Third week in Panama

This is the start of our third week in Panama. The work goes on even if we don't know the language and we don't currently have a place to live. We also don't have a car or the smart phone we have been promised. I have blisters on both of my feet. I keep rotating the shoes I wear so as to relieve areas as they heal. I am confident calluses will eventually grow--right Austin?

Another beautiful and unique blossom you have probably never seen before. I don't think I had.

Tonight when we went to visit a less active sister the Hermanas we were with kept yelling "Buena" outside of the house. Buena is short for Buenas Dias, but all you get is Buena_ everywhere you go. Anyway, they kept yelling and the lady kept yelling "Buena_"  I thought but she didn't come outside to let us in. I then notice this little guy in the tree. He was the one saying "Buena_" the little lady wasn't home.

This is one of our Hermanas, Sister Quispe from Peru. It was her birthday today. She turned 20 and the Sisters in RS made her a cake. I didn't know it was her birthday and I don't have a kitchen so I am really lame.

Here are the sweet Nelsons with us and 2 of our Hermanas (Molino and Quenteros). We are determined to get them to the temple. He has a darling Jamaican accent when he speaks English. Since he is 95 we have quite an urgency to make this happen.

This one is for you Joel. Maybe you could start a branch down here. But who would ever hire you when their house is wide open all of the time.

This is the bus terminal in Panama City. I wish this picture could do justice to the noise and confusion that abounds here. Million of people and buses and taxis all coming and going and honking horns, trying to get around each other. It is amazing there aren't accidents and deaths every day-but amazingly there aren't.

This is front of our church. It is right on the street and just happens to also be a bus stop. Sometimes it can be pretty noisy with cars, taxis and buses stopping. Of course the door is always open when anyone is there because there is no air conditioning. You can smell the diesel wafting into the sacrament meeting and of course everything is covered with dust from the street.

I thought you would get a kick out of this street display for shorts. It is summer here you know---all year long. Sorry they aren't modest!

This is our home: The Hotel Sol de Pacifica. It isn't that bad. The room was supposed to cost $50 a night but since we are retired we get a discount so we pay $35 a night. Thank goodness since we are going on our 2nd week here. We also get this discounts at restaurants but sometimes they ask Dad if I am "retired too" that's what happens when you marry a young wife.

This is taken on one of our early walks near the hotel, not far from the center of town. All of their cows have these droopy ears and look like they haven't eaten in months. Yuk! That's what we are eating!

Again taken on our morning walk. This is what so many of the houses look like around here and pink is one of the favorite colors. The 2 houses we were in tonight had cement floors and cement block walls. Luckily most people don't have 4 dogs like one family we visited did. We don't have that South American tradition here--thank goodness.

This is a beautiful flowering bush they have everywhere around here. It looks a lot like an azalea blossom but it has that cute little extra thing in the center. i will try to take more pictures this week. Until then Adio_.