Borders, Buses, Boats and The Rain

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So the rest of our time in Granada passed without incident (apart from Liverpool destroying Chelsea) and lots of time spent planning and re-planning our trip.

We then started the descent to Panama, which unfortunately meant passing through Costa Rica. We got from Granada to Rivas (a small grubby town near the border) where we stayed with the Nicaraguan-Australian Norman Bates, in his cell like bedrooms, some of which you could rent by the hour, but it was unsurprisingly a lot cheaper than anywhere else in the town.

After a 5 am start the next morning we made it across the border in to Costa Rica, but only just, seeing as the guy at border control obviously didn´t like the cut of Ben´s jib. He decided that there was a problem with his passport which had us sitting in an office for half an hour, while people ignored us and copied Ben´s passport a hundred times!

Aparently there was no record of us entering Nicaragua, however we managed to assure him that I was not an economic migrant only there to reap massive financial rewards, and we were allowed to leave.

Once in Costa Rica the true weight and disparity of the prices began. After a ridiculously expensive breakfast of chicken, rice and beans, we began our Journey towards San Jose. Now I´m sure there are some redeeming features to Costa Rica, however we did not find any of them in our very short time there. San Jose isn´t the grimmest of Central American capital cities but it surely must be the priciest. Our hostel room cost us $30 ( VIP) supposedly, however the door handle needed a particular level of skill to open it. We arrived late so decided to go to the supermarket to get some food, however when we got there we discovered more of the same expenses causing a declaration never to criticise the good people of Sainsburys local ever again.......

We did meet some cool people in our Hostel, Juan the excellent Spaniard from Rancho Tranquilo wandered through the doors and we met an ex semi-pro footballer called deano who had some mates playing at the Gas ( names I will remember when Stutch lists potential candidates), and an American and Canadian with whom we shared beers. When said Canadian was gone our new American friend mocked Canada and the insistance of the people in draping maple leaves on everything that isn´t nailed down. The American guy explained to us that Canada was ¨ the apartment above a really cool party¨ which definately got a laugh from all.

Another early start and on to our final destination of Bocas del Toro in Panama. This journey began with a 6 hours bus ride to the border, after about 1 hr Ben felt ill, we realised we didn´t have our ticket printed to prove that we were leaving Panama and didn´t have enough money to buy a return ticket out of Panama in order to cross the border. At the border we found a contender for ´worst toilet in the world´ A toilet with no seat or lid, no lights and a smell so horrid that it cannot be sufficiently explained in words, and to cap it all off I had to pay for the privilege of not using it as it was too disgusting.......

We met a guy on the bus who was nice enough to give us a couple of return tickets out of Panama, which after a few questions, dodgy looks and secretive whispers finally got us through. Our final leg of the journey was conducted with the joyful background noise of the pissing rain, which turned out would not stop until 2 days later. An hr minibus ride, a half hour boat journey and a walk in the rain later we arrived at a hotel, suitable to crash in for a couple of days!!!

We are now still in Bocas del Toro hoping that the sun will make a much needed appearance, however after 2 months of solid 40 degree heat we can´t moan too much..... Bocas is definately a place for the sun as there isn´t much to do here that doesn´t involve the beach, but if the weather doesn´t pick up by tomorrow we must depart regardless as we have a schedule to keep and a limited time in Panama before we make our way into Colombia.......

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[Paul G]

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