The canals of Tortuguero

August 29, 2024 by Riley Knight

I started my morning ready for my canoe tour of the Tortuguero canals. If I had this to do again, I would have done a few things differently. First, I would have preferred to be on a boat with an outboard motor and maybe a bit larger. I also wouldn’t have volunteered to sit up front if I knew I would be paddling the entire time, that was not communicated until we were already away from the dock. Setting those things aside, this was a unique experience through the canals, that affords one the ability to observe the scenic beauty, the landscapes and the great exuberance of both the vegetation and the animals that are found in this region.

One significant benefit of going by canoe is that you can coast up to wildlife relatively quietly and get close to see them and take photos. In most cases I was able to capture great images with very minimal use of the zoom feature from my cellphone camera. I think that alone speaks to the nature of how intimate this experience is and hopefully the photos below help to showcase that to you. As we left the main dock and got across the main span of water we started to see various birds first. The anhingas were quite common but that didn’t reduce my excitement to see them throughout the tour. The Northern Jacana has an interesting personality, always trying to show off it’s agility with quick subtle movements through the water.

As we got further away from the open water where there were trees and other foliage, we started to see reptiles. Lizards were above and to our sides and caimans in the water. Iguanas are also pretty common but to see them so chill in their natural environment was a treat.

The Basiliscus, commonly referred to as the Jesus Crist lizard were gorgeous. I would have loved to see one walking on water but I will take seeing them this close as a close second place. It’s really amazing how much the guides see and can point out.

Further into the canals, we saw a unique bird (below to the left), the boat-billed heron. I really enjoyed being able to spend some time checking these out, especially since they are so vastly different from other herons. And then we started seeing the caimans. At first I thought I would be intimidated by these majestic species, but they kept to themselves and it almost felt like they enjoyed being watched.

All the plants were large and many had roots coming down from the canopy to lock them into edge of whatever soil they found when they became situated. The buttress roots from the base and the canopy or arboreal roots from the limbs serve to stabilize and take in resources.

Some caimans chilling just at the surface. These are two great examples of using camouflage and/or environment to reduce your visibility.

So many different type of plants and they change as you go in and out of different parts of the canal system.

Parque Nacional Tortuguero

August 28, 2024 by Riley Knight

One of the most remote locations in Costa Rica, Parque Nacional Tortuguero is only accessible by boat or plane. I was off to an early start having taken a 4:00AM shuttle from Antigua, Guatemala to the airport to fly back to Costa Rica. Once back in Costa Rica, I was off to pickup my car rental. There are plenty of ways to get around in Costa Rica and ultimately you should do what feels right for you given your budget, timeline and comfort zone. While researching and planning this trip, I had seen all forms of transportation suggestions in example trip itineraries and landed on renting a car so I could have as much flexibility in where I could go over the course of the 13 days I rented the car. I had initially planned to have the rental for the remainder of my trip, but my Airbnb host in San Jose (the last part of my trip) suggested that I would not need a car if I was staying within San Jose as Uber made the entire city very accessible. I’m glad I took that suggestion, because it afforded me many unique opportunities to engage locals when requesting rides (more about my time in San Jose in later posts).

Once I got my rental, I hit the road traveling east where I would be taking a ferry boat from La Pavona to Parque Nacional Tortuguero. The park is a haven for turtle activity, protection, and conservation with 4 different species: Green, Leatherback, Hawksbill, and Loggerhead turtles coming to nest at its beaches. Declared a national park in 1970, its boundaries have been modified three times (1980, 1995, and 1998) to incorporate more territory. Its area has increased from 64,701.45 to 76,937 hectares. Of these, 50,284 are marine and 26,653 are terrestrial.

Of the terrestrial area, 99% is used for the absolute protection of resources and 1% is used as a visitor site. The marine area is 100% dedicated to absolute conservation.

The park is one of Costa Rica's main tourist attractions due to its international recognition for protecting the most important green turtle nesting beach in the Western Hemisphere.

Aerial view of Parque Nacional Tortuguero

After more than 3 hours of driving I finally made it to La Pavona. I was late due to my plan landing late at SJO and was reminded by the parking attendant that I was late. He said if I parked and could be ready in 5 minutes that he could get me on the last ferry that was about to leave and mainly was carry locals and supplies. I hustled to park and grab my stuff so I wouldn’t miss this opportunity.

