Arrival into Panamá

Nearly left things a bit short at San Fran - the COPA desk was inexplicably inefficient and progress through the US exit for customs was extraordinarily tedious. I had read somewhere to allow a minimum of 3 hours for processing at the airport - good advice!

I have arrived in Panamá to a big contrast in temperature. I was met at the airport by the cheery Evelio; he even gave me a peck on the cheek like a long lost friend. He is Kathryn & Regis' driver.

He is very proud of his new car - a big black something-or-other. If I was a man I guess I would know what it is (later, Regis tells me it is a Mazda). A new tollway has been completed since I was here Feb 12 months ago but we had an interesting drive along narrow roads through some fairly poor residential areas before we got onto it - and our speed then shot up accordingly as we raced along it to the turnoff to Clayton which is the area (barrio) where Kathryn & Regis have their new home.

The security here is more serious than at the gated community they lived in before; we are finally through and arrive to a very nice (and large!) home where it is lovely to see Sophie and have a play with her before she has her morning nap. I meet Ester the nanny in the flesh instead of by way of a wave on Skype and I meet Ladi the housekeeper for the first time. My Spanish is getting a workout.

Bobba the HUGE dog is in fine form and LOVES my walking boots which disappear (with my feet in them) into his gigantic mouth before I can RELAAAAAX him.

I had a nap - tired? jetlag? Then mid-afternoon we left for Playa Corona near El Valle de Antón about 1.5 hours drive to the west of Panamá City.

The traffic was insane and Regis ended up following an App on his i-phone that took us very off-piste on rutted dirt roads until - after a few mis-turns and some moments of doubt in the intelligence of the App - we met the traffic back on the main road, but we had by now passed the blockage.

It meant we arrived later than expected (via a stop for supplies at the supermarket at Playa Coronado) as the sun was going down and there was a bit of pink light reflected off the water of the reservoir next door (Kathryn saw a crocodile in here the next day ...). We settled in for early dinner and an easy night in. Very relaxing.

This is the Bridge of the Americas which spans the Pacific entrance to the Panamá Canal.