Bocas del Drago and Starfish Beach

When Christopher Columbus arrived in Panama in 1502, he landed at Boca del Drago, on the northern tip of Isla Colon in the Bocas del Toro Archipelago. You’ll find it much easier to discover this same tropical beach today. For $5 (round trip) you can take a 40-minute bus ride from the park on Main Street in Bocas Town, across the island to Boca del Drago. (The schedule when I was there was Mon – Sat 6 am, 8 am, 11 am, 1 pm, 4 pm and 6 pm, return trips at 7 am, 10 am, 12 pm, 3 pm and 5 pm. Check current schedules). The bus travels a well-paved road through the farming and fishing community of the Ngobe Indians. As you pass by the picturesque thatched roof houses that are home to many of the 300 community members you may envy the serenity and simplicity of their lifestyle. But, keep in mind, for most, there is no electricity and water is hauled from creeks.  

I was awakened from my day dreaming by the sensation of pavement suddenly turning to sand. No, we hadn’t gone off the road, we had arrived at Boca del Drago. A short distance beyond the tourist restaurants, cabinas and gift shops there was a small dock with a boat waiting to take me and a few fellow travelers over to Playa de las Estrellas or Starfish Beach ($1.00). A few minutes later we were swimming in crystal clear waters with beautiful orange and red starfish. They were magnificent and plentiful, each measuring 6 to 8 inches. Palm trees and tropical vegetation offered shade along the pristine sandy beach and small beach bars offered lounge chairs and refreshments. Of course, there were drinks in coconuts. Just what the body needs after a little snorkeling with starfish. I decided to take the beach path back to the main settlement to catch the return bus. It’s about a 20 minute easy walk. Yes, my day at Starfish Beach was magical, I could have stayed for weeks.  

Exploring the Archipelago of Bocas del Toro

When you arrive in Costa Rica from the USA and many other countries, you are “stamped” in with a 90-day Visa. This means that every 3 months you need to find somewhere else to go for a few days before returning for another 90-day visit. Because of its proximity, the Archipelago of Bocas del Toro, Panama, is a very popular choice for many ex-pats and “virtual tourists” who reside in Costa Rica’s Southern Caribbean towns, like us. Local tour companies offer convenient shuttles that will take you by mini bus and boat all the way to the main town on Isla Colon, usually referred to simply as Bocas or Bocas Town ($20 to $33 USD). Or, you can take a local bus to the border (about $3), walk across the bridge to Panama and pick up a taxi to the boat docks in Almirante ($10) then a marine taxi over to Bocas Town ($5). However you get there, it is worth the trip.

Gordie was taking this opportunity to get his PADI Open Water Scuba Certification at Starfleet Scuba in the center of Bocas Town. Although it rained for much of the time we were there, he was up early every morning and in the water with his instructor every day to successfully complete the course.  This also meant that I was on my own to explore the islands in the rain.

Day one I took a trip by bus to the other end of Isla Colon to Starfish Beach. This trip deserved a story of its own. See related story.

Day two, I took a marine taxi over to Bastimentos Island ($3). Although this is one of the largest islands in Panama, a large portion of it is protected, being home to the Isla Bastimentos National Marine Park, and being home to the indigenous communities of Quebrada Sal and Bahia Honda. The settlement you can see from Bocas is a town simply known as Bastimentos. This was my destination for the day. Once in the boat we were handed sheets of cardboard to hold up in front of us as splash protection from the waves. It worked. I was pretty dry when I arrived. Spent a little time exploring the main street and looking around at a number of rustic hotels and bars that dotted the coast. Unfortunately the storm clouds were gathering – not rain clouds, but STORM clouds, so I decided to cut my trip a little short. Went back to the dock and within minutes another boat arrived to make the return trip to Bocas. To me, the waves were huge and crazy. To the gentleman sitting next to me, not so. He proceeded to tell me about his adventures sailing around the world and tales of waves more than 20 feet high. I guess that made me feel safer.

