Pasear.

In the evenings, we leave home, school, work. We move from one place to another. We stop by the park, the store. And in the process, we say “buenas.” How are you? How’s it going?

Panamanians have a word for that.

More than just pasar, pasear brings a social connotation to it’s sister word. When we pasear, we get face time. Judging by my limited experience, it is a verb that one can only complete if one is out of the house and socializing. My first night here, my host mother took me on a walk to the house where I’ll be taking Spanish class during training. Though the walk only takes five to ten minutes in the morning, in the evening it can take 45 round trip. We stopped, said hello, introduced me, chatted, sometimes stopping to meet other recently arrived volunteers to the training community, and then repeated on the way home. So began my education.

The art of walking around and saying hi--have you perfected it?