We have moved from Shelter Bay Marina and transited the Panama Canal aboard Leilani! We are currently on the Pacific Ocean side waiting for paperwork and good weather windows to move on.
We will present more on the crossing in an upcoming post. For now, we share some of the extraordinary nature we "bathed in" over this past year.
It was an extraordinary year. It may
surprise you to say that, remarkably, we were happy in Shelter Bay Marina. Despite the
extended curfews and lock-downs that further isolated us from the rest of Panama
and the world, we were mostly content in our bubble with fellow sailors
and Panamanians.
We know that our contentment was enhanced primarily by one thing – We had a forest as our back yard.
Recently, Steph from the sailing vessel, Matador, thanked us for sharing the walk and remarked that our walk had some of the qualities of the therapeutic Japanese practice of shinrin yoku, in English, forest bathing. We were delighted to learn that shinrin yoku, is not exercise, or hiking, or jogging. It is simply being in nature connecting with it through your senses.
While we admit we are often a bit more directed and purpose-driven on our nature walks than might be dictated by ‘pure’ forest bathing for example, as we focus to see if the sloth has returned, or if that bird call is the chestnut mandibled toucan, we have been able to enjoy the fundamental benefits of health and happiness from the forest as shinrin yoku provides.
We miss our nature walks with our fellow sailors. We know we were incredibly fortunate to be renewed and invigorated over and over again by nature.
UPCOMING POST: Canal Transit - the routine and the drama