For my Day Three trip I went to Carenero Island. It is so close to Bocas that you can see numerous resorts and homes lining the shore. I hopped on a marine taxi, paid my $1 and was ready to go when the driver asked WHERE on Carenero I was going. Well, I hadn’t a clue. There was a couple on board who were also visiting and they suggested we go to the marina since that was probably in the center of things. Made sense to me. As it turns out, the marina was indeed close to the Cosmic Crab, a restaurant I had heard about. But, close does not necessarily mean accessible. We landed at the marina. Everything was closed. It was Sunday. I left my companions and started on a path toward the Cosmic Crab. Within minutes I landed on my hands and knees in some of the yuckiest, smelliest mud I had ever encountered. I was forced to turn back and try the path in the other direction. The path was narrow and covered over in water and trash for much of the way. Eventually I reached an area of the island that seemed more designed for tourism. Exotic cabins over the water, tropical restaurants and beach access. I never could find a town so finally called it quits and went out to a random dock. Within minutes a boat came by to give me a ride back to Bocas. I have heard great reports about Carenero Island so I will have to try again on another trip when the weather is better.

Evenings were all together different. Since Gordie was out of class we were able to go out and try some of the many fine restaurants in Bocas. We are already planning to return and finish exploring this area. We’ll be including some scuba diving next time. 

The Great Banana Harvest

View from back door - bananas on tree.

Tree chopped - Bananas on ground and read to hang.

Well, it's been almost a year since we planted some banana trees on our property. We've waited and watched as the tree grew, and grew, and grew. Looked like more than 20 feet tall. Made for quite a beautiful site from the back door. Then the exotic flower came. And we waited. Then the bananas started to form and grow. And we waited. Finally, we had a huge stalk of good-sized bananas and it was harvest day. Gordie got the machete out and chopped down the tree. Yes, that's how you get the bananas. You chop down the whole tree.


Once they are on the ground you string them up and hang them somewhere where the critters cannot reach them. It can take several more weeks for the bananas to totally ripen to a rich yellow. And once they start to yellow they ALL ripen within days. This is when you start contacting your friends and neighbors to see how many they would like. The waiting is over. For now. Before the original tree is ready for harvest it sends out at least one "pup" that takes its place and delivers the next generation of fruit. Bananas for Life. Pura Vida.

Columbian Sapote, Yum

When friends ask what I like about living in Costa Rica, inevitably my answer includes FOOD. And when I say “food,” I’m talking about the variety of fresh fruits and vegetables available here. Our food discoveries are made at the farmers’ markets or through neighbors wanting us to try something “new.”

This week our neighbor, Jaimie, stopped us as we were driving up the road and handed us 2 grapefruit-sized, olive-green fruits and said they were “Columbian Sapotes.” When we got to the house, I immediately looked to see if this was listed on our “Tropical Fruits of Costa Rica” sheet. It wasn’t. There was a Mamey Sapote, but nothing with the word “Columbia.” Oh well, it looked interesting, and safe. We’d give it a try. I made a number of slices into the velvety outer skin and proceeded to open the fruit into sections. Inside the tough green skin was bright red-orange pulp with a mango consistency. So far, so good. But, the big test was still to come. Would Gordie eat it?   Hmm. Yes, turns out that Gordie not only tried it, he liked it – quite a bit. Said it tasted better than mango! Quite an endorsement, so I thought I would find out more about this tropical fruit.

Searching online for information on the Columbian sapote or zapote, I discovered there are actually quite a few fruits called “sapote.” In fact, the term is commonly applied to any number of soft, sweet fruits, and it seems like every country has their own version.  In El Salvador, for example, there is the zapote grande; in Panama the mamey de la tierra; in Jamaica, it is marmalade fruit or marmalade plum; in Nicaragua, it may be called guaicume; and in Mexico, chachaas or chachalhaas or tezonzapote.

We liked the taste of our Columbian sapote so much that we have planted 3 of the 5 seeds. First we soaked the five furry husks in water; then, a couple of days later, we watched in amazement as the husk split open to reveal what looked like a “brain.”  Fingers crossed we may have our own trees one of these days. The “Tontorican Sapote.”

Celebrating USA Holidays abroad

Gordie and I with good friends, El and Rosie.

