Category Archives: Panama

We did it! Now what? . . .

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One year, one week later and 1,500 miles later, we entered the Bocas del Drago channel at 1am on Monday, May 21st, and officially returned to Panama!  We did it!

We’ve spent the last couple of weeks hanging out with old friends, visiting our old haunts and generally getting back in the swing of things.  Believe it or not, we’ve been busy!

In these few short weeks, we visited three of the islands and the mainland, hosted guests from the States, said goodbye to D’s brother, Will, (who returned home after 2 1/2 months aboard) and got to work diagnosing and ordering parts to get Mother Jones back in shipshape.

Being “back” has been surreal, fantastic and curious all at once.

The main curiosity upon our return (other than us, of course) has been exploring answers to the question: “now what?”.

You see, our convenient four-part Panama plan was:

  1. Sell everything – check
  2. Buy a boat – check
  3. Sail to Panama – check
  4. Figure it out

Did you notice how there’s no “check” by item number 4???  (We’ve definitely noticed 🙂

Yay!  Off, to the drawing board.  The blank canvas of life.  What will we create?

Let’s start with the obvious: We need to refill the cruising kitty.

Given we’re not internet tycoons or trust-fund kids (not that there’s anything wrong with that) we always knew we’d have to figure this out one of three ways: generate income remotely, generate income locally or return to the States for a stretch.

We’re working on the remote income generation and thinking seriously about some possible local income sources, but in the mean time it’s easiest for us to return to the States to work for a stretch.

Bad news for fans of Laurie and Damon (together that is):  Because we have the dog and the boat to look after, we figure only one of us will return at a time.   This is kind of a bummer, but a price we’re willing to pay for full-time freedom and togetherness the other 10 months of the year.

Of course, we could always all fly back (K included or find him a local sitter) while we put the boat in a marina.  But, this is a less-appealing option for us for several reasons (expense, boats like to be used, and K is, well, K).

On this front, Damon has lined up a short-term contract with his old employer in Austin and will head back to the States later this summer for a couple of months.

I’m working on a couple of things remotely here but do need to kick it up a notch.  So, if you have an idea for me, do let me know . . .

So, that gets us through Fall, then what???

Well, we’re weighing some options, both short and long(er)-term. Here’s what’s on our minds:

  1. We take the long way back to Austin next cruising season (Dec-June), sailing Honduras, Guatemala, Belize and Mexico on our way back to the States (where we’d sell Mother Jones)
  2. We settle into life here in Bocas and open a super-fun local business (we have something specific in mind . . .)
  3. And, the fantasy plan de jour is replacing Mother Jones with a camper van and touring Europe (Damon’s never been!)

You might notice that (at least one of) the plans we’re exploring don’t include building long-term wealth, stocking our IRAs and generally looking more than a couple of years down the road.  We noticed that, too.

We’re clear that our ability to live this lifestyle is due to many reasons, first and foremost, due to building a solid financial foundation early in life (which we’ve since significantly chipped away at).   And, we’re clear we’ll likely need to return to building up a solid foundation once again – not just a cruising kitty.  We’ll get there.  Maybe sooner, maybe later.  Definitely after December 21, 2012 😉

For now, this is where we’re at: exploring, dreaming and pouring over budgets.

Just thought we’d clue you into what we’re thinking.

Love,

L, D and Mr. K

ps. re: big life plans, some folks have asked, so we thought we’d let you know that . . . no, we still don’t know whether we’ll choose to have any little Jones’ enter our life.   And, no, we don’t mind you asking.  We’re flattered 🙂

South of the Tropic of Cancer

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This week in Georgetown has been busy!

We’ve been doing the usual re-provisioning: fuel, water, food, laundry.

We’ve been excited to let everyone know about Amble Resorts and the possibility that I could be their 2012 Island Intern back in Panama (go vote!).

