TravelStream™ news feed for member candcsmith on TravelPod's free travel blogs service http://www.travelpod.com/syndication/rss/candcsmith en-us Copyright ©2009 TravelPod.com Sun, 23 Nov 2008 21:11:01 -0500 http://www.travelpod.com http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/candcsmith/cen._amer._2007/1207317300/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/candcsmith/cen._amer._2007/1207317300/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/candcsmith/cen._amer._2007/1207317300/tpod.html Sun, 23 Nov 2008 21:11:01 -0500 Connie and Chris in Central America - 'Teatro de Titeres de Canada'

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Guelph, Ontario, Canada

Connie's Packing List

L.L.Bean Celia Daypack
L.L.Bean Stowaway Daypack

Clothes
5 short-sleeved/sleeveless tops
1 pink long-sleeved pullover
1 black long sleeved gauzy top
1 Landsend dark fleece
1 knee-length nightshirt
2 pairs long pants - black and brown
1 pair yoga pants
2 knee length skirts
2 pairs capris - black and green
1 long lightweight ski underwear (sleeping or warmth)
5 pairs underwear
2 bras - neutral and black
1 tankini bathing suit
1 sarong
2 pairs of socks
Marmot Precip rainshell
Keen sandals
Vasque trail shoes
Sunhat
Bandana
Pack it ½ cubes

Travel Necessities
Toiletry bag
Towel
Sewing kit
Money belt/security pouch
2 personal cheques
Day pack
Purse
Luggage combination locks and wire
Clothes line and stopper
Laundry detergent
Passport, ID
Photocopies of all cards/passport
Health Insurance cards
Travel alarm clock
Night light
Sunglasses
Money/ATM card/VISA card
Guide book and Spanish book
Book to read
Small packs Kleenex
Antibacterial wipes
Vaseline/Tiger Balm

Toiletries
Shampoo/conditioner
Soap &soap container
Toothpaste, toothbrush and floss
Razor
Deodorant
Cream
Sunscreen
Lip balm
Finger nail clippers
Tweezers
Eye glasses & prescriptions
Makeup
Cipro/Zithromax & prescriptions
Peptobismal/Lomotil/Neosporin
Tylenol/ Ibuprofin/
vitamins
bandaids/ear swabs
comb/hairbrush
mirror
headband, hair clips,elastics
*Pretrip - Ducolux

Other
Inflatable back pillow
Ear plugs?
Flashlight/Headlamp
Small candle
Duct tape/Athletic tape around pencil
Addresses and phone numbers
Mini calendar
Moleskin books
Pen/pencil
Door stopper
Safety pins
Clothespins
Rubber bands
Ziplock bags
Little gifts
Carabiner
Family Photos
Airline Tickets


Chris' Packing List

L.L.Bean Bigelow Daypack
L.L. Bean Stowaway Daypack

Clothes
5 T shirts/2 short-sleeved shirts
1 long-sleeved pullover
1 long-sleeved shirt
1Landsend dark fleece
1 pajama bottoms/jogging pants?
2 pairs long pants - brown and blue
2 pairs shorts - beige and green
5 pairs underwear
1 bathing suit
3 pairs of socks
Marmot Precip rainshell
Keen sandals
Vasque trail shoes
Sunhat
Bandana
Belt
Pack it ½ cubes
Travel Towel

Travel Necessities
Toiletry bag
Money belt/security pouch
2 personal cheques
Day pack
Wallet
Luggage combination locks and wire
Passport, ID
Photocopies of all cards/passport
Health Insurance card
Sunglasses
Money/ATM card/VISA card
Guide book and Spanish book
Book to read
Sudoku
Small packs Kleenex
Antibacterial wipes
Camera/Charger
Airline Tickets

