We just found out that we need visas for Taiwan. We probably should have thought about that before, but every problem is an opportunity. If we can’t take care of this while we’re in LA then we’ll take a side trip to the Philippines or something so that we’re not there for more than 30 days.
The power cord on my laptop broke the other day. I searched around Panama trying to find a replacement, but there wasn’t one in sight. Right now we have a system where Todd charges batteries with his laptop and swaps them out with my dying ones. It’s kind of like buddy breathing.
It seemed like we had so much time here, but all of a sudden we’re leaving in two weeks. I can’t believe how fast the trip has been going so far. We’re just starting to feel like we’re settling in. We have our routines that we go through, all of the friendly people we’ve gotten to know at all the places we frequent, and we even know our way around the city.
Well… Todd does. You know my sense of direction… I’m still working on it.
Japan is going to be a total shock. We’re scrambling now to try to find a good place to stay (so if you have any leads… let us know). Everything there is the exact opposite of Panama. It’s meticulously maintained, super expensive, and incredibly advanced. Panama has its rough edges, is dirt cheap, and in a lot of ways feels like it’s from 1980.
The food is so good here. I was really worried we’d have trouble finding good vegan food, but that hasn’t been the case at all. We had dinner at La Novena tonight, which is just amazing. The chef is an engineer who became a chef, and you can tell when he cooks. He takes it VERY seriously.
I AM looking forward to restocking on supplies a little bit in LA. I’m going to get some more wool shirts, a universal power adapter, and a lot more of the toothpaste I like (Tom’s of Maine). I’m running dangerously low and may have to start using “regular” toothpaste.
My RV is officially sold and gone. It was bought by a really nice guy who rescued some dogs in San Antonio and brought them back up North with him. He even sent me some pictures of the trip. Sad to see it go, of course, but I’m really happy it went to a good guy.
With the RV gone, my possessions are now limited to what fits in my backpack. Pretty incredible, especially considering how much STUFF I had just a year ago (or even worse, two years ago).
Somehow I still manage to cover every flat surface in the apartment with my stuff, though. I’m not sure how that works.
That’s about it for now… we miss you guys!
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