Tomorrow, August 15, is Mother's Day, a National Holiday - in Costa Rica. I'm sure my kids don't know a thing about it and we'll continue to celebrate the US version on the second Monday in May. But, it did get me to thinking about how ex-pats celebrate some of their native-country traditional holidays. Take the 4th of July for example. Well, the capital city of San Jose there is an annual "American-style" 4th of July celebration each year featuring hots dogs, games and "traditional" fun activities. We live in a much, much, much smaller area. Even so, this year, Toby, the owner of a local beachside Sports Bar, The Point, put on a 4th of July celectration to rival any. It started mid-afternoon with a pig roast and numerous delicious sides that you would only find in Costa Rica such as yucca. All Free, by the way. There was also live music. And, when the sun went down the sky over the ocean filled with fireworks. It was fun to celebrate with old friends and new, some from the US and some from many other countries around the globe. The beginning of a great tradition. Thanks Toby.  

Move over Toucan Sam

It’s not that unusual to see a rainbow-beaked, Keel Bill Toucan in our neighborhood; usually high in a tree or flying by, though. Doesn’t matter, I still rush into the house and grab my camera, zoom and shoot, trying to capture the beauty of these extraordinary birds. To date my photos have had very mixed results. Anyone familiar with “Sam,” the Fruit Loops toucan, would recognize one easily. Their colorful plumage - predominately black body, yellow chest, green around the eyes and a rainbow-colored bill is unique and actually helps them to hide in the trees. 

So, you can imagine my surprise the other morning when Gordie and I were sitting on the front porch having breakfast and a Toucan flew onto the table. Seems he really wanted to try the cornflakes that Gordie was eating. Seriously. He continued to hang out with us most of the morning. Sat on the ledge, sat on my leg, checked out the garden to see what we were growing, came into the house and grabbed a tomato off the ledge, all the things you would expect a toucan to do when visiting friends. Eventually he decided it was time to leave and off he flew. The next day – no visit. Day after that, he returned and spent several more hours with us.

I watched him sharpen his bill on the porch railing then proceed to “peck” at my arm. Gordie lightly grabbed his bill and they did a little “arm-to-beak” wrestling. Although he couldn’t laugh, I could tell he thoroughly enjoyed the little game. Toucans are called “softbilled” birds but it is because of the food they eat - primarily fruits - and not the hardness of their beaks. He let me pet him, sat on my arm, and showed no fear of humans. His ability to distinguish colors was very keen. “My Toucan” seemed to favor anything in the yellow-orange range. I was working on a mosaic tile project and he came over to the table and immediately picked out the bright yellow tiles. Next he tried to pick up a glue bottle by its bright yellow-orange cap. He also tried for a yellow-handled paintbrush that was on the table. Finally he hopped over to our planter and picked a yellow habanera pepper off the bush and put it in his mouth. Luckily it fell out of his bill and I was able to swoop in and pick it up before any harm was done. I replaced the hot pepper with a chunk of papaya, and made a friend for life.

He has stopped by once more since then, but only to say “hello.” I hope he comes again. This morning there was a Yellow-ear Toucanet in our Cashew tree. Nice, but I still miss “My Toucan.”

It’s not all surfing

When they think of Costa Rica, many people think of surfing. Naturally. With miles of coastline along the Pacific and Caribbean oceans, Costa Rica offers great opportunities to “hang ten.” But there are also miles and miles of pristine tropical beaches, rivers and creeks for non-surfers to enjoy. That would be me and Gordie. 

This year we brought a two-person inflatable kayak to Costa Rica with us and have begun to explore the various rivers and beaches in our area with it. Our most recent adventure brought us a short distance south of Puerto Viejo to the small village of Manzanillo. This is the end of the road in Costa Rica, literally. Our kayaking destination was Simeon Creek which separates Manzanillo from a five-kilometer coastal trail that leads to Punta Mona and the heart of the Gandoca-Manzanillo National Wildlife Refuge. After that, Panama.



We drove to the end of the beach, parked the car and checked out the creek. Inflating the kayak took less than 10 minutes, added a few more minutes to enjoy a hot “paty,” or meat pie, we purchased from a lady on the beach, and off we went. It was everything you would expect a jungle river to be. Very dark, very quiet, tangles of low hanging vines and trees.  Just like a movie, but real. Luckily no crocodiles or snakes, that we could see at least. When we tired of the jungle we turned the kayak around and went out to try our hand at ocean kayaking.  A little later, kayak deflated, we made our way across Simeon Creek by foot and walked until we found a private, palm-lined beach for snorkeling. Enjoyed an adult beverage under the palms and began our trek back to civilization. Another day in paradise.