And, most importantly, we’ve been studying up for our big next legs south to Panama.  After tons of consideration and over a year’s worth of hemming and hawing, here’s what we have decided (and are open to feedback on):

How’d we get here?  In short, we wanted to take the 1) safest, and then, 2) most comfortable route.  Without going into too much detail (we’re happy to, just email us) it’s a big combination of studying the weather, charts, pet-entry req’s, clearing in fees and then, prioritizing what we want to see along the way.  Being willing to go “north to get south” (go out of your way to get a better sail) and waiting on the weather will serve you well on making big passages like this, or so we’ve been told.  And, that’s what we intend to do.

First thing’s first, as you can see we’re headed West, with the Trade Winds instead of beating East across the north coast of the Dominican Republic and then beating again across the north coast of Puerto Rico.  If we were to go that way, once we got to the USVI, we’d be set to follow little coastal jumps all the way down the chain.  But, each of the 20-odd countries “down the chain” between “here” (The Bahamas) and “there” (Panama) has different pet entry regulations and entry fees for the boat.  Turks and Caicos alone is $200 to enter (for a couple of days, no thanks) and some of the islands I really wanted to see (Dominica) don’t allow pets on shore.  So, we’d skip these anyway therefore the advantage of short day sails between islands was kind of muted.   Of all the things I’ll miss out on (this time) by not taking the Eastern route, I think I’ll miss the opportunity to see Saba the most: when told roads and an airport couldn’t be built, they did it themselves – my kind of folks!

Also, yes, Cuba (the forbidden zone) is on the way and the anchorage to check in at is just past Guantanamo Bay.  If we stop we’ll likely just anchor off the coast to rest but the coast is so steep that we’ll be really close to land.  So . . . we’ll keep you posted.

And, finally, yes, it’s a lot of open water after Jamaica, but we prefer the open water with the Trades over beating against the wind.  And, we discovered there are a ton of little atolls along the way, which could break up the 3-day trip to San Andres (off the coast of Nicaragua), which is supposed to be great!

From there, it’s a “short” jump from San Andres to Bocas – from 36 hours to 72 depending on the weather.

We estimate the total sailing time on these legs to be about 1.5 weeks, which will be broken up with time ashore and time patiently waiting on the weather.  So, just like that, we’re well on track to be in Panama by June, just as planned.  Famous.last.words. 😉

I’m not sure what internet options will be available between here and Jamaica so stayed tuned on Spot and we’ll catch up on the flip side.

xoxox,

Laurie

ps.  If you haven’t yet taken a second to vote for me for the Amble Resorts 2012 Island Intern contest, what in the world are you waiting for??? 😉  Click here.


Island Intern? Vote & see . . .

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“Be careful what you pretend to be because you are what you pretend to be.” -Kurt Vonnegut

Hey y’all,

I have a confession to make: I have been applying for a job. I know, I know, it’s a real buzz-kill to the care-free, jobless, shoeless lifestyle fantasy you think I live. But, before you go being all “aww, geez, that Laurie is such a slave to The Man,” keep reading.

Or, if you’re not much of a “reader” but more of a blog “skimmer”, click here to Vote for Me in the 2012 Amble Resorts Island Intern contest. Thanks a ton!!!

OK, for all you “readers” out there, here’s the scoop:

In February I was dorking around on facebook and The Professional Hobo (of course I follow her) posted this interesting link to a resort company advertising an “Island Intern” position/contest. Of course, I clicked. More out of curiosity than anything. And then I got to thinking . . .

The “Island Intern” would travel to Panama (which we love and where we’re already headed) for a month this summer (when we’ll be arriving) get set up Amble Resort’s private island, travel around and share their experiences online through sites like Facebook and the companies’ own blog, The Ambler.

While I’m definitely a bit older that your average intern*, I thought, “I have been wondering what I’d do next, you know, since leaving work full time in November of 2010 and embarking on a transformational sabbatical to Panama”. You know, that whole thing.

The “what next” thoughts have spurred me into trying things on and seeing how they fit. At first, the idea of becoming an Island Intern just seemed like a “sounds like fun, why not?” kinda thing. But, the more I dug into it, the more I started to get excited about the real possibility of combining what I love to do – and am already doing – with my professional skills in a whole new way: as a Travel Host. After all, I already love to travel, meet new folks, go on exploring adventures and tell all y’all about it on the interwebs. Plus, I think my past experience as a political organizer (fearless relationship building, grassroots marketing and online outreach) would be a huge asset in this arena.

