Cowboy country

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Arrive in Boquete in the Panama mountains on the day they are celebrating 150 years of Chiriqui province... the town plaza is milling with people of every size and shape on horseback.... cowboy hats on men, women and little boys are de rigeur and the horses are beautiful. I sit, chat to the band and absorb the atmosphere as they parade round and round, occasionally lining up saloon bar style outside one of the local comedor restaurants to be fed.

Boquete is an odd mixture - the Blue Mountains of Australia crossed with cowboy America crossed with indigenous Panama... the Guaymi people are very much in evidence in their brightly coloured tent-like dresses, with patterning on sleeve and collar. However, there are also innumerable American retirees who lock themselves away in gated communities on the environs, wealthy coffee plantation owners, and young men who strut their stuff in the plaza armed with large fighting dogs on hefty looking chains. There has been a recent earthquake so I take advantage of there not being so many tourists.. central America sits on 5 crustal plates so it's rather active!

I stay at Hostel Baru, staffed by a gentleman with a startling resemblance to the father in Addams Family, who with usual Panamanian charm offers me his simple kitchen, avocadoes, mangoes, and just cooked food. He appears to be the black sheep of his family who has been given the job of looking after the hostel for his brother. That night he has a cockerel in a cock fight... however, the logistics don´t really add up as the cockerel costs $20, he stands to win $50 but there is a 50% chance the thing will die in one fight. Still, he is terribly excited so I wish him luck.

Walking round a corner I bump into Chelsea, one of my friends from Bastimentos island. We had vaguely made plans to meet to hike but never coordinated so this ´chance´meeting is gifted to us. We sip cocktails that night at a very classy jazz joint and made plans to set off to hike El Sendero los Quetzales in the hope of seeing the elusive Quetzal bird, actually the national bird of Guatemala.

We stay one night at the lovely swiss chalet-style hotel los quetzales and trek into La Amistad National Park. Flowers abound, as do rushing mountain streams, lush foliage and bird song. The area provides much of the fruit (even strawberries), vegetables and flowers to the rest of Panama and it´s beautiful if a little wet. Sadly, there is strong evidence of fertiliser use, so much so you can smell it on the wind.

At lunch as we walk into the cafe Chelsea spots someone - "Hello Cowboy!" she utters, and our lives change irrevocably. We become friends with Travis, the cosmic cowboy, horse whisperer, chiropractor, farrier and keeper of the alternative library... we spend 4 days in bliss at the house he has been put up in, watching him work at the very smart stud farm for racehorses, riding, reading his books on 'losing the ego' and 'achieving better health', and generally relax and enjoy.

Memories of Boquete and Guadalupe:
*Little two year old - Lauda - at the cafe where we used to eat. Quite a character!
*Centurion, 10 year old Percheron stallion at the stud who was a gentle giant - feet the size of pudding bowls!
*Dancing salsa with Chelsea, the hostel owner and Justin (US) outside the hostel on the pavement with the local police station over the road looking on.. not to mention the rum and coke!
*Trying the local coffee - very good plantations
*Getting hot, breathy kisses from the foals at the stud farm
*Playing with the 5 german shepherds
*Giving the grooms lots of gossip - they couldn't work out what I, Chelsea and Travis were up to!
*Trying strawberry fruit wine
*Trying tripe - traditional Panamanian dish
*Appreciating politeness and honesty of Panamanians
*Going to the incredible hot springs at Caldera with Justin and Chelsea - isolated, natural hot hot pools surrounded by foliage, stones, the odd goat coming to say hello, and cowboys riding past driving cattle! When you got too hot you could slip into the cold 'jacuzzi' - the local raging river.

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Photos

Riding at last!
At Harras Cerro Punta riding a quarter horse crossed with a Percheron