Blogs from Isla Colon, Bocas Del Toro, Panama, Central America Caribbean - page 4

I was late. However being late on Panamanian time is like always being 20 minutes early. The downtown area, thank goodness, is not that big. So I ran to the tourist shop and was thankfully ON TIME per se. Eight of us were corralled and put on a tiny boat. We all had one thing on our mind; snorkel boarding. Yeah I had never heard of it either before yesterday but it is quite frankly it proved to be the coolest water sport, next to kite surfing of course. I have deemed it the Simulated Dolphin Experience. They actually call it Deep Boarding here but my name made more sense. So here is the general gist.... You are towed behind the boat on a water ski line however instead of a bar you hold a plastic ... read more

From David that is all it takes... It is quite simple really to get there. Hop the bus in David going to Changuinloa and the second to last stop on the 4 hour ride is Almirante. You will know you arrived when you pull into an abandoned gas station also known as the bus stop. From there jump in any of the waiting taxis and head to the docks. Grab a water taxi in the mangroves and off you go. 20 minutes more to Bocas del Toro... Be sure and arrive Almirante before 5pm or you may be stuck at the docks. Almirante and it is not exactly a town to spend the evening in. However once I arrived in Bocas I kind of wish I missed the boat. The ride to Almirante is beautiful as ... read more

Aguas Negras, or black water, is a community located right above the mangroves behind the sewage treatment plant in Bocas town. Yesterday I went with my friend SOnia to her house. I knew she lived near the airport and assumed it was the neighborhood bordering the runway. I was suprised when she said " no por aca" and headed to the gate of the water treatment plant. She ignored the do not enter sign and opened the unlocked gate. We walked between the treatment ponds and out the other side. She was really worried I'd fall on the make shift bridge that crosses the mangrove swamp to the houses on the other side. The boards are pieced together and some are barely nailed down. I watched where she walked and made it across safely and into ... read more

Bocas Reintegration -A cold shower is always a shock. It doesn't matter how hot it is- it hits me like ice being poured down my back. -Mud. My feet will be muddy until August 7th when I get back home. -The Ngabe coffee, never quite good enough but still mange to stay up all night after drinking it. -The poverty. It's worse at least in some houses on popa. More boards missing, less food, roof falling apart. -The Bocas sun- you forget how strong it is when it bounces off the water. -The waiting. For a boat, for a friend, to eat, to chat with a friend, for the ameobas to hit, always waiting. -Sticker shock- to go from Isla Popa to Bocas where everything is more from hotels to food. I can spend the same ... read more

We are now getting into the last few days in Boquete, Panama. It’s been a good visit to a small town in the mountains. It is now the rainy season in Central America and if you like rain, Boquete is the place for you. It rains nearly every day here. A lot of rain; literally 2-3 inches every day. We looked up weather statistics for Boquete and it is common to get 30 to 40 inches of rain in a month here. Every afternoon by 3 the clouds roll over the volcano and up the valley. Because the weather often knocks out internet, TV and even electricity we have spent quite a few nights sitting on our balcony and enjoying the unbelievable lightning storms. After a week of staying around the house watching the rain we ... read more