Month: mei 2009

May 23. A night at a blue concrete bench.
Happiness suddenly strikes me (like a warm gun) when I have breakfast in a tiny San José lunchroom. Over coffee, juice, eggs and toast I dream away. The heads of the people here are taken from a movie. I can't remember which one, but they definitely appear in some movie. Perhaps it's The Gothfather, or ...
May 22. Tampa-man
At the border with Costa Rica, a connection to San José is waiting for us. It's business as usual: we get through the immigration smoothly with our western passports where some locals are thoroughly checked. The immigration takes some patience, but after two hours we can continue our voyage. The Costarican countryside we drive through ...
May 21. On a slow boat to China?
According to my plan, I will hitchhike on a slow boat to China. The means to that end is a stubborn and tenacious sojourn in the port. So I leave the hostel in the morning and take a bus to the Puerto Balboa. Balboa is the discoverer of Panama and the namegiver of many things. ...
May 20. Entering Panama.
When I wake up and climb out of my sarcophagus berth we have already anchored. We've arrived at mainland Panama. Mainland! We stuff our luggage in the dinghy, row to the dock and strap our backpacks back on. I talk to a strongly tattooed girl on a big Katamaran. She has just introduced herself overzealously ...
May 19. Exploring an island with one palmtree on it.
Today, we will have lunch on the Kuna island again. We will have the same menu as yesterday, and - if we would have been Kunas - as everyday. But we are no Kunas. Tomorrow we will have lunch in an American foodcourt eating french fries and hamburgers. Tomorrow the Kuna will eat fried fish, ...
May 18. Exploring an island with six palmtrees and a shipwreck.
Our immigration is delayed one day for reasons of no importance. Meanwhile, we set sail to another Kuna island where we anchor on a nice spot and relax yet another beautiful day long. There are a few Kuna families living on this island, and the deal is that they cook us lunch. Before that we ...
May 17. Of huts and coconuts.
We get up with the sunrise and row back to the Koala. It's only 8am when we have some breakfast and sail for some ten minutes to another island we readily agree to call "Monkey Island 2". This time, we start building shelters. DJ swiftly erects some fragile structure with palmleaves and a flagpole with ...
May 16. San Blas, Narcisso, and Monkey Island.
Big red starfish, the pristine beaches of small deserted islands surrounded by turqoise water, rippling like millions of natural mirrors. It's so beautiful here! We arrive in the San Blas archipelago. Fabien anchors next to a large catamaran, close to a fairy tale palmtree island. We can dive in the water now, and explore the ...
May 16. The farce of frustration and… dolphins!
This is day two at sea; I remain clamped to my pillow like a brittle mollusk to a slippery rock. Poor me... But behold, I will be rewarded the next day. Oh that next day, what a day it will be. Why haven't I done this - earlier in life? There is a bit of ...