thefouramigosblog

I woke at 6:30 this morning hoping to get a glimpse of the toucans and I wasn’t disappointed.  There were several of them making quite a lot of noise – it was quite a harsh sound.  It was fun watching them jump from branch to branch appearing quite awkward with their huge beaks.  All at once they took flight – one, two, three and all were gone.   

 Several other birds appeared and when a group of parrots took over the branches, the toucans returned to kick them out. Papi, our host for the past several days went to Fordham University in NY but has lived in Panama for over 30 years.  His colorful personality and charm has made our stay at Boca Ridge Hotel exceptional.  He treated us like royalty from the moment we arrived and his staff has been a delight.

Some of the beautiful flowers that surround the pool make it a lovely place to sit and relax and meditate. The long boats are typical for the natives in Panama.    We spent a few hours driving up the mountain to a dam and a lake.  Stan was fooling around pretending he was going to dive over the edge.  We were actually looking for howler monkeys but no luck.

The afternoon we spent taking a dip in the pool.we read our books and took a little siesta.  Tomorrow we have a long drive heading toward Pedasi.

I woke at 7 hoping to catch a glimpse of the toucans but they had already come and gone by the time I came down for my morning coffee.  The views from the patio overlooking Bocas Del Toro were breathtaking.  The flowers that surround Bocas Ridge are very beautiful.  Large hibiscus in reds, pinks and yellows abound.  At first it appeared that it was going to be a partially rainy day but we decided to hire Papi’s friend to take us around to all the islands. Papi being such a gracious host drove us to the docks where we met Federico, the captain and Johnny, his mate.      El Destino II was the name of the panga that we were on.  Federico was a good captain and Johnny helped with the language barrier.  We left the docks and headed out through the mangroves and and over 100 islands that make up the archipelago of Bocas Del Toro.  As we rode through two small uninhabited islands surrounded by mangroves we saw coral colored starfish in the water below. Our first stop was at Cayo Coral where we were all in need of a banos.  Johnny fed the fish around the dock and we saw angel fish, bottle nose fish, and several other colorful fish. The longer we spent out on the water, the nicer the weather became until we had full sunshine. Our next stop was Bocas Town because Johnny and Federico wanted to get me a coconut to drink.  We walked around the town, went into a shop, drank some coconut milk and then we’re off to find a beach where we could swim. We found a lovely beach with soft white sand.  The water was warm and inviting – we couldn’t wait to dive into the clear Caribbean Sea.  After a quick swim we had lunch under a thatched roof hut.  Fish and patacones.  Delicious.  Of course, we didn’t wait an hour after lunch to dive back in the sea.  We assume that was an old wives tale perpetuated by our parents to keep us out of the water a little longer so they wouldn’t have to watch us.  At the end of the trip we said our goodbyes to Federico and Johnny and told them what a wonderful day we had.  Papi came to the docks and brought us back to Boca Ridge Hotel.  We had coffee and dessert – ice cream, brownies and coconut flan, as an afternoon dessert.this is a giant grasshopper that I saw at the hotel. At the end of the day, we had a light supper and played three games of pool.  The girls finally won a game!

We had a delicious breakfast at our hotel – La Casa Abuela – prepared by Morta and Rocio.  I had a veggie and cheese omelet, fruit bowl, toast, guava juice and coffee all included in the $42 price for the room.  We definitely would stay at this small but friendly hotel.    We drove to town and checked out the Catholic Church.  It was quite beautiful with its stained glass and lovely woods. In the town of Boquete we walked around and took in the splendor of this colorful little tow.  The native tribal women wear colorful dresses in yellows, blues, reds and pinks.  They are very poor and sustain there lifestyle by picking coffee beans at the many coffee plantations in the region.  Central Park in Boquete is nothin like Cental Park in NYC.  We also watched a school band perform.  And what do you think they were playing?  When the Saints Come Marching In – and no we are not in New Orleans. After spending some time walking around Boquete we began the journey to Bocas Del Toro.  At first we thought this would be a two hour drive.  Then we were told it would be more like four hours.  In actuality it was closer to 6.   We saw some magnificent waterfalls and of course we had to take a short hike into the woods to get a bit closer.  We stopped so I could take some photos of a small village church.  At times we were above the clouds and at times we were below the clouds. At one point we drove over this bridge.  It creaked and buckled under the weight.  Do you think this is safe? We saw a man on horseback.  I guess this is prevalent throughout Panama.  If you can’t afford a car you may be able to afford a horse.  We passed Lake Fortuna where there was a huge dam.  We also were stopped by the police and had to show our passports. Finally after driving many, many miles over mountains with no guard rails facing huge tractor trailers around every turn, we saw the island of Bocas Del Toro.  We arrived in Almirante with no idea where to go so I called Boca Ridge Hotel and spoke with Papi Romero.  He told us to wait at the police station and he would come and get us.  The police did not understand and they had us follow them to another place.  I called Papi again and he came and got us.  We followed him back.  Oh no.  Up those mountains again and Papi drives like a race car driver.  But when we arrived we were treated like royalty.  Boca Ridge overlooks the sea.  I will be posting some pictures tomorrow.  We had a fabulous dinner of almond encrusted tilapia and coconut rice, my new favorite.  Then we shot pool.  The boys against the girls- boys beat us 3 to zip.  I guess they have to beat us at something.   

We woke at 5am to get an early start to what we thought was going to be a six hour drive.  Leaving Pedasi we saw several caballeros heading to work, a pretty common site in this region of Panama.

The maximum speed it appears you can drive on any major highway is 80 kilometers which is roughly 49 miles an hour so we are never going very fast.  Often the speed is 40 kilometers so the going is slow.  After passing through Santiago which was about 150 miles from Pedasi the going went real slow – Between potholes and road construction we spent the next five hours going about 150 kilometers.  Then the rain began which added further delays.

We did get to see a magnificent waterfall cascading down a mountain to our left.  The rain started gradually but then it was coming down very hard.  It became difficult to see out and Stan had to turn on the heat so the windows would defogger.  The air had a strong earthy smell, not unpleasant, especially after smelling tar oil for 100 kilometers.

After passing David, we travelled north and stopped at Los Molinos to visit new friends Marsall and Marsha, ex pats from North Carolina.  The waterfall was one of two that could be seen from their clubhouse.  The properties at Los Molinos were beautiful and I fell in love with the place.  On our way out of Los Molinos to head up to Boquete I saw the coati and was able to take a few pictures of  him.  What an adorable little creature.

We arrived in Boquete at a little hotel.  Nothing fancy, very inexpensive and it reminded me of a hotel you may find in Europe.  After settling in our rooms the four amigos, very tired and very hungry walked down the street to a little restaurant, La Posada.  Our food was delicious.  I had Milanese Argentine chicken.  Linda had sea bass, Bruce had trout and Stan had chicken.  For dessert we had tres leche cake and carrot cake.  Now to bed because we have a very busy day tomorrow.