Adventures in Panama

(Originally posted July 2013)

Panamá City

Our adventure started as we exited the airplane in Panamá City. Debbie and I had flown together from Minneapolis and Olivia arrived separately from Madison. We found her waving excitedly as we exited the walkway. Together we breezed through immigration and customs and onward to Panamá City. Our female taxista told us about the great foods that we should be eating while in Panamá and explained how terrible the drivers and the traffic are. Turns out she was right on both fronts, we ate very well and saw numerous car accidents. We settled into the Magnolia Inn, a classy cross between hotel and hostel, conveniently located near Luna’s Castle, the crazy backpacker hostel of the Casco Viejo neighborhood. The arrangement provided us with hot showers, clean rooms and a quiet night sleep with the travel connections and nightlife just down the street.  

Our first morning in Panamá we got our bearings around Casco Viejo, made arrangements for the next few days (since we had done zero planning aside from booking our first few nights at Magnolia) and set out to explore the city. Our first stop was the Panamá Canal at the Miraflores locks and dams. We first watched a sailboat drop the 27 feet in one of many steps up and down between the Pacific and the Caribbean. We learned all about canal construction and navigation in the four story museum, watched the cheesiest of 3-D movies and grabbed a beer while we watched a few container ships come through. In the evening we walked the Causeway, a 3km pedestrian walkway and road into the Pacific connecting three islands to the mainland. That night we returned to La Rana Dorada for pizza, beer and the Panamá vs. Costa Rica soccer game.

Our second day in Panamá we hailed a taxi to travel up to Gamboa, a town among the National Parks around the canal. We meet Franklin, a gruff yet friendly taxi driver, and Luis Hernandez, a local nature guide, and set off into the jungle. The trail was shaded by the tall trees with thick, green leaves. The path was damp from frequent rains and nearby streams. The forest was filled with the sounds of the water dripping from the trees and flowing down the stream, the crickets and other insects chirping in the trees and the monkeys and birds howling. We ended our night at the Relic, a backpacker bar under Luna’s Castle.

In Panama City transportation was easy. We took taxis everywhere and for pretty cheap. Our drivers were all very friendly sharing stories, telling us about Panama, making recommendations and joking around. Really, all over town the Panamanians were met were so friendly and helpful. At a comedor (quick home cooked food) we met Milagros that talked us through the whole food line in Spanish and English. She gave us directions to the main shopping area a few blocks away in more detail than Google Maps with street view. She described every store that we’d pass by, including the slight declines in the road and change in pavement type. Only a small confusion about the que-efe-ce which she said quickly many times until she added “Kentucky.” Haha. Long story short, we made it.

San Blas Islands – Chichime

After a few hours of sleep, we crammed ourselves into a jeep and drove up to the autonomous reservation of the Kuna people on the Caribbean coast. The road was a little rough with the hills and curves, occasional washed out patches and multiple passport stops. We made it to the port and loaded into a boat and sped off to the outlying island of Chichime. We passed other islands on the way, some lined with the residences of Kuna families, others with a few huts for tourists and others nothing at all. Chichime was a larger island with eight huts, most together in the main compound of three huts for travelers, one for eating together and the rest for the Kuna families.  

On the island we were very busy doing nothing at all. We relaxed on the beach and under the huts.  We read books, napped and swam in the crystal clear blue water. We took frequent strolls around the island, wading in the water, walking barefoot on the beach and climbing over the trucks of fallen palm trees. Along the shore we counted dozens of starfish sunning themselves in the shallow waters and saw one small octopus in only a few inches of water. The sun was shining and the dugout canoes were bobbing in the waves.  Bliss.

We had great company in Chichime between the other travelers and the Kuna people. Anita, Marthe and Nina were three travelers from Norway, Marcel was backpacking through Central America and Ines was traveling towards South America before starting a new job. Together we drank pineapple juice and rum out of a coconut and conversed about travels and home. Several times we wondered to the hut down the beach of Eli, Benilio and  Riqui. Riqui is a two year old spider monkey like spends his days climbing around the palm trees, playing with his people and taking naps. Humberto, his son Argelico and a few of their friends that stopped by for the afternoon taught me some words and phrases in Kuna. I can name a few island animals, ask people’s names, where they are from and how they’re doing.

