Last Full Day In Panama

March 6, 2024

Last full day in Panama. I can’t hardly believe it. This past month has gone by so fast. I slept in and didn’t get moving until after 9:00. We didn’t have any big plans for our last day. As we traveled through the country we noticed a store called “I Love Cheaper” and when we drove to Guna Yala on Monday, we passed one 15 minutes from where we were staying. We had assumed this was a thrift store similar to Goodwill. If you know me, you know that I love a Goodwill treasure hunt! So Linda and I set off to check out the I Love Cheaper store. We were correct that it was a thrift store, but unfortunately all they had was clothes. I started going through the racks hoping to find some authentic Panama t-shirt or something similar, but all I saw was American clothes and brands. Linda found a few things and I was thinking I was going to be walking away empty handed before I saw a Columbia brand t-shirt that says “Nature Calls” for $3.95. I thought this was appropriate for me since I do like to be out in nature and secondly I have really been hoping that nature would call for the last 5 days or so. I didn’t notice until after we got back to the apartment that the tag said “Ropa Americana” which translates to “American Clothes”. Funny I was never going to find something from Panama in that store. I wonder if stuff gets shipped from America or if this is just stuff expats donate? I would think they might have a partnership with Goodwill or something. I think it would have been funny if I would have found something from Wisconsin in the store, but unfortunately I did not.

It was just a little bit before 1:00 when we got back. There is a McDonald’s within walking distance from the apartment. I thought maybe a little McDonald’s would help nature to call, so I walked over and ate a McDouble Gourmet meal. Next door to the McDonald’s was a Price Smart store and I wanted to wander around the store, but they asked for my membership card at the door, which of course I don’t have so I just headed back to the apartment.

Our apartment is the tallest one in the picture

When I got back Pete, Laurie, and Linda were playing Swoop. When their game ended I joined in. We played a few games of Swoop before we moved on to Sticks. While we were playing we discussed dinner. We knew we wanted to go back to the old town, Casco Viejo, so I started looking for places to go. We settled on Primitivo Steakhouse (https://primitivo-1.cluvi.co/primitivo/menu-digital/home) and made reservations for 5:30. Since we decided to go somewhere a little nicer, Linda was happy that she bought a dress at I Love Cheaper that she was able to wear.

I knew I wanted to park in the same place we did when we did the cooking class, but I didn’t know what to call it to put in the GPS so I just put something else in that was kind of close. I was super proud of myself to navigate there without any hiccups after the GPS got us in the general area. I have gotten really comfortable driving in that particular area (it’s not located within the one-way hell that I had gotten myself into earlier in the trip). I had a mushroom asparagus risotto which was very good.