Pesé with the Rotary Club

Pesé 

Three and a half hours on the road to Pesé with Andrea, her dad José, and her sister Isa.  We were traveling to volunteer at a clinic the Rotary Club was sponsoring, having donated medication and the time of the doctors for the day.  When we arrived in the morning, the street outside of the clinic was full of people waiting, some having come from neighboring towns.  We immediately went to work in the rear porch of the building to sort and organized the medications and prescriptions.

Above, the waiting area to enter the clinic

Above, a proud Rotarian of the Panama Sur district

Above, sorting the donated medications

Above, our beautiful final product!

Above, Andrea, Isa and me.

Above/Below, while we were working, we heard some rustling behind the door.  We were all on the back patio, which was an open air plan, no door... We turned around to find a few HUGE cows just walking down the street, moo-ing, pooping, playing with each other.

Above, mango's growing on the tree

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After lunch, a few of the Rotarians offered to drive us out the the Hacienda San Isidro, where a fellow Rotarian, Juan Varelo, vacationed on his family's plantation where the harvest, distill, bottle and distribute the Panamanian treasures that are Seco and Ron Abuelo.  Seco is a triple-distilled sugar cane liquor and Ron Abuelo is rum... really, really good rum.  The Varela family started the business in Pesé in 1908 and have kept it there ever since.

Above, the entrance to Hacienda San Isidro

Above, the family's house

Above, grinding and burning (for fuel) sugar cane

Above, how old do you think this tree is?

Above, rum barrels out in the sun to dry.

Above, along the road leading up to the entrance, the trees lined the road perfectly.

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Before heading back to the city, we begged Andrea's father to stop by our little side-of-the-road fonda near Guarare, where we stayed for Carnavales (carnavales-in-las-tablas) for fried corn puffs.

THEY ARE SO DELICIOUS!

Above, fried balls of maiz nuevo, or "new corn"

Below, my excitement for the food.