Once aboard the ferry, I was able to relax and catch my breathe. I had been driving fast to get there when I did and just barely made it! The boat ride to Tortuguero was very pleasant and gave me the chance to take in the lush tropical forest while attempting to survive the insane humidity (my least favorite part of the area, but worth it nonetheless).

San Francisco is one of the small local communities along the way to where I was going

Map of the region I was staying in Tortuguero

Finally, we pulled up to my stop and I got off the boat. There were locals standing around welcoming people as they got off the boats and helped to direct people. Whether it was lack of specific direction or me just being fairly drained, I did not hear where I needed to go so I walked to the giant map and looked for my hotel on the legend. It was getting dark and my hotel while listed by title in the map legend, had no number on the map which made for an additional challenge in finding the hotel. Some of the locals spoke English, but many had limited English skills and despite trying to explain what I was looking for it took me some time before I finally stumbled across my hotel which was not well marked even at the entrance. The dim lighting in general also made it challenging to find things but once I set my bags down and got situated I was able to better navigate. My main goal was to get checked in so I could make my turtle nesting tour on time. This is the one activity I do not have pictures of, because you are not allowed to take pictures, or even have lights during the tour as it can startle the turtles and they will retreat back into the water and not finish the nesting process.

This was the sign for my lodging that more or less blended in and I obviously missed

Full transparency, I didn’t take the photos of the turtles nesting below for obvious reasons.

Female turtle moving sand to prepare a nest

Our group hiked in the dark only using red lights along the trail that runs adjacent to the beach until we got to our waiting area. We sat down and our guide let us know that there were a couple spotters combing the beach looking for turtles that were nesting. Because they can be easily spooked by light and sound, the practice is to minimize human presence during this time and once the spotter located a turtle on the beach, they wait for the turtle to be far enough along in the process before signaling to the group that is waiting nearby. The holes they dig for their nests are easily the same size as the turtle, if not a bit bigger so it can take some time for them to stage the nest. Once they have dug the hole, they basically hold themselves in a hover position while laying the eggs as to not crush them. After all the eggs are laid, the female turtle starts the process of backfilling sand around the eggs and carefully packing them in so they do not get crushed or eaten.

When we got to the beach only the guide was allowed to use a red light so we had to stay nearby. We were broken up into small groups where we would carefully and silently approach the turtle, watch for a few mins then our group would move to the back of the line. Small groups kept this rotation over and over until the turtle was done so we were all able to see the different parts of the process over time. It was a beautiful and unique experience that I will forever treasure. I’m glad I started this blog up, as it has given me a way to document that night and have this written account to relive whenever I choose.

After it was all over, we hiked back towards our starting point. Along the hike back our guide spent some time pointing out some animals that he could find and we were allowed to take pictures if we desired.

When I got back to my hotel, I wasn’t up long before I passed out.

Antigua Guatemala - Day 2 (PM post)

Hobbitenango

August 27, 2024 by Riley Knight

As I was rounding out the last part of my time in Guatemala, I had two more locations to see. While I’m generally not a fan of touristy attractions, Hobbitenango was actually pretty nice. I purchased a trip that involved riding an ATV up the mountain and included entrance to Hobbitenango with plenty of time to roam around on my own. Translated to English the name of this park is Place of Hobbits. The views from the top of the mountain were breathtakingly beautiful. The hobbit shire theme of the park was quaint and it made for a fun late afternoon/early evening activity. To get to the activity I walked across town and got to enjoy more buildings and bright blue sky along the way.

Motorcycles and scooters are very common in Guatemala

An example of street signs attached to the building

I thought this alley way arch was interesting. It is located adjacent to: 20 Alameda de Santa Lucia, Antigua

Motorcycles along Alameda de Santa Lucia

The structure on the roof was interesting and I didn’t know what it was. It can be found at: 18 Lotificacion la Recoleccion, Antigua

Various properties I saw on Lotificacion la Recoleccion during my walk back to the hotel

Various properties I saw on Calle de Chajón during my walk to Antigua Rides for my ATV and Hobbitenango experience

Once I got across town, I made it to where the ATV company was and signed some paperwork then we were on our way up the mountain. The first stop was about 1/2 way up the hill at Vuelta Grande were there were some vendors and bathrooms. When I got off the ATV and walked through this area, I really started to get the feel of being in another world, but this was just a teaser, as I would come to learn once we ascended to the top of the mountain.

