It Was a Monkeying Around Day

We started our day with a short drive to Playa Venao.  The boys wanted to go boogie boarding and Linda and I had our hearts set on seeing some howler monkeys.   We reached Eco Venao and there they were.  Linda and I were psyched.  Unfortunately, I forgot my telephoto lens so I wasn’t able to get the best of shots.  Plus they were backlit – but they were fun to watch.  One mother appeared to have twins because she had one in the front and one on the branch in back of her.  We counted nine with 3 little ones.  Bruce met the owner of Eco Venao spa who was originally from Canada then South Carolina then Panama.

After our monkey siting we headed up to a little restaurant for cafe and fruta before heading out on our hike to the waterfall.   Some of the trek was pretty steep.   But the falls at the end although not huge, was really neat.  I took my boots off and cooled my feet in the natural pool.  We stayed awhile, drank our waters and prepared for the hike back.  At the end of the trail we had to go through a gate and there was this beautiful horse grazing.  I had to take a photo and she didn’t mind.  We stopped at the little restaurant for a Piña smoothie and then headed to the beach. On the way we passed a truck selling pinas.  We bought an armful for $5 and I mean Bruce’s arms. These are pretty little cabanas where surfers stay on the beach.   Our favorite little restaurant – Playa Venao Restaurant where we ate lunch and Linda and I sat chilling out while Bruce and Stan hit the surf.  They caught a few rides today.  And our favorite waiters, Javi and Gabriel.  Javi is a surfer and Gabriel is learning. He has been working his way through South and Central America.

It was dark after arriving back in Pedasi and the four amigos weren’t very hungry.  We thought we’d head to Smileys for their terrific chocolate cake and ice cream but it was closed.  So we went to the town square and found an ice cream shop.  All town squares in panama have a church and this one is no different.  A lot happens on the square after dark – from parents with little children to teens gathering around, this is the heart of the city.  I even saw someone who appeared to be an ex-pat with his laptop under the bright lights in the gazebo.  We ate our ice cream, took numerous selfies and headed back to the lofts for another game of setback.