See What I Did On The Last Part Of My Vacation
I already shared blogs with you about my very enjoyable stay in the Bahamas after the Christmas holidays. On December 31st, I said goodbye to Alexis, Jude, and Kevin, who flew back to New York City. I went on to St. Barths, where I attended a really fun New Year’s Eve party. The next day, I flew to the west coast of Panama, where I spent the last portion of my vacation, visiting my friend, Jean (Johnny) Pigozzi at his vast estancia on his island, Canales de Tierra. Johnny has just completed a most unusual residence atop a high hill and he invited me and many other good friends to celebrate his 60th birthday there.
1 This is a side view of Amazon Express, which is a very large trawler that Johnny transformed into a luxury yacht. It's more than 218-feet long.
2 Aboard Johnny's boat, as on most master yachts, there is a no shoes rule. These shoes belong to the guests.
3 All the 'toys' were tied up to the floating docks, along side the big boat. There were jet skis, paddle boards, kayaks, and tenders for all sorts of excursions.
4 This was the huge ship Michael Douglas and his family chartered for Christmas. The boat was then handed over to Jann Wenner and his family for Johnny's party. We got to visit with Michael and Catherine for a short while.
5 Catherine and her daughter, Carys, waving to us from the deck of her boat, Latitude.
6 This is Catherine Zeta Jones, who was about to disembark her boat and return to the States. She was dressed rather formally for the wilds of Panama.
7 Jann Wenner looking very relaxed - Jann, of course, is the co-founder and publisher of the music and politics biweekly Rolling Stone, and owns Men's Journal and Us Weekly magazines.
8 Matt Nye, fashion designer, is Jann's partner. He is with one of their three children.
9 Janie, Jimmy Buffett's wife, was so much fun!
10 There are wonderful topographical oddities in this part of Panama. The soft sandstone islands erode, leaving baby islands and tiny rocks jutting up out of the sea.
11 Alexia and Gabriel arriving by tender - They came all the way from Rio.
12 This is the outdoor bathroom at the base of the big hill leading to Johnnie's estancia.
13 Jann took hundreds of photos!
14 The double concrete tracks were made on the island by the local workmen. There are six miles of such roads crisscrossing the vast property and they go up and down the steepest slopes.
15 This doesn't look steep, but it's probably about 60-degrees.
16 Here you can see a bit more of the steep incline. Luckily for us, it was not the rainy season!
17 These are the underpinnings of the huge house that Johnnie built in the past ten years, since I first visited Panama in 2001.
18 A little glimpse of the house as we approached
19 This garden is planted atop the roof of the lower portion of the house. The views are magnificent!
20 This is the main reception/living room of the big house. One wonders how those huge beams, pieces of steel, polycarbonate, art, and furniture got from Europe and the US, got off the boat, and got up the hill.
21 One of two very large heated pools for guests to use
22 Johnny has renamed the island, Simca Island, in honor of the family business. His family owned Simca cars. He had these woven towels made in the US for the house.
23 One of the many models of Simca cars throughout the years.
24 Many artifacts were found during the excavation of the property. These are just a few of the stone kitchen tools unearthed.
25 A majestic view from the roof terrace of the big room
26 The views are expansive and wonderful.
27 There are hundreds of islands surrounding Panama and most are uninhabited.
28 Is that Jann, again?
29 The original architecture of the house was created by Marco Zanini, who worked with Sottsass & Associati in Italy for many years. Marco spent 8 years working on this property. The gilded table is one of his fanciful designs.
30 The art is primarily from Johnny's African collection – really unusual and extraordinary.
31 A Sottsass mirror – Ettore Sottsass is universally considered the Father of Post-Modern furniture. His designs offer a rich visual bombardment of shapes, textures, and colors.
32 Nicolas Prtizker, the Hyatt Hotel/real estate magnate, sitting in the crown chair - Every one wanted a portrait there.
33 There are many pelicans in the bays around the islands. This one inhabits the small bay where the boats were anchored. The fishing must be very good here.
34 One of many Kawasakis, which are the chief mode of transportation on the islands - Ghislaine Maxwell, is on the right, photographing some of us hikers, who were hiking from the house to the The Liquid Jungle Lab.
35 These riders did not fall out.
36 The Liquid Jungle Lab was founded by Johnny and is used for ocean, forestry, and climate research by the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, and Real Jardin Botanico de Madrid.
37 There were some sea life specimens saved by the scientists, like this Pelagic sea snake, or yellow-bellied sea snake.
38 The structures were designed by Simón Vélez, the foremost expert on bamboo architecture.
39 Stuart Parr, a collector of mid-century modern, standing on the balcony of the lab
40 These are the rungs of a wall ladder, but to me, they looked a lot like a Donald Judd sculpture.
41 A group photo of some of the guests at the lab
42 One of the local workers and one of the Kawasaki vehicles - These get a huge workout on the steep roads of the island.
43 Somehow a red mule got into the green mix.
44 A French guest speaking Spanish to the driver
45 There were many photos taken during the five day party.
46 The roads are treacherous, but well-built. Only experienced drivers were manning the vehicles.
47 Part of the sightseeing tour
48 Here's an example of the concrete slabs made on island for the roads. Can you imagine how many were needed to line the six miles of roadway?
