Amanda Rutter Day 1

When we landed at Tocumen International airport last night, I felt the familiar sense of warmth and hospitality that I will forever associate with the country of Panama. This culture exudes compassion and welcome, and it is definitely possible to feel at home in this "foreign" country. Upon our arrival, I was excited to see a familiar face in Elvira Testa, our tour guide for the majority of the trip. When I visited Panama last year with my family, she was our tour guide as well. Elvira is a connoiseur of Panama- she can answer almost any question and will deifnitely help with your Spanish!

Staying at the hostel with my classmates has been an amazing experience as well! The hostel met and exceeded my expectations by far. The staff is overwhelmingly amicable and the atmosphere as a whole makes me feel like I'm staying at a resort! It has been a much needed departure from some of the stresses of home.

Waking up this morning was easy because I knew that visiting the Embera tribe was going to be one of the most vibrant and enlightening parts of our time spent in Panama. Swimming in the waterfall was so refreshing! There aren´t many places in Tampa where the water is so clean and pure that you can just jump in. This was my second time experiencing the culture of the Embera, and I still learned alot. During reflection, I was really glad when one of my classmates braved the topic of whether or not the Embera are a genuinely content people. Although it seems somewhat bleak to consider, it is necessary to acknowledge whether or not the children in the village are smiling because they have to, or because they really want to.

Eating was definitely one of the best parts of the day! Penca´s seemed like a very classy place to dine, and the food did not disappoint! The seafood here is amazing, so I definitely ordered Corvina for dinner. Some of my classsmates were even kind enough to share some of their octopus ceviche (and now I smell like an octopus).

Being forced to speak Spanish has definitely helped me to come out of my ¨shell¨ a little bit more. In the states, I am always embarassed to speak because I am afraid that native Spanish speakers will think that I have an American accent. But here, when Spanish is the only language that I can use, I really feel like I have learned alot more than I give myself credit for. Today has been great, and I can´t wait for tomorrow!