mitzyli

Hi All -

Thank you to former Panama posters for help planning my trip.

My Panama suggestions:

- Eat at Astrid y Gaston in Panama City

- Visit the Baha'i Temple in Panama City

- Book an island tour with Erwin in Bocas del Toro

- Stay at La Coralina in Bocas del Toro

- Enjoy a catamaran/snorkeling trip through Catamaran Tours in Bocas del Toro

- Hike La Amistad Park in Cerro Punto

- Dine at the Panamonte Inn bar in Boquete

- Bird with the birders at Canopy Tower in Soberania National Park

I've posted a full trip report, with photos and links, at www.travelmusings.net

ttraveler

Mitzyli,
You trip report is funny, wonderful and so honest.. I went to Panama a few years ago so it brought back a lot of great memories.. We also stayed at the Coffee Estate..and we also got to experience Barry and Jane. We also got into a bit of trouble with them. You know staying out a bit too late, sneaking under the gate ect.. anyway.. we also used Higgins except we refered to him as our "Man Slave".. which of course he loved..
I am actually going to read your report again as I loved it so much.

cmcfong

Your blog is hilarious. Thank you for posting it.

I can hardly wait to return to beautiful Panama in Jan.

hansboomer

Mitzyli,

I read your Panama report and have to say that it is one of the best reads of any report ever! So good in fact that I went through and read ALL of the reports that you have posted! Are you a writer by chance? If not, you have missed your calling! Loved them!!!

hopefulist

Thanks so much for posting your link - excellent!

ttraveler

Hansboomer,
I also read all of her trip reports.. and I agree if she isn't a writer she should be.

shillmac

mitzyli,
I enjoyed tremendously your blog--all the things others have said regarding your writing--very true.

However, what I enjoyed most was the fact that you have been to exactly all the same places in Panama we have visited. Manalo Caracol, La Estancia, Coffee Estate (you nailed that one with Jane and Barry!), Canopy Tower (I'm a birder and I thought your descriptions hilarious), Bocas del Toro.

We really enjoyed Hibiscus, Macchu Piccu (never spell that right!), but didn't dine at the Panamonte.

I, too, am a vacation spa person, and your description of a massage (pizza, sex) I thought right on! --although I could describe ONE bad one to you. I think you'd find it hilarious.

Thanks for sharing such an interesting tale! Loved it.

mitzyli

Hi Shillmac -

But how did you LOCATE Hibiscus? I'm impressed.

ttraveler

We did in fact dine at M. Piccu and found it too be quite horrible.. the food and the other diners. A group of men who had way too many pisco sours.. he he
Honestly it was our worst meal in Panama.

tully

I read all your travels the other day and just have to agree with the others - great writing, funny & snarky (in a good way)! The Coffee estate sounds....interesting. Loved your BA report as well. Thanks for posting.

shillmac

If I'm not mistaken, Hibiscus was inside a shopping area; not enclosed, but around a courtyard. I can't remember the name of the little "mall".

I had to laugh at an e-mail received today from a Fodor friend who is planning a trip to Coffee Estate in January. She was more than a little concerned after reading this thread. I think you'd agree with me that it is a great place to stay and a good value--Jane is just very picky about how she wants things done and pays meticulous attention to lots of details. We go with the flow very easily (apparently you do, too, as your remarks sounded amused, not resentful!), and were not put off or offended whatsoever. Jane works very hard to make everyone's experience a good one--no question about that!

mitzyli

Hi Shillmac --

I absolutely agree with you re: Coffee Estate. Both Chris and I agreed that we'd stay there again if we returned to Boquete. The irony is that the same attention to/obsession over detail that was irritating (albeit in an amusing way) was -- when employed for good -- what made the stay special.

I tried to include at least one example of the latter (homemade bread, freshly roasted coffee beans, flowers picked from the garden) for every example of the former.

I hope that your friend decides to stay there.

-Mitzy

shillmac

She will! She lived in Panama during her teen years (Canal kid) and loves it dearly. She stays in touch with that group of kids, and many of them have homes in Panama now as adults, some of them in the Boquete area.

SusanInToronto

Fun report to read! We're planning a trip to Panama in February 2009, so I'll probably be asking lots of questions over the next few months. Thanks for posting.

emp99

some interesting stuff in Panama City

http://panama-travel.suite101.com/ar...in_panama_city