Our Family Journal: Bienvenidos a Panama!

It's our first morning here in Panama. Hubby and I traveled early yesterday morning, having spent the night at Mom-in-Law's house in order to leave El there without waking her. This is probably the toughest time I've had leaving El, having had an overnight trip away in Vegas in October, a 4 day trip for the annual photography convention in February, then most recently, a 4 day trip to Seattle for a school counseling conference. She is getting easier to care for with each trip (or so say our family members) but it's a bit hard for me since I was just recently away from her not even two weeks ago. I know she's in good hands so my hesitation only lasted briefly.

It was actually quite an easy flight, 8 hours total flying time, with a 1.5 hour layover in Houston. Unfortunately, our client, Jn, who was supposed to accompany us got held up due to a ticket name issue so her husband, Ri, who is from Panama picked us up last night without her. My first impression upon landing and on our drive was how similar Panama feels to the Philippines, more specifically, Manila. The weather is humid and warm, though Panama City is much less crowded and is cleaner and more

After heading over to his family's house where he grew up in Panama City, we freshened up for a bit, called home, and got our internet fix. Ri, Ra (Ri's bro), and "I" took us out for a yummy traditional Panamanian meal at El Trapiche before heading out to I's home to meet his wife, Js, Their home is a gorgeous condo in a tall building, where we enjoyed a fantastic view of Panama City at night.

So far, we're having a blast! More to come soon!