Monkey Business
Day 96
We arrived early yesterday in Boquete, a scenic if uneventful drive. It was nice to be back in the cool, green mountain town. Even though it was the beginning of our string of bad luck which continued on our last day in Bocas. I discovered that the seal on our underwater camera had been broken and water seeped in, the camera seems to now be fried. So if you are keeping count that’s 2 cameras gone in a weeks time.
Norm and Vikki both seemed to enjoy Boquete at first glance. Having always done beach holidays I think this was a nice break from the usual for them. We were staying at the Hotel Colibiri, a small 4 room place that was spotless and set in a beautiful yard. It felt like we were up north at home and had rented a cottage. Very comfortable and all for $23/night. Of course we revisited the Shalom Bakery with Norm and Vikki. Soon they were also in love with the fabulous coffee and cinnamon rolls. Ahhh I missed Boquete.
When Jordana and I were here previously we tried to visit Paradise Gardens. A centre run by a British couple who takes in pets who have been mistreated or given up by people. The centre was closed that day so we returned with Norm and Vikki. These aren’t just any pets, monkeys, birds, and even a Marguay cat. Which is a smaller version of a jaguar. The animals are now cared for here in beautiful large enclosures with the hope of returning them to the wild. Most however cannot be returned since they have been domesticated too long. The tour of the centre started interestingly enough when a cheeky little squirrel monkey hopped on Norm’s shoulder. He was surprised to say the least, Norm not the monkey. From there we moved on past Titi monkeys, a butterfly enclosure, turtles, and plenty of birds. One bird, a cockatoo would take his medicine with his beak, then shoot it like a shooter. Pretty cool. After the shooting bird we found the sleepy, but super cute Kinkajou. If you have never seen one google it after you read this. We finished off with the Capuchin monkeys. Jordana and Vikki had the chance to enter the enclosure with one of the friendly Capuchins. I was surprised that Vikki was up for this, maybe she didn’t know what monkeys were like? I’ve had my fair share of experiences with monkeys, let me tell ya they are sneaky buggers. Anyway, they entered and at first the monkey seemed shy. Then he started coming closer and checking them out, it got real funny when the Capuchin sat atop Vikki’s head and hung off her arms as if to groom her. Sneaky and cheeky as they are you gotta love a monkey, and doesn’t it just feel good to say monkey?
After the monkey business we took a drive around the mountains that circle the town. With our own transportation we were able to see much more than our first trip here. This is some of the most beautiful scenery we have seen to date. Coffee plants cover the hillsides and further up the green blanket of the cloud forest. Clouds quickly swirling down mountainsides and every so often a quick mist blows through. Through all this are cool, crystal clear rivers that come rushing down the mountains. We stopped every so often to snap a few pictures and show Norm and Vikki a coffee bean, or is it a coffee berry before it is picked? Discuss amongst yourselves, comment below on what you think. After a 1 hour loop we neared the town again, but not before stopping at the Cafe Ruiz coffee plantation. I have never drank as much coffee as I have in Boquete, we constantly stopped for more and it was all fabulous. Norm, Jordana and I had a coffee outside while Vikki tried to purchase coffee inside. I had to go in and rescue her with my broken Spanish before she ended up buying 10 lbs. of beans.
We ended a great day with dinner at the best joint in town, Bistro Boquete. The food was good if not overpriced for Panama. Norm, Jordana and I wanted to try the local speciality, trout. It was a bit different than back home but such a treat to have grilled rather than fried fish. That night we taught Norm and Vikki the card game shithead, which resulted in hours of fun. If you have never played try it, its addictive. Or maybe its just that we don’t have much for night entertainment while travelling. Our second time back to Boquete and I really enjoyed this town, more so this time since we got out without losing any cash at an ATM. Norm also commented that he really had a good time here and wished we were spending another day. It helps to have good company and a comfortable place to stay. However in the morning we are off again. This time back east to the south coast for some more beach time.
Tags: Panama
Michael Coroneos
It’s a coffee berry, the bean is the pit. I didn’t actually know. I had to do a quick google search. Apparently there are different types of coffee berries…
Did you guys taste them? I’ve never, and I’m curious now.
That means I win the argument!!!
Thanks Leens!!
Jordana