We've been at anchor off Playita Marina since arriving here. Conditions are uncomfortable with a big swell rolling the boat. There is also a lot of ferry boat traffic in and out of the marina which creates large crashing wakes against our hull, starting at 6 am.
The Marina is quite small and the slips are mostly taken up with sport fishing boats. Apparently Panama has great sport fishing. The World ARC folks have made arrangements for 4-5 Rally boats to spend a couple of nights each in the marina. We are scheduled in Wed/Thur and Friday.
Meanwhile provisioning proceeds space, although moving groceries and booze by tender and then transferring the multiple bags onto the deck of the heaving, rolling Sapphire is a pain. We are assuming that we may not have the opportunity to purchase normal items until we reach Tahiti, some 90 days from now. So, a combination of bulk shopping now, careful consumption along the way and hopefully, successful fishing will be required if we are not to go hungry!
We have invested in 2 new sets of fishing gear. This stuff is much stronger than our previous kit, which you may recall got eaten by the big fish that got away! Hopefully our fishing skills will improve in the Pacific!
We did indeed get into the Marina on Wednesday so life has improved. Cooking and shopping occupied the day. The evening was spent enjoying the company of some friends whose yacht is also in the marina. Chatting, snacking, music and even some dancing made for a very enjoyable time.
Our plan now is to stay here until Monday, completing provisioning and hopefully watching the NFL Superbowl on Sunday!
Apparently there are lots of US style sports bars in Panama City. We shall see.