This morning I awoke early to the sound of Canadian geese flying overhead. What an incredible wake up call. The weather has been nothing short of glorious here in the beautiful bay area, and I will miss it greatly. The fog rolls in every night and cools down the warm air which makes for great nights in the backyard and comfortable sleeping. Last night my family sat in the backyard and watched the fog roll over the brown hills and the stars come to life. Mom made her famous double chocolate brownies too, which was nice, especially with a big glass of cold milk. I think she is trying to make me miss home!!

I got up quite early and began the daunting task of packing everything into bags and boxes. I am bringing down quite a bit of gear to keep us entertained and safe for the next several months, so fitting everything into the least amount of bags and boxes became a bit of a Houdini act. The monster-sized spear gun and dive gear top the list, followed by my laptop, Ipod, special spices, and various boat parts. We need to install a new traveler when I get down there, so I have TONS of nuts and bolts and rope to around. I figure I'll be in excellent shape should a "Castaway" situation present itself. In fact, I've always day-dreamed about situations like that and how I would actually do. In this case, I'd most likely be eating Sashimi Tuna with smoked paprika and windsurfing by the time the afternoon breeze picks up.

I leave for Panama City in just a few hours and hope to have a seamless trip down to the lower latitudes. Chris and Julie have arranged a ride from the airport with Eduardo, so that will help me tremendously. I planned on taking the 2 hour/$2 dollar bus ride with the locals and their chickens, so the trip is already looking pleasantly optimistic. I'm sure my outlook will change when immigration/customs see the amount of bags and boxes I arrive with. "Hola Amigos!!" says Andrew. Immigration is going to love me.

Hopefully my laptop and wireless will be up and running in a few days when I arrive in Colon. I plan on posting a few words about the trip down and my initial breaths Central American air. Next stop, Colon Panama!! Cheers to that!!