Boquete

I awoke at midnight to very loud bangs from very nearby. Upon further investigation, I found the sky alight with fireworks and crackers going off in the street. Evidently, Christmas Eve is the most important time of the year for Panamanians with families gathering together for gift exchanges, feasting and Midnight Mass, prior to a pyrotechnic free-for-all which can be seen all over town. Children were letting off crackers with scant regard for finger maintenance, whilst more sophisticated chrysanthemums bloomed across the night sky. I found the source of my rapid rousing to be mere meters away from my dorm room; adding to the Christmas cacophony. Eventually, the night settled and bed again beckoned.

As I had been on the road a week by this stage, it was time to do a bit of washing. I prefer to do my own so sourced a bucket to give everything a good sluice and soak. Then it was time to find somewhere for brunch. A Jewish bakery down the road fit the bill with tasty food and good coffee. Christmas Day for local Panamanians is usually spent recovering from the late night fervour of the previous evening so the town was fairly quiet. As the weather was a bit iffy, I didn’t want to wander too far from my washing so had a fairly relaxing afternoon back at my lodgings.

Later in the afternoon, my dorm roomies returned from their respective days’ out and we also welcomed some new inmates. A few of us decided to wander down to the main square to check out the Christmas light display. As did half of Boquete! The previous 24 hours of quiet were well and truly over. Families gathered in the main square and wandered around the festive exhibits. The whole ambiance being one of festival frivolity and a lovely way to finish an extremely quiet Christmas.