Bocas del Toro - Snorkling, Storms and Happy Hour!

Speed boats used for transportation around Bocas
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Friday 14th September – Boca's del Toro

For those who read this blog regularly will be aware that we have had many a bus journey and this one was by far the worst. We departed Panama amid yet another thunder storm and torrential rain. To compound the problems of the rather uncomfortable seats there was a rather large Caribbean man sitting behind Leigh. From the moment he sat down until the time we departed he was constantly sniffing. It was so disgusting but to our amazement did not seem to bother his girlfriend who we thought might say something. This was just the tip of the iceberg. The other problems included a very loud conductor who didn't want anyone to sleep; stopping for dinner at the ridiculous time of 1.30am and then also at 5.30am. Not only that the National Guard decided to hop on and check everyone's passport (although we were staying in the same country!) Thankfully we arrived at 7am with no sleep in a tiny village called Almirante, where you catch the water taxi to Boca's Del Toro. We jumped in a local taxi who charges $1 pp (in this town if you have a car you are a taxi driver). Our ride was so cool – as the seats were all taken and it was a ute, we jumped out back and sat outside enjoying the ride down to the port. Leigh just loved it and had wanted to ride like that the entire trip. We got to the tiny port and boarded a very small boat with life jackets hanging from hooks over the back of the seats, which caused us some concern. Before we knew it we were away and traveling so fast along the water it was not funny. The vessel was like a speed boat and sat very low in the water so we received a great view of the ocean including the spray. We enjoyed the ride as it was the fastest boat trip we have taken and got us to Boca's in no time. Jo was concerned at some points that the boat may flip backwards, as it was hitting the water at such great speeds. Anyway we arrived into Boca's in one piece and believe it or not another torrential down pour which left us no choice but to jump into a cab! He drove us no further than 800m to our hotel and charged us a staggering $3US! It does not seem like much but for such a short distance it was a joke... he saw us coming.

Leigh enjoying the boat trip
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We checked into a lovely place called Hotel Max, a little pricey but very clean and spacious with a huge balcony over looking the lake. We unpacked sat down on the balcony and enjoyed some of the loudest thunder and pouring rain you could imagine. We truly arrived in the rainy season! As we had no sleep on the bus, we ended up kipping for a few hours before exploring the island. It took us all of 1 minute to walk to where the taxi driver had picked us up from earlier, grrrhh! We continued down the main street where we were hassled to buy boat tours etc and walked all the way to the other end of the main street before beginning to explore some bars. Well Boca's has some great drinking establishments and very good happy hours. As it has been quite pricey for alcohol throughout the last month or so, we haven't really been spending too much money on it. So after coming across a place right on the water with 50c beers and $2 Cocktails it was dangerous! Having drinks that cheap and being really tired from the night before must have impaired our judgment and we really made good use of the “happy hour” with Leigh being overwhelmed with Jo's effort taking in the Pina Colidias and Banana Colidias - drinking Leigh at 2 to 1!

Bocas del Toro from the boat
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After an hour or so we moved directly next door to have some dinner, at a bar/restaurant called Buena Vista. Unfortunately beers had risen to $1 but the cocktails stayed the same price. We sat at the bar and talked to the waitress and watched the baseball. To Leigh's delight it was the Yankees vs The Red Sox. After a few more beers and cocktails, we placed our order with Leigh opting for the Jumbiliya and Jo fish. We enjoyed our meals with views over the water before returning to the bar to watch more baseball, when we were joined by an ex pat American named Derek. He was really great company (and a New Yorker) who really enjoyed our stories and had plenty of his own. The bar soon emptied out and we were joined by the bar owner Juan Pablo. He was super polite and talked with us for an hour before almost having to forceably remove Leigh and Derek from the baseball as it was closing time. To Leigh's horror and Derek and Jo's joy the Red Sox had blown a huge lead and Juan Pablo was kicking us all out in the 8th innings. We eventually left, but thankfully the game was on next door. Yes, the Sox lost and Leigh was moaning all the way home, but we had such a great night with more than a few drinks. We headed home and slept almost straight away.

