Trip ’07 – Page 3 – Whatsittwoya

And over here…

Today, out of the blue, I encountered the owner of a resort about half an hour from here. It is still under construction, but he claimed that when finished, it will use a combination of wind-power, solar power, and hydro-electric for all their needs. I was invited out for a tour.

I have always been interested in this sort of thing, as anything that is completely off the grid, no monthly bills, no payin’ the man, is right up my alley. Add to this that he was using hydro-electric, and that means he had water, which meant arable land.

Basically, he had all the ingredients needed for complete self-reliance. Think what you want about that. The time may come when that might be a little more important than it is now… or you can think Read more “And over here…” →

Travel

Boca Chica Pics

Ok, I spent most of today messing around with different ideas about my car. Seems to occupy a lot of time, but this is what I “left for later” when I came back to Canada the last time. Who says time heals everything??

Long story short, I have it running nicely again, and what a relief. I won’t get cocky just yet, though. I haven’t taken it up and down any difficult terrain, but shortly that is in the plans.
Read more “Boca Chica Pics” →

Travel

Boca Chica

Well, I sure got a lot of sun. My shoulders are now pink and I just had a nice little nap.

I spent the day out at a brand new resort in the Boca Chica area called Seagull Cove Lodge. I know, the name is sort of crappy, but the “seagulls” don’t look like what we are used to. They are dark, quiet birds that fly around in formation.

The property sits on a hill and has several air conditioned cabins linked to a long stairway down to its own private beach. This place was amazing.

Ken knows the two owners from his experience with his own resort, and both of them were happy to see us. We had a nice meal, although a little small, and took a swim in the ocean.

This place isn’t quite finished yet, but when they are they are thinking they will be charging around $125 a night to stay. Read more “Boca Chica” →

Travel

Part One

Well, of course I didn’t get it all done.

What did you expect? I managed to get the two inspections done, but that was about it.

I was down at PTH, the Panamanian authority that determines that your car has not been stolen or something. This was an office with two dingy, beat up chairs that you sank to the floor in, a TV to keep you entertained while you wait, and one person running a very busy place. He was equipped with carbon paper, packing tape, the oldest type-writer I have ever seen, and a long pinky nail. You do the math.

They actually rub the carbon paper on your VIN # and lift it with the packing tape, just like a finger print. |-| Hey, whatever works. I actually had the papers done at 10:30 or so, but had to wait until 2 PM to come back…because…he had to wait for the boss to come and put his John Doe on the form. This he told us only after waiting for an hour after the papers were done. Read more “Part One” →

Travel

As if that wasn’t enough

Just found a brown backed scorpion in the house. Cool. 8| The last place I saw one of those was in Belize at the ruins of Caracol.

There are two main types that I know of. There are ones with a tan back, and ones with a dark brown back. The darker ones have a sting that can send you to the hospital if you are small. For me, it would just hurt like hell.

*lost pic*

I know it’s a bad picture, but was I really going to let it loose again for a better shot? I don’t think so.

I didn’t know they were even here, but now my shoes are all turned over.

Oh, yeah, and there is a rather large grass fire just at the top of the hill. You can hear it crackling away and the sky around here is orange right now, but no one seems concerned. Hell, there is a big pool right out the door.