Our first day of a Panama vacation

Panama: March 23, 2010

We made it to Panama today!!! The kids were up before the alarm which was set for 3:20 am, and very excited for our planned Central American vacation. We had the mini van loaded up in no time, and out the door early. What a great feeling to be stress free on the way to a family vacation.
All progressed smoothly at the MCO airport as I dropped off the family, and proceeded to employee parking. By the time I took the shuttle back to the airport, Rachel was calling me on my cell phone since they had checked all our bags, surfboards, and received boarding passes. We breezed through the employee security line, and waited at the gate, with plenty of time to spare.
Just before boarding, Richard and Diana arrived with their family, so 7 cousins all prepared to fly to Panama. Upon boarding, there was much seat shuffling as the cousins sat with their favorites. There was ample room in the back of the plane.
Our flight was a pretty painless 3 hours, as I slept, listened to tunes, and read. Before I knew it, we were touching down at Tocumen. All of the kids were very happy to arrive at our destination.
Budget did not have the 8 passenger mini van we had confirmed, so we ended up with a 16 passenger diesel monster van. A great alternative, since we loaded up mucho baggage with a lot of extra space, and the surfboards actually fit inside.
We figured our way through the city, and navigated to Corredor Norte, which led us to Albrook Mall. There, we got a pay as you go cell phone, and ate at the food court. Rebecca procured some of her favorite vanilla from the farmacia in the mall as we enjoyed our mall food.
Next we proceeded up Ancon Hill in the Old Canal Zone, and arrived at the Panama Vacation Quarters. It is an old U.S. Canal Zone quarters which has been converted to luxury vacation quarters. The kids immediately began to spot the local fauna of the rainforest canopy including niccis, hummingbirds, and tamarins. They were in the pool in no time!!
I quickly donned my cayuco gear, and loaded up with the two crews of NIC an MOAB. We stopped in Fort Clayton and got the boats, and made a direct passage to the Gamboa boat ramps. There we experienced a flurry of cayuco practice activity and many boats crewed by friends of ours.
Our practice lasted for a little over an hour. We took a route I had never travelled. Due to the strong dry season North winds, we paddled up the Chagras River, an ecological tour in itself. It was a grand day of warm weather, sunny skies, and pristine, emerald green clear waters. As we made our turn back to Gamboa, the wind and current was at our backs, so a quick passage ensued.
For dinner, we loaded up the van, and headed out the Causeway to a favorite of Rebecca’s called Penkos. As all the kids were exhausted, it was an enjoyable, quick meal so we could return to the PVQ for bedtime. Paddle practice tomorrow at 0800. Good night.