Month Four -- Quarantined In Panama, 2020

Greetings from Bastimentos, the island in the Bocas del Toro archipelago of the Western Caribbean where we are entering our fourth month of quarantine. 

This is where readers, depending on where they find themselves, are likely to insert : "Marooned on a Caribbean island -- boo-hoo!"  

But even in Paradise there are challenges in this time of Covid-19.

Plans? We Scoff At Your Plans!

As in many places in the world, the government has imposed limitations on non-essential activities. [Interested in past quarantine information? Check Here For Prior Quarantine Post.] Most recently:

• The Panamanian government extended its international commercial flight prohibition to July 23, saying that the health metrics established for reopening international flights had not been met. The flight ban was initially imposed on March 21. In case you need some assistance with the math, we used an on-line calculator: by July 23 the flight prohibition will have been in effect for 124 days. 

• The Panamanian maritime authority clarified that recreational boaters are prohibited from using their boats to move among local marinas or anchorages without prior approval of the Panamanian health authorities. 

Perversely we have found these two recent restrictions -- a sort of relief. They have allowed us (forced us?) to QUIT trying to figure out how our personal plans fit into all of this. It's now clear that -- they DON'T. Yes, you are permitted to insert: "Duh!" here, but we ask that you be kind. It's simple human nature for us simple humans to try and assert control over our destiny. 

In Sum: A (flight ban) + B (recreational sailing ban clarification) + C (the Canadian border closure extension to July 21) = an admission that our chance of getting Abracadabra to British Columbia this summer as we had planned is pretty near ZIP. Bryce has started the various tasks required to put Abracadabra into "sleep mode" for the rest of the year.

Jungle Life

We plan on remaining in our wooden house in the jungle enjoying its beautiful views and breezy deck until we can travel by commercial flight to the U.S. (we continue to hold out for commercial rather than Embassy-sponsored repatriation flights). This may be as soon as July 23. We will return to Abracadabra - some other time.

In the meantime, life in the jungle lodge has been -- interesting:

Last week the entire island experienced a flying termite swarm of Old Testament proportions. Yep - it was just as nasty as that sounds. 

A flying insect swarm is particularly unfortunate for those living under a palm-frond roof. Granted, it's a high-tech plastic Disneyland-looking palm-frond roof -- but it still contains enough gaps to offer occupants that true jungle life experience. 

Representative Palm Frond Roofs

Molly spent the night of the biggest swarm downstairs in the air-conditioned bedroom, reading under a sheet. It turns out the e-reader has made under-sheet reading easier than when she was a disobedient child. Bryce toughed it out on the main floor taking video clips, swatting flying termites and sending e-mails that he thought were funny at the time. Thanks to those who sent crisis hot-line phone information - he's okay now. 

Since the swarms (there have been three - fortunately each progressively lighter) we have both spent an amazing amount of time sweeping and vacuuming up termite wings. Thanks again for the gift of the Dyson boat vacuum, Rob and Tom! During this sweep-a-thon we removed cushions from the couch and found evidence of yet another unwelcome jungle visitor. A hopping mouse had chewed a nest into the back of the couch. Look up hopping mice - they're cute on the internet. We removed the nesting material and cleaned the couch. The next day a (the?) stunned hopping mouse magically appeared in the middle of the living room floor. No idea where it came from or why it was so stunned. It was sent to the jungle without a single apology. We are looking forward to the sonic mouse repellent machines being shipped to us.

It's not all termites and hopping mice. We are beginning to distance-socialize with some fellow quarantined sailors -- lots of hand washing, b.y.o. snacking and sitting six feet apart outside. The New York Times tells us this is A Thing: a Social Bubble.  

The rains have begun in earnest -- full throated thunder and lightening -- mostly at night. It's not unusual for one of us to dream that Abracadabra has been struck by lightening. Our good news is that so far this remains just a bad dream. We spend many rainy nights watching sub-titled French, Swedish and Spanish language shows on Netflix since we can't hear the soundtrack over the rain . . .  

Speaking of rain, it's about to start this evening so we will move the laptop inside. 

Soon we will get back to stories of France. Stay well.