Nuestro viaje a Panamá y Costa Rica, Junio 2006

Day 2: La ciudad de Panamá

Today we toured Panama City - from the oldest area to the most modern. Our first stop was El museo de Panamá la vieja where we learned about the indigenous cultures of Panamá. We then toured the area of Panamá City first settled by the Spaniards and founded by Vasco Nuñez de Balboa in 1519 known as Panamá la vieja. After lunch, we made a stop at the monument to Balboa (which is located in between the modern and colonial areas Panama City) and headed on to Panamá colonial.

After our tour of Panama City, it was off to the Panama Canal. Of the three sets of locks, today we visited the Miraflores Locks, on the Pacific side of the canal. Watching those HUGE freighters barely fitting through the locks is an amazing sight.

After visiting the Miraflores Locks it was off to a local artisan market, dinner, and back to the hotel for some much needed relaxation.

Day 3: Portobelo

Today we left the hotel at 8am for Portobelo, a small town on the Caribbean side of Panamá. As we passed through the Panamanian countryside we made a short stop along the old Camino de Cruces, which was used by the Spaniards to transport gold from the Pacific to the Caribbean in Panama's early days. We stopped at the Gatun Locks of the Panama Canal (on the Caribbean side) before arriving in Portobelo. In Portobelo we visited the "Church of the Black Christ" and an old Spanish fort, San Jerónimo. After heading back to Panama City we did some shopping at a local mall and headed back to the hotel for dinner.

Day 4: El Valle de Antón and Playa Blanca

We crossed over the Bridge of the Americas on our way to Anton Valley, named after Antón Martín, the Spaniard who explored the area. This was the first area of Panama to emerge from the sea. We were able to see Sleeping India Mountain (la india dormida) before we did some quick zip-lining through one of the canopies. We also stopped at some thermal springs...unfortunately, due to the rain, we didn't stay too long. After lunch we drove one hour (more) to our hotel in Playa Blanca. WOW! What a hotel! We spent the rest of the day lounging by the pools, seeing a show, and dancing the night away.

Day 5: On the Road to David

After spending a leisurely morning at our fabulous hotel in Playa Blanca we boarded our bus for a five hour ride to David. We stopped in the city of Santiago for a rest (and to watch some World Cup Soccer) as we made our way there. We arrived in David around 7pm and checked into the Gran Hotel Nacional before having dinner and going out to see a movie...for $2.50!!

Day 6: Goodbye Panamá...Hello Costa Rica!

We left the hotel at 7:30am and drove one hour to the border crossing at Paso Canoas and met our new guide, Óscar. Let me just say that making a land border crossing is an interesting experience, to say the least. After passing through Immigration on the Panamanian side you have to do the same thing on the Costa Rican side. It took us an hour and a half to leave Panamá...and about the same in Costa Rica. We finally were on our way at 10:45. Then we hit a police checkpoint fifteen minutes later! (Luckily we got right through.) We drove three hours to Dominical for lunch and had some time to enjoy the beautiful Pacific Ocean. Some of the kids even played soccer on the beach with some locals. We continued on along the "Coastal Highway" (it gives new meaning to the word highway) as we crossed four "Oh my God" bridges (look at the pictures and you'll see what I mean) and THROUGH a river. We arrived at our hotel, just outside of Quepos, at 4:30 and relaxed the rest of the day.

Day 7: Zip-lining and the Beach

This morning most of the group went zip-lining. With 14 platforms and 11 lines (the longest one over 1400 feet) it was a great time! After lunch at our hotel we spent the afternoon at the beach and then headed back to the hotel for the evening.

Day 8: Manuel Antonio National Park

We left the hotel at 8am for El parque nacional Manuel Antonio. After taking a rowboat to the park entrance (due to high tide and a tropical storm in the Caribbean effecting the Pacific) we walked through the park, admiring nature. Some of us hiked to the top of the Punta Catedral while others decided to walk to the beach. Us hikers saw some white-faced Capuchin monkeys and some other critters as we descended the Point.

After Manuel Antonio, we made our way to San José. We stopped at El Jardín for lunch where we got to see a toucan, up close and personal. Before arriving in San José we stopped at an artisan cooperative to do a little shopping. After checking in to the hotel it was off to dinner and then to bed.

Day 9: A little bit of everything!

We started our day by visiting a coffee plantation where we had the opportunity to see a real Costa Rican ox cart. After that we headed to the Poás Volcano. Unfortunately, due to the fog, we were unable to visit. We saw some great waterfalls though, on our way to our white-water rafting adventure down the Sarapiquí river. After lunch and rafting, we stopped in the city of Heredia so the students would have an opportunity to "explore" a city on their own. Heredia is a very nice city. Back to the hotel after that...our final night in Costa Rica!

Day 10: The LONG Journey Home!

We boarded our bus at 4:45 am to leave for the airport. We departed San José at 8:05am and arrived back in Newark later in the afternoon. After a slight delay in Newark (three hours sitting on the runway due to storms over Cleveland) we were rerouted over Buffalo and on our way home. We touched down in Detroit around 11:30pm. What a day! This was a great trip and I can't wait to get back to these two countries!!!!

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This page was last updated 08/26/07.