Toiletries
Shampoo/conditioner
Soap/soap container
Toothpaste, toothbrush and floss
Razor/Blades/tube shaving cream
Deodorant
Cream
Sunscreen
Lip balm
Finger nail clippers
Tweezers
Eye glasses & prescriptions
Makeup
Cipro/Zithromax & prescriptions
Peptobismal/Lomotil/Neosporin
Tylenol/ Ibuprofin
vitamins
bandaids/ear swabs
comb/hairbrush
mirror
*Pretrip - Ducolux

Other
Inflatable pillow
Ear plugs
Flashlight/Headlamp
Binoculars
Small candle
Duct tape/Athletic tape around pencil
Addresses and phone numbers
Mini calendar
Moleskin books
Pen/pencil
Door stopper
Safety pins
Clothespins
Rubber bands
Ziplock bags
Little gifts
Carabiner
Family Photos
Airline Tickets
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/candcsmith/cen._amer._2007/1204034700/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/candcsmith/cen._amer._2007/1204034700/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/candcsmith/cen._amer._2007/1204034700/tpod.html Sat, 12 Apr 2008 12:49:39 -0400 Connie and Chris in Central America - 'Teatro de Titeres de Canada'

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Panama City, Panama

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]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/candcsmith/cen._amer._2007/1206711720/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/candcsmith/cen._amer._2007/1206711720/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/candcsmith/cen._amer._2007/1206711720/tpod.html Wed, 09 Apr 2008 09:44:42 -0400 Connie and Chris in Central America - 'Teatro de Titeres de Canada'

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San Jose, Costa Rica

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]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/candcsmith/cen._amer._2007/1205847480/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/candcsmith/cen._amer._2007/1205847480/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/candcsmith/cen._amer._2007/1205847480/tpod.html Wed, 09 Apr 2008 09:40:47 -0400 Connie and Chris in Central America - 'Teatro de Titeres de Canada'

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Parrita, Costa Rica

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]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/candcsmith/cen._amer._2007/1205415060/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/candcsmith/cen._amer._2007/1205415060/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/candcsmith/cen._amer._2007/1205415060/tpod.html Wed, 09 Apr 2008 09:34:44 -0400 Connie and Chris in Central America - 'Teatro de Titeres de Canada'

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Tortuguero, Costa Rica

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]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/candcsmith/cen._amer._2007/1207747200/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/candcsmith/cen._amer._2007/1207747200/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/candcsmith/cen._amer._2007/1207747200/tpod.html Wed, 09 Apr 2008 09:29:35 -0400 Connie and Chris in Central America - 'Teatro de Titeres de Canada'

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San Jose, Costa Rica

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]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/candcsmith/cen._amer._2007/1204726620/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/candcsmith/cen._amer._2007/1204726620/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/candcsmith/cen._amer._2007/1204726620/tpod.html Wed, 09 Apr 2008 09:25:36 -0400 Connie and Chris in Central America - 'Teatro de Titeres de Canada'

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Boquete, Panama

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Pedasi, Panama

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Boquete, Panama

Today is Chris and Hilary´s birthday! Happy birthday Hil. We will think of you as we
raise a Balboa and Soberana (sp) beer in a toast to the two of you and eat a wonderful lunch at the Hibiscus restaurant up in the Boquete mountains.
------------------------------------------------------------ ----------------------------------------------

Once we realized that our time in Boquete is quickly coming to a close,
we made the decision to rent a car for a week and quickly try
to see as many of the interesting little places that
surround Boquete as we could. These are not establshed tourist
attractions, so a little bit of roughing it and some ingenuity was
required to actually find these places. It has been fun, and
we feel a satisfaction in saying that we were able to see these little treasures.

