The picture below was taken from the main intersection in town on Isla Colon. Three blocks away you can see a gate. Beyond that gate is the runway. The young men walking in that direction are going to the airport so they can be there when the next flight arrives. They´re touts, people who 'help' arriving tourists finding lodging, tours, etc.
I finished my Advanced Open Water scuba certification today. I went on my first night dive last night, which I can´t say I really enjoyed. It was pretty spooky, and I burned through my air pretty quickly. Today I went on my first shipwreck dive, which was more to my liking. I saw a school of squid, maybe 200 or so, the largest group my instructor has ever seen.
I have 2 days left in Central America. Saturday I leave the island for Panama City, then fly to Marrakech, Morocco the following day. As tough as it can be communicating in a Spanish-speaking country, at least I can sound out the words. In Morocco I won't even be able to read the alphabet. I bought a book-CD combination for Arabic so that I can at least say the key phrases. Then I need to do the same in Russian. And Mongolian. And Mandarin. And Thai...
You can only get to Bocas by boat or plane. I flew in, but I´ve heard that the boat ride to-from Changuinola is beautiful, through canals used by the old banana plantations. It´s $6 for an hour boat ride. So I looked into what it would cost to fly from there as compared to here. The cost is the same. And the flight from Changuinola connects here (after a 15-minute flight). So I´m taking the boat to Changuinola, then flying back here, then flying to Panama City. Not the way I would have planned it!
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