Country Article / Postcards

Finca Dracula

Date: 07/10/2006

Dear International Living Reader,

I've hiked a mile from the tiny hamlet of Guadelupe in the Chiriqui Highlands. The village church is still visible down in the valley, but the stalls selling batidos de fresas (fresh strawberry shakes), the barking dogs, and the dark-eyed kiddies waving a shy " hola" have all disappeared.

Although borders can change, it would take an immense global upheaval for Panama to share a frontier with Transylvania…yet before me looms the entrance gate to Finca Dracula--decorated with a stylized metal bat.

Beyond the gate, the path towards the finca winds through a twilight zone of woodlands. Dripping with Spanish moss, the trees have a distinctly creepy aura.

No garlic cloves in my pocket...and no silver bullets, either. If it wasn't for the reassuringly normal crate of cabbages outside, I reckon I'd think twice about venturing any further.

In Spanish, "finca" means "farm." Roller-coasting through lush green valleys, the road from David (Chiriqui's provincial capital) that climbs up to the Highland's mountain settlements is lined with dozens of fincas. Some specialize in growing strawberries, maize, onions, and other fruit and vegetables; others are dedicated to breeding horses or rearing dairy cattle.

So what does Finca Dracula produce? Is there perhaps some kind of specialist market around here for vampire bats' blood?

Not so. Finca Dracula is an orchid farm, as 19-year-old Michael--who works at propagating new orchid hybrids--explained.

It's all to do with the Dracula Orchid--and there are 124 species of Draculas growing in the finca's greenhouses. "They only wake up in the night," says Michael, lifting up a blossom with a ghoulishly vampiric face. Different faces, different colors--but none raise their heads during daylight hours.

Started as a hobby in 1969 by owner Señor Maduro, the finca covers 22 acres. Formerly cattle pastures with a main house built in the 1920s by Swiss-German immigrants, it now produces over 2,200 types of orchids from all over the world. It's both a safe haven for endangered varieties as well as a business. And not just within Panama--over 25% of the plants get exported overseas. Some rarities can fetch more than $5,000 apiece.

If you're fascinated by orchids, the best time to go is between March and April, when the majority are in bloom. You can visit any day between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m., but I thought the $10 fee for being shown around was rather steep. Tel (507) 771-2070.

Steenie Harvey
Roving Europe Editor (on loan to Panama City), International Living