Panama Adventure

01/18/09

I made it to paradise...but what a trip it was. My first night in San Jose was pretty typical of a big city. The hostel I stayed at was next to the bus station. The location was perfect, but I had nightmares about sleeping in dirty beds. In the morning, by some miracle I found my bus, about fifteen minutes before it left from a side street near the bus station. The ride to panama was beautiful, and I made some friends along the way.

http://www.bocas-del-toro.org/local-information.htm

I landed on isla colon, and there was a poop load going on...get it...colon? The island which is sometimes refered to as a backpackers paradise, consisted of hundreds of backpackers and bars on every corner. After the first night, I was not sure if this was quite the soul searching adventure I was looking for. I considered moving on to another adventure. The following day my friends from the bus, and I headed to a neighboring island, Isla Bastimentos. The island is small and it's main road consists of a mile long sidewalk with houses and small businesses on either side.

I found a hostel there, and have set up shop. Most people who watched Survivor Panama will have seen the island. Despite being featured on network television, the island is still pretty isolated. In addition to the "town," there are several beautiful beaches, magnificent hikes, and a national park on the island. The hostel I am staying at is Hostel Bastimentos. Check out photos at: http://www.hostalbastimentos.com/ .

The greatest things about my adventure are:
1. Warmth
2. Magnificent views
3. Hammocks
4. Banana shakes at the Red Rooster
5. 2 dreams about Leonardo DiCaprio ;)