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| I am wearing my Imperial brotank |
Other than that first day
of crisp fall air, there is absolutely nothing better than morning salty
breezes. I found a fishnet hammock between two postcard-perfect palms by our
cabaña, and settled in to watch the beginnings of the day.
Down the sandy road
I could smell breakfast getting started by Yoany, the lady who, with her
husband, owned the restaurant/bar where we ate all our meals. They had been
hosting CIEE groups like ours for 15 years! The bay stretched out along
my right side, the blue waters turning turquoise as the sun got higher in the
sky.
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| Talamanca Mountain Range--looks like Alaska, right?? |
Framed by perfect blue mountains, the scene looked straight out of a “Come
visit Alaska!” commercial. There was a little rasta boat bobbing just over my
right shoulder, and to my left white sand formed the front yards of the little
cabañas where my friends were still sound asleep. It amazes me how over the
course of a couple months, this group of 21 complete strangers has truly come
to feel like not only friends, but also family. We have shared every meal,
every waking moment together, and I’m still not sick of them (how many families
can say that?). Although we’ve never really put roots down anywhere, in fact on
this 2nd field trip I never slept in the same bed for more than
three nights, wherever I am with this group feels like a home. Eladio’s tiny
little barn, the station in Monteverde, wherever we’re based takes on the role
of “home” when our group fills it up.
I could keep going, but at this point in my journal
the sentimental musings end. All that is written is “SAND FLEAS!” in a hasty
script. With that mental trigger I can remember my horror at realizing that the
little buggers were devouring the skin exposed on my hip, where my brotank had
ridden up when I laid in the hammock. At that point I remember flipping myself
out of the hammock (always the picture of grace) and sprinting down the road to
where I could smell coffee.
Later that morning, some of us climbed back on the
boats for more snorkeling. Others headed down to Bocas del Toro, the
commercialized “spring break-esque” side of our island (us snorkelers were to
join them later). It was some of the most beautiful snorkeling of my life.
The sand was still settling from the rainstorm the night before, so from the
surface where I was floating the coral all seemed subdued. However, I got my
mermaid on and spent the morning diving down for closer looks. It’s amazing how
many little fish live in the nooks and crannies of the coral, which itself is a
living thing! I saw dozens of parrotfish, a couple Dory’s (Nemo was nowhere to
be found), many jelly fish, and hundreds of other creatures that I don’t know
the names of. Reefs are truly teeming with life and beauty!
Near lunchtime we all piled back into our boats,
myself resuming my princess position on the prow once again, and we jetted off
to Bocas del Toro. I’m sure the place transforms in to a hoppin’ party zone,
but while we were there, in the revealing light of day the place just looked
like a dirty tourist trap. It was filled with crummy hostels and hotels, it’s
docks crowded with sketchy looking bars. Most places were under construction,
leading to piles of scraps and who knows what in the streets. Our group picked
our way around, shopping a little at the stands and finding our own lunch.
Before I knew it, brotanks were everywhere.  |
| Sarah, Aki, Julia, Hannah, Caitlin, and Logan--all sporting the brotank. |
Almost all the boys in our
group and several of the girls had purchased their own, proclaiming Panama’s
finest brews from their chests. We wound our way through the sandy streets,
waving at the old rasta men trying to sell us weed and found our
teachers in the central park (read construction zone). They escorted us to a
local religious shrine—a little spring coming from the mouth of a cave. Nodding
at the statue of the Virgin Mary, we all passed into the cave. Apparently,
Jesus really like bats because in the cave were hundreds of them! We learned all about Phyllostomus discolor and Artebeus jamaicensis while dodging falling guano. Stumbling and feeling our way
through the darkness we ended up in the stream (read: water and guano soup) up
to our waists. Fleeting light came when our resident
bat expert, Dr. Richard Lavall would briefly shine his flashlight up at the
harems of bats. Soaking wet up to our waists we emerged from the caves, piled
into some taxis, and headed back to our pristine Bocas del Drago.
That day was actually our academic director, Alan’s,
birthday! Since he became director of this program 20 some years ago, he has
celebrated every birthday on the beach with CIEE groups. We were honored to
share his 52nd birthday with him, him and the best seafood dinner
I’ve ever eaten—lobster tails, shrimp sautéed with vegetables, and a mix of
calamari and who knows what. Yes Dad, I sampled all of it (and liked
pretty much everything!). Once we had all eaten our fill (and then some) the
beer and rum started flowing. I cashed in on my prizes from the dares in
Tirimbina, and we began to play our favorite card game—Wizard. All of a sudden
there was a calypso band setting up, and we ended up dancing long in to the
night, wading in the ocean every time the band took a “smoke” break (and being
a band of rasta men, those breaks were frequent). In the morning we packed up our belongings, said
goodbye to our precious cabañas, and boarded the bus for San Jose.
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| The bridge connecting the 2 countries |
We made it across the border and to San Jose without
much fuss, and spent the night in the Hotel Balmoral, where we had all spent
our first two days of the semester back in August. How different everything
seemed now that we all knew each other! We spent time recalling our first
impressions of each other, wandering around the city, and catching up with our
families on the lobby computers. Now that we weren’t so focused on meeting each
other, we really got to absorb the city as we walked around finding food.
Hannah, Julia and got empanadas and churros from a street vendor and returned to
the Balmoral, enjoying long hot showers, watching Law and Order reruns (in
English!) and falling asleep early. Hannah and I tried to make superbed
again, but sadly the Balmoral had chosen furniture that made this impossible.
In the morning we went out in San Jose again,
wandering around buying souvenirs, trying to find a place to pierce Hannah’s
nose, and practicing our Spanish. Pretty soon 1pm rolled around and we boarded
our bus for Monteverde. Although we never found a place to pierce Hannah’s
nose, I did find a ring to replace the cartilage piercing I’d lost in the
ocean. There’s no chance this thing will fall out of my ear because it requires
the use of pliers to clamp it shut! Being a resourceful group, and one liking
immediate gratification, I borrowed a pocketknife with a pliers attachment from
one of the boys, and Hannah set to work getting the ring in my ear…on the
moving bus.
When the rocking of the bus proved too much for Hannah, Jake jumped
in to help. Brandon tried, our TA’s Maricela and Moncho gave their best shot,
but nobody could compete with the swaying of the bus. So I sat with the ring
halfway through my ear all the way to Monteverde. After many other shenanigans
involving the ring, finally my friends Logan and Maddy were able to clamp it
shut.
Q: how many college students does it take to put in
a cartilage earring?
A: approximately 12.
Never have I ever been so grateful that I’d
remembered to q-tip my ears the night before!
Our next days in Monteverde passed quickly with class
and Spanish lessons every day. We studied all the things we’d learned on the
field trip late into the night, and before we knew it, the exam arrived. After
an excruciating morning of testing, we realized the truth—we were about to be
separated from each other! Throughout the afternoon we packed up our belongings, spent the night celebrating the end of our exam, and prepared to move in with our homestay families the next morning.
As usual, another fabulous blog.
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