But, what’s a Travel Host, you say? And, what’s this Island Intern deal got to do with it? Well, here-ya-go:

1) Travel Host is something I’ve totally made up. For me. I suppose there are tons of folks out there with this “official” title and it can mean many things depending on who you talk to. But, for me, it expresses how I’d love to be able to greet folks coming off a plane, from their (busy?) lives back “home” and give them an amazing experience on their visit – you know like when you visit a friend in their hometown and get the “inside scoop” on all the best stuff.

1-a) How’d I do that? Well, you gotta get in there and get to know a place. Take for example, Austin. Sure, I grew up there, but I also make it a point to get off the beaten path, visit small businesses and ask – like really ask – how someone’s day is. It’s part of the reason I can never just run up to the MiniMart in be back in 5 minutes (because of Abdel) and and why I love going to see Denny at the amazing Arturo’s Underground Cafe (because we’re friends, and his salads are killer!). Having grown up in Austin, I’ve shown a lot of new folks around and I love it. I love thinking of what flavor of Austin they’d really savor and building an itinerary just for them. And, I love seeing them fall in love with the City, I love, too.***

2) So, what’s this Island Intern deal all about and how will it help me become a Travel Host? Well, the Island Intern position is a starting point; they know it and I know it. In fact, they’ve been very forthcoming about how some of their finalists last year who were selected as their 2011 Island Interns have, in fact, parlayed the experience into another, professional experience in the field. And, for the record, I know that changing careers is rarely easy and those with who legitimately sport the Travel Host title have worked their tushies off to make a living – away from friends and family.

Also, I’d like to take a moment to talk about Amble Resorts, “the company behind the contest” (I made that up ;). From my research, Amble Resorts and their founder Ben Loomis are different. And, I like different. I like that the island is being developed in an environmentally responsible way: with passive cooling systems, 95% of the island is NOT being developed, and that an emphasis is being placed on immersive experiences.

You can click here to read all about Amble Resorts straight from the source.  

So, this all leads us to something really important which I mentioned briefly above (to all of those busy blog “skimmers”): the selection process for becoming an Island Intern is, in part, a CONTEST where YOU can VOTE for ME (sorry for yelling but I’m a little excited). I’ve been posting shameless-self-promotions on Facebook and even joined Twitter (swoon) prompting y’all to vote and really wanted to take my time here on the blog to give more of an explanation about Amble Resorts (“the company behind the contest”), the Island Intern contest and why I’m interested. But, all that aside, if you haven’t voted yet, DO IT NOW (please and thank you :). Click here to vote.

And, of course, if you feel so inclined to post/share/invite your friends to vote, too, I’d love that!

Finally, you might be wondering: what about Damon, the dog, the boat? All important questions which we have made up answers for: since we’re headed to Panama anyway, and are so familiar with Bocas, we figure we could leave the boat and Kemah in Bocas with Will (D’s brother who’s joined us for a while) and D could come with me – or not. We’ll see.

So, that’s that. Like I said, I’m trying things on, this feels like an awesome fit for the both of us (me and my new BFF Amble Resorts) and I’d love your help. So many of y’all have been so supportive already and I appreciate it more than you know.

Thanks so much for your help and you can bet your behind I’ll keep you posted with the latest news from this aspiring Travel Host!

Xoxox,

Laurie

*Over the years, I’ve worked with a ton of interns and volunteers: young and not-so-young but always life-saving! The best interns I’ve worked with always share similar traits: they’re hungry to learn (to do it “your way”**), eager to sink their teeth into a meaningful project for which they can be responsible and posses the humility and realism to do the grunt work, which is part of every job.

**When I say “your way”, I don’t mean “my way”, I mean the “company way”. Being able to adapt to the style of the team will always get your far (or cause you to find a more natural fit).

***Shameless-yet-super-cool plug: I was absolutely thrilled to have my feature on Austin included in National Geographic Intelligent Traveler’s I Heart My City blog.  Check it out!

