Bocas del Toro
Trip Start
Aug 21, 2008
1
25
59
Trip End
Ongoing
Bocas del Toro,
Panama
Friday, November 7, 2008
- Entering Panama
- Frog spotting near red frog beach
- Off the wagon in Isla Colon
- Diving in Boca (no sharks godammit!)
- Waterfront beachhouse invitation
- Fresh Lobster and local fish ...mmm
I could have walked straight through the Panama / Costa Rica border without stopping at immigration it was that lax! Walking into Panama felt good and I felt a difference in attitude immediately...too many money grabbing tourist holes in Costa Rica for my liking
beach house view
.I overnighted in David at the Purple Hostel where the very helpful Andrea, the owner game me tips about the country. A trip to the Supermarket was the highlight where prices seem incredibly cheap compared after the inflated prices in Costa Rica, where I stocked up on some food for the 4 hour journey to Boca del Toros, a bunch of islands on the Carribean Coast (similar mix to Livingston - Indigenous, Carribean and Landinos). One bus, a $1 taxi and 2 boat rides later I arrived in Isla Bastimentos, one of the quieter islands than the more crazy Isla Colon where I could rest whilst everything shrunk to a respectable size! After a rejuvenating night's sleep I hikes to red frog beach where I paid a couple of local kids (who were shooting birds with catapaults)a quarter each to show me where the frogs resided.
I'm not a patient patient so decided to move to the main Island (relaxed Hostel Heike) and had once again stumbled across ANOTHER independance day! I watched the parade, in particular one awesome drumming band whilst eating pigs trotter after mistakingly thinking I had ordered civiche for 65 cents! Rather fatty and not to be repeated.
That night I met up with a English Brother and Sister (no..I don't mean black people) and had little willpower to refuse the infamous 'just one beer'
Waterfront beach house
. Happy hour is extremely happy at Mondu Taitu with a bottle of bneer for 50 cents! Numerous beers, rums and local 'delicacies' later I rolled into the hostel at 4am ..sigh.I was determined not to waste the next day so went snorkelling on tranquil Isla Canabera with the siblings, booked a diving trip for the next day and watched Obama kick Mcain's ass. The poorly named 'Baumfaulks' bar fortunately had not drawn the crowd I had expected ('Why did you go in there in the first place?' - I hear you cry ...'It was the only late night bar with a TV' I vehemently insist). I got chatting to Josh, the bartender who after 5 mins offered me to stay at his house with a bunch of family and friends at his waterfront beach house on Canabera. After deciding that Josh was not going to rape, rob or sacrifice me to the Gods I decided to check the place out the next day.
After taking a crap dive in the morning (Thanks for nothing Starfleet!) I headed over to my prospective home. This turned out to be a great decision and was met by a gregarious (good descriptive word, Trevor) bunch of older Americans who welcomed me into their quasi-home.
Temporary residents --
Josh - Baumfolks bartender
Brian - Josh's cousin and IT developer currently teleworking (hmm..
Coconut milk on the bus
. another possibility for me?)Taylor - Wise beyond his years 16 year old son of Brian about to start school online (How cool!)
Erin - Alaskan DUI perpetrator working in construction in Panama
Charlie - London guy who just bought a land on a nearby island
Tim - Floridian Boca hotel owner
Mature yet outlandish conversation followed and I enjoyed frshly caught lobster Pasta, hot water, internet access, free calls to the US, DVDs all for a meagre 10 bucks.
The next day I met up with Oz, a turkish divemaster-underwater photographer-chef extradornaire who Mer and I had met with her Husband, Trevor and I had bumped into on Boca. We were hoping for some shark sightings at Tigre Rock but alas no joy although the rock formations, swell and currents made the dive interesting in itself.
BTW - Shout out to Boca Diving who's diving expedition was more professional and friendly than Starfleet AND the same price...check it out...
Red Frog Beach
Oz invited me to dinner with Trevor at their $300 a month apartment and cooked me frshly caught Red Drum from Trevor's fishery and sunk a couple of glasses of good $5 bottle of Argentinian Cab...
On my way to Panama City with a day pit stop at Cerro Punta to see the elusive quetzal bird on a 23km hike..I'm 100% healthy again thankfully!
Please Note....Hollin's response to my Cr*p Dive
'There is no such thing as a cr*p dive. There is a cr*p day at work, a cr*p waiting for a subway, even a cr*p food shopping experience, but a cr*p dive, methinks not. Unless of course you lost a leg in a freak giant crab accident, in which case that would be pretty cr*p. You'd have a great story to go with the peg leg though. '
He has a point...I did see a sting ray I guess....and I still have both legs....no freak giant crab accident this time....
Comments
Ummm...seasickness would make a crap dive
As someone who has been snorkeling a couple of times vainly hoping that the initial seasickness would go away, i'd submit that being absolutely miserable wanting to constantly puke your guts out would constitute a crap dive.
Americas AIT
We do lots of work in the Panama area