Before visiting Panama the first time, I thought I'd have to wear full-strength Deet every day to protect myself from the little blood-sucking mosquitoes. The truth about mosquitoes in Panama is much different than my pre-conceived notions. Mosquitoes are actually fewer and further between than I had imagined. I rarely get bitten, and almost never put on insect repellent.

Here is some mosquito information, and a bit of trivia.

• There are more mosquitoes in rainy season than in dry season. Well, of course! Mosquitoes love water, especially dirty standing water.
• Mosquitoes (the ones that bite people) don't typically fly above 25 feet. That means if you're on the third floor or higher, you can sit out on your balcony and remain bite-free. That's also why condos in Panama don't come with screens on the windows.
• Only female mosquitoes bite. Why? Because they need blood to produce eggs. (Hey, I know what you were going to say!)
• Some mosquito varieties prefer the ankles while others prefer the face and neck. Researchers don't know why.
• The most mosquito-prone month in Panama is May. The rest of the time I simply avoid going out at dawn or dusk and I rarely get bitten.
• The New Yorker reported that mosquitoes are more attracted to beer drinkers than to wine drinkers. Yet another reason to drink more wine.
• Mosquitoes are attracted to sweat and stinky feet, so if you keep yourself very clean, you are less likely to get bitten.
• Mosquitoes are attracted to floral fragrances, so leave your perfume and scented lotions at home.
• Mosquitoes are attracted to carbon monoxide (CO2). If you find yourself in a swarm, hold your breath.
• Many people who live in Panama who walk their dogs or workout at dawn and dusk swear by natural repellents, such as oregano oil, eucalyptus oil or whole-leaf aloe vera gel. I am a fan of aloe vera and keep a spray bottle nearby. The trick to aloe vera is that is has to have a strong--almost stinky--herbal scent, or is won't have enough of the good stuff to be effective.

​I discovered Byblos by accident. My husband and I met for lunch in Panama city recently, and the restaurant we met at was closed. Rather getting in our cars and going somewhere else, we spotted this small restaurant in the same parking lot and decided to give it a try.
 
Byblos has a decent amount of patio seating outdoors, and just a few tables inside. We choose an inside table, and perused their menu. Everything looked delicious. We wanted to try a few different things, so we ordered the cheese labneh to start.

If you haven’t had labneh, it’s Greek yogurt that is spiced and drained of water until it becomes thick like cream cheese. You dip bread or vegetables in it…or just get out a spoon and enjoy it by itself.

For our entrees, I ordered beef kebabs and my husband ordered a chicken shawarma with the complete lunch, which included rice pilaf, hummus, salad, and hot pita bread.
 
My glass of white wine came out immediately, along with my husband’s non-alcoholic blended lemonade. As you can see from the photo, it’s like no lemonade you’ve ever seen before. It had a layer of pink lemonade, and a layer of blended mint delight. I’m a hardcore wine devotee, but for the first time, I was almost ready to trade my wine for this house specialty drink. Well, almost.
 
Our food came out fast and fresh. Their rice pilaf was perfectly cooked, and the salad reminded me how much I love salads. It had a mint-parsley vinaigrette that was one of the best vinaigrettes I’ve ever tasted. The meat, however, was the obvious star of the lunch.
 
My husband’s shawarma was open-faced, so he ate the chicken first without the bread wrapping. The chicken was tender and so flavorful. Sometimes I get “chickened-out” from my healthy husband’s love of chicken breasts, but this was a delight. It was only surpassed by my beef. I could sing odes to the beef kebabs. The meat was tender enough to be cut with a fork, and it sang in my mouth. About half-way through my meal I thought about taking the rest of it to go. It was so good, though, that I couldn’t stand the thought of not eating it. That night at dinner time, I was crying tears of regret, because I wanted MORE of that delightful meat. It was truly some of the best meat I’ve had in Panama.

I  normally take pictures of my food, but I was so overcome by the desire to eat it, that I completely forgot. Sorry. I'll snap some next time. If you beat me back there, please send me some of your favorite pictures.
 
Byblos Restaurant is owned by a Lebanese-Canadian couple who arrived just as we finished lunch. We were able to chat with them and wax poetic about their food. The husband has a nice way with customers and eyes that sparkle as he talks about his food. I wish them all the success… and can’t wait to go back again.

​INSIDE SCOOP REVIEW: 5 stars 

One of my favorite things about Panama is the close proximity of everything. Within about an hour, you can drive from the Caribbean to the Pacific, or from the city to the mountains. That means you have a large number of interesting and different day trips to take in Panama.
 
