You know what makes me so made I could cook an eagle for dinner? All this fuss over endangered species. I say shoot one before they are all gone. Besides, once an animal goes on the list the prize price goes through the roof, making them unaffordable for many collectors. The jungle is then flooded with poachers making it impossible for the honest hunter to bag one. Don’t tell me that you approve hunting only for food. After buying a weapon and ammo, all the hunting and camping equipment, paying for the course, buying a hunting license and taking afew days off from your regular job and driving 200 miles to hunt, that is the most expensive meat you will ever taste! If one must kill for food, buy a chicken. Nobody cares about chickens. Cut-off the head and squirt blood all over. (My greatgrandparents had a huge chicken farm in Oregon. This is sort of thing we did for fun.) Wakeup America!!

Provinces and cities sent dance and bands to the Oxcart parade.This is just one of many.
These 10 foot tall images appear in all parades and festivals. Note the little viewing window for the operator. Some are of known personalities, others of mystical orgin and others "just for fun." they dance around like crazy and the spinning causes the free hanging arms to extend--sometimes over the crowds to the delight of the children.
This little gal was heard to say: "My parents made me do this!"
Limon Provience is on the Carib side and is distictive in culture, race and crime. The black population in Limon were imported, mostly from Jamica, to do the heavy lifting for the railroad construction at the turn of the last century. The latin types were not up to it. Surprisingly, only latins were seen with this Limon dance entry.

This parade is HUGE. Folks come from all around. It is the Oxcart Parade. It is San Jose's answer to Hot August Nights! Most are family carts but some are sponsored by church's and communities.
This is a family cart with two magnigicent oxen. The staff in the right hand of the driver us used to guide the oxen, which are very responsive to his slight proding. The parade had over 100 teams.

These big boys reminded me of PGM's. I don't know why.

The ribbon is a special award.

All big events must have a rodeo queen. These are the girls, all vying to be "Miss Oxcart-2007.

If left untreated usually not fatal. Toe nail fungus. It will eventually spread to the finger nails. Then untreated all the nails will fall off! The doc gave me three months of pills, one per week. I guess I picked it up in the really cheap hotel in Panama. now I know why. Try to save a buck and see what happens? $50 for the medicine.

Sunset in San Jose.

I cut my hand worse than I thought. My physican has me taking anti-biotics three times a day.

I am "nationalizing" my motorcycle. CRica has social insurance, which means it is a governmental program. The insurance is placed through an attorney, so meeting one is the first step. Then one goes to a private customs agent (with the attorney) and gets the importation papers completed ($150 for the agent). Then both the attorney and the agent go with the motorcycle owner to deposit the moto at the government's customs warehouse where the government customs man will appraise the motorcycle and determine the importation fee while it sets in storage.
Fortunately for me, the Worshipful Master of my local masonic lodge is an attorney and he is sheparding me through this process, which would be impossible for me alone. Once again, Free Masonry has contributed to my welfare and peace of mind.
One of the reasons I describe it as impossible for me are the locations of these agencies and offices. Addresses are not used here as we know them. It is a landmark system. For example, my address of residence is partly "1000 meters south of the restaraunt Dona Lela in Lomas Ayarco, casa 03CC." Which is fine if you have eaten at Dona Lela's restaraunt. Otherwise, one needs to dine out more often!

The self inflicted wound. Three stitches. Surgeon's cost for treatment was $30.00.

The weapon. A kichen knife, very sharp.

Colon sits on the Atlantic side of the Panama Canal. Dirty and friendly.
The sidewalk vendors go for several blocks. Additionally, there is a large indoor market-the rain is intense. North Americans really don't blend here.
Cristo Redentor was erected in 1995 at the very north end of the road from Panama City to Colon.

Panamanians and most in Central America love their parks. Parks are well attended from dawn to dusk. Maybe they would rather be there than at home. I think that the same dynamic is at work in the English Pubs (public houses). Meet your friends, shoot the breeze and enjoy the sun. It sure beats working for a living.

The San Blas indians live on small islands on the Atlantic shore of Panama. Their "cash crop" is this type of needle work. Cost was $20.00

This is "Casco Viejo." It is the French Quarter of Panama City without the French. The old fort is gone.

Balboa is a big deal in Panama. He discovered the Pacific ocean and named it "Pacific" because it was a calm day. He got to Panama by hiding on a ship until it was out to sea. That seems pretty risky to me, what if they send you back without a boat! Anyhow, the Spanish cut off his head later on for being an "over acheiver."

Everybody gets a pistol but they have to share the hat! I think I'm getting the secret Panamanian handshake.

This is the City from my hotel. Only ten minutes away.

Batteries are on both sides of the narrow entrance to Portobello.
The cannon carriages have long since rotted away. they were new 150 years ago.

The cannons were cast hollow and in one piece. This is the fuse hole, about the diameter of a dime. It was not uncommon for the cannon to explode... killing the crew instead of the enemy.

The Spanish stole their gold from the Indians and the English stole it from the Spaish. Portobello was the shipping point for the Spainish across the Atlantic. George Washington 's Mount Vernon was named after the British Admiral Vernon, who raided Spanish interests in the Caribbean.

The rifle ports have a thirty degree field, but blind inside of six feet.

This is the "in" lane to Panama. Prices here are CHEAP. The hot dog man sells full size dogs for fifty cents with all the fix'ins. No wait and within one hour between exiting CRica and Panama customs and immigration, I'm in!
The main road is excellent with a wide shoulder, much appreciated after the suicide shoulders in CRica. No traffice cops either. I easily cruised at 75 mph. Oops, they don't have miles in Panama, only kilometers. So I have no idea how fast I went!
This is my clothes dryer.
"Bridge of Americas" spans the waterway of the canal. Much like the Golden Gate, it is packed during rush hour. The traffic was backed up for 9 miles.
The Chinese are EVERYWHERE. Notice the bridge through the temple gate.

"Bumps in the Road" has a pleasant sound in Spanish. Leaving SanJose early was a good plan. The trip was sunny and pleasant through the Costa Rican mountains. The Panamanian portion will be over flat ground.

A level or left slope is necessary for the kickstand to work. So I must park on the left side of the road to take advantage of a left slope, usually on the shoulder.

The frontier with Panama is my desitination tomorrow (Saturday). Cerro de la Muerte (Mountain of Death) is the high point of the trip at an altitude of 3,500 meters and 100 kilometers south of San Jose. It is cloudy and rainy most of the time. The mornings here are sunny and it does not rain until 1:00 pm. So I expect to pass it safely early in the morning. If I can leave at 5:00, first light being at 5:20, I will arrive at the border at 1:00 pm and travel to David in Panama in the next hour for the end of my first day.
This trip is necessary now because all temporary permissions to stay in Costa Rica are good for only 90 days. Then one must leave for four days before returning for another 90 days.
The second and third nights will find me in Panama City and Colon and then back to David for night four. On the return trip I might visit the surfing beaches on the Pacific shore in the southwest!