After a late night, I slept right through the morning. Stopped off at the grocery store for some breakfast food and ate it on the hostel couch. The Gold Cup had just ended, but the South American tourney, Copa America, had just started in Argentina. I watched two matches before realizing I had pretty much just wasted away an entire day. But hey, I was enjoying myself, even though yes, you can watch TV any time in the States. But you can't watch soccer, which is always better with Spanish-speaking announcers.
Tried heading out with Sophie and Yvonne to the beach, but the bike rental place only had two left, so I let them head out. Instead, I caught up on all the blog posts I missed while in Corcovado and had my laundry done.
We had been invited to a barbecue that one of the hostel workers was hosting at his house. We all took at taxi boat over to his waterfront house, where I pretty much stood at the edge of the ocean and watched the sun go down. At the party we had a few cervezas, talked about how awesome it was that these guys get to live in a place as beautiful as this, and nearly starved to death. Panama time is a little behind schedule sometimes. But the meat and potatoes were fantastic, the wait- worth it. Definitely a cool thing to be invited to a local's own house.
Eventually the night drew to a close and we took a taxi boat back to the main island. Tomorrow we'll head back across the border to Puerto Viejo. Only a few more days left to go down here, seems like it's gone by so fast. I can't believe that a few days into the trip I was considering cutting it short; now I wish I could double my time here. There's definitely a lot to learn from traveling abroad, especially on your own. I'm thankful for being here, and for the experiences I've had. But there's still a couple more days ahead. Time to make the most of it.
Sunday, July 3, 2011
Saturday, July 2, 2011
Le Tour de Bocas
At 10:30 I set out with the Aussies on a $15 boat tour that would take us to four different attractions around Bocas Del Toro. We piled into a boat and went to Dolphin Bay, where sure enough, there were dolphins around. Our driver took the boat around in circles and they would jump up and play in the wake, it was pretty cool. Next, we went to a snorkeling spot at a shallow reef. I'd never been snorkeling or gone on a dive before, and after choking on saltwater a couple times, I rigged up my mask just right and swam around, looking at all the fish and different coral features.
I went looking for where the fish liked to hang out, but they were all pretty spread out. There was one spot, though, that had a few bigger parrot and angel fish:
Aside from the couple of near drownings, I liked snorkeling, and was glad to have a waterproof camera to capture everything below the surface. The next time I come to Central America, a dive cert will definitely be in hand.
After lunch on the landing of a restaurant, we got back in the boat and jetted over to Red Frog Beach, a great place for a swim and a nap. We had some fun body surfing before heading back to the boat. By now the sky to the east had gotten dark and the clockwork afternoon rain was getting close. There was one more spot for snorkeling to get to, but the water had gotten choppy and we didn't want to get stuck in the storm, so we headed in.
That night I was dying to have a burger for some reason, so I pigged out at a restaurant, ordering a fat BBQ burger, un cerveza, and a chocolate brownie à la mode. Yes, I did just shove three different languages into that sentence.
That night we went to the Aqua Lounge, a cool party bar with big holes in the deck where all the drunk kiddos like to jump in. There was a four foot gap between the deck and the surface of the water, so it was hilarious watching them try to wiggle themselves up and out of it. They had a couple swing sets too where you could fly out into the bay. We had a couple drinks and danced a little before heading back on a packed taxi boat. A great day in Panama.
I went looking for where the fish liked to hang out, but they were all pretty spread out. There was one spot, though, that had a few bigger parrot and angel fish:
Aside from the couple of near drownings, I liked snorkeling, and was glad to have a waterproof camera to capture everything below the surface. The next time I come to Central America, a dive cert will definitely be in hand.
After lunch on the landing of a restaurant, we got back in the boat and jetted over to Red Frog Beach, a great place for a swim and a nap. We had some fun body surfing before heading back to the boat. By now the sky to the east had gotten dark and the clockwork afternoon rain was getting close. There was one more spot for snorkeling to get to, but the water had gotten choppy and we didn't want to get stuck in the storm, so we headed in.
That night I was dying to have a burger for some reason, so I pigged out at a restaurant, ordering a fat BBQ burger, un cerveza, and a chocolate brownie à la mode. Yes, I did just shove three different languages into that sentence.
