Panamania! - Blogabond

As we headed down the Caribbean coast of Costa Rica, the close proximity of the archipelago of Bocas del Toro was far too tempting to resist. The series Prison Break had given us a brilliant preview of the beauty of Panama (!) and we were excited to be able to experience it first hand, especially as it completely contradicted our original vision of the country with its overgrown jungle and paradise beaches.

But first we had to survive the border. We headed on a coach from Puerto Viejo in Costa Rica to the border town of Sixaola and walked across the most rickety, anti-health and safety bridge, high over the river towards Guabito in Panama. Our giant bags did not make the journey any easier and there were people on the bridge following us with their hands out asking for money, which made it all the more difficult to manouvre.

At the border we were being hounded and barked at to get into an expensive minibus in order to get to the boat dock and by that time I had had enough. Grabbing hold of Sup, I barked back at the hustlers and marched across the border to find our own cheaper taxi, with success!

One taxi ride, a local bus ride and a few directions from some very helpful friendly locals later and we were on a water taxi heading to Bocas del Toro town, an exhilarating journey by speedboat with views of the Panamanian jungle and brilliant blue water, costing about a pound. As the boat pulled into the harbour we were met with sparkling light blue clear waters and an array of starfish, which was really special.

We arrived in Bocas town without any plans for accommodation and our search can only be described as a complete mission! Eventually, once the blazing sun had gone down, we settled on a hostel owned by 'crazy lady' - an insane old crone living in a mansion which proved to actually be a great place with a grand old kitchen and

veranda. Once we were settled in, we headed out to explore the town, admiring the central park, tourist shops and restaurants, as well as the impressive big black vultures, and then came home to make our own food and chill for the night. We checked out the next morning after finding better accommodation and then took another water taxi to a nearby island to explore.

Isla Caranero took our breath away. It was a stunning example of Caribbean paradise and on first glance looked like a deserted tropical island. We spent the day walking, (tentatively) exploring the jungle (until a rather large exotic spider

and suspicious dark swampland sent us back to the beach) and swimming, and in the late afternoon we were treated to an outrageous sunset and the view of pelicans on the water as we sat drinking Cokes in a waterside beach hut.

After playing around swinging in hammocks in huts by the harbour, we caught a water taxi home and went out to try some local food by the park. Delicious! One pretty serious thing did happen earlier in the day - I was picking up some shells by the water and heard an almighty crash and then looked up to see Sup's face

turn somewhat pale...2 coconuts had fallen from a very high palm tree, just centimetres in front of him. A coconut to the head from that height would not just hurt like hell, but would likely be fatal, so we thanked our guardian angels for the near miss and continued on our way.

Cockroaches and a small, unknown animal that had eaten half our bread drove us out of our hostel the next day and into a wonderful little place on the other side of the town with a fantastic view of the harbour. It was especially good for Sup as the lady who owned the hostel took a shine to him and gave him some of her lunch - fried plantains and pigs trotters! Mmmmm mmmmm!

We once again started our day with a water taxi trip, this time to Red Frog Beach, which we were promised was one of the best. As soon as we got to the beach, 2 cute little Panamanian boys came up to us and showed us a red frog they had captured in a leaf, which was great as I didnt think we would actually get to see one. We later spoke to a guy in a hostel who ruined our illusion by explaining that it was a trick the kids played on tourists to get money and the red frog was actually most likely a plastic toy...!! You have to hand it to them, they're true hustlers! After a relaxing day soaking up the sun and playing in the waves, we made our way back to Bocas town to sample more delicious local food by the park, after Sup had spent about an hour capturing photos of an awesome sunset.

The last day in Bocas was dedicated to continuing our blog, catching up on our correspondence and planning for future destinations. Sitting out on the deck in the sunshine overlooking the harbour made the job a pleasure and we managed to get lots done as well as enjoying the peace and tranquility, watching the boats sail by.

As it was our last night, we again went out for local food and explored the town for the last time before heading back over the border, but not before sticking 2 fingers up to a certain travel agent who said, and I quote, "Why on earth would you want to go to Panama? It's THE most dangerous place in the world"...."More dangerous than Afghanistan??"......"Yes." What a joke!

written by

SupandNic on February 15, 2010 from Bocas del Toro, Panama

from the travel blog: Sup and Nic's World Tour!

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