A break from hopping around
Panama
On the way back to Colombia, I made a pit stop in Panama City just to see what the city is all about. A brief visit of 2 nights and 1 full day which was on a Saturday.
On arrival, I was shocked to discover that their currency is dollars. US dollars. The bigger shock to the system was that the cash (ATM) machine was charging 7 USD for withdrawals using international cards on top of any charges my bank may apply. So for the first time this trip, I used a Bureau de Change. The rate luckily wasn’t extortionate.
I wanted to be frugal on this pit stop so I took the metro to my hostel and best believe that it cost me 35 cents. I was in awe. US dollar but not necessarily US prices.
Panama City was incredibly hot. I had to consciously equip myself to make the most of my single day out. I am not talking just about sunscreen. I had my handheld electric fan, flannel and umbrella for the shade. I used to find it odd that people walked with umbrellas but I completely get it now. I was ready to brave the weird stares when I do this back in Europe.
Panama has an incredible skyline, combined with the blue skies and waters, making it a beaut to stare at. I think I may have mentioned this is the Santa Marta post, but I love a boulevard. It is so multi-purpose. It offers the space and views to exercise, take a walk, catch up with people or spend some time alone.
At the boulevard I approached a Caucasian couple, who looked like tourists, to take a picture of me with. I spoke English and started with ‘excuse me’ as you do. The man shoo’d me while the woman stopped to listen to what I had to say and happily took the picture for me. I was in disbelief. So much so that I ruined the pictures by not removing the things I had against the heat.
Anyway, I continued my walk towards the old town which as expected was quite colonial in architecture. At the main square, I was met with a traditional dance and an artisanal market. That was also the location of the Airbnb Afro-Panamanian dining experience. I thought I’d kill two birds with one stone and it worked out well.
The night was hosted by a Kenyan man and his Norwegian wife. Their love, humour and energy was everything! They were good at breaking the ice and gelling a group of strangers together. The food and conversation were top-notch. There were two women in attendance, one Canadian and a Colombian-American and they met on holiday. Since then they’ve been in touch regularly and meet up on holidays. This gave me hope that travel friendships can last. Of course, one’s effort is a factor.
Cali
l was bit deflated when I arrived in Cali. I was tired from hopping around, despite knowing that I’d be staying in Cali for a month. I was also frustrated that I couldn’t find anywhere to volunteer in order to occupy myself. It had also hit me that I had about a month left in Colombia which saddened me. I was contemplating expanding the itinerary and making the most of my time as possible. My budget wasn’t permitting that but there were ways around it. Despite that, I was tired of the idea of travelling. I was also thinking about my goals and objectives. Had I achieved them? What could I do in this last month to hit them? But part of the point of this sabbatical is to not pressure myself when it is not needed so I decided to just do what I can. And what I can’t would be ’TBC’
The first two days were spent alone in my Airbnb, which felt very dungeon-like with the lack of outside space or an external window but I firmed it. The only times I went out was to buy food.
On day 3 I was ready to socialise and decided to do an Airbnb food tour. I liked the tour, especially the market element of it but I wasn’t impressed with the guide as he couldn’t remember my dietary requirement. I was the only one with them so it shouldn’t have been that hard.
I also attended a ‘lady style’ dance class which was quite insightful. The objective was to get familiar with the movements that make one appear more feminine when dancing salsa. Subtle changes make a big difference. The owner of the dance studio was a great salesman as he managed to talk me into a private class which led to me buying a pack of 10 lessons. I forgot how much progress one can make during any one-on-one sessions.
That was the start of having some type of routine during my stay in Cali.
