Panama City's Christmas Parade

Welcome to the Darien

August 2013 The Darien is Panamá’s largest, easternmost and least developed province. It is home to one of the world’s densest and most ecologically forests, some scientist claim that the Darien rainforest is denser and more difficult to navigate than the “deepest” sections of the Amazon. The due to the region’s geography and biology, the Darien rainforest is the only place from the top of North America to the tip of South America where the Panamerican Highway does not connect. In fact there is not a single drivable road that connects Panamá to Colombia. Due to it’s inaccessibility and history the Darien has an almost mythical reputation. Was written about in great detail when western powers were searching for the best path to build a canal through Central America. Numerous survey parties went to explore the area and all of them returned unsuccessfully and in horrendous condition or never returned at all. Without an incredibly experienced...

Tech Week In El Pilon

Welcome to the Mangroves in El Pilon Feb 29 th We just finished up our tech week at a current volunteer’s site in El Pilon, Veraguas. It’s a medium sized town about 30 min. outside of the provincial capital, Santiago. We ran an environmental camp for the kids in town, taught in the primary school, worked in a vivero (tree nursery) and school garden, learned about the mangroves in the area, and went to swimming in a nearby river. I stayed with an awesome family in El Pilon. The father, Senior Alonzo, is a very intelligent man who knew tons about horticulture, agriculture, and the local ecosystems. He is the VP of the town’s environmental group, and was our tour leader in the mangroves. Each night he and I would lie outside in the hammocks and listen to music or the baseball games on the radio until we fell asleep. An Activity During Our Environmental Summer Camp An Evening Dance in El Pilon The River Between El Pilon and Montijo...

Medical Gira (Tour)

June 2013 As Peace Corps Volunteers we are often presented with opportunities to help other NGOs working in Panamá with their projects. One of the opportunities frequently presented to us is to work as translators for groups of traveling doctors (usually from the US), which travel to underserved communities to provide free basic health care. Last year I worked as a translator for a group of optomolegists that came to Panamá from throughout the United States through the Lion’s Club, to provide eye exams and free glasses for rural Panamanians. This past June, Chelsea, a Peace Corps Volunteer from my group, invited a group of traveling doctors to come to her community to provide basic dental and health care. I jumped at the opportunity to help when Chelsea asked me if I’d like to translate for the medical gira (tour). Not only is it a very rewarding experience to be able to help people receive the health care that they need, but it was also an opportunity...

Panamania

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