This is also where you board the shuttle to Hobbitenango. The road from here up to is super narrow with just enough room for one vehicle and the drivers are weaving these large shuttles through the narrow hillside road effortlessly. It was both terrifying and impressive especially since on the way up they did it all in reverse!

At the top of the mountain, we got out of the shuttle and entered this incredible place where we were transported to the world of hobbits. You can take photographs at the viewpoints, play in the medieval fair, jump on the giant swing and appreciate the views of the Agua, Fuego and Acatenango volcanoes. There are also vendors selling different food and souvenirs. Hobbitenango also offers logging options where you can rent hobbit houses.

Panoramic view at the entrance to Hobbitenango

Mural painted on a bench. This is where I enjoyed my ice cream and had a dog visitor (see far left of photo where he is climbing the stairs)

Overlooking the stone hand of Colossus with Volcan Pacaya in the distance

Murals were everywhere, this one was painted on a concrete retaining wall

Panoramic with the stone hand of Colossus in the foreground and Volcans Pacaya and Atitlán in the distance

Another beautiful mural and vista approach

Local farms in the foreground and Volcans Pacaya and Atitlán in the distance

Standing on the stone hand of Colossus with Volcan Pacaya on the left and Volcan Atitlán on the right

Ultimate photo spot, it even has the name plate hanging above

Panoramic of the inside of the hobbit house

coffee before heading back down the mountain

This place was a lot of fun to explore, but all things come to an end and it was time for us to board the shuttle again to go down the mountain. When we got to the ATVs it was a fun downhill ride. I noticed both on the ride up and again on the way back, that the entrance to Cerro de la Cruz was not very far from where we would be taking the ATVs back.

This was an extra stop that I had wanted to see, primarily for the view of the city. When you look at maps, sometimes the distances between places can be deceptive, especially when there are hikes that incorporate serpentine paths to climb uphill. In hindsight, it’s a bit hilarious that I thought I would be able to walk from my hotel in the morning and would be there in 30 minutes. I might have been able to get to the entrance within that time but there is no way I would have had the time to do this based on how I had initially planned for seeing this location. That said, I was pretty tired and the sun was going to be setting within the hour so I made the call and decided to go for it. This was my last day/night in Antigua after all and I would be catching a shuttle back to the airport at 4:00AM the following morning so this was truly my last opportunity to see this site.

first landing area patrolled by police, the view only gets better the more you climb up the hill

Cerro de la Cruz overlooking Antigua below

While I would have loved to enjoy the view a while longer, it was getting dark quick and I was on foot. Not only did I have to walk back down to the entrance but also across town to my hotel and find some dinner on the way. But it was nice to check this off my Antigua bucket list.

what was suppose to be an ice coffee (it wasn’t cold)

Antigua Guatemala - Day 2 (AM post)

Parque Central de Antigua

August 27, 2024 by Riley Knight

I woke up early enough to have some time to walk around and grab breakfast before my 3 hour Colonial & Culture Walking Tour with The Tour Guide Guy (+502 4948 7363). Another beautiful day in Antigua and decided to have breakfast at Café Condesa.

Hitting the streets of Antigua on my way to breakfast

Sitting by the fountain in a open-air courtyard for breakfast was lovely

After a nice breakfast and some time to relax, I was off again. I was meeting my tour guide, Gerardo in front of the restaurant I ate at, but had some time to kill, so I crossed the street to Parque Central Antigua to walk around. There is a mix of manicured and more natural growing trees and other plants as well as a beautiful large fountain in the middle. This is the main park where indigenous women bring their handmade craft items and other souvenirs. I looked around but had committed to myself not to purchase anything until after my tour to reduce what I had to carry with me for my 3-hour tour. I did meet a friendly indigenous vendor, Ruth who happened to be from the same town as my tour guide, I ended up buying some items from her when my tour was over.

