Blogs from Panama, Central America Caribbean - page 148

Hotel La Hacienda, Santiago.. Since we arrived so late last night, I had just had time enough to look around a little bit at the two enclosed courtyards of this hotel. Actually, I would call it a motel since it was sprawled out on one floor but then what IS the official differentiation of the two names? Anyway, one courtyard contained a nice pool and what appeared to be a hot tub but it was closed when we got there. It would be open again at 6 AM. The other courtyard had quite a bit of greenery growing and looked quite attractive. I had a private room last night since Nadette had let it be known yesterday she didn't want any company. She couldn't sleep on San Blas and I guess it made her grumpy. The ... read more

Picture this. 4:30 AM. I slowly wake from a deep sleep. A full moon filters in through the window and bamboo walls onto my pallet. I hear the strong rhythmic pulse of waves against our island as a north wind rattles a piece of tin somewhere off in the distance. I watch the shadow of a hammock swaying outside the room. My 6 year old Tevas are silhouetted against the moonlight on the windowsill; I choose to leave them behind and walk barefooted out to the communal toilet. The flashlight is not on the shared table but I have always loved to walk around in the dark. I open the flimsy door and close it carefully so as not to disturb anyone. The boardwalk shines in the moonlight as I pad past the other rooms. I ... read more

A week in Panama City was definately enough time. I did most of the touristy things to do there: The canal of course, The rainforest park on the edge of the city, casco antiguo - the oldest neighborhood, and so on. I watched the superbowl in the Marriot hotel´s sports bar. It was alot of fun even though the Seahawks lost. 6 other travellers and I drank heavily and got a bit rowdy. I´m liking being in Panama. There isn´t nearly as much english spoken hear as there is in Costa Rica, which is good because it forces me to learn. The Spanish is also a little different here. It´s much more slurred and the "s" is usually not pronounced. In Panama City I ended up hanging out with a Local girl named Ariza for a ... read more

04.02.06 Als ich aufstand, waren erst John, Christine und Scott wach. Christine wollte mir gleich Arbeit aufbrummen, doch zuerst machte ich ein paar Fotos des schoenen Sonnenaufgangs. Danach half ich ihr natuerlich beim Fruchtsalat machen. Zudem konnte ich heute auch endlich den Mixer fuer einen feinen Fruchtsaft gebrauchen. Zum Fruehstueck gab es dann auch noch Ruehrei mit Tomaten, Zwiebeln und Peperoni. Das Wetter war leider nicht so schoen, sodass es sich nicht lohnte, hier zu bleiben. Wir fuhren weiter. Einmal mehr verbrachte ich mehr Zeit im Bett als woanders. Als ich wieder aufstand, waren wir bereits bei den naechsten Inseln. Wir lehnten uns die Schnorchelausruestung aus und hielten Ausschau nach Fischen. Das Riff war echt genial! Sehr farbig und viele bunte Fische. Zudem haben wir einen Hai entdeckt, was sehr spannend war. Mal schauen, ob die ... read more

It´s been a while since I´ve updated. Since my first day in Puerto Viejo. It is hard for me to remember. I´ve done alot and seen alot since then. Puerto Viejo is always a good time. Rocking J´s, one of the hostels, had a good crowd there. I stayed for 3 nights. I got enough of a break in the rain to see some nice beaches and waterfalls and such. A guy from Vancouver island and I ended up getting mugged while we were walking home from a bar. A couple local guys came out of the forest with there faces masked and big shiny machettes in hand. The worst thing for me was that I had gone to the bank before the bar and was carrying 40,000 colones, which is $80 U.S. Luckily I wasn´t ... read more