A few weeks ago, we hit all the high points of Panama… in the same day! We had breakfast in Panama City with clients, and then we drove them to the Panama Riviera beach region on the Pacific Ocean side to have lunch. After dropping off our clients back in the city, we drove to the Caribbean coast to have dinner with friends. Where else but Panama could you enjoy two oceans and a major city in the same day!
 
In case you’re not an ocean person, you can also visit the rainforest, one of the numerous mountain regions, or El Valle—one of the world’s largest towns built inside of an extinct volcano—all within an hour or so of Panama City. The different micro-climates ensure that there is a perfect temperature and activity level for you once you get here.
 
The City
Panama City has all of the things you would expect in a big city—great restaurants, hot nightclubs, a plethora of shopping experiences, and interesting tourist attractions. You could spend a busy week eating, touring, shopping and exploring ...and never have a moment to spare. If you do have some free time you want to fill, there are a lot of different day trips you can take by car, boat or plane. 
 
The Beaches
Panama has over 1500 linear miles of coast line bordering two different oceans—the Pacific Ocean and the Caribbean Ocean. There are different coastal regions that offer different experiences. You can spend the night roughing it with the indigenous Indians of the Caribbean, such as San Blas, or you can pamper yourself in luxury at a Pacific Coast private beach resort, such as at the Playa Bonita Resort. You can also take a 90-minute ferry or a 20-minute plane ride to Contadora, one of the 200-plus islands that make up Panama's Pearl Islands. 
 
The Mountains
Panama’s Pacific Coast and Caribbean Coast are separated by a range of mountains. The highest point, Volcan Baru, is over 11,000 feet high. You can enjoy the seclusion or you can explore one of Panama’s mountain towns populated by expats, such as Altos del Maria or Boquete. Altos is just 90 minutes from Panama City, while Boquete is eight hours by car, or less than an hour by commuter flight to David, and then a 45-minute drive.

One of my friends recently took a gang of friends and did a night hike of Volcan Baru to celebrate her birthday. The plan was to reach the top at sunrise. It's not my idea of a perfect birthday, but she conquered it and was able to check it off her bucket list. If that sounds fun to you, bring your hiking gear. 
 
The interesting thing about Panama is that once you discover the natural beauty of Panama, you’ll want to enjoy more than one region. Often times, foreign investors choose the city resort of Playa Bonita or the beach region of Coronado as their home base, but then they also buy something on the Caribbean coast or in one of the mountain communities. Because the dollar goes further here, you can be like Deion Sanders and enjoy them both!

Cooking in Panama is a delight. I can get fresh ingredients that make my dishes turn out extra-tasty. Imported ingredients can be more expensive than you're used to, but for most things, you can find comparable local ingredients. The chicken, fish, eggs and dairy in Panama are phenomenal! The beef doesn't have quite as much flavor but it's leaner, which is a nice trade-off.

Thanks to Facebook, I scroll through new video recipes every day, typically right before going to sleep. Websites like Tasty and Delish do a great job of making things look simple, and I've started dreaming about some recipes.

I'm a pretty darned good cook, mostly because I work at it... and I love to eat. But I'm an extremely messy cook. For a simple one-skillet dish, like this tamale pie, I will somehow make a disaster of my kitchen.

I've started planning my experimental recipe days in the kitchen to coincide with my maid's full cleaning days. That way, she gets to do the tedious stuff--chopping, grating, stirring--and I get to do the fun stuff. Then, when it's all over and Mount Melissa has erupted, I get to enjoy my meal while my maid cleans up. Ah, the joys of $35-per-day maid service!

Click here to get the recipe brought to you by Delish. The only things I did differently were:

• I added diced jalapenos to my corn bread crust.
• I used a Taco Seasoning packet mix to season my meat rather than their spices (and then let it simmer according to package directions).
• I added sauteed red bell peppers to the meat mixture, along with the sauteed onions.
• I only baked it for 10 minutes at the end after I covered it with foil. That was plenty!
• I made my own enchilada sauce (see below).
• When I served it, I added a dollop of sour cream.

This is one of those recipes that is so darned good, you realize that you should have made two. 

Enchillada Sauce

2 T. Olive Oil
1 T. Flour
1 cup tomato sauce
1 cup Chicken broth
2 T. Cumin
2 T. Chili Powder
1 T. Turmuric
Salt & Pepper to taste

Stir flour into olive oil and heat. Then add all other ingredients. Stir to thicken over medium heat, about 10 minutes. 

​Enjoy! And when you make it, think of me sipping my wine on the beach.