Bocas del Toro

The trip to Bocas involved a frigid overnight bus across the country followed by an early morning water taxi to the island (the city, the island and the set of the islands, all called “Bocas,” just to keep you guessing). Walking up and down the streets we scouted out a couple of hostels looking for a cheap, clean place. We decided on the International Hostel right as it was starting to rain. After cleaning up we walked across the street to a cute breakfast nook on a pier where we ate a solid breakfast and drank several cups of coffee while the rain passed. In the afternoon we rented kayaks and paddled around the docks of Bocas town, around the marina and along the mangroves. In the evening, we checked out a few bars around the town with fellow travelers.

The next day we set off on a day long adventure around the Bocas islands. We loaded into a boat with a bunch of strangers and took off. Between several batches of mangroves we slowed the boat to a stop and watched dolphins jump around the waves. Further out we passed the island where Survivor was filmed on. We pulled into shore at the next island for our first snorkeling adventure.  Here we experienced “Super-snorkeling” which involved holding a tow rope behind the boat and looking at the plants, coral and sea creatures under the water. We played in the water and ate lunch with the other snorkelers. Next we grabbed beers and started on a hike through the island swamps and around the beaches. We climbed around in a patch of mangroves just off the beach. In the late afternoon we stopped for another snorkeling adventure in a shallow area in the middle of the open water. This time we just regular snorkeled, swimming and diving to see the coral and fish. I found a jellyfish,…with my shoulder. It’s sting felt like a combination of a sunburn and a bee sting. I continued snorkeling until I saw another jellyfish five times bigger and decided I was ready to head back to the boat. The other travelers on the boat were really fun and friendly, a family from the US, another from Spain and a couple from Columbia. As the day went on we all kicked back and got to know each other by the end we were hugging goodbyes when we docked up again in Bocas.  

Boquete

The drive from the Caribbean coast up to the town of Boquete was gorgeous as we looped up through the mountains. We climbed out of the bus off the main street into the town plaza. We found the Nomba Hostel, one of two in the area, and made plans for a night hike up the Barú Volcano. Along with some other travelers we met leaving Bocas, we took naps and prepared for our hike. At 11:30 that night we shuttled up to the trailhead after sipping a cup of coffee, strapping on headlamps and packing some snacks and mittens.  

We set off on a rocky road at just before midnight and at a lowly 1,400 meters. Slowly we started the trek, one step at a time, onward to toward the top. Over the next few hours the temperature dropped as the altitude rose (eventually up to 3,500 meters). At times we clicked off the headlamps and walked under the light of the full moon. As we approached the summit we could tell we were above the cloud line and that our return trip back down the volcano would have some amazing views. At 4:26 in the morning, Olivia, Sarah and I reached the summit, just under five hours, nine miles and vertical 2,100 meters later. We were freezing, bundled together between some bushes for wind cover until the sun came up around six and the rest of the hiking party appeared on the path.  

The view from the top was spectacular. We could see the sun rising above the clouds from the Caribbean coast. As the sky slowly lighted we could see another set of views towards the Pacific Ocean. After a few hours at the top, we enjoyed all the views on the way down that we couldn’t see during the night hike. Nine miles back to the trailhead were rough: with our tired, hungry bodies and our knees suffering from the continuous shocks of constant decline.  

In Boquete we parted ways with Olivia as she had to return early for the logrolling tournament in Madison. Debbie and I enjoyed a quiet afternoon and evening with some of our traveling-hiking friends and a solid night sleep. The following day we explored more around Boquete, attempting to visit some gardens and found a “Sport café” for breakfast (food, coffee and pingpong, a solid combination). In the afternoon we bused from Boquete to David to Panama. Back to Magnolia Inn, La Rana Dorada and Relic bar for one more night out in Panama City before an early flight back to the US.  

Our trip to Panama was filled with new adventures from isolated islands, to busy beach towns, to the summit of a volcano. We met incredibly friendly and unique people along the way. From Milagros that chatted us up at the comedor in Panama City and Franklin, our jungle trip taxi driver to our fellow travelers along the way sharing stories, laughs and inspiring new ideas. I had two amazing travel companions, Debbie and Olivia, that were always up for trying something new, sharing and helping each other out and traveling with a sense of humor.  

Ytomalando and banemalo 🙂