From a cloud forest surrounding Volcan Baru to a sponge garden overtaking a wreck in the Caribbean, 2006 progressed into 2007 not uneventfully. After a brief stop in Panama City, Chan and I made our way across the country, where we met up with friends to celebrate Christmas in Cerro Punta, a mountain town surrounded by lush cloud forests. Christmas dinner was prepared in a dark cabin, sin electricidad, and after a few struggles with gas lanterns and Panamanian-style free-range chicken, our dinner turned out to be quite delicious. The coolness of the area added to the holiday atmosphere.

A five hour hike down the backside of the volcano led us to Boquete, where we enjoyed an excellent coffee tour at Kotowa coffee estates, of course complete with a tasting of their delicious shade-grown coffees. Evidently, the cloud forest in the area provides enough shade for the coffee trees that they fall in the category of shade-grown, although they do not grow directly beneath other shade-providing trees.

Grudgingly, I left the cool mountains and returned to my site in Los Pocitos for a couple of days. We spent an afternoon lounging on the Pacific beach before I put Chan to work making a table and doing other household chores.

A trip back over the mountains brought us to the Caribbean Sea and Bocas del Toro. We enjoyed a wreck dive off the coast of Isla Colón. The wreck was surrounded by a range of colorful sponges and corals, and our guide managed to point out a nurse shark resting under the helm of the sunken ship.

Finally, after two long bus trips we arrived back in Panama City, from which we spent a couple days in the sun on Isla Taboga, snorkeling, swimming and hiking. Although of course too short, I enjoyed showing off the wonderful diversity and beauty of Panama.

A tremendous thunderstorm, complete with hair-raising electrical activity, marked my last day of Spanish classes during training. Next week I will be sworn in as a Volunteer under the supervision of a few important people, in the Panama Canal Museum, and then tossed out into the country as if I knew what I was doing. My site visit last week both was both encouraging and overwhelming.

One night a storm knocked out the power in the house I was staying at in my site in Los Positos, and without the fan I could hear the sound of the large, strong waves that break on the shore of the nearby beach that resides just past a few bright green rice fields. Unfortunately, the waves aren´t the best for surfing, but I´m sure I won´t be able to resist the urge to jump in for a swim when the tide is low. The luxury resort, Las Olas, resides on Playa Barqueta, a 30 min jog from my town, so if anyone wants to visit and not sleep in a hammock, a room can be arranged at the resort. However, the presence of the resort and its wealthy owners creates an interesting dynamic in a town of rice farmers, a political situation that will most likely be unavoidable.

Saturday afternoon, I suddlenly found myself speaking on an environmental program on radio Chiriqui, a station broadcasted to the entire province. This was the result of a long series of confusing events, and the last place I ever thought I would end up. The week of my site visit was fast-paced, full of meeting people and being led around almost as if I were a celebrity, and as if I could actually understand the rapid Spanish that was thrown at me from all directions.

I both dread and look forward to returning for a daunting two years to the land of lush vegetation, fruit trees weighed down with their gifts, soothing ocean breezes, and many people with their many expectations.

LOS POSITOS, CHIRIQUI
province will be my site for the next two years! A 15 minute bike ride from the beautiful beach La Barqueta, and an hour away from the mountains and Volcan Baru, I can´t resist to brag that I have the best site in Panama. The Chiriqui province, one of the westernmost provinces on the border of Costa Rica, is known for its beauty and diversity. My work will most likely be distributed between environmental education projects in the nearby town of Guarumal, and a sea turtle conservation project on the beach. Other potential projects include ecotourism development, beach clean-up and work in the nearby mangrove-filled wildlife refuge. I can´t begin to describe the excitement I feel.

The next two weeks I will be training with others placed on coastal sites, back in the town of Canas, Los Santos. The first week will be cultural training, and the second advanced technical training, both conditioned to coastal areas in Panama. The six of us coastal trainees will undoubtably be a tight-knit group by the end of training!