So, I suck at blogging. I'd like to claim that my actual journal was up to date and that the blog just took a back seat to that... but it isn't true. I have stopped documenting my life apparently... But maybe that's for the best. Things are going well here, time is really flying though...
I just went to a week-long Fulbright conference in Managua, which was great, and now in a few days I'm heading to St. Martin for Bob's wedding... then I'll be here for a month before Riana arrives and we set off for Colombia and Ecuador. In exciting news, I have a job lined up at the NIH, working with HPV (you know, the fun STD that can cause cervical cancer.) I'll be working in Bethesda, MD, and hopefully living in DC proper... but I've got a while to figure that out. It looks like I might be starting like 10 days after I arrive to the US... which puts some pressure on me to find housing quickly, but at least it will keep me busy! I don't even want to imagine how depressed I'll be when I move back to the US... but it has to happen.
Monday, April 14, 2008
Monday, November 26, 2007
Thanksgiving in Nicaragua
Well, I decided to sneak away from Panama for a few days and see something new - Nicaragua. I based myself in Granada, a gorgeous city that thrives on tourism. I did 2 day trips - one to Volcan Mombacho, a nearby volcano where I did quite a bit of hiking in cloud forest. It was absolutely gorgeous, though we didn't have amazing weather... There were supposedly amazing views of the surroundings, but we didn't see any of that, just fog/clouds.
The other was to Volcan Masaya, an active volcano, and also included stops at one of Nicaragua's most famous markets, in the town of Masaya, plus another at a small town where a lot of ceramics are made. We visited with a family who makes pottery, and I bought a few incredibly cheap things (I saw turtles on them, so how could I resist?)
Overall, the poverty in Nicaragua was quite intense. I knew it would be a change from what I've seen in Panama and Costa Rica, but I didn't expect it to feel more intense than in Bolivia. Street children would ask for food off of my plate when I ate outside at restaurants, and our tour guide pointed out the Victoria's Secret factory down there, with a huge number of employees earning about $5 a day (which he said isn't that bad for here, since at least they have jobs then...) The country was slightly depressing, but the people seemed incredibly nice and the country was also quite gorgeous. Hopefully in the future I'll get to see more of it, since I really barely saw any of it!
The other was to Volcan Masaya, an active volcano, and also included stops at one of Nicaragua's most famous markets, in the town of Masaya, plus another at a small town where a lot of ceramics are made. We visited with a family who makes pottery, and I bought a few incredibly cheap things (I saw turtles on them, so how could I resist?)
Overall, the poverty in Nicaragua was quite intense. I knew it would be a change from what I've seen in Panama and Costa Rica, but I didn't expect it to feel more intense than in Bolivia. Street children would ask for food off of my plate when I ate outside at restaurants, and our tour guide pointed out the Victoria's Secret factory down there, with a huge number of employees earning about $5 a day (which he said isn't that bad for here, since at least they have jobs then...) The country was slightly depressing, but the people seemed incredibly nice and the country was also quite gorgeous. Hopefully in the future I'll get to see more of it, since I really barely saw any of it!
Tuesday, November 6, 2007
My Parents' Visit
Well, it's now Tuesday, and my parents left on Sunday. They were here for a week, which was really great. We got to see a decent amount of stuff yet still relax plenty. We spent the first night in Panama City, then Monday-Friday out at the Gamboa Rainforest Resort (so I could pop into the lab a few times), and then for Friday night we went out to Isla Taboga, shown in the photo, and came back to the city Saturday afternoon to spend the night there before their early morning return to the States. We got to check out the canal and the forest a bit, and while they didn't get to see any of my favorite monkey species, we saw lots of birds, lizards, turtles, and other fun stuff like that... plus a sloth, which had been a goal of mine for a long time now. Now I miss them a ton (plus it was really great to be able to sleep in a nice hotel bed and use hot water and watch TV and eat great meals multiple times a day!) but oh well, I'll be home in less than 7 weeks! Can't wait. Other than that, things are alright, though I'm having some trouble getting my work going, but it's something I don't really have control over, so oh well. No worries from me... just gotta concentrate on my grad school apps and things like that!
Sunday, October 7, 2007
Day trip to El Valle...
Yesterday I went to El Valle de Anton, a small town built in an inactive volcano crater about 2 hours west of Panama City. I didn't spend too long there, but I really enjoyed what I saw. There is a small market, plus some enjoyable hiking on the outskirts of town to a petroglyph-covered rock, some waterfalls, and other things. There happened to be a small and cute parade while I was there though, shown in the picture.. not sure what the occasion was though.
