January 26, 2022. 27°F/81°C

#myvikingstory

It’s the first of 6 seas days in a row, so I had lots of time to look more closely at the pictures Ted took yesterday in Panama City.

When he’s not taking pictures of things I know I want to blog about, he’s always on the lookout for interesting flora and fauna. Here are a few of the things he captured yesterday that were neither architecture nor food.

The national tree of Panama since 1969 is the aptly named “Panama tree” (below). Walking through the ruins of Panama Viejo, our tour group was fascinated by the heart-shaped seed pods, both on the ground and in the tree. Fortunately, our guide told us just in time not to stroke the furry-looking interior, since the orange hairs can cause intense pain when touched. The black seeds are inedible raw by humans, but can be boiled or roasted and are a rich source of antioxidants. The red squirrel we saw happily munching on them must be really healthy!

I spent the rest of today devouring the first book in a new detective series set in LA, Deep into the Dark, by P J Tracy, while Ted (more motivated than I) did laps of Deck 2. There were, as usual, lots of lectures available, and even a beginners tango class, but we opted just to do our own thing – after all, we’re “at home” here until the middle of May.

We capped off our day with dinner in Manfredi’s with Cindy & Aleem, yet another really interesting couple we’ve met on board. They’ve been in the U.S for many, many years, but are both former Canadians, so we had some reminiscing in common.

Replete with deliciousness, we headed for the theatre to take in a tango revue featuring Argentinian dance duo Victor Mongelos and Denysa Ferreira. Not only was the dancing terrific, but also the NINE costume changes in the 45 minute show.

I have another book queued up for tomorrow, so it’s likely there won’t be a new post. We’re also moving ahead another hour overnight, putting us on “Nova Scotia time”. Rest assured, even if there’s no daily blog, we’re still safe and happy aboard the Viking Star!