A lot of singles older guys are often found in an upscale bar like Venetos. One fellow I was talking to comes often from Huston. He gets emails from Continental Air when there are deals and came for $199 including 5 day hotel I think. Awhile ago he went to Bogota Colombia for $299 (So he said to me). A girl came a bit later who he know and I took to be his Girl friend or wife and a bit later a girlfriend of hers...so I thought ..came to talk with me. She was good looking and well dressed and [View Full Entry]

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I am in Veneto Hotel and Casino in the Cangrejo area. They have a tv screen 12ft high and Latin music, to pump up the gamblers I guess. I haven't spent a nickel and can't see the point. But it is a nice place with good A/C and ambiance. People have expressed interest in food,fotos and prices. The best meal of the trip, 2 big chicken breasts big best rice ever unusual veggies with cheese and salsa sauce on the chicken the waitress surpised me with two beer I protested (1.75 usually) but no... its happy hour... dos por uno... 2 [View Full Entry]

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Da die Woche in Guatemala doch sehr anstrengend war, musste ich mich in Panama erstmal erholen. Mein Magen hat ebenfalls ein wenig verrueckt gespielt. Daher kein Kanal, kein gar nichts. Aber ich kann nur sagen, Janosch hat Panama auch nie gesehen... Am dritten Tag habe ich mich dann doch vor die Tuer getraut und die Altstadt Casco Viejo besucht. Schon komische Gegend: Viel Armut aber auch saemtliche Ministerien. Viele Ruinen aus der Kolonialzeit sind hier. Habe ueberlegt, ein Haus zu kaufen. Ist bestimmt die beste Zeit. Eine Villa direkt am Strand! Es ist das rechts neben dem Gerichtshof auf [View Full Entry]

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hallo all, would you please let me know how is the weather in panama between Jan and Feb? I'm planning a 3 weeks trip to Panama in that period but I have been told that in Panama it rains till beginning of March is it true? Thanks/ciao...Chiara [View Full Entry]

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We wanted to spend some more time in Panama but we had already spent way more time in Central America and we were eager to reach Colombia. In Panama City we explored the old city which was destroyed by Captain Henry Morgan in the 1600s. Some of it had been rebuilt but there were a lot of buildings with collapsed floors either filled with garbage or quite contrastingly, plants and trees. Everywhere you looked there were stark contrasts. You would see a fine dining restaurant next to an ancient abandoned building, and next to that an equally decrepit crumbling building but [View Full Entry]

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Today we switched guest houses as we have arranged a boat trip for tomorrow in which we will be picked up from Mamallena's Hostel at 5am. We will be taking a sailboat from Panama City to the San Blas Islands where we will spend a few days and ultimately end up in Cartagenia, Columbia. It is quite an expensive trip so hopefully it will be worth it (it has been highly recommended by several travelers we have spoken to). So for the next 5 days or so we will be sailing, snorkelling and exploring the islands. I hope I don't get [View Full Entry]

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We arrived in Panama City last night around 5:30 after a very long bus ride. Fortunately, the bus itself was good, comfortable, clean and the people were friendly. (Recommendation: Tica Bus). Crossing the border from Costa Rica into Panama was a frustrating experience that took 5 hours. First we arrived at 5am - 1 hour before the offices openned. Then the computer system stopped working and the officials refused to do things by hand despite having the ability to do so. Lineups were long and the local people did not care to wait in line like the majority of us tourists [View Full Entry]

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Today we took a cab to the Panama Canal. Unfortunately our timing was off and we waited for over an hour with no signs of any boats passing through. Finally, a couple of very large boats approached so we were able to get pictures but had to leave before we actually saw one pass through the locks. We also made the mistake of cheaping out and only buying tickets for the observation deck for $5 instead of the $8 general admission which meant missing out on the 3-story museum and the theater. So if you ever take a trip to the [View Full Entry]

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Ah, my favourite palindrome of all time, and now I get to use it as a blog title - result! We arrived in Panama City yesterday, and thus came to the halfway point of our journey, in terms of: Miles - we have covered over 10,000 miles of the 20,000 (ish) from Prudhoe Bay, Alaska, to Ushuaia, Argentina. Time - we are nine and a half weeks in, with nine and a half to go. Symbolism - Panama, and the canal in particular, represents the meeting point between the northern and southern parts of the continent, as well being a bridge [View Full Entry]

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From Playa Hermosa we head to Volcan Arenal. The route plan is to take in the Cloud Forest (it is what it sounds like) but this is a gravel road and the recent heavy rains mean it is a no no. Only five people have done it in previous tours and two of them blew their rear shock absorbers. So we climb into the volcano range and the clouds close in and the humidity drops. We ride with Kevin and Julia and stop for lunch at a German owned café / gallery. It looks OK from the road but when we [View Full Entry]

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