Port stop to pick up the snorkeling gear
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Saturday 15th September – Boca's del Toro

With a heavy night there is a heavier day! We arose felling a little sorry for ourselves especially Jo who had a very raw throat from too many Pina Coladas. We enjoyed our much loved cereal breakfast out on the balcony and planned the day ahead. We decided to head down to the beach and spent the afternoon swimming, so we packed up our towels and headed off. It was a short walk down to the beach but the clouds were looking ominous as usual. We arrived at the entrance to the beach and was informed by a rather abrupt security guard that we had to pay a $1 entrance fee as there was a fair on. We tried explaining that we only wanted to visit the beach, but he was not budging and to the point nor were we. We spotted a little access path and decided to take that, pointing it out to the security guard. As we walked away he yelled out to us that as soon as we crossed the fence line we would have to pay... no chance buddy! The beach was not even worth all the hassle! It was very cloudy overhead and the sand was rather polluted with sea weed and drift wood everywhere. Leigh as usual jumped on in to test things out while Jo waited to hear the report. The sea was full of weed and algae that had been stirred by the storm and was full of sea lice, so you were forever being stung. After 5 mins Leigh jumped out and informed Jo who immediately stuck her nose up at the thought and with a another storm pending we headed back towards town.

Hospital Point, great for snorkeling
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In the brief time we were at the beach a young local boy named Jonathon had taken a liking to us. All 3 of us chatted on the short walk home, he was really nice but kept rattling quarters in his hand so we were unsure if he was looking for money. In the end he didn't ask for any and we said good bye to him as he cycled off. We arrived back just in time for another deluge. Not really a problem though as we had decided to go out to lunch at the bar next door. With the hangover passing Leigh decided to order a Boca's Island Ice Tea - a concoction of Cranberry Juice, Coca Cola and at least 3 spirits in a rather large glass! We ordered some greek inspired food and watched the rain tumble down again. The best thing to watch during the rain are tourists running for cover and the locals carrying on with their life - there is just as much activity between the locals during the rain as when if is not, from people peddling fruit to men under the bonnet of there car making repairs. After lunch and for most of the afternoon we carried out many admin tasks including blog entries. We broke this up with another walk down the main street before getting some take aways and enjoying the evening out on the balcony.

Jo on the boat trip after snorkeling, glad to not be eaten by sharks
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Sunday 16th September – Boca's del Toro

Today we decided to go snorkeling as thankfully it wasn't pouring with rain yet. We went downstairs and chatted to one of the American guys in the hostel who said a group of them were going out on a boat later on, so we agreed to meet them around 1pm. Our first stop was to organise the boat tickets for tomorrow, as the first boat out is always in demand because there is only one direct bus to San Jose. After booking this, Leigh was drawn to a lady selling fried plantain. He tucked into it before we went out for a yummy breakfast. Jo had pancakes and Leigh an English breakfast. We then made our way back to the hostel and met up with the American guy. They were taking too long to get ready so we wandered down to the main street and found a boat owner to take us to hospital point, which is where there is good snorkeling across the bay. Leigh came across a massive Jamaican man named Livingstone who was a very hard negotiator. We agreed to pay $6 each for the boat trip, including the use of the snorkeling gear. So we jumped in his boat which would easily seat 25 people and slowly began to take off while he was yelling out to the locals if anyone needed a ride to Bastimentos (the first stop to pick up the snorkeling gear). A few more people jumped in and off we went at a rate of knots. Livingstone dropped us off at hospital point and we agreed the pick up time a couple of hours later. We put on our snorkeling gear in very clear warm waters and started snorkeling to a point where the marine life is meant to be good.

Bocas del Toro from the boat
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The fish were absolutely beautiful, exactly how we imagined tropical fish to be. There was lots of different sizes and colours, including florescent ones and electric blue fish, simply beautiful! Unfortunately the water was quite choppy so meant it wasn't as clear as we hoped. Also from all the rain it fogs up a bit. There was a huge shelf that dropped away into the deep ocean that Jo kept her eye out for sharks. Luckily we didn't see any and enjoyed snorkeling around for just over an hour. Comparing our snorkeling experiences we agreed that we prefered the Mediterranean waters, but the Caribbean fish. We relaxed on the prickly grass bank at the end of the point and dried off talking to a few other tourists there, before having the space to ourselves, like our own deserted island. Right on que and to our relief (as we had trusted big Livingstone with our passports and wallet) our ride turned up and we headed back to Boca's. After returning to the hotel our next door neighbours were out on the balcony having a few drinks. We wasted no time asking if they played 500 which they did to our delight! Leigh grabbed another half dozen beers and we began a good few hours playing cards and chatting. We all decided to go out for dinner and resume the card playing at a restaurant. We decided on “Lemongrass” that served up delicious curries. Jo enjoyed the Thai style red fish curry and Leigh the slightly hotter green chicken. It was a top night out with restaurant perched right over the water. We returned home and as it was an early day for all of us we headed off to bed.