Transiting the Panama Canal

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Transiting the Panama Canal was truly an amazing experience.  How appropriate, that the 2nd leg of our journey, we got to see Amazing follow us.

D and I through the Miraflores Locks
Damon and I really wanted to transit the Panama Canal.  And, there are several ways to do this involving lots of money.  We did not want to do it that way.  So, off we went to become line-handlers.  Line-handlers, as you might surmise, handle lines (aka ropes to you land-lubbers) that are attached to boats, which help a boat safely transit the Canal.    
Why is this needed and how does it work?  Well, you can imagine that transiting the Canal is kinda a big deal.  It is.  You want it to go right, ie, you want the boat to go through the Canal without hitting the sides or other boats that are in the locks with you.  Add 267 MILLION gallons of swishing, swirling water for EACH LOCK and you can see why you might want some safety measures in place.  Here come the lines.  
If you imagine a boat as a sheet that’s blowing in the wind and you want it under control, you’d want a rope (line) on each corner, attached to something which keeps it taught.  That’s basically the idea for getting ships through the Canal: the lines help guide the boats through the middle of the Canal.  Small boats like sail boats have people attached to each end of those lines.  Big boats like tankers have machines (lovingly called mules) attached to those lines.  
Mules

Mule

Well, through a series of posting signs at a couple of yacht clubs, pouring over internet postings and the good ‘ole fashioned hanging at the local sailor bar, we found a boat and they invited us to crew with them.
Santorini is a ’48 foot Ketch and a beautiful boat – in fact, it was a show model and even had a washing machine and china cupboard on board!  Captain Tom and First Mate/Galley Queen Dawn were wonderful hosts as well as their crew, Canaan – from Georgetown!
Capt. Tom and Dawn with the San Pedro locks in the back

Canaan at the bow at San Pedro Locks

The first night at anchor on the Pacific side, we got to know each other a bit and talked about what to expect.  We hoped to tie up to a tug boat which means you basically glide through with them in the locks so it’s super-easy.  Then, the next morning, we set off to transit the Canal!
When you transit, you are boarded by an Advisor who works for the Panama Canal Transit Authority and they guide you through the process.  Pfew!  Our Advisor was really great: calm, nice and knowledgeable.
Here we are underway passing under the Bridge of the Americas!
The mast of the Santorini and the Bridge of the Americas

Approaching the Miraflores Locks, first set of locks on the Pacific side, I was once again blown away by the sheer magnitude of the Canal, the volume of traffic and containers that pass through daily and everything that is required to make THAT happen. 

Check out the size of these cranes, which move the containers of the tankers!  

 
The tugs, which push the tankers around!  And, the City in the background.
WOW!
Headed into the Miraflores Locks it’s surreal to look up at the Visitor’s Center and all the tourists watching you go through.  To think we were “them” just a few days earlier!
Miraflores Visitor’s Center – we were one of those tine on-lookers just last week!
Passing through the locks is a cool experience with the water raising or lowering your boat along with the others.  Rising tides do life all boats!  
You do have to stay on your toes a bit, though when the locks open as there is likely to be a shift in the boat because of the shifting water – remember 237 MILLION gallons are at play!
Once through the first set of locks, we entered Gatun Lake and passed under the Culebra Cut – a 7 mile cut through the mountains – impressive!
The Culebra Cut

Because sailboats generally are much slower than tankers or cruise ships, it usually takes 2 days to transit the Canal.  This means a night on the Lake moored on the biggest mooring ball any of us have ever seen.  Look at the size of that sucker!

A mooring ball so big you can dance on it!
In the morning, it was time again to pass through the Locks and this time we’d finally be in the Caribbean.  We lucked out being in front of a HUGE tanker named “Amazing” – quite appropriate, don’tcha think?
Notice the mules pulling Amazing and notice how little room she has between her and the locks.
All in all, it was a truly Amazing experience – yes, I did that on purpose.  Phrases like “the 8th wonder of the world”, “they don’t build things like the used to”, etc do tend to fall out of your mouth during journeys like this and they did.
If you have further questions about this trip or the Canal, just ask!