Finally it was time for my tour to start, so I walked back across the street to meet with my guide, Gerardo. I want to start off by saying how friendly and knowledgeable he is about the city, sites, and country. If you find yourself in Antigua, I would say this is a must-do activity! I ended up being the only person on the tour which made it an even better deal and allowed me to request Gerardo give the tour in Spanish so I could practice. This was the first time I made such a request to have an immersive Spanish experience and I’m really glad I did it, especially so early in my 3-week trip. I was able to follow about 95% of what he was saying and had to speak English for a couple of things but otherwise it was refreshing to really use my language skills and grow my confidence in them. This led to me make similar requests with other activities on my trip as the opportunities came up.

The tour as advertised had 8 sites/attractions but we saw far more. There is so much to see in between locations and Gerardo was willing to share about it all. First we walked over to Parque Central because there were multiple sites that wrapped around the park. We started in the middle of the park to see and talk about the Fuente de las Sirenes or Fountain of the Sirens. Next, we walked to the southern side of the park to see the Real Palacio de los Capitanes Generales or Royal Palace of the Captains General. Then walked to the north side of the park to see the Palacio del Ayuntamiento or City Hall. Finally, we moved east to the Catedral de San José or San José Cathedral Antigua.

Located on the east side of the Main Square, you will find the Cathedral that now houses the Parish of San José. Completed in 1680 under the direction of Master Architect Joseph de Porras and Captain Martín de Andújar, the Cathedral suffered major damage in the earthquake of 1773. Left idle until partial restoration of the entrance, baptistry, and two chapels began in the mid 1800s. Regular mass services are conducted here daily. You can view the ruins of the Cathedral of Santiago through the entrance on the south side. Inside Catedral San José, there was a lot to see and to learn about the history of this structure that had been rebuilt and/or repaired multiple times over the centuries as a result of damage incurred namely from earthquakes in the region. There is also a somewhat unique figure of Jesus in this location that Gerardo shared a very interesting story about it.

Black Jesus. The story goes that when the Spanish were in Guatemala they would make fun of the indigenous people telling them that God didn't love them and that it was obvious because the indigenous people didn't have a Jesus/God with the same skin color as them. This made them sad so they went to speak to their spiritual leader who suggested they host a celebration of their faith so that God could show them his love. The result was that they came up with this image of black Jesus. It's believed the black color was a result of soot from the fire at their celebration and it stuck.

On our way to the next location, we walked past Universidad Pontificia de San Carlos. This was not one of our stops but I was able to grab a picture and see through the open doorway into their courtyard.

We then walked around to the rear of Catedral San José where we were able to see through some iron gates to view the Ruinas de La Antigua Catedral Metropolitana de Santiago de Los Caballeros de Guatemala. You can pay to go in and get a closer experience, but I was fine with the quick glance and it allow us to see so much more over the full tour.

Ruinas de La Antigua Catedral Metropolitana de Santiago de Los Caballeros de Guatemala

The next stop was the Iglesia Santo Hermano Pedro de San José Betancur and the Obras Sociales del Santo Hermano Pedro. Santo Hermano Pedro was most known as founder of the first Hospital for the poor in colonial times. Many would follow his lead to provide hospital services to indigent communities.

Iglesia Santo Hermano Pedro de San José Betancur and Obras Sociales del Santo Hermano Pedro

From there, we walked through Parque Union where Tanque la Unión is located on the east side of the park. This historic gathering place was used by people to wash their clothes during colonial times. There are wash basins and circular cutouts for soap. People would travel all day from the surrounding communities to access this facility. It’s hard to imagine in an era with washing machines and technology the idea of traveling so far with your laundry, but this site has stood the test of time and when you are standing there looking at the water pool, it’s not that hard to see why people would come down from the mountains to socialize and use this site with others in the region.

Tanque La Unión looking out on Parque Union

Heading south a block, we reached the 18th-century Ruinas de Convento Santa Clara or Santa Clara Convent Ruins. If you want to enter the site there is a fee, but you can see some of the site from the outside if you are on a budget or don’t have the time. Again I was happy to see what I saw and move on to the next stop.

Convento Santa Clara (this is the only decretive entrance facing the South in Antigua) this is contained within the convent.

Same as previous image except zoomed out

Down one and over one more block to the southeast, we ended up at the Iglesia San Francisco el Grande & Museo del Hermano Pedro. San Francisco el Grande, is one of the churches visited by parishioners for their devotion to Saint Brother Pedro. In this place we toured the church and also visited the tomb of Santo Hermano Pedro.

