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Published: January 12th 2013
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We arranged a bus to pick us up at our hotel in San Jose to take us Panama and they promised to be there at 7:05 am. We assumed that they meant Costa Rican time and we would have time for breakfast. Well they were early and off we went. We got to the "Frontier" at 3:00 pm after driving over the mountains and down to the Caribbean Coast. The Caribbean side of Costa Rican is different than the rest of the country. The phrase "Banana Republic" was coined here. The story goes that the contractor hired to build a railway from the port city of Limon to San Jose was having trouble with its construction and in finding labourers to build it. He imported "Afro-Caribbean’s" to get the job done. To feed his new work force he planted bananas next to the rail line. It wasn't long after that he founded "United Fruit Growers" (Chiquita). The Afro-Caribbean’s weren't considered citizens until the 1950's so they remained on the coast. On the drive we saw plantation after plantation, warehouses and trucks hauling the yellow fruit off to the worlds local grocers. After an uneventful but long drive we reached the town
The "Frontier"
Looking south from Costa Rica towards Panama. Single lane bridge for the trucks. Old bridge for the pedestrians. See video for more. of Sixola on the border with Panama where we disembarked.
The border is quite an experience. Our Spanish still sucks and we were on a bus filled with Ticos heading to Panama for a holiday. Our driver spoke no English. Luckily there was an American on the bus (he didn't speak the lingo either) but the three of us kept very close. First there is the line up at the Costa Rican side where they stamp your passport to exit the country. Then there is the walk across the old dilapidated bridge which crosses the Rio Sixola. Parallel to this bridge is another bridge which takes truck traffic. One truck at a time! After walking across the bridge you get to another line up. Our friends from Australia crossed the bridge over New Years and they stood on the bridge for 4 hours waiting to get into Panama! Sounds like the Peace Arch crossing. We were lucky and it only took about 30 minutes or so. Then there was another line up to pay the $3.00 entry fee. Finally we got on board our new ride which took us to the port where we caught a water taxi to
Guabito, Panama
The border town across the Rio Sixola. "Pandemonium" $3.00 will get your passport stamped. Bocas del Toro.
In Bocas we live in a ramshackle cabina in a local neighbourhood. Very lively indeed! On our deck we can watch the humming birds and the little kids and the rest of the world go by. We are fifty feet from the ocean but we only see the little bit that shines from under the houses across the street from us. With the cabina comes the use of two bikes. The island is very flat and we can go everywhere on them. Head out from our place and follow the main road out of town and you will soon reach a fork in the road. One road heads across the island, up and over some hills and we are told a strenuous 1.5 hour ride to the other side. The other fork heads straight and follows the water. Soon it goes from a paved road to a dirt road then a road along the sand. Along the way there are some nice homes, bars and restaurants and jungle. Lots of jungle. There are some world famous surfing breaks along the way as well. We've biked this road a number of times as "strenuous" in this heat
Guabito
Looking north to Sixola, Costa Rica. doesn't work for us. Not on a heavy one speed.
We did learn that it is frowned upon to ride your one speed down the international airfield. For some reason this is considered bad form. (Must "google"). Well we got out of that jam and await our next faux paux.
Just the other day we went on a boat tour. For $20 each we left town in a water taxis and headed south through a group of islands. An archipelago to be exact. The many small islands are covered in jungle and the trees grow right out of the ocean. I guess it was high tide when we went through as the islands were covered with water. The maximum tide here is only 2 feet for some reason. (Must "google" this as well!) We were on the lookout for dolphins but did not spot any but we did get to see some sloths in the trees on these little islands. Not sure how they got there. Didn't think they could swim. I'll "google" this as well and let you know. The whole area is part of a "protected" national marine park. There are fees to enter these island
Water Taxi
Bused from Guabito to Almirante and jumped on a water taxi to the island of Bocas del Toro parks.
Karen and I had our very first snorkeling experience which was so cool. The water is so salty you have trouble sinking. We were in about 15' of water and I tried to dive down but had trouble getting to the bottom. The locals are in dug outs swimming to the bottom gathering food with no troubles. There was a fairly strong current and when I jumped in I put my head down and was amazed by the beauty below. When I looked up next I was already a long way from the boat. It was a struggle to get back to it. After that I didn't stray far from it. With such a small tide I was surprised by its current. After snorkeling for a couple of hours we were brought to an island famous for its red frogs. The park fee was $3 per person and on this island were a number of high end resorts but all and all development was restricted and they used electric golf carts. I suppose those resorts got there before they made it a park. The west coast of the island is tranquil and calm and almost like the Everglades.
View from our deck
Our place is in a residential neighborhood. Across the lane is the water, which we can't see due to the homes built over it. The west side is hit hard by big surf. The beach is gorgeous. Unfortunately we stopped and had a bite to eat at a little restaurant......a fish taco. Karen has been sick ever since and is only just starting to feel better.
/>all I have to report for now.
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Rose
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Your Blog is a terrific treat!
Thanks for all the well written info. and the photos.