Panama

Stuck at the Costa Rica-Panama border... the power went out in Costa Rica (yes, the whole country) a lil before we got to the border, so we couldnt get across- we all waited a few hours trying to track down the guy but to no avail. We ended up sleeping on the bus overnight and in the early morning got back in line and finally made it across- but not before Tracy missed her flight and banged my head really hard.

Getting ready to go out on the town in Panama City with our friend Breno... We went to a club and danced the night away!
The ruins of the cities first capital, Old Panama (or Panama La Vieja). Em and I had the whole place to ourselves and wandered around goofing off (see tea party below).

Downtown Panama City over my shoulder

Panama Canal- wow. One of those things you learn about and seem so exotic so when we finally got there it was awesome.... we splurged and had a bottle of wine during our lunch overlooking the Miraflores Lock.


We got on a overnight bus to Bocas del Toro- if anyones ever taken a bus all night, you know you dont really sleep too much. We got to the "port" at like 5 am and an hour later got on a boat to Bocas. It was a beautiful little area of islands, although deserted when we got there. In looking for a hotel, the first place we saw had a Malaria warning taped to its front door- yay! We ended up staying at this amazing waterfront hotel. The pic below doesnt do it justice but its the sun setting over the water and a hammock in the foreground.

Emily made us walk forever down this road to this gross beach- it was dirty and sand fly filled
Leaving the island paradise of Bocas del Toro, we started our long journey home by first getting on this speed boat for about an hour. As it zipped through this tiny river I hoped we would make it without having to use the life jackets. After the boat we got in a taxi to the border. Below is the scary bridge we had to cross that separated Panama and CR. Once in CR, we took another taxi to Puerto Viejo then a bus to Limon and on to San Jose. The next morning we hopped on our flight back to New York.

Costa Rica! Pura Vida!!

We arrived late at night and taxied to our hotel in Alajuela. We asked the guy working there where we could get some dinner, and he pointed us down the street. We walked a few blocks and headed in to this bar/restaurant where you could hear crickets when we walked in. Actually it was probably those giant flying beetles. This restaurant ended up being one of the most authentic of our trip, little did we know- it was rice, beans, plantains, and for me an egg. Also, Salsa Lizano and a few Rojos (beer). The next morning we had a fabulous breakfast on a patio in our hotel- lotsa fresh fruit and once again rice and beans and eggs- are you seeing a pattern here? That day we wandered around Alujuela and took a bus out to a butterfly garden.

Finca de Mariposas

Arenal

We arrived at night to our awesome resort . I woke up at 5 am to birds chirping and monkeys howling, opened the door and saw paradise. Looking from our balcony we glimpsed the peak of Arenal Volcano- the only time we ended up seeing it - wow.Breakfast at Los Lagos Inn

La Fortuna

While in Arenal we went ziplining, rapelling down waterfalls, rode in a sky bucket over rain forest, had drinks at the swim up bar, went to some really nice hot springs (pic below), relaxed, swam in the pool and wandered around town.
Em and Lu are behind that waterfall

Howler Monkey! Our bus left Arenal at like 4am and it took most of the day to get to Cahuita- on the Carribbean side!! It was awesome to see the beach. Our room in Cahuita was really nice- all wood with big beds and mosquito nets. Right outside our door was the beach and the national park- lotsa monkeys and birds and reptiles congregated in the little river right in front of the place. One night we went and listened to a reggae band and danced and met a nice woman from near San Jose and her boyfriend who said he was the drummer for Kansas, but we dont think that was quite true :)

Leaf Cutter Ants!

Mosquito NetTree in Cahuita National Park

White faced monkey and mango

Before we even got to Rockin Js in Puerto Viejo, we new it was gonna be awesome- and when we got there we were blown away- we loved it! Two huge hammock hotels, a bunch of space for tents and a few cabins, an outdoor area, a shaded place with more hammocks, a cafe, a kitchen, and some picnic tables... everything was covered in artwork from random people that had stayed there and the vibe was really awesome. Thats Jay in the pic, an American expat who owns the hostel. We played cards, read in hammocks, at nights there was a bonfire out on the beach. We could also walk to a really beautiful beach, Playa Cocles. One day we rented bikes and rode down to Punta Uva and then Manzanillo. It was fun except for the fact that the tires were flat, so that made it a bit more difficult.

Rockin Js

It was hard to leave PV, but we had to get back to San Jose so Lucy could catch her flight back to NYC and we could pick up Tracy. We took the bus back, and stayed at Hostel Pangea- one of our favorite places of the entire trip.