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Central/South America 2019Central/South America 2019
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Central/South America 2019

August - December 2019
August - December 2019 Read more
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  • TravelerCentral/South America 2019
    Day 7

    11. Border Crossing - leaving CR

    August 29, 2019 in Panama ⋅ 🌧 75 °F

    Crossing the border is a 2 part process. You have to officially “check-out” of one country, then “check-in” to the next.

    DISCLOSURE – this is Craig’s post from his travel blog. I stayed in the car, guarding it, (which is code for playing games on my phone) during most of this activity.

    Paso Canoas or "How we outsmarted the border mafia"!

    Leaving Pavones at about 6:45 A.M., we arrived at the Costa Rica border at Paso Canoas at about 8:15 A.M. Exiting a country is the easiest part, generally speaking, of any border crossing. This is not an overly busy border, so I anticipated an easy Costa Rica exit. As has been our experience, signage is always a problem. And this border is no exception. Arriving at the border, we nearly crossed directly into Panama before realizing that there were no Costa Rican Immigration and Customs offices in the immediate area. Up the road a ways, I saw a building with some border signage. Luckily, we arrived just as the immigration offices were opening. I parked the car, and quickly grabbed a place in line. After about 10 minutes, I handed my passport to the immigration officer. He said that I needed to go across the street to pay the exit tax and bring him the receipt so that he could stamp me out of Costa Rica. Since I was in the vicinity of the Aduana (customs) office, I thought why not cancel my T.I.P. (Temporary Import Permit for my car). After waiting in line for about 10 minutes, the customs agent looked over my paperwork and said that I needed the receipt showing that the exit tax had been paid. So, I dashed across the street, paid the tax, and got my receipt. Back in line at the customs office...the agent sees that I have my exit tax payment receipt, but he points out that my passport does not have the exit stamp. Back to the immigration line, which by now has grown quite large. 15 minutes goes by, and I have my exit stamp. Back again to the customs office...another 10 minute wait. Finally, the customs agent closes out my T.I.P. I can now officially exit Costa Rica! Karen has been guarding the car, and now it is her turn for immigration. Maybe it takes her 15 minutes at most. Now, we are ready for the Panama border!    Read more

  • TravelerCentral/South America 2019
    Day 8

    12. Border Crossing - entering Panama

    August 30, 2019 in Panama ⋅ ⛅ 81 °F

    DISCLOSURE - as with post #11, this is Craig's post from his blog.

    As we cross the border, we are motioned to the side by men with official-looking I.D. tags. These are the Ayudantes (helpers) who either assist you in crossing borders by expediting the process (usually involving bribes) or by creating a chaotic situation from which only they can extricate you. After parking the car, I tell them that I do not need any help, but thanks anyway. I have prepped for this border and know the proper sequence: first, acquire auto insurance. Done. second, get immigration to stamp your entry into your passport. Done. third, get the T.I.P. for the car from customs. So far, so good! Completed application...now for the car inspection. I open the rear door, and the customs agent tells me EVERYTHING must be taken out of the car and run through the scanner on the other side of the building. This is not going well...

    As a crowd of Ayudantes gather around, the customs agent asks if I would like help transporting the entire contents of the car to the scanner and back. Things are beginning to smell a little "fishy" here. Undeterred, I insist upon transporting everything myself while Karen guards the car. After first moving two large suitcases to the scanning area, a more senior customs agent comes over and requests that we complete the Panama customs declaration forms. After completing mine, he reviews it, makes some corrections (suggesting I don't really have to list every edible fruit and foodstuffs in our possession) and asks me to complete the form again with corrections. At this point, he can sense my frustration. I comply, and then we move into the scanning area. After scanning the two suitcases, he tells me I only need to bring in duffel bags and the like. I ask him to accompany me to the car and point out the pieces he would like to scan. He grabs a couple of bags, and we go scan them. As we move back to the car, he tells the original agent (a lower ranking one) that we are done since I only have foodstuffs, supplies, and personal use items. A brief argument ensues between the two, and the junior official is overruled. Seeing his potential cut from the Ayudantes who might be asked to help me transport everything vanish, he sulks away and glares at me from a distance as I rearrange our gear. The senior agent signs off on my T.I.P. The last steps are paying $1 to fumigate the car and then passing through the final immigration checkpoint set up by Panamanian Marines. Bienvenidos a Panama (welcome to Panama)!

    The way the "border mafias" work, as best I can determine, are as follows:

    1) Identify potential victims who appear to have money (We are travelling in a 2019 Toyota 4runner TRD Pro).
    2) The Ayudantes (helpers???) immediately overwhelm you with offers of their services to expedite your border crossing. They do this by offering bribes to the immigration and customs agents which you end up paying for...and in addition, the fee for the Ayudante's services.

    OR, as in my case here, my refusal to engage with the Ayudantes MAY have led to the lower ranking customs agent demanding that we scan everything in the car, thereby making the Ayudantes eventual engagement and his probable cut of the proceeds more likely.

