Pirates, shitty waves and turquoise water

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With less than a week left until I go back home, I can´t quite grip how fast the last couple of months have passed. But it´s always like that - come halfway and the rest just rolls by. Before leaving, two and a half months sounded like a fairly long time, but I´ve been meeting so many travellers that have been gone for five, eight, twelve months. I guess it always feels too short, no matter how long you´re gone.

After that little philosophical moment I´m going to tell you about my days in Bocas del Toro, Panama. Panama meant another country for me but as a briefly visiting tourist in a highly touristy place I didn´t notice much of a difference besides that the beers were no longer Imperial or Pilsen but Panama or Balboa. No more colones, instead I payed in American dollars. Isla Colon is the island where I stayed, where houses are built on poles out in the crystal clear, turquoise water. Where you take a water taxi for a couple of dollars to an inumerable amount of beautiful, pristine, serene beaches. You can snorkel on reefs filled with life and and the most amazing colours. From bright yellow to screaming orange to forest green to (of course) deep blue.

I stayed most of my nights at a place called Mondo Taitu, a nice, layed back and at the present moment a bit disorganised hostel with a bar. Two of the owners where on vacation and left was, according to rumours (:P), the least responsible owner. All I know was that I never knew if I would wake up to 10 people having blue and red jello-shots for breakfast, walk into the bar to find an Englishman attempting to drink 100 beers in 4 nights for Queen and Country or come out of my room to be scared half to death by the hairy owner with a pirate hat on his head screaming "arrgghh!" in a very piratey way. With his dreads it was hard not to admit he looked a lot like Johnny Depp. Or should I say Cap´n Jack Sparrow...

Among other things there were snorkeling tours with more beers than snorkeling, jumping on a trampoline for 3 dollars - man, I felt ripped off! and a trip to Playa Wizard on another island, Isla Bastimentos, where we first had to swim to the shore half drowned trying to keep our bags dry over our head because the boat couldn´t get to shore in the big waves. Sadly we didn´t bring a surfboard. But then everything got wet anyway because of the huge rainfall. To get back we had to hike across the island and catch the boat from the other side. We slipped in our flipflops through the mud, got eaten by the mosquitoes and when we came to the other side the boat was nowhere to be seen. Eventually we took another boat to our island but still had to pay the guy on the other boat. Noone really new what really happened... The next day, my last day, we did bring surfboards but by then the wind had picked up, the rip was quite strong and the waves were breaking everywhere at once from every direction. Of course people will think I´m just saying that because I´m rubbish at surfing - think what you will!

Anyway, I had an amazing time in Panama for my last few weeks. And I couldn´t have asked for a better trip. Thanks to everyone who has been following me on my blog as in my travels! You´ve all made it just a bit more enjoyable... ;)

Take care and stay happy until next time!

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