Tanning hides, Construction in Panama and the Beach!

June 9, 2014
Dear kids-  There are a few things we have seen here that I have found really interesting and I wanted to share them with you. A couple of weeks ago your Dad and I were out in the sticks visiting a new member when we came across a hide tanning operation. The smell was horrible but it was mesmerizing to watch so we asked them if we could take some pictures. One man said it was fine to take the pictures but to not ask them questions because they were grading the hides as they were being put into the truck.

Here are some of the hides hanging in a shed. Someone said some of them were even buffalo but we certainly haven't seen any buffalo in Panama.

Here are stacks of hides they are holding up for the "judges" and loading into a huge semi truck.

Here is the truck with the hides that have passed inspection.

There were just hides everywhere. Hundreds and hundreds of them. Then they packed them up and drove them away. When we went by there a week later the whole operation was gone.

Here are the vats where they are washed and scraped. The scrapings go for dog food. At least I hope it was for dog food. It looked like dog food.

Here is a house where some of the most active members of our branch live. It is basically a cement box. The windows have no glass in them. They are just cement blocks with decorative holes that allow the air in.

You can see from this cement box that sometimes they don't bother covering the cement blocks with a smooth layer of concrete so you can't tell they are just a pile of blocks.

Here is some building going on in our subdivision. As you can see there is no wood used they just stack cement blocks.

This our subdivision. Although it is upscale from a lot of the houses in this town the houses are all just cement boxes. The molding around the windows and the pillars are all cement.

This is the inside of our house, Although it looks like a normal house, it isn't. The walls are just painted concrete. There is no drywall anywhere in the house. The floors have tile on them but underneath they are concrete. The ceiling is not really a ceiling, it is a drop ceiling under a tin roof.  We live in a cement box just like everyone else in Panama. President Carmack said even the skyscrapers in Panama City start out with cement blocks.

The beach at Pedasi. It was absolutely breath taking. High tide was on May 28th with the full moon and we were there right before that so the waves were high and strong. I got a little scared when one hit me and just about knocked me over.

Some of the condos just steps away from the water. Aren't they worried about a Tsunami?

This isn't our car but our car is right behind it. The road ends and the ocean begins! Seriously the water is 15 feet from the pavement!

A restaurant right ON the water. Anyone want to take me there?

No this is Pedasi, Panama. It didn't come from the Johnny Lingo movie.

Random Stuff:

I don't know why this puppy looks so big in this picture. He is literally the smallest puppy we have ever seen. 

Dad with 2 of the kids from our English class. Well \the baby, Caleb is only 1 and he doesn't even speak Spanish but Jaddeth ,  and Neli  their mother come.

Here is Dad trying to get our car under a downed tree after a rainstorm. The work must go on! We broke a few branches back and we were able to drive safely under it.

Here is a huge roach-type bug Dad found in his shaving bag one night, We killed it and threw it outside and the ants had it for breakfast. When I said we hardly ever see bugs I must have meant during the dry season!

The smaller of the 2 mangos is a normal sized mango. The other one some of our investigators gave us the other night. It is giant! Mangos are everywhere around here right now but unfortunately neither Dad nor I like them very much. I wish I did but every time I try one I just wish it were a peach!

Panama 4th month

 May 23, 2014

     We are doing fine in Panama. We have a house and a car and air conditioning. All is well.

This is a man in Las Trancas boiling down sugar cane. When they get it down to a paste consistency they call it honey but it doesn't taste at all like what the bees make---bee-lieve me!

Here you can see the fire he is cooking over on an already scorchingly hot day.  I can only imagine how many hours it would take to get it to the consistency he needs it.

Dad wanted you to see this. I don't know if you can tell it is a fence but it is with 5 strings of barbed wire on it. You see this all the time. We don't know if they actually use the trees as fenceposts or they use posts and then they sprout. Probably some of both. Anyway, every couple of years they have to trim their fences--no joke.

This is your Dad working, on the left, with Charles at English class. He is this poor little guy who lives in a metal shack with a dirt floor in the middle of no where. Once we saw Charles early in the morning in the center of town looking lost and  alone. I told Dad he had probably been there all night. Dad offered him some money for the bus and he was out of there. I only wish Dad would have given him more money. He probably hadn't eaten either. He is a poor soul but he does really well in English class and he seems to love your Dad.

This is a picture of our district when they came to breakfast and had district meeting at our house. They are all really good missionaries and we are going to be sick when Elder Johnson, our district and zone leader, goes home next month. He is great!