Depiction of Harmano Pedro inside Iglesia San Francisco el Grande

Images inside Iglesia San Francisco el Grande

Me in front of Iglesia San Francisco el Grande

The alter inside Iglesia San Francisco el Grande

Tree in a courtyard in honor of Hermano Pedro

From here, we started heading north up to Casa del Jade or the Jade Museum. In this wonderful museum I learned a little about the Mayans, their relationship and belief with the valuable Jade stone. The tour was with staff at the museum and well worth it. After the tour there was time to look at the store and purchase items if you wanted to. I ended up with 2 lavender jade stones that I plan to have made into rings. After we left Casa del Jade, we went to Mercado Artesanias el Carmen where there were dozens of stalls and traders selling a wide selection of handicrafts, souvenirs, artwork, and clothing. The vendors are very friendly and will encourage you to buy items, even making suggestions, but ultimately if you tell them you are browsing and walk away they let you move on.

Obsidian on the left and Jade on the right

The last stop on our walking tour before heading back towards the center of town was Casa Santo Domingo. This is a luxury hotel built around the ruins of a 16th-century Dominican monastery that was destroyed in the 18th century by a series of earthquakes.

Ruinas de Convento e Iglesia de Santo Domingo

By this point we were nearing the end of the tour but still had a couple last stops including Arco de Santa Catalina and Iglesia la Merced. Since we were running close on time and I had seen both of these before the tour I asked if instead Gerardo might suggest where I could purchase some good quality local coffee beans in town, as I didn’t have time to travel to any of the surrounding coffee farms. He walked me to a café where he knew the staff who helped me select some beans. From there, we walked back to the starting point and parted ways. I then went to check out the souvenirs that were in Parque Central and met up with Ruth (the vendor from earlier in the morning) and got a bunch of nice handmade items. Before I left the park, I couldn’t resist and got some fresh ice cream then walked back to my hotel to drop off my bags, clean up and get ready for my next adventure.

Antigua Guatemala - Day 1

Starbucks Antigua

August 26, 2024 by Riley Knight

On 8.26.24 I left Panama for Guatemala. Once I got to the Guatemala City airport (GUA), I waited for a shuttle bus to Antigua, an UNESCO site with tons of history and culture. There is a small café outside the entrance of the airport where you can wait and grab a bite to eat. I will say I’m glad I didn’t try driving in Guatemala, because most of the drivers between Guatemala City and Antigua were crazy (or at least their driving skills were). It was a bit stressful of a ride but definitely better than having to navigate it myself. Another nice aspect of being a passenger is that you can take photos or just take in the scenery. There was a nice inner-city park, Parque las Americas that we drove around in Guatemala City while picking up other riders on their way to Antigua and stops in between. We were on the road for about 1 1/2 hours until we arrived in Antigua. Having never been to Guatemala before, the distinction of where Antigua begins is when you start to feel the cobblestone roads. The drivers just plow through the uneven surfaces like tires are nothing, I learned to really appreciate flat surfaced roads after that ride.

Arriving in Antigua is like finding yourself in a completely different place. The building are brightly painted and the rooflines are low which makes the sky visible from just about every part of the city. The contrast of bright blue sky and bright white clouds against the buildings is beautiful even if the buildings themselves in many cases are nothing fancy. I don’t think I have ever seen a sky so vividly blue as it is in Antigua. But don’t let the exterior fool you about what can be inside. There is a Starbucks in Antigua that is phenomenal, full of murals and luxurious seating in an back outdoor landscaped patio. You would never know it from the outside of the building.

My first activity I had scheduled was an Artisan Shoemaking & Leather Craft Tour. I walked from where the shuttle dropped me off to the meetup location and waited, then waited some more and eventually learned that the business had canceled my tour without letting me know and it seemed like they went out of business. Viator.com gave me a refund. I highly recommend that site to find activities and tours run by locals. Most of my trip activities I booked through them and it made things very easy to follow up on if/when a guide didn’t show up. Their customer service is top notch. Once I got my refund, I had time to kill before I could get into my hotel, so I went to Starbucks, which I had initially planned to check out the following day but figured it was an easy stop and afforded me the chance to get off my feet for a bit. The main counter is not that different from other Starbucks locations where you have pastries and the barista is making drinks along with some merchandise being sold. It’s when you step past the register and walk towards the station that usually has napkins, a garbage and before COVID is where you would find cream and sugar that things became different at this location. I invite you to look at the images above once more to see the outside of the store that doesn’t have the same overt branding and corporate signage as you will find in many other locations. Remember this is an UNESCO site so there are a lot of regulations that are upheld to maintain that status including things like not altering the architecture which to some degree really locks this place in time to an era when Spanish colonial buildings were being built in the region.

