A LITTLE BIRTHDAY MIRACLE

We talked about it as a family, and we all agreed that we'd had enough of the rain in Boquete. So we decided yesterday afternoon to take off for Bocas Del Toro for my birthday.

I must tell you. This morning I received the coolest video gift from my kids. It tried to upload it this morning before we left, but after 40 minutes it wasn´t even close to being uploaded. Things are a little slower in Panama. When we get back to Boquete in a couple days I´ll post it.

Anyways, we piled in the car this morning and headed out on our adventure to Bocas Del Toro. We left Boquete around 9:15am and arrived in Almirante at 12:45pm. The 160 km trip took us 3.5 hours. It was an incredible visual journey through the jungle. There were breathtaking vistas, awe inspiring follage, tornado funnels of thousands of birds swirling above us, hairpin turns, mudslides that wiped out parts of the roadway requiring a delicate touch at the wheel, dozens of heart-wrenching Indian villages in the middle of no where. Linda and I were reminded of the many sights and sounds of Africa embedded in our memories as we kept our eyes peeled to the IMAX movie right outside our front windshield. When we arrived in Almirante we were graciously flagged down by a gentleman who rode up beside us on a bicycle. He could tell we were first timers. He directed us to the water taxi and secure parking for our vehicle. At 1:15pm we were on our first water taxi of the day. It was a 30 minute bumpy boat ride to the town of Bocas Del Toro. The kids loved it. They were laughing and screaming and were entertainment for the locals. We eventually found our way to Hotel Angela, where we´ll be staying for a couple nights. (You can google it to check it out). After settling into our room, we decided to grab a bite to eat at the restaurant. After we were seated, the waitress quickly returned with her young son who she was proud to show us and inform us that he was having his first birthday today, and that it was also her brother´s birthday, and that their family and the restaurant staff would be celebrating with a cake in a few minutes. She wanted to give us a heads up, since we were the only other ones in the restaurant. I said, Its my birthday too. She said, oh please join us so we can celebrate your birthday as well.

I couldn´t believe it. What are the odds that I would end up in a restaurant in Bocas Del Toro, Panama (on a family whim), with two others who would have the same birthday, right at the time they were going to celebrate with a cake. Linda looked at me and said, I was wondering how I was going to get a cake for your birthday. Isn´t God amazing!

I think we're in good hands.

Paul