Blogs from Casco Viejo, Panama City, Panamá, Panama, Central America Caribbean - page 4

No sooner had we stepped ashore on the Caribbean then we realized just how much money was in the country. There, waiting to take travelers to Panama City, were 4 Toyota SUV/ pickups that could not have been more than two years old. One had a snorkel on it. This helped explain why it cost $25 pp. Well, almost. It turned out that they were a place short, so Jorin was stuck riding in the back of a pickup (it did have a canopy). However, with the humidity and heat, Justin ended up switching with him half way through. We had great A/C in the cab. As we neared Panama City, it was very impressive. The skyline honestly looks like it belongs to Miami. Very similar feel. Especially when the weather report has a 'feels like' ... read more

We are in Panama, our last night in Central America :( But before we got here, we were running short of time so decided to get out of Nicaragua and head straight to Panama. We tried to get one of the international buses with toilet and the works but they were all full, so once again, chicken bus it was. We were very optimistic, thinking we could get to Panama in one day. That was until we got to the first border crossing - it was the most chaotic thing we have ever seen, no signs saying where to queue to get your stamp, or where to get any forms to fill out. Manic! We ended up in the wrong line but thankfully did not have to queue again as we were there for over an ... read more

That's because Panama hats are really made in Ecuador After the cold of New York, walking outside of the airport and finding warm sunshine was really welcome! We took a taxi to our hostel with the taxi driver giving us a tour in broken English and Spanish, pointing out the president's house, the main churches and the likes. It was really good and I think we instantly liked Panama. For want of a better way of describing it, we just got a good vibe from the place. Our hostel wasn't amazing but it was clean and had a fan in the room and staff that spoke no English. We felt like such idiots but I did become something of a pro at explaining myself without using words! The old town was beautiful, like what I imagine ... read more

so for the long awaited and long overdue final (for now) chapter in this adventure.... lindsie and i left nicaragua and dealt with one of our more annoying and bureaucratically challenging border crossings...but we prevailed and entered the land known as costa rica. little to say for it that you haven't already heard...it is beautiful and much more attention has been given to preserving the forests and natural resources...specifically to market them at tourists. we stopped for a night in liberia and left quickly the next morning in order to make lots of time (costa rica is much more expensive than other countries, so we didn't want to spend time in the cities, we came for the forests). this drive took us up to some of our highest elevations of the whole trip, around 10,000 feet ... read more

We stayed in a beautiful coffee town called Boquete for three days in the inland of Panama. The climate was really cool, and it was a nice change from all of the heat waves. In Boquete we found an animal rehabilitation sanctuary for domestically abused animals and those in the wild as well. It was by far the highlight of Boquete. The animals were so amazing. We took an 8 hour bus ride to Panama city a few days ago. I don't like the city at all, it's really dirty and loud and congested. Jen and I decided to go to Honduras, and we bought our flight yesterday...we're planning on traveling there, going down to Nicaragua, and maybe El Salvador, before heading back to Costa Rica. Ido is flying to Columbia and will do the rest ... read more