Mural in patio area of Starbucks Antigua

Outdoor patio of Starbucks Antigua. You have to walk into the building to get here so from the outside you would never know this is here. Along the paved perimeter of the patio there are doorways that lead to meeting rooms that provide additional seating options.

Eventually it was getting close to when I could get into my hotel room to drop my bags and get ready for my evening activity so I left Starbucks and began walking through the city towards my hotel. Along the way I saw a sign for Horchata de Morro, which I had wanted to try and thought I would have to wait until my layover in El Salvador (on my return flight home) to get. It was hot and the cold drink was appealing, even after having a sugary cold beverage at Starbucks. I stopped in this small café and enjoyed this drink. If you don’t know what morro is, don’t worry about it, I didn’t either before researching this trip. It is fruit from the Crescentia alata tree common in Mexico and Central America. It is popular in El Salvador to add the fruit to horchata as a variant.

Upon finishing the horchata I was back on my way and soon thereafter arriving at my hotel, Posada Maya where I dropped of my bags, took some time to cleanup and change to prepare for my evening plans. This hotel can be hard to find if you aren’t looking for it, as the entrance is very modest, but once inside it was very clean and felt open considering it has hostel size rooms. It was more than enough for my stay as I hadn’t planned to spend much time there.

When searching for things to check out in Antigua I found a private street food tour on viator.com with Direct Adventure (+502 3578 5830) that I decided to include in my plans. This was a fantastic activity for me, not just because I consider myself to be a foodie, but this gave me an opportunity to taste authentic Guatemalan food and have a guide share stories about the food and his childhood growing up having these items as well as knowing the vendors in some cases most of his life. The flavors were so rich that they exploded in your mouth after each bite or sip (in case of the atole).

Next to Santuario de San Felipe de Jesús (North Antigua)

Totasda de salpicón (from rural Northern Guatemala)

At Plazuela de Jocotenango across from Parroquia Nuestra Señora de la Asunción in Jocotenango (small city immediately north of Antigua)

Shucos de lomo - basically a Guatemalan hotdog

Parroquia Nuestra Señora de la Asunción during the day

In route between Jocotenango and Santa Ana, my guide pulled over to show me two nearby volcanos. Fuego Valcano (to the left) is very active and due to it’s frequent eruptions it’s common for people to park and watch them.

Volcan Fuego (left) and Volcan Acatenango (right)

Plazuela Santa Ana next to Templo de Nuestra Señora de Santa Ana (Southeast area of Antigua)

Buffalo sandwich - This amazing sandwich starts with toasted bread then adds: beans, meat, onions, cabbage, ranch dressing, and a cilantro garlic mix

Last stop back in Antigua

Once we finished our food I got dropped off back at my hotel. I stayed up long enough to stage my clothes for the following day and then got some rest.

A day in Panama City

France Square

August 25, 2024 by Riley Knight

Early morning 8.25.24, I arranged for my Airbnb host to drive me to the SJO airport to catch a flight to Panama City, roughly 2 ½ hours by plane (PTY airport). When I arrived I took an Uber to Casco Viejo or the Old Town district to get breakfast at a Creole restaurant I had researched, En La Fonda and to wait until I could gain access to my Airbnb in Panama to drop my bags. While I waited for a restaurant to open, I spent some time in a park next to the water where I was checking out this beautiful red flowering tree. It was nice to just sit in a public park taking in the morning as locals started their morning. Vendors were bringing setting up tables to sell various trinkets and residents were walking their dogs, meanwhile I felt like I blended into it all. It was very refreshing to just exist in the space without having to do much.

When the restaurant finally opened, I was the first customer ready to eat. I ordered steak with stewed vegetables which came with a type of corn bread and a limonada de panela to drink. The drink is actually Columbian in origin, but not really surprising considering Panama and Columbia share a border. My favorite part of the meal was the bread and the limonada. I appreciated the reasonable pricing, but I was attracted to the bright eclectic décor of the restaurant that was a bit loud and obnoxious but also fun.

