A Friday Vegetable Market

After you've visited the Friday Volcan Market, another market to visit in Volcan on Fridays is the vegetable market that is held at the Catholic church. I was told it was organic, or supposed to be. It is located at the building behind the Catholic church in Volcan. To get there, turn past Romero like you are going toward Cerro Punta and then look to the left until you see the church.

Turn into the parking lot behind this building and park behind it. Make your way over toward the office. If you get there before it opens, you will see people lined up outside the door. It opens at 11:30 and arriving early is a must. When the door opens, people rush in and all the "good stuff" will go quickly!

Fresh from the farm! The produced just arrived. Here's where you enter.

Setting up the produce. There are usually a pretty good variety of vegetables. Carrots, cabbage, lettuce, potatoes, tomatoes, celery, zucchini, broccoli and more!

 The thing we love about the market is the prices. They are better than the grocery stores and even the little vegetable shops. The selection and quality at this market is different each week and depending on how quick you are to get in the door.

 After you pick your produce, you go to the scales and weigh it and write down the weight on your order form. Then you take it up to the ladies at the table and they price it out. Bring cash to this market and small bills are appreciated! The ladies told me they have been doing this market in the same location for 5-6 years but have been having the market for 11 years! It's a little hidden treasure you can participate in every Friday!

One last thing...bring your own bags!

A Friday "Gringo" Market in Volcan

The Tuesday Market in Boquete is a great place to go buy some local items, get some fresh fruits and veggies and meet up with other expats in the area. The Volcan Friday Market is quite similar, although a smaller size. Many expats in the area sell items like homemade sausage, fruits, veggies, trees, plants, bread, goat milk, yogurt and more! It is also a great place to meet up with other expats living in Volcan. They also have a meeting for expats in the restaurant where the market is held at the same time.

To get to the market, which is open on Fridays from 9-11, find the Mana Restaurant on your favorite map app. It is on the edge of town, on a little side road if you are headed toward Bugaba on the Volcan Road. Here is what the restaurant/hostel looks like and what it looks like on a Friday with cars lining the road.

Walk through the gate on the right hand side of the restaurant and that will take you down the driveway straight to the market.  

Turn left into the market. As you can see, there are about 8-10 tables set up with a lot to offer, plenty of people to meet, and tasty treats to enjoy! Be sure to bring cash and enjoy!

A Driver's License

Here's my experience with getting a drivers license in Panama!

After getting my permanent residency card, I knew it was time to get my drivers license. Driving in Panama is another post for another day.

We picked up our residency cards in Panama City, like everyone does. We followed the advice on this blog post to see what we needed to do. We tried to make a reservation with the US Embassy to get our drivers licenses validated, but all of their slots were taken for the month. We only would be in Panama City for a few days, so I found an e-mail on the Embassy's site and e-mailed them to explain our situation. We were told that we could come the next afternoon for an appointment. When we arrived, everyone acted like this was unheard of. No one gets after hours appointments to validate their drivers license. We were glad we did!

We then had to go to another location in Panama City to get the papers certified. At this location, we were told we had to pay $2 each at 2 different locations in the same building. So crazy but there must be a method to the madness. Two stamps and $4 later, we turned in the paper and were told to pick them up the next day at noon. This was all we did in Panama City although we could have done the next step there as well.

Next we went to a lab in Boquete and had our blood type taken. After a lady stuck a very long needle halfway into my finger to get a single drop of blood, we received our results. We now had all the necessary paperwork to go to David and turn it in to get our license.

We went to the transportation department in the Chiriquí Mall and showed the receptionist our papers. Thankfully she let us make copies there of what she needed a copy of and then we were told to wait until they called our names. I think we spent about an hour here waiting. Then we were called up to verify our information, have our picture made and take an auditory and seeing test. The auditory test gave little beeps in each side of headphones and had you identify which side it came from. The seeing test made sure you could see the letters and asked what a specific sign was (no left turn - I hear that is the one everyone gets). After these are passed, you go to the cashier and pay the fee in cash, turn in your receipt and receive your new drivers license!

It was a lot of work, but well worth it to be a legal driver.