To start, I should mention that we had an interesting experience on the
night that we completed the Quetzal Trail. Upon returning to our teepee
at dusk, we noticed that the ground seemed to be moving in a black mass all around the
cabin. Looking closer, we realized that we were standing in the middle
of a swarm of ants. Hoping that our cabin was not full of ants, we
opened the door, rushed inside and closed the door as fast as we could.
No ants except for the ones that had hitched a ride inside on our
pants. We quickly got rid of them. The next day, our landlord told us
that they were army ants foraging their way through the property. We
told him that we were thankful that they didn´t go into the cabin and
he suggested that we should have let them in as they are good
housekeepers! Every crumb would have been cleaned out and the
place would have been left spotless. Hmmm. These ants attract a unique
bird, the Antbird, which pursues the insects that are being
flushed out by the ants. We didn´t see any of these birds as we
were too concerned about how we were going to get through the sea of
ants at our doorstep.

After our experiences hiking through a few Panamanian
primary forests, we decided to visit a nicely manicured
property called Paradise Gardens in the area called Volcancito. Two
years ago, a retired couple from Britain purhased this property
with the idea of creating and opening up a garden to the public which
would feature their collection of 14 large birds - cockatoos, parrots
and macaws - as well as a butterfly house that they planned on
building. What they learned when they actually starting
living here, was that many Panamanians happily take young
wild animals into their homes but as the animal ages, they realize that
they don´t know how to take care of them . The animals would not
survive on their own if they were put back into the forests, so the
Saban family have changed their plans slightly to create a Rescue and
Release operation for these animals. What a noble venture. We loved
walking through their gardens, seeing parrots, an ocelot, a kinkajou,
the butterflies and then into the monkey cages. Chris was paid for his
caring ways with a capuchin monkey, by being poohed on, just as we were
leaving. Quite the souvenir.


Boquete also has a well known private garden called ´Mi Jardin es Su
Jardin´ which is located right next door to the Ruiz Coffee building
where we started our coffe tour. This garden was full of hundreds of
varieties of flowers and whimsical decorations. Note in the photos the
figurines, fishponds, statues, windmills, chapel and viewing
tower. The owners must have had fun creating this garden, but
now it also must be quite the job taking care of it. Things grow fast
here. Behind the coffee shop, close to the river, we were
lucky to find 2 of 15 small rocks with petroglyphs on them. Apparently,
the area that we found them on, was once an old Indian cemetary. As the
story we heard goes, foreigners started digging in the cemetary and
found many golden objects in the graves which they stoled and took back
to their home countries ...

On another day, we headed
on the highway with our new American neighbours, Joanne and
Murray, towards the hot city of David in order to find some
Hot Springs and a giant rock with petroglyphs in the area called
Caldera. Easily, we found signs pointing to the Hot Springs and after
driving a few kilometres on once again another rough road we got out of
the car and walked in the heat for 45 minutes on a rocky trail to a
private ranch where the hotsprings were located. The waters of
these springs have been used to the alleviate pains of hundred of
people as they ´favour circulation, produce relaxation and have
analgesic and anti-inflammatory properties´. The temperature ranges
from 39 and 42 degrees - mesothermal waters.

Upon returning
to the village of Caldera, we asked a young boy if he knew where a big
petroglyphic rock, or Piedra Pintada, was. He pointed in the direction then offered to take
us there. If he had not done this, we NEVER would have found it. It was
on private property, in a cowpatch, and literally off the beaten track.
But there, suddenly looming ahead of us, was a massive black rock,
just covered with painted petroglyphs. What a find. Studies have been done on this
rock but the meanings in the writings are still a mystery. It is
typical of petroglyphic rocks in that it is found near water and was
probably a religious area. Sacrifices may have been made on it in order
to appease the rain gods. Burial grounds may be near by.