After breakfast I was able to drop my bags off and relax some until leaving again to head to my ½ day Canal and Panama City tour. I found this tour on viator.com, the tour company was: CONOZCA PANAMÁ TOURS (+507 6676 6665). If I had more time in Panama City there were definitely things I would have checked out, but this tour was what I selected in order to get in as much as possible for the relatively short amount of time I would be in the country. There is a lot I could have done on my own in this tour, but I didn’t have a car in the country and it would have taken me much longer to find all these places, let alone have the relationships from being a part of the tourism industry to get to skip lines at the Canal. The Canal was where we spent the most time but what was nice about this tour was we got to see many other important sites and have a guide that gave us tons of information and historical context. I had thought that I would be placed with a larger group, as I didn’t pay for a private tour. It turns out there was only one other person on the tour with me and what are the odds, he was also from San Jose, California. It’s a small world!

These type of signs are all over Central America and make for great photos.

Having a guide take us through the Canal allowed us to go straight to the front of the line and skip the crowds waiting to get in. We were able to buy tickets directly from him and even got into the theater sooner to watch the documentary about the Canal before going out to watch the ships travel through the locks. This was in my opinion the way to experience this location.

Photo opportunity. The image behind me is of when the canal gets drained for inspections and repair.

There are 2 channels right next to each other that alternate, with a third for larger ships out of view from this location. The small vehicle in front of the water with the 119 on the back is a tug used to guide vessels through the Canal.

This is a vessel we watched go through the entire process of the locks, level by level. If you look closely you can see that the tugs are connected to the ship.

After leaving the Canal we drove to Casco Viejo and walked around seeing a bunch of sites there. Walking through the streets and looking at the old buildings we asked about how so many are in good condition and our guide explained the permit process for restoration standards whereby property owners have to keep the buildings in proper repair and maintain the esthetic appearance of the era for which the buildings were built. Because this is often more costly, he explained that the people who owned the buildings in better shape had the money to restore them and that there was a lot of national pride connected with maintaining the buildings and by proxy that pride was extended to those building owners.

We visited Paseo de Las Bóvedas, Placa conmemorativa Independencia, and Paseo Esteban Huertas all at the farthest tip of Old Town. It was nice to walk through an area where a bunch of vendors were selling their goods. Also the views of the city in the distance across the water made for some nice photo opportunities to capture the Panama City skyline.

Interesting door near Paseo de Las Bóvedas

We also spent time checking out the ruins of Iglesia Santo Domingo which is best known for its Arco Chato or Flat Arch spanning the interior that stood without supports for centuries. We got to this gem just as they were about to close for the day. If I had been on my own, the staff that oversee the site might not have let me in. I’ll never know since that wasn’t my experience, but I did get the sense that they were doing our guide a favor by letting us in to take a quick look. It’s those relationships that people develop as guides with locals and/or site operators that can provide unique access and opportunity that made it worth having a guided tour. There were definitely some activities on my trip that in hindsight I could have done on my own, but this one I am glad I did with a tour guide company and would recommend the same to others who are trying to see Panama City in the most efficient manner possible.

The Iglesia Santo Domingo has long been a crumbling brick ruins since being destroyed by fire in 1756. Despite the complete destruction of most of the site, what remains are three walls and a large interior arch that stands about 35 feet tall and spans roughly 49 feet across from one side to the other. Arco Chato has long been considered an architectural wonder highlighting the incomparable engineering of the colonial era. This structure has remained intact for multiple centuries and withstood two significant fires in 1737 and 1756. Despite the damage the fires caused in the area, the arch remained standing. Arco Chata eventually fell in 2003 and has since been resurrected.

There aren’t any supports, and the fact that it remained standing was one of the things that local advocates pointed to when talking up Panama City’s seismic stability when the choice for where to build a canal linking the Pacific and Atlantic oceans was down to a choice between Panama and Nicaragua.

According to an article published in Panama America in 2005, “Several versions have been woven over the years about the plights the architect of the construction endured. Legend tells of a Dominican friar who built the arch and, after failing twice to erect it, prayed beneath it to prevent it from collapsing a third time.
Other explanations claim that a second friar had a visionary dream about the arch, and when the supports were removed, it remained standing beneath it.”

