Days 1 and 2

Wow, I'm already falling behind. Well I guess the first few days/ weeks will always be busy, but once we get into the swing of things, I can make this more routine.

So our first full day here was spent doing the basics- grocery shopping. As much asI loathe it on a normal basis, it was definitely an enjoyable experience. We started the day just walking off the building property, and upon some discussion, deciding to turn left. This seemed to be the wrong direction, but we continued on ahead in hopes of maybe finding some better clues as to where we were. It proved successful, and after a couple conversations with us speaking English and helpful strangers answering in Spanish, we managed to find our way there. There were 2 major supermarkets right next to each other- Super 99 and REY. The purchasing background in M forced us to compare prices in both before deciding where to shop. We brought out our handy pen and paper and started in REY writing down prices of key items which we could compare. Security found this very suspicious and kept a close eye on us. Finally he asked to see what we were writing, and seemed satisfied. Upon doing our comparisons, we decided REY overall was the better supermarket for our needs. The back and forth undoubtedly struck the security guard as odd, but other than a sideways glance, he did not bother us.

Saturday was car renting day. We needed to take a taxi to meet some friends of ours who would show us where/ how to rent a car. Finding that taxi proved nearly impossible. Empty taxis will drive right past you without a glance. Others will stop, hear the destination, and drive off in utter contempt that you even had the nerve to ask them to drive so far out of there way. Finally, after running for shelter upon a sudden terrential downpour, we found a willing driver. He charged us $3 which I suspect is higher than the actual rate, but got us to our destination and we can't complain.

Renting a car a National was actually quite easy (mas facil). Driving, on the other hand, was an adventure. We managed successful trips back home, and later on out to dinner, and were satisfied.

We spent the evening in the heart of the Panama City nightlife which was great. It's a cool little spot called Calle Uraguay which hosts many restuarants, bars, clubs, and lounges. We had a nice relaxing evening, and some good chats with our friends. All in all, it was finally beginning to feel like home.