The first stop in Panama was to the Caribbean islands known collectively as Bocas Del Toro or 'mouth of the bull'. These islands are situated off the cost of the Costa Rican/Panama border and are popular with backpackers due to the surfing, water sports and national park where you can see turtles, sloths, monkeys and go snorkelling.
I left Puerto Viejo in Costa Rica early to make my way to Bocas with a friend from New Zealand called E.
From Puerto Viejo to Bocas Del Toro, Panama:
- Bus from Puerto Viejo to the border - $3
- Paid $7 to exit Costa Rica at a suspicious looking window attached to shop. We were assured this was a legitimate payment.
- Walk across the bridge to the Panama immigration office.
- Pay $4 at the bridge. Later we were told this is not an official payment....(shit)
- Immigration at Panama to get entry stamp. Had to show proof of exiting Panama. Immigration were quite strict with this and some people we were with were told to go and print off their flight tickets and both their names weren't on the email confirmation. Thankfully a screenshot of my flight was accepted.
- From the Panama border we took a public bus to Changuinola. Takes about thirty minutes. Cost about $1
- Bus from Changuinola to Almirante. Takes about twenty minutes. Costs about $2.
- Water taxi from Almirante port to Isla de Colon (Bocas town). $6
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| Just after walking from Costa Rica to Panama |
We checked into Hostel Calipso, a small hostel in town with good AC and a nice kitchen. The next day we did a boat trip around the islands. It cost $22 and included a trip to sloth island (such cute, weird little animals), starfish island, snorkelling and a couple of hours in the 'Bastimentos' island which is a national park where we hung out on the beach (and got enthralled in a very serious card game of spit). Unfortunately the weather wasn't great and it rained a bit during the day, the sea was also pretty rough...we later found out this was the start of tropical storm 'Otto' which was later upgraded to a hurricane. Just my luck on an island! Later that day we were joined by everyone else
who came over from Puerto Viejo.
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| Serious card game on a Caribbean island nature reserve |
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| Spotting Starfish on 'Hollywood' island |
Later that day in the hostel, with the rain plummeting down outside, I noticed a poster asking for volunteers in a local residential home. Seeing as the weather was pretty bad, I took this opportunity to do some brief volunteering. Being used to spending a lot of time through work in residential homes and chatting with elderly people (I'm better with the biddies than the childer), I thought it would be nice to discover what care is like in the countries I've visited as well as to look into where I want to spend some linger periods of time volunteering/working. Myself and two other girls from the hostel went one afternoon. Casa Asilo is a ten minute walk from the hostel and we were welcomed straight
away. The 42 residents were just finishing lunch when we arrived and we were quickly shown in and started helping clearing up, doing dishes and chatting to the residents in our poor Spanish. We met
Jean, a nurse from America who has been working at the centre for two years. She showed us around the crumbling building, consisting of a small common area, kitchen and dining room, female and male shared bedrooms with a shower room and toilet attached. There was also a small office and
clinical cupboard for medications and supplies along with patient files. The building was evidently pretty run down. Jean showed us the one working shower they had for all the women, there were limited handrails, non-functioning toilets, the ceilings had fallen in and some rooms had flooded due to bad weather as well as the fact that the sea would flood into the garden. She told us that government funding is very limited and they only received funding for food a couple of months prior. They mainly rely on volunteers, fundraising and donations. Most of the residents in the centre have some degree of dementia so this made conversation even more challenging at times. I went back the next morning and spent some time colouring in with two sisters who had learning disabilities. The two women and their mum all lived in the centre in two beds which they shared. The grown up daughters were so loving and had a great relationship with their mum. Jean told us when they first came to the centre they didn't speak at all but now they were happily chatting away in Spanish and were keen to speak to anyone who came in. I also helped with putting together 'mothers day' packages for the women of some toiletries they had donated. I met and spoke to Thomas, also an American but who had trained as a monk and had been giving all his time (and also his money) into the centre for the last four years. He told us about the voluntary organisations 'floating doctors' which enables them to access medical professionals for the residents. I was so taken aback by the volunteers dedication and love for the residents, it was a lot more interesting and inspiring than any boat tour, hike or waterfall ever could be!
I am so glad I was able to spend some time there and would have liked to volunteer there some more but with tropical storm Otto approaching and a flight from Panama City in a couple of days, I needed to try and make my way to Panama City. I had booked a boat off the island and then an overnight bus to the city. Unfortunately at five o'clock when my boat was supposed to leave, all boats on sea had been banned by the Panamanian president due to the storm. The hostel owner who I booked the bus with, Richard was also trying to get off the island to see some family so he said we could try and get on a ferry at 6pm...sorted. However by the time the ferry arrived at 6.30pm...so did the police, followed by a lot of locals shouting in Spanish, filming on their phones and me standing in the middle with all my bags looking confused. When Richard and the rest of the locals started boarding the ferry with no police following them I swiftly followed (sorry mum)...but we did get life jackets! Sitting on the ferry in the rain with no shelter I was glad to have gotten off the island but aware that I would probably miss my bus on the other side....which I did! Thankfully Richard brought myself and a wandering Chilean couple to a nearby hostel he knew and told us where to get the bus the next morning. Early the next morning, with the help of the Chileans who also had had the same problem, I managed to change my ticket and got on the freeeeezing cold bus which took roughly 11 hours to Panama City. Luckily I was pre-warned about the glacial AC and had plenty of warm clothes and most importantly...SNACKS!
I finally got to Panama City at 6.30pm that evening and checked into the hostel in the old town. The next day I met up with my friend Charis and Sam her boyfriend who were coincidentally flying into Panama the same day and we arranged to stay in the same hostel. We spent the morning walking around the beautiful old town of Panama, walking out into the sea on a walkway looping from one side of the old town to the other. We went to 'Mercado de mariscos' (seafood market) just outside the old town famous for it's fish marinated in lime juice with onions and herbs called Ceviche. It is a traditional Peruvian dish but is found elsewhere across Central and South America. It is served with crackers and a big bowl costs around $5. and had the freshest mixed ceviche for $5 at one of the many 'cevicherias'. Later that evening we cooked together and played some cards on the rooftop of the hostel.
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| Panama old town |
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| 'Ceviche' |
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| The boats in the port at the seafood market |
Next stop: Cartagena, Colombia
Stayed: Hostel Calipso in Bocas Del Toro. $12/night with AC.
Hospedaje Casco Viejo in Panama City. $10/night with breakfast.
Food/drink: the fish market in Panama City for fresh ceviche
Bars/restaurants: Local restaurant with cheap, traditional food next door to hostel Calipso in Bocas. Fish market in Panama City.
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