Our final location on the tour was Metropolitan Cathedral Basilica of Santa Maria the Ancient. Some additional information about the Cathedral can be found at the corresponding Wikipedia page. The construction of this cathedral began in 1688 and was finally consecrated 108 years later in 1796. Entrance to the Cathedral is free, but they welcome donations that fund the upkeep of the site.

Metropolitan Cathedral Basilica of Santa Maria the Ancient and Plaza de la Cathedral in the foreground

After the tour, I stopped by the Airbnb again to change into different clothing. I took this picture from my room looking out at the City. Then grabbed another Uber back to Old Town for a salsa dancing class with Salsa Safari. Once the lesson was over the instructor took me to a local night club to apply what I learned. I ended up just watching because it was a bit overwhelming trying to get a sense of what the appropriate etiquette was and the last thing I wanted was to offend someone and get into an altercation. It was still fun to be in the space and take it all it. I also had an early flight in the morning to go to Guatemala so I decided to end the night early and return to my Airbnb to get some rest before taking to the air again.

View of the city from my Airbnb room as the day is ending, but I still had more activities.

I took a salsa dance lesson at Salsa Safari.

Freebies in San José, Costa Rica

Parque Nacional

August 24, 2024 by Riley Knight

After checking out the Museo Nacional de Costa Rica (still 8.24.24) , I walked around the adjacent neighborhood to check out some of the government buildings, look at the mural walk, see a variety of statues, and walk through Parque Nacional. I had been hoping that the park’s koi pond was up active but it was dried up and for obvious reasons devoid of fish. That said it was still nice to walk around some after the long flight and get exposed to the inner city vibe. The trees in Parque Nacional were lush and full of flowers. I loved hearing all the birds that were in the trees and seeing people enjoying the park.

The mural wall was quite interesting and reflected a variety of artist styles and talent. Although some of the murals were aging and the paint breaking down, it was a free art installation, so consider that fact when getting overly critical. Coming from San Jose, California where murals are sprinkled throughout the City, I appreciated that this mural wall was a contiguous wall of different murals that I could spend time viewing and be outside enjoying having arrived in Costa Rica for my first international solo trip.

Given the proximity of Parque Nacional and these other smaller sites, they made for an easy add-on to my earlier museum visit to round out my first day in the Country. Along this route there were some National Government buildings like their legislature building, which they call Blue Castle.

Plaza de la Democracia y de la Abolición del Ejército

Museo Nacional de Costa Rica

August 24, 2024 by Riley Knight

I arrived in San Jose, Costa Rica early afternoon, 8.24.24 flying into SJO. Given that I had an early morning flight the following morning to Panama City, I selected this museum for their overall historical content to inform myself in advance of my 3-week vacation in the country. This place was a great deal, I spent $11 for the entrance fee, which included being able to use a locker to store my luggage (2 backpacks and a medical device bag) as I had not yet checked into my lodging for the night. They have tons of history told through images and stories, as well as artifacts and even taxidermy animals unique to the region. This museum also has remnants of the prison that had been located at this site, with come example holding cells.

The thing that surprised me and delighted me the most, was the butterfly garden. Small but mighty, this space affords you the opportunity to walk among a myriad of butterfly species in the middle of the country’s capital city. I was fortunate enough to have a Blue Morpho butterfly land on my shoulder and was able to capture the moment in a selfie. While I had the opportunity to visit other larger butterfly gardens within the country, this was actually my favorite because you were able to get so close and walk among the butterflies freely without guides directing your movement. I could have easily spent more time here but wanted to see more in the surrounding neighborhood before the sun went down.

I was patient and it happened, a *Morpho menelaus* or commonly known as Blue Morpho butterfly landed on my shoulder.

After leaving the Museum and visiting some nearby free sites (see post) I had my first meal in Costa Rica at Restaurante Nuestra Tierra. I was going to order one of their large sample platters but was talked down by my server who explained it was far more food than I would need. They suggested a smaller dish that provided some sampler options and I have to say even that was a lot of food so I guess my eyes were bigger than my stomach after the travelling all day and finally settling in for some food. I had some interesting juice drinks with my food and got to face out towards the street and watch the city do its thing in front of me. There was also live music which was pleasant with the singer trying to get restaurant goers to sing along or at least engage them in some conversation. I was happy to not be called on and made sure to tip them.