Apr 19, 2005 - Boca Brava

Well, it worked! For the moment, as least, I have dodged the rainy season! And not only have I struck it lucky weatherwise, I've lost the crowds too. When I crossed the border from Costa Rica two days ago there were ten gringos on the same bus. One of them had a job in Panama City and had only hopped across the border into Costa Rica for a few days for visa reasons. The other eight all went to Bocas del Toro, the islands the guide books tell you are a must see, despite the fact that it is getting more heavily developed every year, and...

Apr 18, 2005 - David, Panama

Most people visiting Panama, go to the Bocas del Toro Islands. Apparently they're very beautifuil, you can surf, snorkel and dive, or just hang out. That's where pretty much all the gringos on the bus from Puerto Viejo this morning were headed. But I've also heard that the Islands are chock-full of tourists, garbage-strewn, and that it rains a lot. Not exactly up my street, especially since it's still raining and somehow I don't think travelling three hours in a bus and crossing a border will improve the situation. But I have a cunning plan...

Apr 14, 2005 - David, Panama... Soaking in the hot springs

Zach and I arrived at David last night, just before sunset. Had originally planned to stay at a well advertised hostel (posters seen all the way in Nicaragua), but found out it would be a loonng walk from the bus terminal. After flapping about at the terminal making sure there were buses to Panama City for the next night, it was dark, and we werent quite sure where to go... A friendly Irish-Canadian recommended his hotel to us, which was only across the street. Though at $18 a night, it was a bit expensive, but it was close, offered hot...

Apr 13, 2005 - Bocas >> David... Trying hard to leave the island...

Despite having planned to leave the islands, was still pretty misty as to how to go about it. Didnt know what time the boat left, not to mention not being very efficient in finding a breakfast place and getting rid of our dirty laundry. Found a healthy breakfast place with yanni bread and homemade ice cream, which was very good and delicious, not to mention much cheaper than the places we have been eating at! We finally took the 2:30pm boat to Almirante, which is closer to Bocas than Changuinola, as well as closer to the road to David, and...

Feb 1, 2005 - Boquete

We left the lush and beautiful hills of El Valle, Panama for what we had heard to be a quaint highland pueblo overflowing with flowers, excellent coffee and bountiful hiking trails. We found all of these in Boquete. After a day of (errands) in David, none of which we were able to get accomplished, we hopped on the last bus of the day towards Boquete. David had been hot and sweltering, and although only an hours ride north, The moment we pulled into Boquete, the air was crisp and fresh, with a slight mountain mist. We found our small pension...

Jan 23, 2005 - Boquete, Panama

After a very strange border crossing experience between Costa Rica and Panama -more complications than we care to mention, as well as rain!!!!- and a night in David, we made it to Boquete- a splendid little mountain town with a river and flower gardens, and coffee plantations and utter loveliness all around. Things are cheap in Panama. A hamburger and coke will set you back a buck; a whole meal less than two; ice cream a quarter . We climbed some rocks by the whitewater river and almost fell in (to the adjacent mini river that was about 3...

Jan 23, 2005 - Isla Boca Brava

Wake in Bocas del Toro... Walk - Hotel to Dock Boat - Bocas del Toro Dock to Almirante Dock Taxi - Almirante Dock to Almirante Bus Station Eat = Fried bread and coffee Bus - Almirante Bus Station to David Bus Station Taxi - David Bus Station to Boca Chica Dock Boat - Boca Chica Dock to Isla Boca Brava .... Sit down at Frank's for lunch Total Travel Time = 8 hours. Not too bad considering its sunny, very sunny, when we arrive. We climb the steep steps leading away from the dock on Isla Boca Brava and are greeted not by the best of news, but...

Jan 15, 2005 - Boquete

We spent the day in the highlands of Panama, in Boquete where there is a flower and coffee festival going on at the moment. Well, it is questionable if it is a coffee festival, because there was no coffee except for a couple of cafes selling it, but it was a flower festival with some pretty flowers to look at. We walked around for a couple of hours looking at the flowers and the many market stalls that sold all kinds of things. It was nice, but maybe we had expected a little bit more as everyone is talking about it. Better was the little...

Jan 14, 2005 - Isla Boca Brava - a little paradise

We have just come back from Isla Boca Brava, where we spent 4 1/2 days. It was a fantastic place. It is an island on the Pacific coast of Panama, just outside a large marine reserve and it is a beautiful place. They don't have it on the Lonely Planet map, but it is north of David, that we went through to get there and where we are now. We were there with some really nice people from Germany and the US. There is just one hotel on the island, run by an unorganised, but very nice German guy and his wife. The hotel is up on a hill top on the...

Jan 6, 2005 - Panama - Boquete

With the uncanny knack that we seem to be developing we have arrived at the start of a ten day festival of Flowers & Coffee...well thats the offical title for what is essentially an excuse to have lots of bands, loud music and beer stalls, and who are we to complain!!! The flowers were nice..but after Hampton Court... We head off on the Sendero de Los Quetzals but rain stops play and the elusive birds remain elusive!! More coffee then....

Aug 20, 2004 - David, Panama

Ellen: Well, we beat the malaise and got ourselves out of Costa Rica! It was just so easy to stay there, it being such a nice, pretty, easy, all-encompassing city, but we needed to move on. So we got the 7:30am direct bus to David, Panama, about 1.5 hours the other side of the border. To go all the way to Panama City would have been an 16 - 18 hour trip, so we decided to break it up. The border was the weirdest one we've been to, I think. No rhyme or reason, just a lot of walking around, wondering where to go next, and it turns out you have...

Jul 9, 2004 - Boquete, Panama

Unfortunately, we were able to stay in Boquete only for one night, although it is in our itinerary to visit this place again in the future. Boquete is a quaint mountain town in highlands of West Panama. For now, it is our stop over on the way to Bocas del Toro. Boquete is known for having the best coffee in the country and the coffee farms are located on the beautiful mountainside of this town.