OUR RETIRED ADVENTURE
qUEREMOS VIVIR AL SOL
KSha
Costa Rica is amazing! Beauty abounds.
Panama is "home" for now. Loving life!
South America is next! Columbia here we come.
Costa Rica is amazing! Beauty abounds.
Panama is "home" for now. Loving life!
South America is next! Columbia here we come.
Our exploration of the Chame peninsula was fruitful and rewarding. We found the Punta Chame Villas, a small resort (that looked like a cool place to stay) with an outdoor restaurant to watch the U.S. play a World Cup soccer match and have some lunch. We just happened to be the only people there...so we got great service. We also hit the Mini Super market a couple of times to restock items for our kitchen. We were intrigue with some property that appeared to be on the beach named Sandpiper; but the first time we saw the "Se Vende" sign it didn't have a welcoming feeling to the gate to the property. On one of our travels back to Punta Chame we overcame our concern and drove in to see if the units were visible from the outside. As we drove in the grass drive and approached the complex, there was not one car in the parking area. The only person we saw was the gardener trimming the grass at the front of the property. We smiled and waved (trying to appear friendly) and kept going onto the property. As I was moving forward I noticed another car behind me and thought we were going to be chased out (or worse; detained by the authorities). I drove as far as I could next to the last building (I could see the ocean!) and the car behind me pulled into an apparent spot to park. I thought ok; maybe an owner we can talk to...nope, wrong again. Turns out this gentleman was doing what we were, trying to look at the property. We chatted a bit and then proceeded to look around. We learned Nils was a fireman from Canada here to do some wind surfing. We found a first and a second floor unit facing the beach empty (and these were the ones Sha thought were for sale after she investigated the property). We walked out to the pool and then to the beach as the high tide waves lapped onto the white sand. Turning around to the building, we both joked that we should buy both of them (we were only joking a little bit!). We told Nils we were going back to the Chame Villas to watch soccer and he joined us for a really nice afternoon. On the way to the 'Villas', we picked up a hitchhiker that we didn't anticipate. Our last night in Playa Caracol, we went back to the peninsula and had dinner at the Solé Beach Club which is on the lagoon side of the peninsula. This place caters to wind surfers and has a laid back vibe to it. Driving to the place for the first time in the dark, (sun goes down around 6 PM EST) we approached on a twisting and bumpy dirt road that appeared to be going nowhere...right up our alley. We finally saw some lights in the distance; and then several cars parked quite some distance from the lights. After parking, we used the phone flashlight to light our way to the restaurant some 150 meters in the distance. We saw several large tepees for "glamping" as well as multiple container rooms for guests. The restaurant was in a huge outdoor palapa that was put together like legos and stood about 40 feet high. Some beer and excellent pizza made for a fine last meal in the Chame District. The PCC also moved forward with Sha increasing her lead; 17-13. Sha is averaging one win a day so far; and I'm not. December 3rd was travel day. The road from hell was a bit more navigable in the bright sunshine-still didn't make it any easier, and we were both glad to get back to Nacional Highway 1. We turned left onto 1 and about a half hour later, WWW told us to turn left...and what do you think was at that corner? The Rey's grocery store we did our first major shopping after getting to Playa Caracol! Had to laugh about that for a sec or two. We continued down that road, which by the way is trying to be the road from hell #2, and found Ave. Punta Preita and drove the last few miles to our new home; Coronado Luxury Club and Suites. Upon entering our room, we were greeted with this... Our pool runs the length of our building, about 60+ meters (~200 feet)! The complex is large with one and two bedroom designs that owners live and/or rent out. There are multiple pools around the property and a golf course connected as well. This property is not on the water, however, it does have a Beach Club that is exclusively for owners and guests, that is on the beach. An open air shuttle takes you there and back to the complex. We had a wonderful day at the Club, walking the beach, catching a few rays and swimming in the pool. We had a great lunch and even had time for Sha to kick my behind in cribbage before we left. I need to regress and talk about the day before we went to the Club as we explored the area by car. We decided to find a place to have lunch somewhere in the direction we thought was the ocean and started driving. We picked a road not far from the junction to our complex and soon were caught up in looking at the properties and homes along the way. Another bifurcation in the road came along and we went right-had the right feel to it. We then came to what appeared to be a dead end at a gated community; but then we realized it continued to the right; alright! Not daunted we kept going, albiet, at a slow pace as the road was getting rougher. We were unsure if we had made a good decision just as a colorful building came into view. Gaviota Beach Club! And we could see people there and the ocean as well! You are correct in assuming we pulled in and parked. We had a fabulous lunch and enjoyed the views during the early afternoon. When it was time to leave, it appeared that we would have to retrace our pathway from Gaviota; but we had to see the end of the dirt path out of the parking lot to be sure... There was a large bus at the end of the road that almost blocked a "road" going off and up a hill. We didn't let the large mud puddle keep us from going up that road. Driving very slowly, we (mostly Sha as I had to concentrate on missing the holes/rocks/dips and twists in the road) looked at the homes we came across. We found ourselves marveling at the beautiful homes we came across, some in the middle of nowhere with questionable access roads. We just kept driving and only had to turn around one time as we dead ended in someone's driveway. We somehow came across the road improving and we also noticed the houses getting bigger; although some were hard to see behind the fancy gates. We realized as well that we were traveling along the water; there are slivers of land that allow access to the beach for anyone that allowed us to see the water. Marveling at the estates we soon realized that our Beach Club was also on this road as we slowly continued our drive. By the time we headed for home, we had a new appreciation for the wealth in Panama, and that we had been driving for over two hours.
Today we explored Nueva Gorgona and drove on the road from hell 2.0...wowser! Sha trumped WWW and found us a great place in a high rise complex with an Asian fusion theme right on the beach. After enjoying a great lunch, we realized we could look around the beach and see our Beach Club across the water. Our pool bar has the World Cup games on and beers are two-for-one during the games. We also have enjoyed several restaurants in the near vicinity to our new home and are planning to hit another tonight for half-off burgers. Sha is still leading the PCC at 25-21...but I'm not giving up. I'll try and be a bit more frequent with my posts...I'm finding that I forget that I need to write something...ha! We are finding Panama quite to our liking and are seeing that it is less costly in many things that we are enjoying or need. Sha is getting her first Panamanian haircut tomorrow; stay tuned for details. It's Mother's Day here in Panama...Feliz dia de la madre! Pura Vida!!
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Kevin & Sharon SeibelBeginning our next big adventure! Archives
December 2023
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