The end

Panama City, Panama

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Downtown seen from Casco Viejo
Bridge of the Americas
Cerro Ancon (the big hill in the middle of town)

 

Revolution Tower – the floors spin!
Nickle Tour: Panama City is a bustling capital and a world city.  It’s a diverse city of contrasts complete with Chinese bankers, Afro-Antillean immigrants come Panamanians, sky-scapers, slums and of course, the Canal.  However, we found the City (and surrounding region) to have a relatively un-developed infrastructure for tourism, which can be both good and bad.
Travel Tip: If you’re on a long journey and need “it” or simply missing the States, visit any of the City’s malls and you’ll find anything from movie theaters (including an Alamo-esque dine-in cinema), Cartier, 4-star restaurants (and KFC-food courts), Payless shoes and outdoor stores.

See:  Below is a suggested itinerary for 24 hours in the City.  If you have more time and/or are interested in a couple of day-trips from Panama City, check out this post
At the Miraflores Visitor’s Center overlooking the locks

 

Morning: The Miraflores Locks and Visitor’s Center is a must see.  *Hot tip* The best time to see ships pass through these locks is from 9-11am or 3-5pm.  The museum offers a great overview of the Canal: its history, the layout and construction.  The movie, however, views like propaganda  . . .  You can view ships, tour the museum and have lunch at the restaurant ($20 pp for a buffet that’s ample but not extraordinary – just do it anyway) in about 3 hours.  *Hot tip*While you can get a taxi to take you to the Locks and then another to take you back, often a taxi will wait for you to complete your visit.  This should cost you about $20 (from Amador).

Panal Canal Administration Building
 In regard to the Panal Canal Administration Building, unless you’re an art/history freak or have the time, you might want to skip it.  The murals and the view is cool, yes, but I wouldn’t consider it a “must-see” on your bucket list.  More interesting to me is the fact that they paid the artist $30K in commission – not bad for the early 20th – or the architecture of the surrounding gov buildings which look exactly the same as all of the Texa A&I buildings my Dad taught at in Kingsville, TX, because they were built by the same military funds.


Afternoon: You can easily wander around Casco Viejo in a couple of hours.  Stay towards the southeast portion of the peninsula as the area is surrounded by slums.  Highlights include meandering around neighborhood to view the restored, semi-restored and crumbling buildings, the beautiful little square of Plaza de la Independencia, which houses the Panama Canal Museum,  and Parque Bolivar which houses the President’s Palace, and the Embajada de Francia Park at the tip of the Peninsula with views of downtown and the Causeway.  Hungry?  Drop by the Fish Market for cheap seafood that you pick out downstairs and they prepare upstairs.   Need a drink?  Try out the classy Havana Bar.

Typical Casco Viejo building

this is not an effecient bike

Other things to do include getting a panoramic view of the City by hiking to the top of Cerro Ancon, the big hill in the Canal Zone, and biking along the man-made, 3-mile long Amador Causeway. 

Along the Causeway, you’ll pass the Frank Gehry-designed museum (under construction) and a branch of The Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute (pet starfish anyone?).  At the end of the Causeway there are a couple of restaurants.  I’d recommend stopping at Barko for their name-sake ceviche (ceviche made with coconut milk and jalapenos, yum).

 

Frank Gehry art house in progress, Cerro Ancon, at right

 