49 Erosion takes place often and many times the roads are covered with mud and fallen trees.
50 We went to see this promontory where Johnny is going to construct a cantilevered platform for viewing the islands beyond.
51 Our group on the edge
52 The native bromeliads are epiphytes and they love clinging to the trunks of palms and other trees. Many establish themselves high up in the trees.
53 Delicate ferns are gradually affixing themselves to the cut side walls of the roads.
54 We spotted a very strange palm tree, whose fruits look like dates, but are not.
55 The fruits grow in great clusters, like dates, but they are astringent and inedible. The palm trunk is also extremely spiky.
56 We took lots of boat excursions and saw tall jungles like this one.
57 And valleys like this
58 And coves like this
59 And rocky coastlines
60 That's Johnny's house high atop the hill. There is even a helipad on the very top of the roof.
61 This is the signature rock of Simca Island.
62 Our friend the pelican
63 On our way to lunch at the Rosario Farm of the estancia
64 With drop-down fronts, the boats are like those that the army used at Normandy, but here we are landing on a very friendly beach.
65 Lunch was prepared by a great chef from Panama City. He is formerly the chef/owner of Island Restaurant in New York City and we knew many of the same people.
66 There were colorful plastic plates - Johnny's style.
67 A salad of romaine, carrot, tomato, and cucumber
68 There were freshly made tortillas for tacos.
69 Chicken for the tacos
70 And a great tasting local fish called cobia
71 Sergey Brin, the co-founder of Google, sheltered himself from the hot sun.
72 Orange tree branches and trunks are frequently armed with thorns, but this Panamanian variety looks lethal!
73 Meet Sophie, a local howler monkey - She's eating a piece of coconut, her favorite fruit.
74 Howler monkeys are native to South America. This type is known as the golden-mantled howler monkey, named for its lighter colored hairs on its back.
75 Most howler monkeys in Panama are, for the most part, impassive to humans. Sophie happily munched on her coconut while we watched.
76 If you see one howler, you're likely to see more, as these animals live in groups from ten to up to forty members.
77 Their tails are long and quite strong and can support their body weight hanging from a branch.
78 Matt and one of his boys, who loved the natural dress code
79 There were local horses to ride.
80 Many guests took part.
81 I was very impressed with how well the chickens are cared for. The coops are clean and the birds are large and healthy.
82 This tree is perhaps a totumo or calabash. It's said that pulp from the fruit has healing properties. Notice how many bromeliads there are living upon it.
83 A pineapple grove
84 An unusual bright pink flowering tree had suddenly dropped all its petals.
85 Johnny and a friend on an ATV - We had an exciting overland excursion.
86 It was all about the 'toys!'
87 Jonathan and Kira on their ATV
88 Captain Mark and a guest
89 After the rides we had fresh green coconut water - very, very refreshing!!!
Martha Pins
Martha Tweets
Martha,
It looks like you and the guest had a great time on Jean's island. I enjoyed these photos especially the wild life! Thanks for sharing this blog.
Posted by: KLBrown | January 13th, 2012 at 1:35 am
The tree on picture 82 looks like a "totumo".
Posted by: Ana Lucia | January 13th, 2012 at 5:54 am
Hi Martha, Beautiful photos looks like you had an amazing holiday. I Love the tropical weather and food. Happy Friday and a wonderful weekend.
Best Wishes xo
Posted by: Rowaida Flayhan | January 13th, 2012 at 6:31 am
Hi Martha,
I love when you travel to different places. It gives those of us who may never get there, to see what it is like. What gorgeous views. Spectacular. Thank you for sharing.
Karen
Posted by: Karen Tracy | January 13th, 2012 at 8:29 am
What a lovely island. My husband was stationed in Panama around 1987/88. It's a beautiful country. Our house on the base was on the edge of the forrest and we would regularly see monkeys, parrots and sloths. Thanks for sharing your vacation photos Martha. I love your self portrait in the Sottsass mirror! My guess is an avocado tree in pic #82.
We miss you Gloria G. Where are you?
Posted by: Cindy F | January 13th, 2012 at 8:59 am
Thanks for sharing your life with us.
Posted by: a | January 13th, 2012 at 9:17 am
Thanks for sharing, Martha. I guess this is how the rich jet set play!!!
Posted by: Sharon | January 13th, 2012 at 10:07 am
Hi Martha, You sure did have a wonderful vacation in the Bahamas, St. Barths, and Panama! I have had so much fun viewing all three of these fantastic blogs with terrific tours of places I've never been!!! I recall seeing Jean Pigozzi on another blog and in your twipics you sent from Panama earlier. What a great guy he is and how fun it was to see Michael Douglas and his wife-terrific! All of these photos are spectacular! What a great place to be in the winter! All of those ships are fabulous and seeing the tropical tree covered islands was great!! Some of the islands resemble Maury Island across Puget Sound near where I live. The only difference is we have mostly evergreen, maple, dogwood trees etc. covering our islands. Those cement tracks sure were great and they must have made thousands to cover those tracks! My favorite photo was #31 with cute you in that mirror-awesome! Thanks for sharing another wonderful blog! Have a great day today, Friday the 13th and a wonderful weekend! Off to check The Daily Wag again-love it, too! Jan
Posted by: Jan Erickson | January 13th, 2012 at 10:34 am
Jim Cramer just doesn't quite get it..North Dakota is my life long home and it is the promised land but not because of get rich quick schemes. Much more easy to live in than St. Barths with mild winter this year. Loved the show on Hallmark as it is the best thing on the tube.
