I was hoping to get some cool video and some other pieces up during my time in Panama City. But it has rapidly come to an end, and I hadn’t been able to get any of it updated! Andiamo’s gonna be busy for the next week or so, so I probably won’t get another opportunity until about a week after New Years! If I get lucky, I’ll get back in the city for a short restocking trip in between gigs. If so, I’ll try to do it before then. In any case, hang on, more stuff is coming.
And thanks for all the Xmas and new years’ saludos! I hope 2009 is a good one for all of us!
The TV crew and Karen hard at work filming at Chichime
So while we’re in Panama City after finishing our latest trip last week, I get an email from a Kiwi/British TV crew that was on their way to shoot Panama for a Travel Channel UK show called “Julian and Camilla’s World Odyssey”. The producer, Camilla (who’s also one of the show’s hosts), tells me that Panama’s tourism board dropped the ball on them, and they were now without a plan to shoot Panama, much less San Blas.
Camilla had found Andiamo via some posts on the Lonely Planet forum, and asked me if I’d be willing to take her and her crew along for a sail around San Blas so they can get some footage and do some interviews with the local Kuna folks. Turns out we actually had a sail planned for that weekend with some guests, so we could make it work. Continue reading →
It took me a little longer to get this year’s “Muchas Gracias List”, an annual thanksgiving tradition here on the Andiamo blog, together. It’s mostly because Andiamo’s been crazy busy lately. Nonetheless, I want to get this year’s list up now while I had a chance to give a special thanks and recognition to the people who’ve been exceptionally helpful and supportive to me and Andiamo this past year.
Here’s a cool clip of one of the biggest dolphin sightings Andiamo’s EVER SEEN! Luckily, the battery was charged, the sun was all good, and I managed to get some great footage. Oh, and wait for the AWESOME aerial breach by two dolphins (one is a baby). That’s NOT something you see every time. Enjoy!
For the past almost five years, I’ve wanted nothing more than to get some decent shots of Andiamo undersail, but from AWAY! That’s not asking too much is it? I mean, how hard can it be? Yet, for some unknown cosmic reason, it was never able to happen. Until NOW that is!!
Earlier this month, as we unceremoniously sailed back to Cartagena after experiencing some motor trouble on the way to Panama (that’s putting things mildly), we were finally able to get some great sailing shots before sailing into the harbor. Many thanks to Mats of “Da Capo” for doing the honors. So check them out on the gallery via this link!
Last weekend it was crazy here. There was a national independence holiday going on, the Miss Colombia Pageant (which took place in Cartagena) and a weird boat festival called the “Balleneras” festival, which now ties in with the beauty pageant. Anyway, I hung out on deck watching the action with my video cam, and what happened afterward was a crazy little bit by Karen that was totally unrehearsed and unplanned. It’s actually pretty funny, at least I think so, so give it a look…
That’s right, as part of the Andiamo’s quest to rule the world, we’ve opened up an Amazon store! :p
Why you ask? Well, for one thing, I get asked all the time by readers what books they should read to prepare themselves for cruising. I also get asked for my opinion about other boat-related stuff as well. So, as part of the “Shameless Plugs” section’s strategy, I shall seek to render my opinions and advice about books and other products, AND direct you to the best deals for them online, which is almost always Amazon anyway.
I invite you to check out the store, and be aware that I’ll be adding lots more items and reviews as we go along. Also remember that I’ll also be linking to other shopping sites and resources under this category, and making recommendations for those sites as well.
