Wanderers : Panama - Boquete 🇵🇦

The district of Boquete (pronounced boh-KEH-teh) is nestled in the highlands of western Panama, in the fertile province of Chiriquí (pronounced chee-ree-KEE). Home to just over 23,000 people.

The Caldera River flows through the main village—like the district, the town is called Boquete, though its full name is Bajo Boquete, or “lower Boquete,” as it sits in a verdant valley.

What did we do?

The Pipeline Trail is a local trail that snakes up through the rainforest following a stream that is used as a water source. The trail is 3.8 miles round trip with a steady incline. There are multiple footbridge crossings, a 1,000 year old tree and a hidden waterfall. There may even be a rare quetzal sighting.

1,000 Year Old Tree

Up we go

Take my hand we have to
cross the creek

Almost there

I barely made it

I'll look at the waterfall
after I catch my breath

How much farther can I go

I think this is far enough

I was able to smell the flowers
on the way back down

We did see a quetzal!!

We were going to do the Lost Waterfalls but it had rained the night before and the path was a little slick. Rob was concerned I was going to fall. At least that what his excuse was. We made it to the entrance and turned back.

Love the sign

Already has to wait

Up we go

We are not even to the
starting point

Finca Casanga Coffee Plantation Tour

Our 9 am tour consisted of 6 people.
Us, 2 women from France and a
couple from Belgium.

Tasting table

Kitchen

We started our tour with Enrique explaining about the cherries (coffee) and giving us a sample of vino and coffee liquer. They do not sell the vino or coffee liquer.

Did you know? If you pick green cherries, they will not ripen.

Vino

Coffee Liquer
25-30% alchol

Time to pick some cherries. Even though coffee season was pretty much over, we were able to pick a few.

Rinsing

Beans only

Double check only
good beans

Lay out to dry

Moisture meter to see
if beans are ready

Depulper machine

Pickers are paid $3-5 per bucket

We each took a turn
pulverizing the skins off

A lot of work

They sort the beans one
more time (no bad beans
allowed)

Then place in plastic
bags (to keep out moisture)
before placing in the burlap
bags

We roasted and packaged our own coffee beans.

Set the roasting
temperature 🌡

Checking our beans

We were going for City Roast
which is a medium roast

Time to cool

We let ours roast just a tad too long.
We are right on the medium/dark line.

Filling the bag

Sealing the bag

Rob & Sharon's Beans

Medium roasted coffee prepared three ways:

Italian Espresso & French Press

Siphon Brewer

Enrique explaining how to
use the Espresso pot and
the French press

Banana Bread

The siphon brew was the coolest process 😎, but all six of us preferred the French press.

We sampled Geisha coffee, which is a rare and expensive Arabica bean with a complex flavor profile and floral notes.

I guess I'm not a coffee connisseur. I still preferred the French press medium roast.

We met one of the owners. They are from the DC area and now own a coffee plantation. No experience, no speak Spanish, and no money.

To get the plantation off the ground, they began to lease trees. It is a 15 month program where you pay to lease a tree and have your beans roasted and shipped to you.

I scheduled us for a Monday morning chocolate making class figuring we could make chocolate in the morning and take a hike in the afternoon. We show up at The Perfect Pair Coffee & Chocolate shop 10 minutes early. We tell the woman we are there for a class, wait a minute, she comes back with the manager. No teacher today. His day off is Monday. No problem. We rescheduled for the next afternoon. For our troubles, he gave us each a chocolate bar.

Chocolate Making began with a tour of the facility with an explanation of each machine and the process.

Don't we look cute with
our hair nets on

Roaster - they bake versus
roasting

Cocoa Beans

Removes the skins
Skins go to dairy farmers

Grinder

Cocoa Liquer

Cocoa Butter
Great for the skin

I just want to dip a big
spoon in there

After the tour we made chocolate 🍫 bars.

Cooling the chocolate
by mixing

Dark Chocolate

Tempering the chocolate

Why the chocolate on the counter?
To cool it, then mix it back in.
It must get to 33°C.

Almonds, Plain, Cookies Crumbs

Almonds, 1 Walnut, Almonds

We enjoyed an Iced Chocolate
while waiting for our bars to set

We wrapped each bar

We made 3 bars each

A great experience and we now have 8 bars 🍫 of chocolate. I'm going to look like a little Oompa Loompa.

