Christian May 16th, 2008
Puerto Viejo
Getting to Puerto Viejo Costa Rica from Bocas del Toro was different from we thought it was going to be. We left on the first ferry at 7 to Changuiola. Our boat driver was officially insane, speeding through the narrow passages. We managed to hit a few submerged logs and get tangled in some plants along the way. The only good part of it was that we made it to the dock in half the time it was supposed to take. After getting off the dock, which was clearly in the middle of nowhere with no bus connections, all of us we forced to jump on tourist van which was way overpriced. The van dropped us off at a bridge that was the border between the two countries. After getting our exit stamp at the Panama border, we had had to walk over a wooden bridge with gaps in the boards that showed the river below. It felt rickety and super sketchy. The worst was when a truck would come and you would have to jump to the side on this metal platform that was rusted with holes. Once over the bridge, we had to go to immigration and find our way to the next bus to Puerto Viejo, which ended up not being all that bad. We even met a former marine that was living in San Jose and told us that he has to carry his knife around with him for protection, as he whipped it out. Great Times. Continue Reading »
Christian May 16th, 2008
We arrived around 5:30am to the little town of Almirate after a 9 hour overnight bus ride from Panama City. It was pitch dark and we had no clue where to catch the ferry. Taxi’s were waiting for the tourists to take them to the docks, so 6 tourists and all their luggage where loaded into little pick-up trucks for the 5 minute journey to the ferry. Casey got to ride inside while I got to ride in the truck bed with the luggage and one other guy. We were dropped off and told the ferry wouldn’t actually be leaving till about 7am. Finally the owner arrived and started turning on lights and getting our names and money. He also brought with him to work 2 furry puppies that we played with while we waited. Eventually, we boarded the ferry and were on our way for the 25 minutes to Bocas Town. Continue Reading »
Christian May 11th, 2008
We took the early flight that left Quito at 7 AM, which meant we had to be at the airport by 5:30. We paid our $40 each to leave the airport and were on our way. Panama City was tough to find cheap accommodation. We narrowed it down to a few budget hotels and one hostel. We ended up trying the hostel (Zuly’s) first and ended up staying there. It was definitely not the nicest or cleanest place that we had ever stayed in. They only offered dorm beds for $6.60 each if we shared one. It was pretty grungy looking, but we decided it would be okay for a couple of nights. **We later found out from a couple we met in Bocas, that they had stayed there and found worms in the mattresses of the hostel** As soon as we checked in we headed out to the city to explore.
Continue Reading »
Christian May 4th, 2008
It was a long trip to get to Canoa to say the least. We had to leave our hostel at 5:30 to catch the 5:40 bus to Quito. The bus took four hours, when we got to Quito we had to find the office for Reina del Camino to buy our tickets to Bahia de Caraquez. Luckily there was a bus at 10:30 leaving, so we got our tickets and hopped on the very shady bus. The ride was only supposed to take 8 hours but ended up taking 9 and a half. If ever taking the bus to Bahia from Quito, pay the extra 1.50 for the executive service (we didn’t and regretted it the whole way). Once we finally got to Bahia we had to walk about a half mile to the docks where we could catch a ride on a boat across the bay to San Vincente. It wasn’t a bad deal at .70. Finally we were getting close…. since it was so late the regular bus service from San Vincente to Canoa had stopped, so we shared a cab with 2 Canadian girls for $4. Luckily, they were staying at the same place we had wanted to stay at. The only room that they had was a private Bungalow with a shared bathroom for $16.70 a night. Tired, exhausted, and ready for bed we took it. Continue Reading »
Christian May 3rd, 2008
We wanted to get to Banos early enough to find a place to stay and get to walk the city a bit, so we woke up at 6am to catch the 5 hour bus ride to Banos from Tena. We were excited for Banos, since we had heard nothing but nice things about the town. We were not disappointed. We arrived around noon. You could tell it was a town based in tourism right from the start. As soon as we were off the bus we were offered tours. We bypassed the touts and checked in at our hostel which was very nice. At $13 a night, we felt like we struck a deal. It had free internet and a great rooftop terrace. The weather was sunny and we promptly headed out to explore the city and the local market. Continue Reading »
Christian April 27th, 2008
The bus ride from Quito to Tena was five and a half hours long. The closer we got to the jungle, the better the scenery was. It was great to look out the bus window and look over the rainforest from the dirt mountain roads. We arrived in Tena around 4:30 or so in the afternoon. We hired a taxi for a $1 to take us and our bags up the hill to our hostel. We were pleasantly surprised by the place (Limonchoca). For $10 a night we got a great view, cable TV, a kitchen, and complmentary hammocks to use on the balcony. It was a steal. The first night we talked to the owner about scheduling a white water rafting trip. Continue Reading »
Christian April 20th, 2008
Our time in the Galapagos was amazing. We spent 8 days on a 75 foot yacht exploring the islands. We had close encounters with all kinds of wildlife, and saw some of the most beautiful beaches. This is a longer post, but is filled with our adventures in the Galapagos. There will be three sets of Galapagos photos in our photo section, as well as hopefully a video at some point. Enjoy! Continue Reading »
Christian April 19th, 2008
Before our journey to the Galapagos, we thought we would do a touristy thing or two in Quito. One of the mini trips we did was to the Mitad del Mundo or “Middle of the World”. We got made our way to the blue line bus that would take us to a mini bus station an hour away or so. The bus was jammed with people, with more people getting on at each stop. We got off at the wrong stop to switch buses (thanks Lonely Planet). If you are using public transportation to get to the Mitad del Mundo, take the bus all the way to the end. We caught the next bus to the correct stop where we switched buses. At one point this kid jumped on the bus and started giving a comedy routine for money. After almost 1.5 hours in jammed standing room only buses the driver let us know we were at the mitad del mundo. We got off the bus on the side of the street and walked in.
The place was creepy. Continue Reading »
Christian April 5th, 2008
We scrambled around Cuzco getting all that we needed to go to Machu Picchu. We ran to the train station to get the tickets and to the INC office to get our entrance tickets. Surprisingly all of the backpacker train tickets were sold out for the days we wanted, so we had to splurge and spend an extra 20 dollars for the Vistadome train. It was not that big of a deal since we were able to get our entrance tickets for Machu Picchu half off since we had our ISIC student cards. The only thing that we did not have was a place to stay. However, this is the last month of the slow season there, and with the multitude of hotels it was not should not be a problem finding one when we arrived. Continue Reading »
Christian April 3rd, 2008
After our five hour bus ride from Puno we arrived in Arequipa, Peru’s second largest city. We were impressed by our room at the Casa de Avila. It had nice hardwood floors and a nice bathroom. We were starving so we made our way to the main square, the Plaza de Armas. We ate at a restaurant called Johnny Coyote. It was a complete rip off of Johnny Rocket’s in the states. The burgers were great. Arequipa is a nice city. The main square is pretty. Many of the buildings are made from white stone, which is why it is sometimes refered to as the white city. The next day we got our tour for the Colca Canyon figured out. We ended up going with a company named Land Adventures. Continue Reading »
