and before long we were stopped for speeding doing 96kph in a 40kph area. I wasn't doing 96 but I was doing 80 so I couldn't really deny the fact although I tried as one does in these situations. The long and the short was that if we paid then $20 they would let me off a ticket of $75. By this time we were talking bikes, were we had been, the hardships of living in Panama on a policeman’s wage etc and watching cars and lorries zoom past at about 100kph. Parting the best of mates and $20 lighter they agreed to have their photo taken. 
If you meet them on your travels don't forget to negotiate. Just past Santiago we turned left and headed towards Ocú as the guide book said it was a good place to buy a Panama hat and I had carelessly lost mine in Arenel. We cruised the town like a couple of teenagers looking for a date but couldn't find a hat anywhere. The only hotel looked like a bunker on the maginot line, so we declined to stay and moved on to Chitre where we found a very nice hotel just as it was starting to rain. They let us park Nancy under their canopy 
and Jill was in heaven with aircon and a whole queen sized bed to herself. 
The next day we set off into grey skies
and before long it was looking like rain.
Soaked we took shelter under cover for 45 minutes 
but the rain only slowed slightly in this time so we headed off again into the deluge. We crossed the bridge of the Americas without being able to see anything and pulled into another gas station as the rain was getting heavier and I couldn't see where we were going. 
Another 45 minutes passed with no let up so we again headed out into the traffic and found Panama Passage 
where we were going to stay. Jill's gloves leaked dye 
and everything was hung up to dry.
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