Kayaks make me yak

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Not really but it applies, just wait 😊 Hola to all! I'm really over this project I have been doing all day so I thought it might be good to record some thoughts and experiences. While I'm a little past the half way point of this study abroad, I feel like i have been here forever and at the same time, time has flown. And it really has. Its still a strange thing having so much time to myself, so much time to think. Just me and my dog all day. I guess i kind of miss the hustle and bustle of a normal semester, but why should i? My tica mama asked me the other day if I was sad that it was just us three living in the house ( because all her children are older and moved out) and I could honestly tell her that I wasn't sad about it, although i'm not the kind of person who likes to sit and hang out with her self all day, I think sometimes it does me good. I ran this morning and walked my dog (where she continued to pee and poop all over the pavement... oupps) But i guess what i really got on to record was my past weekend in Bocas del Toro, Panama. Its both a province and a series of islands on the Caribean coast of Panama and We loved it!! Journey down there is funny to laugh at now, at the time we were cold, wet, cranky, and hungry... Zoe and I left thursday, hearing from a friend of hers that the way to do it would be to take a 9 o clock direct bus to Sixaola (border town) and it would take only like four hours. For only 14$ we broke down in Limon, the bus drivers don't inform anyone what happened, we wait for a hour or so, and finally switch buses and are on our way again! We get to the border kinda late ( 3 ish? not sure, phone doesn't work in Panama) and wait for reasons unknown in a line that doesn't move because noone is at the kiosk? We are told you HAVE to buy a 12$ return ticket (which we couldn't use cause we weren't coming directly back but stopping in Puerto Viejo on the way home) plus the 3$ to cross. The rain continues. At this point its gettin lateish and people are informing us that the ONLY way to get to the town where you take the boat taxi is by this microbus which is gonna be 10$ each... the group we have been traveling with all day ( a mix of germans, australians, ticos, americans, and swedish) are all feeling pretty frustrated that we are getting ripped off, but what do you do? They knew we could pay, so they charge. Once we get to the dock ( bout a 45min drive) its dark and there are literally no boats to take us. Our bus driver practically begs the guys to take us, and I have to admit, who wants to drive a open-air boat thirty minutes in the dark and rain? Another 10$ each... (normally it 4$). But we got there! Albeit cold and soaked, we struggle on down to our hostel, Hostel Heike, go and find the best burgers we have ever had, and tuck in early, despite fellow hostel-mates dressed in the pirate garb running around screaming about pirate-themed parties =). The next day, despite the clouds, Zoe and I took a water taxi to a neighboring island and rented kayaks for a little adventure at sea. Adventure it was. Everything was beautiful and easy-going, till of course I started to get a little sea-sick and though we wanted to "hacer una vuelta" of the whole island, we decided to turn back because we were coming up on some big waves. We turn around and start heading back. Out of nowhere a pretty decent sized wave starts to break right on my tail and I end up riding it for most of the way down, thinking i'm good, then at the bottom I tip over... Dang-it. I'm of course carrying the bag of our stuff that we so very carefully double bagged so it wouldn't get wet ( doesn't work if it goes all the way in the water fyi) my shoes, my shorts, and my camera.. 😞 I manage to grab everything but my shorts ( which you can imagine me walking back through the island and all the little panamaian villages as well as the center of town in only a bathing suit and tank top... que verguenza) and my camera doesn't work anymore.. Sorry to all, no more pictures by yours truly. I guess i'll just go back to what I have been doing for the past five years or so of my life, stealing everyone else's pictures! Moving on, later on that day we await the arrival of our friend Lauren who is coming alone and thank God when she gets there with relative ease. Saturday, despite the rain ( yeh it kinda rained all weekend and we heard that its absolutely gorgegous when its sunny but it wasn't too bad really, i survived without a rain-coat or umbrella which i have yet to buy even though rainy season is looming ahead..) we rented bikes to ride to the beach on the island which was a bout 15km away, nbd. It took us around an hour and a half because the hills were killer, but it was a beautiful ride and a beautiful beach. On the way back, I pull over of course cause I want to watch this herd of goats crossing the street because they were so cute and funny, my friends kept going. I ride on for a little longer to find them and my bike breaks... the pedels just stopped moving? Thankfully some nice Panamanian men pull over and fix it in like ten minutes in the rain, yay! I get back on to catch up with my friends and then the chain pops off completely, dang it! The same men end up giving my friends, our bikes, and I a ride back into town in the back of the truck. That was fun and my friends high-fived me for breaking my "Diva" because they didn't have to ride all the way back. Other than those little adventures we hung around in the hostel alot on the top floor which was open and great for reading and napping and watching the rain. The towns-people were friendly and we were happy to find we could understand them just fine, even though they keep trying to talk to us in english. It was raingin again sunday so we decided to try our luck at getting back and staying a night in Puerto Viejo on the Caribbean coast of Costa Rica. The trip was fine (and alot cheaper) and we made it into Puerto Veijo with time to eat and explore the town a little bit. In contrast to the city on Isla de Colon in Bocas which is pretty much just one main road and really centralized, Puerto Viejo sprawls out along the coasts, taking advantage of the beautiful beaches. This means a lot of walking which we are used to by now. We meet an American named Brighton who tells us to come down to his bar at some point that night called "Tasty Wave" which is past our hostel and way past the town. Why not? On our way back to our hostel ( its already dark) we decide to find this place and keep walking down the road another ten or fifteen minutes in the direction of less and less civilization. We look up and notice a sign the says "Tasty Waves 100m <--" so we passed it? We walk back and maybe cause its dark we don't find anything. Then we remember him telling us that they also have this sign in front of the resturaunt that says "Sloth ^" and they love to laugh at tourists when they stand there looking for the sloth. We start to think tasty waves doesn't exist... Our hostel is Rocking J's and its more like a compound than a hostel. It has a bar, cabanas, dorm rooms, this huge area with rows of hammocks to sleep in for the night, and a level up this big area of tents. We get the last three person tent and are pretty impressed with all the mosaics covering walls, floors, columns, bathrooms, and the bar area. And its right on the beach 😊 Monday is a holiday, thats why we stayed and we came back Monday. Really great weekend! Spent too muh money i think, although in actuality who can travel to Panama on a wimb for less than 200$? I don't know, still feels like a lot though. Oh well, gearing up for Semana Santa next week and looking forward to a week of volunteering in the southern reaches of the country. Will report back soon! or when I need a break from school. Sorry about the lack of pictures but i guess thats just the way it is form now on 😊

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Photos

Panama at last!
crossing the bridge into a new country, so easy!

after the bike ride
looking rough but happy

back of the truck
riding with instead of on our bikes

Puerto Viejo
beachin'