There is no question but that such happenings are terribly sad, partly I suspect because they unfold so publicly but there is also a disquieting sense of disproportion about their coverage and a sensationalism and media usurpation that I don't find at all healthy. So many die every day along with those poor astronauts may they all rest in peace. --Panama where we are at present is naturally, after such a long involvement by them, quite Americanised, full of neon lights and banks and modern shops. We took a tour through its entirety and there are also a section with dilapidated wooden houses as squalid as anything we have seen on our travels but from our perspective it's a pleasant place to stay, with good restaurants and services. No more than with my sojourn in Sao Paulo I have availed of the time here to update this long over-due report, but having now cleared the email backlog along with being now able myself to send reports I hopefully will send in a more regular account as of now. This afternoon we went out to the airport to collect our bikes which were to have arrived but you will not be surprised to learn that they had not yet come.
Maniana, perhaps.
Meanwhile it's easy to relax here. The weather is hot and sticky in the day time but at night the balmy weather is very pleasant. Last night we went to the cinema to see the latest Jimmy Bond film. I always look forward to the release of a new one of this genre as I love them for their pure escapism though in the case of this particular one I feel they have stretched the plot beyond that fine point where we could imagine ourselves into a realm of incredulity that alienates you from the fantasy but what the hell it's still a great way to relax and spend an evening.

Hasta luego.

The bikes that were supposed to have arrived in Panama on the Monday eventually arrived on Wednesday night so that it was Thursday morning before we could pick them up. In fairness to the airport authorities there it was very easy to get them out in comparison to our experiences in Cairo and Sao Paulo and we were free of the customs within two hours. We decided to spend that day on some basic maintenance so spent the rest of the afternoon changing the oil, adjusting the carbs and other minor tasks. Bob and I looked at the H.T.leads on my bike in the hope of curing the chugging I was experiencing at higher speeds. After cleaning them Bob noticed that the clips needed to be prised open more in order to make the contact more secure. Since having done this I have not since experienced any problem so obviously that was the problem all along. It was with three well running bikes then that we set out from Panama city the next morning to head north through Central America.