Saying "Hasta Luego"...

We, Caeley and I, have problems with the word "goodbye". We have considered handcuffing ourselves to our beds, superglueing our butts to the floor, taking a gap year, losing our passports, somehow injuring ourselves to get put in the hospital, anything to prevent our departure from this beautiful and majestic town.

But don't worry parents, we are at the airport right now. We figure it will be less problematic to just come home now and return for another adventure soon. We have some plans in the making and we know you all will love this place as much as we do.

Instead of saying "goodbye", we have resorted to saying "hasta luego", because WE WILL BE BACK...SOON. And in Spanish, "regresaremos pronto".

Our "hasta luego's" began bright and early this morning when we woke up to say "hasta luego" to our Papa before he left for work. He told us that we would always be in his heart <3

Since we were up early, we took the opportunity to watch the sun rise with Mama on their beautiful porch. Then we had a delicious breakfast of our favorite food that she makes: panqueis (pancakes). With a side dish of papaya, coffee, puffy and flavorful homemade bread, and apricot juice. The pancakes are amazing and unlike any we've ever had, and we now have the recipe!

Afterwards we chatted and contemplated many ways, even more then those mentioned above, about how to prevent leaving Boquete. We even tattooed our arms (with pen) to say "Boquete siempre". We realize you think we are going crazy, but apparently it's better to leave a place missing it because it means you've had a great time...or maybe we are crazy.

We decided to clear our heads with a walk down the road by our house, which turned into a walk through the fields in order to see an incredible view of the valley, complete with a running river, horses, cows, and many trees. Then it was time to say "hasta luego" to our Mama and hermana, Undina. They realized that saying it once and then pushing us out the door is the best tactic to avoid the pain and sorrow that comes with leaving.

We arrived in town and went one final time (on this trip) to our favorite grocery store, Romero, to buy some last minute snacks for the road...or sky. Then we went one final time (on this trip) to our favorite bakery, Shalom, to buy some Yucca Bread, the most mouth-watering, scrumdillyumptious bakery item you will ever eat, and it was fresh out of the oven. Later, when gave a piece to our friend Roy, he feel on the ground with awe of the taste. And Alvaro and Carlos, two other employees of Habla Ya, kept wanting more.

We always knew Boquete was a small town, where one could see friends everywhere, and we found this to be even more true when we saw Jessica and Alex running into a store together to buy some souvenirs (Jess says that she has bought too many to fit into her bag!). We hadn't planned on seeing them for another 30 minutes, but there they were!

We returned to Habla Ya, where our luggage was waiting, to say our "hasta luego's" to the staff...Roy, Swan, Alvaro, Armando, and Carlos. We managed to escape without shedding a tear. Now we are enjoying a nice Chocolate Mint Frappecino made with Panamanian coffee, while waiting for our departure.

For now, "hasta luego", and we will let you all know when we arrive to Panama City...

Love, Caeley and Hannah
(and Jess and Alex)