On
Valentine´s Day, we joined our neighbours to take a 5 hour guided
walk up to a waterfall at the north end of Boquete. The guide was a
local man who spoke fairly well in English and was able to recognize
many of the medicinal wild plants that were on our trail, as well as
identify the birds that we either saw or heard as we walked.
Once
again, we walked into a primary florest with huge sequoia trees,
cedars, avocadoes, strangler figs and 3 types of trees that only
grow in this area. The only one that I can remember was called a Bambito
tree. The wood in these trees are a reddish colour and
similiar to mahagony, but with no rings. The guide also talked about both
the poisonous and non poisonous snakes that are here - green
snakes, vipers, coral snakes, and the dreaded bushmaster snake. Happily we have
not seen a live snake yet. Butterflies and wild flowers were our constant companians and at
one point ... even a family of Quetzals! These birds are known to be
elusive and one of the most beautiful birds in the world. We have been
fortunate to have seen them in both Costa Rica and here. The only
disappointment that I had, was not seeing a sloth. I continue to look
for them. They are here!

Our neighbours had some bad luck. In the middle of the night, intruders
broke into their rental house and stoled their two computers and a
little bit of cash while they were sleeping. We were happy that we did
not bring our laptop down with us this time. The portable hard drive
that we brought down has been great and the internet cafes are cheap.

Two weeks remain for us in Boquete before we start the next phase of our trip. At the end of February, we are meeting our good friends Gail and Pat from Bellingham, Washington and will travel with them for 3 weeks. At this time we have started to plan our trip, which will start in Panama City and end up in San Jose, Costa Rica, by asking fellow travellers for advice about what to see and where to stay. We have some good recommendations for a great trip.

Our last two weeks will end on the Pacific coast of Costa Rica where we will meet up with our Quebecois friends, Diane and Claude. Staying in a cute villa on the ocean with old friends will be a great way to end our
time in Central America.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/candcsmith/cen._amer._2007/1201883640/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/candcsmith/cen._amer._2007/1201883640/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/candcsmith/cen._amer._2007/1201883640/tpod.html Sun, 10 Feb 2008 12:45:15 -0500 Connie and Chris in Central America - 'Teatro de Titeres de Canada'

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Boquete, Panama

Cerro Punta is a beautiful little town on the other side of Volcan Baru
from Boquete. At about 2000 metres above sea level, it is the highest
village in Panama and has wonderful views over the countryside. The
area is important for the vegetables grown here (onions, tomatoes,
peppers, coffee), for dairy farms and for race horse breeding. Much of
the primary forest has been cleared out and the mountains are
checkerboarded with gardens.

A good friend of ours, Scott, had been to Cerro Punto and recommended that we stay
in a wonderful B&B called Cielito Sur. As we had stayed in $20 a
night hotels for the past 2 months, we decided to treat ourselves to
this wonderful place and splurge by paying $75 a night. We cannot begin
to tell you how much we enjoyed our stay. The property was beautiful
with little rivers flowing through it, lovely artwork, 9 types of hummingbirds flying
right outside out door, colourful flowers, butterflies galore, a filling
breakfast, and wonderful hosts. A group on an Audubon society outing
came onto the grounds and were oohing and aahing as they caught sight
of the colourful tanagers that they were spotting on the feeders. The B and B was
definitely a lovely place and one that we would like to recommend.

Wild orchids are found in trees everywhere in Panama. Not far from Cerro Punta,
in a little village called Guadeloupe, there is an orchid nursery that
is the 6th largest in the world - Finca Dracula. It is named after the
Dracula Orchid of which there are 124 species in the greenhouses of this nursery.
The boy who gave us a tour told us that the Dracula Orchids only wake up at night. During the day their heads droop. When he lifted up the petals of the flower we would see where the name dracula came from as we could see a little evil looking face in the centre of the flower. Some of their rare orchids sell for $5000 a piece. In another month most of the orchids will be in bloom but even what we saw was impressive - orchid flowers as small as pinheads to those that were as big as our hand.

After the orchid tour, we went for supper to an Argentinean restaurant where we were asked to be the models in a photo to be placed in a Restaurants in Panama magazine that will be published in June of this year! We certainly didn´t look great as we had hiked to Guadaloupe and were not wearing restaurant type clothes. The wind had blown our hair all over and we were not the most presentable. Oh well, we were foreigners enjoying a Panamanian restaurant. There is more to this story but it would be easier to tell it in person when we return.