Sleep:
While we stayed the first night in a hotel reminiscent of the Shining (Hotel Casco Antigua), we promptly moved out of the noisy and dangerous section of Casco Viejo to the Balboa district and into the Hostal Amador.  We were very pleased with The Hostal Amador which is more like a hotel than a typical hostal.  It’s $35 per night, has AC, is safe, is in a quiet neighborhood, includes breakfast, is  close to the Albrook Airport, the causeway, a $15 cab ride to Miraflores Locks, a $3-5 cab ride to Casco Viejo and $5 cab ride downtown – what more could you ask for?
Eats:
  • Downtown:  Eurasia is a quaint, up-scale place that serves up delicious fusion meals. 10 Bistro is another up-scale eatery with two locations downtown (1 in the Multiplaza mall, where we ate before a movie.
  • As previously mentioned, the ceviche at Barko at the end of the Causeway is worth the bike ride
  • If you want to rub elbows with “the locals” try the Fish Market and Café Coca-Cola in Casco Viejo.  They both serve up good dishes in an authentic atmosphere.
More:
Thoughts on the Canal: I’m completely blown away by the Canal.  It’s clearly an engineering marvel – sure, let’s survey an impassable jungle, invent new equipment for the project and dig the equivalent of through the Earth and then some.  But, from my public-policy-perspective, it’s a whole ‘nother miracle.  Consider that in order to build the Canal, the Americans had to build an ENTIRE CITY to support it – complete with a new-fangled socialized public health and roadway system (Don’t want malaria?  Pave ALL the streets and give everyone window screens!).  And, don’t forget the comforts American workers want at home: Rotary Clubs, the Boy Scouts, etc. Import, import, import, funds, funds, funds.  Again, as a public policy sucker who has witnessed tons of (awesome) government-funded projects go by the wayside (or not), it’s absolutely A-M-A-Z-I-N-G to me to think of the grant requests to fund a bowling alley for officers, approved (or maybe not).

All about Bocas del Toro, Panama

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Ferry Port, Bocas del Toro
Nickle Tour:  We love Bocas.  Because it’s a series of islands, we found life on the water to be just what we have been looking for so while we came for just a week, we stayed for three and we’ll back for two months in March.  Bocas has so much to offer:  “city” life in Town complete with great food and nightlife, secluded beaches, diving, snorkeling, caves, hiking, jungle, surfing, sailing, wildlife (monkeys, red frogs, starfish, etc) and months and months of places to explore on land and by water.  There’s also a great mix of cultures in Bocas anchored by a diverse group of native Panamanians (indigenous tribes, Latinos of Spanish descent and Afro-Antillians) and supplemented by expats and cruisers from all over the world – including a lot of Texans!
Travel Tip:  You may notice Isla Caranero is barely mentioned in this post.  That’s because the threat of the bugs has kept us away.   You can definitely feel them on the other islands, so I’m not eager for an increase in irritation.

See:
Spending time in Bocas town:
Starfish Beach:  Take the bus to the northern tip of the island and get off at Drago Beach($5 RT), walk around the point to view hundreds of starfish laying in crystal clear water.

Rent a bike and explore the town.  For a nice ride, continue out of town and take the right towards Paunch and Bluff beach.  (An easy ride that’s about 2 hours round trip.
Learn Spanish.  If you’re staying for a while, take a refresher course at Spanish by the Sea.  I did and it was muy beuno!
Take a tour.  Many outfitters can arrange experiences ranging from day-sails and snorkeling trips and the ever popular DoDolphin Bay-Red Frog Beach-Zapatillas day tour.  The Bocas Sustainable Tourism Alliance is a good place to look for reputable tours.
A day on Bastimentos:
  • Pack a cooler of drinks and snacks and take a water taxi to the Red Frog Marina, take a short walk to the sea-side to bodysurf on Red Frog Beach and check out the Beach’s namesake.
  • Suspend yourself above the canopy on Red Frog’s ziplining tours!
  • After enjoying a few hours on Red Frog beach, hike south along the beach towards Wizzard Beach, which is great for surfing and Up the Hill (an almost-always hot, muddy hike) for a taste of refreshing  lemongrass tea or other locally-made organic products (many made from coconuts from their property).
  • Just past Up the Hill is The Thai Place which overlooks the bay and will satisfy your hunger with a spicy plate of yum after a day of fun in the sun.
Sleep:
Even though are house-sitting on Dolphin Bay, we spent some time in the area before and after our gig and can make the following recommendations:
Bocas Town:  Staying in Bocas town is very convenient but while you’ll definitely find the parties, you’ll have a hard time finding that deserted island feel unless you go further out towards Paunch Beach.
  • Las Olas ($40) is on the water, offers nice rooms with AC, TV, wi-fi, is safe and pleasant and has an on-site restaurant and bar which closes down early so it’s not noisy.
  • Spanish by the Sea ($20) is located on the school grounds but accepts non-students.   They have dorms and a few private rooms (as well as home-stays for students).  Internet and a kitchen is included.
  • Azucar Surf Retreat is on the other side of town (5 minutes by bike) and has 3 or 4 super-cute little cabinas, a private dock, kitchen/hang-out room overlooking the water. Plus, they have an on-site “spa” which is a lofted studio run by the wonderful Donna who does waxing, massage, etc at very reasonable prices. You can even get a massage on the dock, at sunset!