These are our Hermanas whom we love. They are all tiny girls but they eat like men. We had them over for lunch the other day when we were waiting for President Carmack and interviews and they each had 2 sandwiches and chips and fruit and everything piled high. I mean the first time through they each made themselves 2 sandwiches.  I can understand sticking stuff in their bags for later but they can really eat!

This is at Marisol's baptism. It was the sister's baptism but Dad got to perform the ordinance. She is a single mother, a really nice person. Her little guy is 4 yr old Juan Luis.                                     

Here is your Dad as the "Pied Piper" at the branch party blowing up all the little kids' balloons.

Here is my little Alejandra (The brown Cheyenne as we call her) I would readily adopt her as my granddaughter but at this point she is not having it. She only kind of likes me. I think she is darling. She has great big dimples and black eyes that are full of fire. She drives her mother crazy in church. I would help but I am trying to play the keyboard.

Me and Sister Molino. This is why I don't ever put pictures of me on the blog. I always look like a drowned rat

This was an attraction at the Mall in Panama City. They put the kid in the ball and fill it with air and then put it on the pool. The kids love it and they don't even get wet!

This is a picture of my feet so you can see how brown they are compared to my toes. This means I am a hard worker or at least a "hot" worker!

Dad and his favorite kind of tree. He thinks they look like something out of Africa.

The little plant starts I made for all the women on Mother's Day.

We went to the beach for P-day. It is about 20 min from here--maybe less.

Here is your Dad trying to walk to the Philippines. He says it is a straight shot across.

                          

Eat your hearts out--Justin and Kelsey with your Ft. Worth bull run. These Brahmas were just running wild through the streets of Guarare yesterday. They got out of somewhere.

Moises and Elvis Prado who are brothers, are 2 of my piano students. They both played at the church talent show this past week and did respectable jobs for 3 months of lessons.

This is David at the lesson we taught him this morning. He is holding onto the banana flower. It is kind of like a weight that helps them hang down for picking. It is pretty but uneatable. We will baptize David if we can just talk him into getting married.

Monday April 7, 2014
Some of you have said it was about time to post another blog so I have gathered some pictures I think you may find interesting and pictures of our house. Hope you like them.

A tree not far from our house that is loaded with coconuts. A lot of times they just let them fall and rot and then they burn them.

This is obviously a dead frog smashed on the road. Dad's shoe shows you how big it is. We see these dead and smashed all the time. I have yet to see a live one.

This is the Chitre Zone. We met today for Zone conference and then the whole zone went to the fair. With Dad and me there are 7 North Americans amongst the 26 of us.

 

At the fair. Dad and his dream tractor.

Brahmas at the fair. These boys are kids from school with their uniforms on on a field trip and just wanted to be in the picture.

Heather, this one is for you. This guy is making snow cones. He has this huge block of ice that he shaves off for every snowcone, then he covers them with flavoring that must be sugarless because then he puts on Sweetened Condensed milk on the top. It's pretty good actually.

Dad wanted you to see these spotted cows almost like an Appaloosalease notice the long ears.

Wares at the fair. The guy at the saddle shop said he made the saddles he had for sale.

They were actually making some of the furniture they were selling at the fair. Some guy had just finished spraying the finish on the chair.

Look carefully. This was in the agricultural section of the fair. These are watermelons they are growing  on vertical poles. As the watermelon grows they put them in little nets and secure them to wires on the vines. Wild!

Dad wanted you to see this. All of these cows are for sale. They all have halters on their heads and can be lead to where they will be seen to sell. Dad took this picture so it is a little hard to see but there is a man in a hammock beyond the spotted calf that is "living " there, watching over his cattle until their new owner leads them away.

This is the pool that belongs to our subdivision. It very rarely has someone in it. We always cut through there on the way to the bus stop because it saves us some time. This is Dad talking to Edwardo, who is the grounds keeper (taking a little dip) he begged us to go swimming with him. It was Sunday afternoon on our way home from Conference.

This darling little thing is my washing machine. I love it because it keeps me out of the laundromat!

This is where I hang my clothes, in this bedroom.They are still working on the fence in the back yard. When it is finished there is a nice clothes line I can use out there.

Guest room: Ready, waiting and air conditioned!

New dining Room table and 6 chairs

living room

tiny but workable kitchen

Both of the bathrooms are just this size but they are clean and there are 2!

Our new desk and printer

This is our room. Clean and cool.

This is a bunch of our missionaries eating at the fair and Dad with our neighbor who owns a restaurant and had a booth at the fair. Our hermanas are the really cute  ones you can see starting at Dad and working to the right. We love our Hermanas.  That is it for now. We are doing great and loving Panama though I was a little jealous to see all of the flowers blooming on Temple Square. I love the Spring and I am in a place that is eternally Summer!