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Published: April 3rd 2011
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The excitement of the first night in Bocas Del Toro (situated on an island called Isla Colon) consisted of going to the cash machine to get some money, spending it on food in the supermarket, which I then cooked in the hostel kitchen and ate before chilling in the communal area while listening to the Reggae music blasting from the speakers. What an busy bee I am!!! When I went to bed, the music was still playing really loud and I wondered why I had been told this was a quiet option... So I didn't have the best night sleep, but the next morning I was up early to investigate boat trips around the islands. I only really wanted to stay 2 nights in Bocas, so a day trip was the best way to see as much as possible. Also, one of the local attractions is “Dolphin Bay” (I let you guess why) and when I asked around if it was possible to get there without a tour, the answer was a resounding no. I really wanted to see the dolphins, so that finished making my mind up. I decided to opt for a day trip that would take me to
Dolphin Bay, then to do some snorkelling, followed by a stop at Isla Zapatilla (a marine park) before returning at the end of the afternoon. Including the park entrance at Zapatilla, it was $35 but I managed to get it for $30 (but the following day, I met people who only paid $23 and wasn't so pleased with my negotiating skills anymore!)
I packed some lunch and was ready for the 9.30am departure. We had a full boat with a mixture of Germans, Spanish, Americans, Costa Ricans and 2 people I didn't even speak to. We set off to go and find some dolphins and when we got to the spot, we were joined by another dozen boats all doing the same thing. We waited for a while but the dolphins weren't in the mood. To be fair to our captain, we were one of the first boats to get there and one of the last ones to leave, so I can't fault them for trying, but we didn't see any dolphins and I was really quite disappointed, especially as the guy who'd sold me the tour had said “You have 99% chance to see dolphins”. Still, this is wildlife
Bocas Del Toro
The day I discovered how to do colour effects! and we just had to accept that it wasn't our lucky day (and I would rather not see them than see them because it's set up, like it often happens with safaris and other wildlife spotting adventures).
After our first unsuccessful stop, we went in the direction of our snorkelling spot, via a brief visit to a bar and restaurant for those of us wanting to buy snacks. When we stopped for the snorkelling, I just went for a swim around the boat and then returned to lay in the sun. Soon, it was time to break for lunch, so we returned to the earlier restaurant. The stereotypically well organised Germans and myself were very happy with our sandwiches as the cheapest things on the menu were $8 (and I reckon you probably would have had to spend closer to $10 or $12 for something that would fill you up).
Our afternoon consisted of the visit to one of the Cayos Zapatillas (there are 2), a tiny Caribbean island with white sand, turquoise water and a bit of jungle in the middle. When we got off the boat, there were already a couple of loads of tourists sunning themselves on
the beach. I knew it wouldn't take long to walk around the whole island, so I set off to explore via the jungle path. I was really surprised when I realised that only the group of Germans and myself ventured more than 100 metres from where the boat dropped us off... Everyone else just seemed happy to get off and stay there. It was their loss, because the whole island was beautiful and the other side was deserted, so I got a nice spot all to myself and some decent pictures. We spent roughly 2h30 on the island before returning to Bocas Del Toro.
It had been an OK day and probably would have been worth the money if the dolphins had shown up. Unfortunately, the group on the boat didn't gel so well (not that anybody was not nice, but I think the mixture of languages and small groups taking part didn't help) so I personally didn't have a fantastic time. Still, I was pleased I had done it because I wouldn't have managed to squeeze any more in the day if I had tried to organise it myself.
Back on Isla Colon, I went for a walk around
and watched a bit of a baseball game that was happening, before returning to the hostel, where I caught up with the Irish girl. We had a really good evening chatting away (despite the loud music!). I was leaving the next morning to go and spend a few days in the cloud forest. I knew I could have kept myself busy around Bocas easily for another day or 2 (there were things to do on Isla Colon itself and another couple of islands worth visiting), but you can't do it all, so I decided that was enough beach activities for me.
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delphine
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un bout du paradis?