Posted by: ann | January 13th, 2012 at 11:18 am
Hi Martha,
Great pictures! I’m sure it was lots of fun exploring the island on Kawasakis and traveling to other places on boats. Definitely a vacation for those who enjoy the outdoors. I was fascinated with the pink flowering tree and the pineapple grove and the narrow roadways. The possibility of a mudslide would scare the wits out of me though. I’m glad you enjoyed your time at Jean Pigozzi’s birthday bash. What a way to celebrate! Trish
Posted by: Trish | January 13th, 2012 at 11:40 am
What a beautiful place with lush canopy. I understand many of our backyard birds winter in Panama --I hope those views are preserved
Posted by: Will | January 13th, 2012 at 3:45 pm
Wow -- how cool that you would share these personal photos with your readers! Love the pictures and travelogue. Great post.
Posted by: Jennifer | January 13th, 2012 at 4:34 pm
Hi Martha
The painting in Johnny's collection in slide #30 is by American artist, Kehinde Wiley (from Los Angeles but now living here in NY). He's a graduate from Yale's painting program and is represented by Sean Kelly Gallery here in Chelsea. He is a friend and asks about you whenever we see each other. I'll be sure to tell him his painting made it into your blog.
Posted by: Michael C. | January 13th, 2012 at 5:43 pm
Wonderful...the best of both worlds for you. First you get to spend time with your family and then, go off and rejuvenate from grandparenthood with a lovely side trip. As a grandparent, i do this all the time!
Posted by: sherey | January 13th, 2012 at 6:58 pm
groovy
Posted by: james | January 13th, 2012 at 7:08 pm
Martha -- loved to see your photos from Panama, and loved the cobia! Have to tell you the female cobia come here to Hilton Head Island, SC, into our sounds to spawn in May - June. They are huge! We have a huge run of them and folks love the delicious male fish they can keep!
Posted by: Karen P. | January 13th, 2012 at 8:18 pm
Hi Martha, really nice pictures. I live next to panama in Costa Rica, it is another really nice tropical country too. You should come some day.
Isaac
Posted by: Isaac | January 13th, 2012 at 9:17 pm
Loved the pics of Panama, Martha. I was there with the Navy in 1974/75 while serving as a cook in the Canal Zone. If you have not been to Taboga Island off of the coast, some time you need to go. The shells off the beach are gorgeous and the island is small and (at least then) quaint. Beautiful small cemetery that I was impressed with. Simple, airy hotel room with communal bathroom and I went to sleep breathing in that great air. I saw so much of their natural "mola" art and it was wonderful what the San Blas people do there with it. You'd love it.
Posted by: Becky Milliner | January 13th, 2012 at 10:39 pm
Wow, those baby islands are so beautiful! You certainly had some gorgeous views on your trip.
Posted by: Naomi A. | January 13th, 2012 at 11:55 pm
I loved looking through your pictures of Panama. I'm a fourth grade teacher, living in West Virginia, where my little passport only has one stamp on it. Thank you for sharing your personal photos so people like myself, who for right now only armchair travel,can tag along with you.
Posted by: Vickie Mendenhall | January 14th, 2012 at 10:48 pm
Hi Martha,
Was Jimmy Buffett in any of the pictures. I really like his music. Did he sing for everyone? Went to his concerts in California.
Enjoyed all your travel pictures.
Where are you off to next?
Posted by: Gen Cahill | January 15th, 2012 at 12:20 am
These photos are great! Do you bring along your photographer wherever you go, or are these your personal photos?
Posted by: DeskSnacker | January 15th, 2012 at 9:58 am
Gorgeous views! It appears Mr. Pigozzi is sensitive as to how the house and grounds relate to the environment. Like the concrete slabs for paving, probably leaves a much smaller footprint than other types of paving. I looked him up on the internet and greatly respect his responsibility to the environment by investing in the research station and opening his estate to scientists. Judging by the comments of Karen P., Hilton Head SC, it seems his actions will be far reaching! It must have been quite a unique experience - probably the closest one could come to living in a natural jungle habitat of that part of the world! I'm impressed with your friends, Martha!
Posted by: edwina | January 18th, 2012 at 3:52 pm
Hey, Martha. Check out the ballet by Alberto Ginastera, "Estancia" Op. 8. Incredible music. Glad you had a great vacation!
Posted by: Rickey L. Westbrooks | January 20th, 2012 at 10:55 pm
Thank you for sharing your wonderful pictures. The ones of the guests on Kawasakis reminded me of Jurassic Park scenes.
Posted by: Linda G. | January 24th, 2012 at 1:39 pm