    They get you either way...but by "sticking to my guns" and insisting on doing everything myself, we gained the upper hand this time!    Read more

  • TravelerCentral/South America 2019
    1
    Day 8

    13. Panama - Boquete

    August 30, 2019 in Panama ⋅ ⛅ 75 °F

    We arrived in the highlands of Boquete early afternoon, and immediately enjoyed a much cooler and less humid climate. At 4000 feet above sea level, it’s a lush, green area located on the Caldera River, and is decorated throughout with beautiful, colorful flowers and trees and surrounded by mountains, including the local volcano Vulcan Baru. The main strip was a hodgepodge; from a food perspective, there were places with typical American bar food, local places that sold only the typical Central American meal (rice, beans, small salad, and meat, usually pollo), and fine dining options as well. Smoothies are popular here, and quite delicious since papaya, banana & pineapple are readily available everywhere.

    One of the things I’m interested in during this trip is the concept of “retirement abroad”. As you might imagine, your dollars (which are the official currency here), go much further here than in the USA. Our coffee tour guide, (discussed later) has a monthly salary of $700. His is considered a good job.

    Boquete has a large ex-pat community (7,000 of the 19,000 residents) that is growing rapidly. The community is experiencing typical growing pains; while they welcome the jobs associated with development, and economic buying power of the new inhabitants, they bemoan the depletion of forests and farms that are being sold and cleared out to make room for more gated-community developments. That aside, the area is stunning in its natural beauty.    Read more

  • TravelerCentral/South America 2019
    1
    Day 8

    14. Panama - Boquete - Oasis Hotel

    August 30, 2019 in Panama ⋅ 🌧 72 °F

    We stayed at a place called the Oasis Hotel, just off the main street. It was so pretty and had wonderful views. We’re getting some really nice rooms at great prices – I think partially because its rainy season and tourism is not at its peak. Its rained every other day or so, for a few hours. Fortunately, without any planning at all, we’ve managed to arrange all of our outings and activities around that.Read more

  • TravelerCentral/South America 2019
    Day 9

    15. Panama - Boquete - Coffee Farm Tour

    August 31, 2019 in Panama ⋅ ⛅ 68 °F

    We attended a superb tour of a local Coffee Farm while in Boquete. Craig did an excellent job noting the highlights, so I'm offering his post here:

    A highlight of our stay in Boquete was a tour of the original, now organic, Ruiz Coffee Plantation (one of the 11 owned by the Ruiz Coffee Co.). Most people associate Panama with the canal and shady off-shore banking (Panama Papers). But Panama grows the world's most expensive coffee beans, an Arabica variety called Geisha, priced at over $1000 per pound. This translates to about $75 a cup at retail. Boquete produces 50% of Panama's coffee at 600+ plantations.

    Coffee harvesting and processing is a complex process. The coffee berry is a fruit, and there are two coffee beans per berry. After hand picking, the berries are submerged in water to determine which ones are insect infested (the floaters). Next, the outer-skin is removed. The sticky coffee beans are then fermented for a short time before drying and removal of 2 more skins. The beans then go to sorting for color, size, and shape (helps insure even roasting). Next, the green beans are aged and become ready for packaging for the coffee roasters. My apologies for lumping many of the steps into one general step!

    Our tour guide, Carlos, has been with the Ruiz Coffee Co. for 23 years. We found his knowledge of the coffee growing, harvesting, processing, and roasting to be invaluable. "Coffee," Carlos says, "should be smooth tasting and not bitter." Good coffee does not need sugar, cream, or milk. Carlos continues, "Starbucks makes coffee drinks for people who do not like coffee!" Coffee's bitterness comes from "burning" the coffee bean during roasting. Dark roasted coffee is akin to charcoal. We viewed two packaged bags of roasted beans, one dark and one light. The darker roast bag had nearly 25% more volume of beans than the light roast, yet weighed approximately the same. No more dark roast for me...

    The original Ruiz Coffee plantation, now organic, uses natural methods to control insect infestation. Banana trees are used to shade the coffee plants, while the fruit from Avocado, Mango, Orange, and Lime trees attract the insects, who are in turn eaten by birds. Nothing about the coffee bean is wasted. The beans rejected earlier for size and cosmetic reasons are ground up for instant coffee. Eighty percent of the coffee beans' skins are used as a compost to replenish the soil, while the remaining 20% is dried and sold as tea.    Read more

  • TravelerCentral/South America 2019
    Day 10

    16. Panama - Santa Catalina

    September 1, 2019 in Panama ⋅ ⛅ 84 °F

    On the way from Boquete to Santa Catalina, we stopped for one night in Boca Chica, a small village on the Gulf of Chiriquí that focuses on fishing expeditions and fishing tournaments. There's no real beach there, just more of a fishing dock, and not much in the way of any other amenities. It wasn't quite our cup of tea.

    Santa Catalina is a popular surf spot, but still relatively undeveloped. We found a cool place with a heavy surf vibe right on the beach, and went swimming and kayaking. Sea kayaking was fun, but somebody has to tell me the secret of getting back to shore without getting hammered and toppled by the surf. This is my second time in the ocean, and my second time getting clobbered. (Sorry - no pix of this - I was to busy trying to keep my phone from drowning!)    Read more

  • TravelerCentral/South America 2019
    Day 13

    17. Panama - on the way to Panama City

    September 4, 2019 ⋅ ⛅ 82 °F

    From Mama Ines' place in Santa Catalina we drove Playa Coronado, staying one night before heading to Panama City. In my opinion, Playa Coronado was undistinguished. The beach is lovely, but, no waves, and lined with condos and hotels.

