Panamonte Hotel Garden Party at Boquete Jazz Festival

February 28th was the start of the Boquete Jazz and Blues Festival, as well as the arrival of Susann's sister Alison and her husband from Canada. Following our arrival back from David airport, we let our guests relax and enjoy their tropical surroundings, before heading to the Garden Party, hosted by the Panamonte Hotel.

 
 




Day one of the Festival commenced with a New Orleans style parade, (which we missed) and ended at the Panamonte Hotel with a garden party, where the mainly ex-pat community enjoyed music, cocktails and jambalaya.

Joseph Wright, a spirited Texan and retired railroad conductor, opened the Boquete hotel in 1914 with just five rooms. In those days,  “Pop Wright’s Hotel,” as it was called, hosted weary travelers to Boquete who had made the journey from David by train, ox cart or foot, as there was no road.  During the ensuing decades, the small Boquete bed and breakfast saw its share of notable guests, including Teddy Roosevelt and Charles Lindbergh, who dropped in during a flight through Central America. The great explorer Admiral Richard Byrd holed up at the Panamonte to finish writing his memoirs about his Antarctic expeditions.

In 1946, Hans and Vera Elliot purchased the small Boquete hotel and expanded it to include 10 rooms and a formal dining area. Hans had originally come to Panama from Sweden in 1924, as Captain of a Swedish merchant-shipping vessel.

Vera Elliot was a cultured and exceptional hostess. Her tasteful attention to detail and respect for perfection and protocol earned the new Panamonte Inn an esteemed reputation throughout Panama. It also provided the foundation for the tradition of hospitality carried on by the Panamonte today.

Vera hung oil paintings by Latin American artists, had the gardens planted with fruit trees and colorful flowers, and polished the cutlery until it gleamed.

 During the latter decades of the 20^th century, the Panamonte was considered the premier Boquete hotel retreat for  VIPs, and the Panamanian political and business elite, who came to Boquete to escape the humid heat of David and Panama City. The Panamonte's notable guests include; The Shah of Iran, John Wayne, Swedish actress Ingrid Bergman, Richard Nixon who  came for lunch.  

 Sean Connery is also a visitor of note, and one can only wonder if he had a dry martini, “shaken, not stirred,” in the Fireside Lounge?


Alison, John, Alan and myself enjoyed a happy hour drink in this very same lounge, and could imagine the stories that might be told, if these walls could talk.

As the afternoon came to a close, the usual winds and bajareque (light misty rain) descended upon the valley, reminding us that it was time to head back to Marni's casa.


Once outside, and on the way back to the car, we were greeted by one of Boquete's famous and frequent rainbows.

These rainbows often appear to reach across the entire valley, and try as we might, the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow has yet to be found.

It is possible that the mere sight of these stunning rainbows is gold enough!