Work has been going fine though, life in general is enjoyable... today I went hiking along Pipeline Road and saw some more monkeys, which was cool... I added a lot of pictures to flickr today, so if you're interested, I think they're worth checking out... mainly animals around here and then pics from El Valle.
Work has been going fine though, life in general is enjoyable... today I went hiking along Pipeline Road and saw some more monkeys, which was cool... I added a lot of pictures to flickr today, so if you're interested, I think they're worth checking out... mainly animals around here and then pics from El Valle.
Saturday, September 29, 2007
It's been a while... but I'm here...
It's been a while since my last entry. Things haven't changed too much I suppose... still spending a lot of time in the lab and field. I've continued to love living in Gamboa though, and I've been exploring the city more and more... Geoffrey's tamarins come by my house a lot (see the pic, taken from my bedroom window...) which is pretty cool... and I guess lately I've just been thinking about life a lot and stuff, especially when I'm out in the forest looking for ants. Yesterday I went out for a little bit and was unsuccessful at finding what I needed, but I did happen upon a troop of white-faced capuchins. These are probably my favorite type of monkey, and one I had never seen in the wild before.
It's actually surprising that I hadn't seem them until yesterday - they're quite common here and in Costa Rica as well, but I just never was at the right place at the right time until then I guess. I didn't have my camera with me, but oh well, I'm sure I'll see them again soon enough. I also spotted a little tortoise while I was looking, and it was the first I've seen in the forest. I immediately picked it up to look closer, and I was sad to spot a few ticks on it. So, after pulling them off, I put it down and watched it slowly walk away. It really made me think a lot about everything, especially as turtles are obviously a pretty special animal to me, for those who know... so it just reminded me that while those we have lost might not be around physically, we always have them with us. For me, that's an especially important feeling when I'm down here away from everyone and everything I knew before, often feeling quite alone (especially out in the immense forest.) But really, I love it here, and it's incredible to be surrounded by so much life. I'm thinking of everybody back home though!
It's actually surprising that I hadn't seem them until yesterday - they're quite common here and in Costa Rica as well, but I just never was at the right place at the right time until then I guess. I didn't have my camera with me, but oh well, I'm sure I'll see them again soon enough. I also spotted a little tortoise while I was looking, and it was the first I've seen in the forest. I immediately picked it up to look closer, and I was sad to spot a few ticks on it. So, after pulling them off, I put it down and watched it slowly walk away. It really made me think a lot about everything, especially as turtles are obviously a pretty special animal to me, for those who know... so it just reminded me that while those we have lost might not be around physically, we always have them with us. For me, that's an especially important feeling when I'm down here away from everyone and everything I knew before, often feeling quite alone (especially out in the immense forest.) But really, I love it here, and it's incredible to be surrounded by so much life. I'm thinking of everybody back home though!
Sunday, September 9, 2007
Isla Taboga and More...
Things continue to go fine here in Panama... the ants keep me busy during the week, and I try to explore a bit on the weekends, though up until this weekend that just meant exploration in Gamboa and Panama City. This weekend, though, I headed out to Isla Taboga, a small island with about 1000 residents in the Pacific, 12 miles from Panama City more or less. I took a ferry out Saturday morning and returned Sunday morning, spending the night in a hostel, though I was the only person in the dorm, so there wasn't much socialization happening. I got the chance to hike a bit though, which was great, and hang out on the beach, reading Paulo Coelho's "The Alchemist" - a great short read that I'd recommend to anyone who hasn't read it... haha...
Then, today I put some time in with the ants and got to see the Miraflores Locks of the canal while dining, which was pretty great. The canal is so incredibly impressive, and I can't wait to see more of it... Well, that's it for now I guess... hopefully something else exciting will come soon, but who knows...
Then, today I put some time in with the ants and got to see the Miraflores Locks of the canal while dining, which was pretty great. The canal is so incredibly impressive, and I can't wait to see more of it... Well, that's it for now I guess... hopefully something else exciting will come soon, but who knows...
Wednesday, August 22, 2007
Another few days down...
Things are going fine here in Gamboa... I got the internet set up where I'm living, so that means I'm able to chat and use Skype and all that... No real updates on the lab front, and I've continued to go into Panama City frequently to get a taste of civilization... I'm in the process of getting my visa all set up, though there's been some annoying red tape, but it'll all work out soon enough. I added some more pictures to flickr, like the flower photo shown here, taken in my backyard... Hopefully soon I'll have something more exciting to share!
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