Beaches

When we woke up today, we decided we should get back to Costa Rica, which in some ways was a gamble since I had only been out of the country for 48 hours and not 72. But we decided it was a risk we were willing to take. We started our morning by grabbing breakfast at the neighboring restaurant, Bibi's on the Beach. We were privileged to have table-side entertainment since the thatched roof was being repaired. It was really cool to watch. There were three men standing on a makeshift scaffold, while a fourth guy was in the water handing up palm fronds. One by one the palms were placed onto the roof to hopefully repair the leak.

Once breakfast was finished, we walked around Bocas Town one more time and picked up some presents for the family. Then we were back on the water taxi and on our way to mainland panama again. It is really hard to tell the beautiful Caribbean goodbye, but I had to get back to Costa de Oro since there had been rumors of dogs getting into the hatchery. I will catch everyone up on the dogs once I get back to the beach and see what is going on.

Unfortunately, when we got to the border we were reminded of how unorganized the immigration office is in Panama. It was crazy because there was only one line for the coming and going people. We waited for almost 3 hours to get our stamp saying we were leaving Panama, but once we got to the front it took just about 1 minute for them to stamp and send us on our way. Luckily, Costa Rica was much faster to let us in and we were on our way back to Costa de Oro.

Banana workers' houses

Bananas as far as the eye can see

Chiquitia banana processing plant

Truck ready to be shipped to the USA

At around 8pm, we decided we weren't going to make it back to Costa de Oro today and began looking for somewhere to stay. We reached San Jose just before 10 and found a hotel to stay at for the night. I am so tired I can barely keep my eyes open, so I better get some shut eye because we have another 5 hours of driving before we get back to the beach tomorrow.

We stopped for a minute at a chocolate plantation.

The Chocolate was yummy

Boats

This morning, our local friend, Alex, returned with a boat and moved us to a different hotel on Isla Canero. We wanted to check out as much as we could in our short time on the islands. About 20 minutes after we checked in, our tour boat arrived. My dad and I were surprised to see how full the locals fill the 20ft panga boat, but we got to met really great people during our adventure.

The first stop of the day was at dolphin  bay, where it is rumored that dolphins follow the boats. However, we were not that lucky because there were no dolphins this morning. So we were onto our next location which was lunch at a little restaurant in the middle of the Bocas. It was pretty yummy, but obviously a tourist trap because it was quite expensive and there was nothing else around.

Once everyone had grabbed lunch, we were given masks and snorkels and had the chance to snorkel for the next hour. It was amazing! There were so many brittle stars, sea cucumbers, tropical fish and tons of different corals. After we had all gotten sufficiently prune-y, we loaded back into the boat.

Sea Cucumber

Anemone

This fish kept biting my dad's camera.

Our final stop of the day was at Red Frog Beach on Isla Bastimentos. The white sand beach was beautiful and was named for the threatened red frogs found there. My dad and I spent a little time in the water before we decided to go search for the little red frogs. It was interesting because despite them being very bright red they were very difficult to see. However, once one was pointed out, it was easy to find more.

Dad and me at Red Frog beach

Red frog

Sloth in the tree.

As we all loaded back into the boat, we got lucky and saw a sloth right above the dock. It even moved for us which I think is kind of rare since they are such lazy animals.

We arrived back at our hotel just in time for happy hour. I got to try a passion fruit daiquiri while my dad had the local beer. While sitting at the bar we met a very interesting local who lived on the next island over and recommended a very local seafood place (which Alvaro had also mentioned). So with two great recommendations we figured we had to go.

We made it to the recommended restaurant, Alvin's, just as the sun was setting. We were treated like family by the local lady and her family, not to mention her food was amazing!!! After a great meal of shrimp and lobster, we wandered around the town's center where a group of locals were playing basketball while the kids were playing a competitive of tag.

The bocas are amazing!!! It is so beautiful and mellow here. Plus I think its really cool to hear Spanish spoken with a Rasta  accent.

Bars

Yesterday, when my dad and I got off the water taxi we were greeted by a local man who was eager to take us to a hotel and sell us a tour of the island.  Since we hadn't been there before and didn't know where to stay, we went ahead and followed him to the Las Brisas hotel which was located right on the water. The hotel was a great price and we got the best room in the whole place because it was connected to the dock.

After we settled in my dad and I decided to explore Isla Colon and grab some lunch at locally famous restaurant called The Reef. Looking at the menu, we realized we weren't in Costa Rica anymore; it was so cheap. My dad and I were each able to order great seafood and beer for less than a typical meal in Costa Rica. When the food arrived to the table it was amazing!!!

