Wow, I can?t believe it?s been 10 days… and to top it off, Happy Valentine?s Day! Let me try to recap the last ten days. Las Tablas is where the Carnival action is in Panama. It?s the biggest, and full of the most energy, as Panamanians have told us. Unfortunately, we were unable to get a room there, or anywhere within an hour outside of the city. Celebrating in Panama City was were we decided to be. The first two nights of Carnival were ok. A downtown street, Via Espana was closed off for 4 days. Friday night started off slow. The street was about 3/4 of a mile, and there were hardly any people to fill it up by 8pm Friday night. There were food vendors, but mostly beer vendors. A can of any of the 5 Panamanian beers were 50 cents a can. This is when Ras was wishing he was travelling with an anyone who drank beer. (I can?t stand the taste of beer.) We hung out for a bit and decided to come back the following day… maybe things would be a little more exciting. The next day, there were thousands of people that filled the streets. It was packed! There were 3 stages, with a main one that would be televised throughout the country. The costumes and the parades I was hoping to see weren?t there. We went to buy drinks at Rey, a supermarket that was located on Via Espana. You could buy liquor there, but couldn?t take the bottles ouside. Instead, employees would open your bottle in the store for you, pour it out into a plastic container, and let you take that outside. There was no charge. By that time, it was Sunday, and we had been in Panama for 6 days. It was time to get out.
Carnival lasts 4 days - Saturday through Tuesday night (aka Mardi Gras). Everything was closed for those four days - banks, laundry mats, many stores, and travel agencies. There was no way to get out of town, even if we wanted to. We just had to wait out two more days. The last day of Carnival turned out to be pretty fun. We arrived during the day and drank, ate 30 cent meat on a stick, threw water and confetti on kids, and met people along the street. A parade came down later that night, with costumes and all! I was happy.
The next day, we practically ran out of Panama City. We took the next available flight to Contadora, which is a part of the Pearl Islands. Yes, the Pearl Islands of Survivor Fame. We stayed there for 3 nights, and have spent the last 2 nights in El Valle, a town of 6200 that is situated in the 2nd largest crater in the world (a result of an extinct volcano). More info about Contadora and El Valle later. We?re leaving El Valle this morning and heading to Pedasi, and go to Iguana Island.
Here?s Ras? mass email of his version of our trip so far…
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This is our fourth night here, and will be here for another day or so, before heading to Costa Rica. There’s really nothing too spectacular about this little town, but tourists here either love it or hate it. For me, it’s mixed. The snorkeling here has been really good - saw some coral and fish I’ve never seen before. Ras and I went snorkeling yesterday and saw "brain coral." We also went to Red Frog Beach, where the waves were really big. The picture is of a "Red Frog," even though it’s really orange in color, and only about an inch big. This town is where we’ve seen the most young tourists in Panama. There are a lot of surfers here, and you can rent a surfboard in town for $2 a day. Our hostel is a surfer haven. It’s a little chaotic when it comes to taking showers and making food in the communal kitchen, but it’s fun. Being there reminds me of my first year college and being in the dorms. Some girl today complained about how they guys don’t ever do their dishes. Bocas del Toro even has a "Khao San" type of road, but with WAY less people. Actually, it only has one main road that everyone hangs out on.
