David

After our Thanksgiving celebrations in Cerro Punta, I returned to Ballena for the night. The next morning I was in the hospital. A blister on my toe had gotten infected and by Sunday morning, my foot would not fit into my shoe and I couldn't walk. The swelling began to go down after the second day in the hospital and after a third day, they let me go. However, once I was able to leave the hospital bed, I had to return once a day for an injection of antibiotics. Stuck in David for another week with absolutely nothing to do and unable to walk.

Fortunately, I had some company. Someone happened to be in David this week and rented a car and a better hotel. And so, instead of spending the week by myself laying in a hotel watching bad TV, I was able to see a lot of Chiriqui through the passengers seat. On Saturday, we drove around Boquete, the town east of Panama's highest peak (about 11,000 feet), Volcan Baru. Boquete is very developed and is a popular tourist destination. Because of the higher altitude it is cooler than the rest of the country and also is ideal for growing world class coffee. There are coffee fincas everywhere that resemble European wine vineyards, complete with stately hedges, estates and neatly groomed rows of coffee planted in the hillsides. Many had resorts that offered guided nature hikes through the national park,luxurious accommodations, and informative tours of the coffee fincas, with information on harvesting and processing.

Among the surprises of the afternoon were a private estate and garden, open to the public. Right outside the town and covered with flowers and ponds, these gardens are the product of 50 years of work. The man who created it is one of the coolest people I have ever met in my life. As we passed by his window he waved us inside. There, he said he was 99 years and 7months old and wanted to share his garden with everyone, big and small. A great guy with an amazing house, gardens, new visitors everyday and surrounded by young nurses. Not bad.



Today, a week later than when I left site, my foot is still a little swollen and I cant do any hiking. However, my toe is starting to heal but is going to be a little difficult to keep clean. My site lacks roads, sidewalks or stairs. It does not have any shortage of mud, rocks and hills.