We had heard about an ecological mountain trail that was 12 kilometres long, windy and rough, that joined Cerro Punto to Boquete called The Quetzal Trail, Sendero de los Quetzales. Before we left Boquete, we had decided that we would walk home to Boquete following this trail, from one side of Volcan Baru to the other, with thoughts of maybe seeing another Quetzal bird. Even though we had read about this trail, we were a little naive going into it, but it was a wonderful hike that we paid for in aches the next day.

In Cerro Punta, one of the hardest parts of the hike was to get to the trailhead. The 4 wheeldrive taxi was only able to take us up a short distance and we had to walk up an extremely steep hill for 1 hour, extremely steep! I felt that I had a big workout even before we got to the trail. We knew that from Cerra Punto to Boquete it was mainly downhill so after a little rest at the ranger station, we headed out. The areas that the trail crossed reaches altitudes that vary between 1,950 and 2,600 meters. The rough and windy trail goes through a dense cloudforest. The whole time that we walked it was raining, or dripping, or misting. Apparently the rainfall is above 3000 mm annually and it is always humid but cool. The median temperature is 14 degree C. Because of the constant wetness the trees are huge, the soil is muddy and moss covers everything. You will see this in the photos. We had to be very careful of where and how we walked. Every step we took had to be planned for the 4 hours that we were on the trail. In order to look up or around, we had to stop walking. The photos will describe the trail better than I can describe them. It was an incredible journey.

We did not see any quetzals but did see a variety of birds. What was really interesting was that they were not afraid of us. In fact, many little birds would actually fly to a branch right in front of us and look at us as if they were checking US out. I guess that they don´t see many people. There were no flying, biting bugs.

So after 4 enjoyable hours of walking in the rain, negotiating landslides that wiped out parts of the trail, fallen trees, slippery moss on stones, mud, stairs with questionable handrails and missing steps and decisions regarding fording a river we finally got to the last leg of the walk - The Lamenting (or Whining) Hill. Can you imagine ending a hike by having to walk uphill on an incredibly steep ´road´ for another hour? There was a reason for the name of that part of the trail! Just to let you know, we were very proud of the fact that we completed the trail in the time that we did. We still had to walk from the ranger station home. A sign said 3 km to Boquete but we learned later that a 1 was missing from the sign. It was supposed tor ead 13 km. Thank heavens a family in a 4 wheel drive drove us part way down the hill and then we were picked up by a truckdriver delivering vegetables. We thankfully joined the potatoes, onions, green peppers and carrots in the back of the truck for the ride into town. It goes without saying that we slept well that night!

Tips on what to wear if hiking the Quetzal Trail:
- long quck dry pants, T shirt, shirt, breathable waterproof jacket, hat, Smartwool socks, good trail shoes (ours are Vasque) or hiking boots, walking stick if you like using them

Tips on what to take in a daypack if hiking The Quetzal Trail:
- penknife, whistle, basic first aid kit, small flashlight, lighter or matches, medical insurance cards, identification,
camera, binoculars, pen, little notebook, extra pair of dry socks and a T shirt, tissues, handiwipes, CELLPHONE, raincover for the pack or garbage bags, power bars, trailmix, cheese, crackers, and lots of water.

Tips about the trail:
Leave before 10 in the morning. Give yourself time.
Wear good shoes. You do NOT want to sprain an ankle. We saw no one on our hike.
Do not believe the distance signs.
Prepare your knees for big drops on the trail.
Have a good rainjacket that will keep you dry and warm.
Expect to get wet.
Expect two splits in the trail and stay on the main trail.
Do not wander far from the main trail. After awhile the forest all looks the same.
Be prepared for the significant uphill walks at the beginning and end of the trail.
It is far easier to walk from Cerra Punto to Boquete than the other way around.
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