Yet Another AMAZING Adventure: Bocas del Toro, Panama

Dan and I were so lucky to have some wonderful visitors two weeks ago: Heidi (our wonderful next-door-neighbor and personal physician from DC), her friend (Cori), and Andrea (from GW).  I had renew my visa and sorely needed some beach time so we headed down to beautiful Bocas del Toro, Panama for a (very) long weekend.

For those of you who are not well versed in Panamanian geography, Bocas is here:

It's a series of islands relatively close to the Costa Rican border near the Caribbean Sea.  Our arrival was a process.


First, we had to take a six-hour bus ride from San Jose to the border town of Sixola.  Then we had to cross the border on foot across one of the world's most terrifying bridges.  It was replete with giant holes, boards that weren't properly nailed down, and every three minutes giant tractor trailers would come barreling down.  Thankfully, Heidi got some nice photos of our bridge crossing-- do they properly display our terror?

Then, we stood at the border for a solid 45 minutes in the hot sun waiting to get our passport stamped (Cori and Heidi had the burns to prove it)!  

The border wait was followed by an hour van ride with people who are unfamiliar with the word deodorant.  Then we took a very fun water taxi ride to Bocas.  Finally.

What followed was four amazing days of beaches, sunshine, and crystal clear water.  On our first day on the islands, while Dan and Andrea made their way south of the border, Heidi, Cori, and I found a wonderful spot: Red Frog Beach. 

We don't have too many pictures of Red Frog probably due to the fact that we spent the entire day floating around in the water and enjoying the sun.  Though the sun-starved doctor  (Heidi) and lawyer (Cori) were shockingly white, I think they managed to scare remarkably few people on the beach.

The next day, while I started my scuba diving course, Andrea, Dan, Heidi, and Cori took a whirlwind tour of three amazing Bocas beaches: Zapatilla, Coral Cay, and Red Frog (again).

Seriously, some of the most beautiful un-tarnished beaches any of us had ever seen.  These pictures don't begin to capture the fact that there were fewer than thirty people on every beach onto which we stepped foot.  Paradise.

Our final full day in Bocas was shocking filled with... more beaches!  Yay!  We found the most tranquil of all the beaches we had come across: Starfish beach.  When we arrived at 4pm, we were literally the only people on a long stretch of beach.  It was absolutely silent.  The land bordering the beach was wild--- not a house or square inch of pavement to be found.  The water was silent and tranquil.  It was so calm that Dan and I walked through waist-deep water and were able to see so many starfish.

I sadly don't have pictures of the water (or all those starfish).  We were so enjoying our time there that we forgot to pull out our cameras.  Whoopsie.

While Dan and I were playing Starfish-Hunter, Andrea, Cori, and Heidi were confronted by a wild boar (yes, a WILD BOAR) on the beach.  They originally thought it was a dog, but soon got a quick glimpse of its size (huge) and its snout (clearly not that of a cuddling puppy).

That night we were treated for a five-course dinner by the hotel chef.  He used all local ingredients (or as many as he could), and it was absolutely scrumptious.  Heirloom tomato salad with Gouda, surf and turf with local lobster, and mmmmm passionfruit creme brulee.

The following day, sadly our last on the island, we headed to Wizards Beach before we left.  Whereas all the beaches we had visited before had few and gentle waves, Wizards was prime for surfers.  Arriving in a small boat in the midst of some very powerful waves was a rush.  We also managed to meet up with our German friends (see the picture at the top of the page) who spend a couple days with us in Escazu through couchsurfing.

All in all, a wonderful vacation.  If you're inspired by this post and would like to come and visit, Dan and I could likely be convinced to go back down Bocas way.

Next up, Playa Brasilito for Holy Week and Florida for Ruchi's wedding!

All Our Costa Rican Love,

Jill and Dan

PS.  There are many many many more Bocas photos.  I didn't want to put all of them on the blog so as not to overwhelm people.  If you're interested in seeing them, let me know!  xoxo