One of the El Valle attractions listed in the Lonely Planet book on Panama is the square trees. By the way, every single person I met was also using the Lonely Planet guide to Panama. So after lunch Malcolm, Laurie and I hiked through the woods to see them.
A good lunch on this outdoor patio near the town center.
Square Trees this way.
And this is them! Well, there were really only 2 of them and they were kinda square, it reminded me of the Plymouth Rock. Lots of hype, not much substance, but I enjoyed the walk there.
Best juice ever! Maracuya is passion fruit... delicious.
My only proof of the windy conditions, duck feathers standing up.
Around town on market day, Sunday.
This is their big artisan's market, but it's not at all like the one in Otavalo, Ecuador.
The bus stop where I tried in vain to catch a bus out of town.
Young love.
Great pastries filled with guayava.
This type of furniture was all over town, even in my hotel room.
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Square trees??? pure kitsch. like the "cars rolling uphill" in New Brunswick Canada, or the "fountain of youth" in Florida.
ReplyDeleteYour fotos always catch the flavor of the people and town. Nice wood on those chairs and tables. they don't look very comfortable though.
Yes, I think you've got the gist of the square trees :-)
ReplyDeleteHello, I stumbled upon your blog because my husband and I are going to Panama and we're very interested in seeing the square trees. I was just wondering if you could give us some tips on how to get there. We are staying at the Toscana Inn Hotel, which I guess is somewhere near or around the heart of Panama City. I think the valley of the square trees is a couple of hours away, and we're trying to figure out the best way to get there without having to go on a full-on tour.
ReplyDeleteI don't have an account, and I couldn't find an e-mail address to contact you, so I was hoping you could just post a response to this comment.
Thanks in advance!