A Day Of Dodging Pot....holes

Round and round and round we went, dodging potholes until we were totally spent!  The hubs and I headed out on some roads today that were better suited for horseback.  But since we only had our primative 4 wheeled drive Rav4, we had to make the best of it.  We ended up driving passed the town of Lagarterita which opened up onto Lake Gatun.  I dipped my toe into the surprisingly warm lake waters before heading on to further adventures.

A tree in the middle of Lake Gatun

Beautiful Lake Gatun

Some views of Lake Gatun

Found this in a tree,
Hell I didn't know they grew them here!

 

Venturing on through the town of Mendoza with potholes big enough to envelope the whole car, our bones were pretty rattled by the time we made it out alive.  This was the type of road where the locals turn and look at us, as if to say "why is there a car here?"  Sometimes when they give us that kind of look, Clyde rolls down the window to ask them if we are "poco loco gringos?," and they nod and laugh at us.

Doesn't this bridge look safe? 

Notice the horse droppings?  The locals still ride horses as a mode of transportation.

A view from the bridge

Why was the rooster near the road?  To have his picture taken by gringos.

Chicken's roam free EVERYWHERE in Panamá

Upon returning home the car seems to have all four tires on it still, but perhaps the fender involved in the accident is hanging a bit lower now.  Instead of leaving my heart in San Francisco I think I left my brain in Mendoza.  We managed to crawl back to civilization and stopped in the big city of La Chorrera for a few groceries before heading home.  Both of us were absolutely thrilled to hear the honking taxis, city buses and hoards of people crossing the road after exploring the back roads of Panamá.....along the gringo trail.