Pennies in Panama: Days 7, 8, 9

Thursday, April 14th

2P

Richard arrived a few minutes early.  I asked him, “To what would you attribute these Penny Finds”?  His answer, “Belief”.  And with that, we were off to have fun!  Richard grew up in Panama so it was fun to hear about his childhood and his experiences.

Dozens of Postcards Here

FINALLY A PENNY!

Richard took Doc and I down narrow roads and to out-of-the-way places where our huge tour bus could not travel.  We found numerous places which sold postcards.  YAY!  We visited the huge central post office downtown Panama City.  I could not believe my ears when they said they did not have postcard stamps.  I could use SIX of their 5¢ stamps but those are very large and would cover the entire right side of the cards.  Guess I will need to mail these from home.  Never take for granted our U.S. Postal Service.  They do an awesome job!

After three hours of sightseeing and diligently searching for coins, we had seen some beautiful things, but had not found a single coin!  So I hired Richard for an additional hour.  We darted to various scenic and tourist areas hoping to find a coin.  Nothing.  Finally, with about 2 minutes to spare, we found a penny in a naturestrip at the old US Yacht Club.  Then a second penny near by.  God’s 2¢ worth for today.  Whew!

Back at the hotel it was time for postcard writing and a nap.  We didn’t even bother with redeeming our free drink voucher at the bar.  Around 7:30 p.m. on the way to the All-You-Can-Eat Huge Dinner Buffet, Doc insisted upon stopping at the Ice Cream Shop to get a dessert.  Does that make cents?

The ice creams were delicious.  Unfortunately I was paying more attention to my dessert than to where I was walking.  That resulted in a pretty painful fall down some stairs, a very twisted and eventually purple left ankle, a scraped right knee, and damaged trousers.  Thankfully the cup of ice cream remained in tact so I could enjoy it while enduring the ice pack the EMT brought out.

Friday, April 15th

3P

Today the Caravan Tour did not begin until 10 a.m. so there was time after breakfast for Doc and I to go out for HIS 10,000 steps for the day and MY penny for the day.  LOL  One penny was found.  The tour took us to a small Kuna marketplace for native crafts.  (Good to have this at the end of the trip vs. beginning).  We collected one U.S. Penny, one Panamanian Penny, two carved Tagua nuts, a wallet for Doc and a necklace with a Panamanian Coin on it.

The evening was filled with delicious food at the Farewell Dinner and a very impressive private performance by native dancers.  The women’s attire can run from $5,000 to $15,000!  I kept wondering how those outfits would be laundered?  Tidbit: one of the haircombs in the ladies’ headpieces has a small dagger to be used for protection if needed!

Saturday, April 16th

13P, N, 2D

Our plane flight home was scheduled for late afternoon so we had all morning to do something.  I called Richard last night and asked him if he had a few hours available this morning?  Could I hire him to do some more Penny Finding and take us to the airport?  He must think we are crazy to spend $100 to find a Penny! That is NOT a good ROI (Return on Investment).

Richard arrived at 10 a.m. and for the next few hours we had a blast!  We walked along the boardwalk and through the stalls at the fish market, enjoyed octopus ceviche (only Richard), drove around the City, passed through a former US Army Base, saw where the new subway line was being excavated, and enjoyed numerous other “non tourist” sights.  We were sad to end our play session, but we had a plane to catch.

During the time with Richard, we collected 12 pennies, a nickel and a dime. 

At the Panama Airport there was a penny and then a dime in the Houston Airport.

So, on our 9-day Panama trip in Total we collected:  34 Pennies (US and Panamanian), 3 Nickels, 3 Dimes, 1 Quarter and two other foreign coins.  The Penny Angels certainly aren’t bound by earthly borders.  They can travel without passports or luggage and are sure a lot of fun to take along!