My dad getting ready to eat some great seafood.

Local catch off the restaurant's dock

 

Once we finished lunch, we wandered around checking out what the street venders were selling. Panama has some of the coolest local art, one of my favorites is all the mole. Mole is the handmade tapestries which often times have colorful fish and birds on them.

Just a few of the mole artwork.

Afterward we took a quick siesta at the hotel and around 8 we headed back out to town to enjoy local music and drink. I was able to find a passion fruit margarita and it was fabulous! As we were on our way back to the hotel we stopped by a meat cart and each got an incredible beef skewer for only $1. I could get used to this great food at an even better price.

Down in the Banana Republics

After a great  few days with my sisters, Kym and Katrina, I had to say good bye. As they hopped on a plane bound for Miami, my dad and I headed towards the Banana Republic or in other words the Caribbean side of Costa Rica.

Getting through San Jose is always awful, but doing so during rush hour without a plan is a nightmare. After  circling the city, getting lost I don't know how many times, asking directions on almost every corner and finally resorting to calling my mom in the states to give us directions, we made it out of the city and on our way in just over an hour.

We serpentine mountainous terrain  for the next 4 hours  only stopping for a bank and a snack a local bakery. Yes, we later found out we took one of the longest ways possible. Since  we knew we couldn't cross into Panama at night because the boarder closed at 5 and we wouldn't arrive to the border until at least 10PM, we needed to get a hotel.

We had hoped to stop driving at 8PM, but hadn't found a hotel to stay in. So we drove all the way to Limon. Limon is the one city most people will tell you to stay away from due to the large sailor and shipping industry and when we arrived, we agreed that we were better continuing closer to the boarder. We stopped just outside of Limon in a cute little bar to grab a beer and go to the bathroom. When we asked for our tab, we were pleasantly surprised it was only $1 a beer compared to the average $2.50 on the pacific side of Costa Rica.

We got back on the road and drove another 20 minutes and arrived in the little Caribbean town of Puerto Viejo. As we drove through we noticed all the street sellers and cute bar/ restaurants, but having traveled all day we could only think about a place to sleep. We ended up finding the Lotus Garden Hotel. It was nothing fancy, but the price was right and it had A/C, WiFi and hot water.

Playa Negra on the Carribean side of Costa Rica

Goat sleeping on the side of the road

We woke up around 8:30 ready to get back on the road, but first we drove around the small town of Puerto Viejo. Unlike the Pacific side of Costa Rica, everything was not yet opened and we were informed that the day didn't begin until 10AM. When we arrived at a cute little breakfast joint, we walked in and nobody even acknowledged us. We walked over to an empty table and waited another 10 minutes before walking to the bar and asking if they were open. The waiter said yes and that he would be over in a minute to take our order and went back to reading the paper. After taking a cursory look at the menu and realizing it was nothing special, we decided not to wait until the waiter was ready to serve us, but rather just get on the road.

Made a stop by the fire dept. for my cousin KPP

Driving towards the border town of Sixaola, there was nothing but banana trees, banana factories and plantation owned track homes for the workers. After an hour and a half of nothing but bananas, we finally reached the border which took forever to cross.

Bananas as far as the eye can see!

 First we had to officially leave Costa Rica which means waiting until they feel ready to stamp your passport. Then we had to carry all our luggage across a rickety bridge while carefully watching the ground for stray holes one  might fall in. After which we waited in a line of 5 people which took another 2 hours. When we finally got to the front, they were even in less of a hurry that the border guards in Costa Rica. We were ushered to a taxi , which ended up being a shuttle, and waited until all 10 seats were full. Again, time was not of the essence.

Looking towards Panama

woooo made it across!

First we needed to stop at a gas station because filling up while we were all in the border line apparently would be too practical. Then we went next door and the driver put air in the tires, but it didn’t seem to fix the problem. The next thing we know we are at a tire shop and the driver gets out and the car is jack up. With all 10 people inside the shuttle they replaces the tire! Finally we were on our way again but not without dropping someone off, picking up the drivers friend, and almost t-boning a car. But all the craziness lead to some great bonding among the shuttles patrons.

When we arrived at the water taxi place it only cost $4 a person to bring us from mainland to the Bocas. The ride was beautiful ; Caribbean blue waters and mountainous views.  Once we caught glimpse of the Islands we knew we were in for a treat!