got to play with another boy his age.  We learned about magoe pits sprouting and small plants called dormidores (sorry Deysi if I spelled these incorrectly, i forgot to double check with you last 2 times we talked and I couldnt' find any of those on www) They took us around the huge  (park in the middle of this fast growing city) to where huge mango trees just drop their fruit to rot.  Kids ate magoes right there.    We picked from 3 different varieties. I don't remember the first 2 because they were too stringy but the last one called The quality was totally stringless, means no worry if you don't have dental flossers.  I've been making shakes and smoothies every day. DH loves his with a bit of maracuja (or passion fruit).  Kids hate the passion fruit.  I am in fruit heaven. We just finished our last pineapple (bout 15 of them over a week ago) and am ready for some more.  But I'll have to find out the name of the market another hs friend took me in her car last time.  Then I'll have to get a cab to bring me and come pick me up later.  We finishes the walk with a serving of shaved ice that was very yummy topped off with some sweetened condensed milk. That day was an experience I won't forget. 

Next post is about the monkey island where the kids fed white faced monkeys and went on an aerial tour.  Please, don't be too envious.  This baby cost us an arm and a leg, literally.  But what can I say-vacations cost!

Enjoy the slideshow.