    The drive leaving Santa Catalina took us through a long, winding, 2 lane road that offered glimpses of what a small village farmer's life is like. I'm posting some pix here...    Read more

  • TravelerCentral/South America 2019
    Day 15

    18. Panama City - Casco Viejo

    September 6, 2019 in Panama ⋅ ⛅ 82 °F

    Casco Viejo is the historic district of Panama City. When the Panama Canal was being built, an influx of workers caused massive growth and expansion of Panama City, and the elite residents abandoned Casco Viejo for a better location in the city, letting Casco Viejo fall into ruin. It is now an UNESCO World Heritage site. While much of its architecture has been restored, some buildings remain in crumbling ruin.

    We wandered through there today. The architecture was pretty neat, and there are some cool historic churches. We had a great view of the Panama City skyline. On the downside, it was filled with overpriced restaurants, and dozens of vendors selling the same touristy souvenirs in every shop.

    We chose to check out the Panama Canal Museum they had there. It was filled with floor to ceiling placards documenting in detail the story of the many failed attempts, and the eventual successful one, at building a canal. It would have been easier to read the story in a book, as the museum offered little else.    Read more

  • TravelerCentral/South America 2019
    Day 16

    19. Panama - Panama Canal

    September 7, 2019 in Panama ⋅ ⛅ 82 °F

    We spent a few hours at the Miraflores Locks of the Panama Canal today. It was fascinating.

    The concept of the canal was first explored by the Spaniards in the 16th century, but it was concluded it was not possible. In the late 1800s, the French commissioned de Lesseps (the designer of the Suez Canal) to build a canal, but inadequate design (the hard rock & jungle of Panama posed different challenges than the desert of Egypt), cost overruns, and rampant disease/death of workers caused the project to fail.

    The US was very interested in having a canal constructed, but could not come to an agreement with the Colombians, under whose rule Panama fell at that time. Therefore, in 1903, the United States successfully backed Panama's efforts at gaining independence from Colombia, and an agreement between the US & Panama for construction and administration of the canal emerged soon thereafter. The project started shortly thereafter, and was completed in 1914 (at the start of WW I).

    The 80 kilometer interoceanic way, as its called, operates through a system of locks that raises ships from ocean level to that of Gatun Lake, which, at 27 meters above sea level is the highest point throughout the crossing, and then lowers them again. I've never been that interested in engineering, but being here and seeing this massive project in person was inspiring.    Read more

  • TravelerCentral/South America 2019
    Day 18

    20. Shipping the car - Panama 2 Colombia

    September 9, 2019 in Panama ⋅ ⛅ 84 °F

    Although they share a border, there is no way to drive from Panama to Colombia. The main intercontinental road, the Pan American Highway, which stretches from Alaska to Argentina, has a 150km gap in it as it passes through what is known as the Darien Gap, located at the east/south end of Panama.

    The Darien is a tropical jungle, with parts of it inhabited by indigenous tribes. While some if it is accessible with a guide, the parts that preclude safe travel have no roads, and ill-defined trails (if any). Visitors are subject to ticks, snake-bites, and disease. The area has limited to no police presence, and is known to be utilized by narcotraffickers. You are considered "on your own" if you run into trouble there.

    I'll pass.

    Hence, we (Craig) are engaged in coordinating shipment of the car via container (shared with one other traveler's car) from Colon to Cartegena. Craig did exhaustive research on this prior to our arrival, but coordinating the sharing of the container required much last minute communication with a several transport brokers to find someone who wanted to do the same thing as us at exactly the same time.

    The brokers are invaluable, but even with them, there seems to be so much room for things to go awry. We needed to be at the car inspection checkpoint between 6 & 7 Monday for car export inspection. Our Frenchman container-sharing partner was driving in from Costa Rica, and was scheduled to be there as well. He showed up just around 7, and the official told him he was too late and had to leave. Since we were scheduled to load the cars on the container Tuesday, this would have been a disaster for us, delaying us for days, since car shipments only get sent certain days of the week.

    Craig pleaded with the official, and we were granted clemency. Whew. (The Frenchman later communicated that he got caught unaware of a time zone change. Geez. Things can go wrong so easily.) We returned to pick up our inspection paperwork at 2, only to have to wait over an hour for it as it wasn't ready. you have no choice but to be patient.

    Tuesday we drove to the east Panama port of Colon to watch the car be loaded onto the container and locked. We caught a bus back to Panama City ( about 50 miles?) for $3.15 each. On the way, we saw an accident involving a container that looked exactly like ours. Our hearts were in our throats momentarily, until we remembered our car is getting shipped from Colon, and not on the road to Panama.

    In the meantime, our flight is booked for Friday, and we have a few days to toodle around Cartagena before picking up the car next Tuesday.

    Fingers crossed!    Read more

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