Bastimentos:  It’s just a $3 water taxi ride away (during the day and $5 at night) but is world’s away from the “hustle and bustle” (yeah, right) of Bocas town.

D at the Point on our balcony
      

The Point ($30) maintained by the friendly Canadian John, is, you guessed it, at  the point of the island.  If you’re looking for high ceilings of a wood framed cabina overlooking the sea with breezes and waves crashing below, this is the place for you.  Free kayaks and surfboards.  One drawback: no internet or kitchen.  But, a fridge is included for your cold drinks and food.

Eat:
Good Eats in Bocas Town (in order of my faves):
  • The Ultimate Refugio is fantastic!  Weekly specials of seafood fusion keep me coming back to see what’s on the menu – and soon to be in my belly!  As for the pitcher of Jungle Juice, it’s a good thing you won’t be driving home.
  •  The Casbah serves up Mediterranean dishes that are faboush!  We had an excellent starter of shrimp and then fig and goat cheese stuffed chicken breast, yum.
  • Bocas Marina on Friday nights serves up ribs and fire-dancing – fun!
  •  John’s Bakery is the place to get your choripan (chorizo “pigs” in a blanket) and enchiladas (flaky pastries stuffed with chicken and spices).
  • Starfish Café has great breakfasts.
  • Lemongrass has good thai-fusion apps overlooking the water.
  • Toro Loco is the local bar which serves up typical bar food and cold beer.
  • Late-night food carts serve up grilled meats for cheap prices.
  • Super Gourmet is a good place to satisfy your need for sushi, an Italian sub or whatever else you’ve been craving from “home” (sweet pickels, Tofutti, etc).
  • Oh, and don’t forget to stop by the Barco Loco for a stumbling-great time for dancing and drinks (and watch your step!  the “stumbling” is due to the Labyrinth-esque docks as much as the Abuelo 🙂
Good Eats elsewhere:
  • The Thai Place on Bastimentos is worth the hike “up the hill”
  • Rana Azul is south of Isla Cristobal, about 10 miles south of Bocas Town by boat. They serve up brick-oven pizzas and a weekly specials on Friday nights and Sundays at noon.  Get there early (by boat only) to get a parking spot!
Rush hour at Rana Azul
More:  Bocas del Toro is an archipelago of over 9 islands, 52 keys and 200 islets just south of Costa Rica on the Carribbean coast.  There are several large islands, including Isla Colon, where the main town “Bocas” is located.  Directly across from Bocas is Isla Caranero – notorious for sand flies (chitras) – and a 10 minute boat ride away is Isla Bastimentos.  Click here for a map of Bocas and other sites of interest in Panama.

Bocas del Toro, Panama

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Dolphin Bay at dusk

             As you may know, Damon and I, have been invited to house-sit in Bocas del Toro from March 15th-May 15th.  We arrived early in January to pinch-hit for a week awaiting the January-March crew.  The house is about 8 miles south of Bocas del Toro on Dolphin Bay and is only accessible via boat, which the owners have included in the deal.       
Just before dusk

      The house backs up to the rainforest, is flanked by howler monkeys and a chocolate farm and overlooks a beautiful bay.
We have the pleasure of watching over two dogs, Indie and Gellie, as well as a parrot, Jasmine, who has really taken a shine to Damon.
Damon and Jazzie
 
Laurie and Gellie
We’re enjoying being off the grid and living on solar, rainwater catchment and boating to town on a weekly basis to provision.  We look forward to our two months back in Cerro Valero come March.  Until then, it’s time to do more exploring!
Ships in a bottle (kinda) from our deck