That night we went to the Aqua Lounge, a cool party bar with big holes in the deck where all the drunk kiddos like to jump in. There was a four foot gap between the deck and the surface of the water, so it was hilarious watching them try to wiggle themselves up and out of it. They had a couple swing sets too where you could fly out into the bay. We had a couple drinks and danced a little before heading back on a packed taxi boat. A great day in Panama.
Friday, July 1, 2011
Panama
The bus company still had my bag when I arrived in a taxi. I was relieved to have it back, but relief turned to anger when I did a quick run through of the contents. My nice sunglasses had been in their carrying bag, but now only the bag remained. Also missing was a fancy Camelback water bottle. The guy made a couple calls to see if anyone had seen it, so I demanded a free bottle of water and returned to the taxi. I soon went back to relief; it was pretty fortunate that only sunglasses were missing, and I had all my clothes and camping gear back.
The cab dropped me off at a line of people waiting for the bus to Panama. I didn't originally plan to go there, but throughout my trip I'd heard that Bocas Del Toro was amazing. I had the time, so I figured I might as well get the extra stamp in my passport.
I mostly slept on the way down, charter buses have a knack for knocking me out. When it stopped midway somewhere for lunch, I got a little worried that I'd miss another bus, so I ate my lunch as quickly as possible and waited next to the bus for the doors to open again. A few other buses pulled in, and what do you know, the three Norwegian girls from Santa Teresa hopped off. We talked for a little bit, but as soon as my bus was loading I got my ass on it.
At the border you went to a few different offices on each side to get your passport taken care of. In between was a super sketchy old bridge. Railroad tracks went down the center with nothing but the railroad ties below them, at times definitely spaced out enough for a small child to fall through. And yet they still drive buses and 18-wheelers across it.
Once across the border, I piled into a van with other tourists to go to Almirante, the town where you catch a taxi boat to Bocas. I sat next to a crazy old guy who talked my ear off in his drunken stupor. He would stop talking now and then to take a swig from his brown-bagged cane liquor. "I don't want you to think I'm an alcoholic," he said, "this is purely medicinal. When you're my age you can do these things." A fine nugget of wisdom.
The taxi boat took us on a ride through the islands of Bocas Del Toro before arriving on the main island, Colon. All the buildings along the coast are built out over the water, brightly colored and surrounded by boats. This was a place where a car was useless compared to a dinghy.
I checked into Gran Kahuna hostel where I met the people from my room, Sam from Utah and Yvonne, Sophie and Harry from Australia. Sam and I went to a thai place that had mediocre food for fancy prices, but the beer was good and we sat overlooking the ocean. I went to bed a little early to get ready for our trip the next day.
The cab dropped me off at a line of people waiting for the bus to Panama. I didn't originally plan to go there, but throughout my trip I'd heard that Bocas Del Toro was amazing. I had the time, so I figured I might as well get the extra stamp in my passport.
I mostly slept on the way down, charter buses have a knack for knocking me out. When it stopped midway somewhere for lunch, I got a little worried that I'd miss another bus, so I ate my lunch as quickly as possible and waited next to the bus for the doors to open again. A few other buses pulled in, and what do you know, the three Norwegian girls from Santa Teresa hopped off. We talked for a little bit, but as soon as my bus was loading I got my ass on it.
At the border you went to a few different offices on each side to get your passport taken care of. In between was a super sketchy old bridge. Railroad tracks went down the center with nothing but the railroad ties below them, at times definitely spaced out enough for a small child to fall through. And yet they still drive buses and 18-wheelers across it.
Once across the border, I piled into a van with other tourists to go to Almirante, the town where you catch a taxi boat to Bocas. I sat next to a crazy old guy who talked my ear off in his drunken stupor. He would stop talking now and then to take a swig from his brown-bagged cane liquor. "I don't want you to think I'm an alcoholic," he said, "this is purely medicinal. When you're my age you can do these things." A fine nugget of wisdom.
The taxi boat took us on a ride through the islands of Bocas Del Toro before arriving on the main island, Colon. All the buildings along the coast are built out over the water, brightly colored and surrounded by boats. This was a place where a car was useless compared to a dinghy.
I checked into Gran Kahuna hostel where I met the people from my room, Sam from Utah and Yvonne, Sophie and Harry from Australia. Sam and I went to a thai place that had mediocre food for fancy prices, but the beer was good and we sat overlooking the ocean. I went to bed a little early to get ready for our trip the next day.
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