Boquete Flower & Coffee Fair -- we were a month late for the festival

A senior discount 75 cents
to enter

I had to get my sign pictures that I made Rob drive all over to look for. And here is where we found it.

U is for Unique

I'm a little teapot

A man in his castle 🏰

Love birds

Grounds were beautiful and well worth 75 cents.

San Ramon Waterfall

One thing we were hoping to do was to get a chance to talk to some Expats. One day as we were checking out the town, we walked past Mike's Place. One of the guys waved us in so we said why not. As soon as we stepped in they fired off a round of questions that we didn't even get to answer.

Finally, the guy who waved us in asks, "Where you from?" "Florida" "WHEN ARE YOU GOING BACK? WE DON'T NEED ANY MORE PEOPLE."

Hugh said if Jasper likes me we
can stay

Jasper took a liking to me

So Hugh had lived on Sanibel Island for 12 years and knew Billy Kirkland (Rob's boss at the bicycle shop) and his wife, Salli (our landlord for six months). What a small world! There were five other people from Canada.

According to the group, Boqueste was an expats dream location. Perfect temperatures year round, good Healthcare, cheap rentals, good food and prices. Not so much anymore with all the tourists and expats moving to the area and driving up the prices. Unfortunately, they are getting priced out and don't know where they will go.

Chores - Bank their currency is tied to the US and ATMs dispense US Dollars! Rob was wondering why the Panamanian Balboa was exactly always equal to the USD.

Bakery for the next day's breakfast and an Iced Coffee.

Haircut -- the barber did not speak any English. Google translate is amazing.

High & tight
Looking Fresh

Random pictures:

We received Panamanian coins
Their coins are the same size and weight
as US coins.

A rainbow 🌈

Where did we eat?

Ngädri Gastronomía Panameña

Chips with Eggplant 🍆 & Sweet
Potato 🍠 Dip

Marisol
Tequila, triple sec, tajin,
citrus mix, sugar cane syrup

Fish Ceviche
Tiger milk & Plaintain Chips

Roasted Vegetable Salad

Grilled Smoked Fish with
Coconut Rice & Green Salad

The food was so good we would have went back for dinner but they were closed. We were able to go for lunch the day we left.

Fish Ceviche

Tuna Tartare
Served on a roasted corn 🌽 tortilla

Donde Giselle

Beef Carpaccio

It was delicious

La Favorita De Giselle
Burratta, Mozzarella, Parmesan,
Blue cheese, arugula and
Sun dried tomatoes

Restaurante Valle del Cuzco this was a Peruvian restaurant. We were not impressed with the food. Part of that was because of what we ordered.

There was one other couple in the restaurant and they said you have to try the Fried Ceviche. "It is the best". The husband said she doesn't eat seafood and she really liked the ceviche.

Fried Ceviche
We tried it. It was okay but fresh is so
much better.

Piqueo Cusqueno
Seafood prepared in different ways
& chicken fingers

Yes the shell was on fire!

Calamari & mussels

Sea Bass ceviche

Spider Calamari with garlic

The presentation of the Seafood Platter was very nice but too much fried food for us.

The Fish House was recommended by Hugh for the food and the prices so we had to check them out.

Rob trying his Spanish on
the waitress

Margarita & Sweet Tea

Grouper Special $12.95
Cajun blackened with
rice & coleslaw

Grouper Special
Caper lemon sauce with
Fries & coleslaw

The place was full when we left

Restaurante Jarama de Hotel Aranjuez - David, Panama this hotel was close to the airport as we had an early flight in the morning. There was absolutely nothing else around.

Pasta with meat sauce

What is happening at that table? He was down on one knee proposing.

Rob told the waitress we would pay for dinner and drinks for the couple. They didn't stay much longer. First she left with their baby. Then he left with the stroller shortly after her. When we got our bill, their dinner was not on there. We questioned the waitress and she said he canceled. We assumed she said No!

Where did we stay?

Hotel Valle del Rio as we approached the building I thought OMG 😲 😳 what did I book, it looked pretty run down. We were pleasantly surprised when we walked into the reception area.

We stayed at Aranjuez Hotel & Suites, Bella Suite, David, Panama for our last night in Panama.

How did we get to Boquete? We took an Uber to a diffent airport in Panama City then the one we flew in on when we first arrived in Panama. Then we flew Copa Airlines to David.