19 November 2010

Yesterday, if I had known that the number of the container and the seal was on my bill, I would’ve taken the train because I would’ve left as soon as the cars were loaded. Waiting around was such a pain but I jammed with Joelson a bit, he on his bongos, me on my guitar. It was too loud to hear ourselves though. We both took the express bus back to Panama City. Only $2.50. On the way out of the port we were detained for about five minutes because we walked up to the front rather than use the bus they have to transport employees. Seems like they just didn’t want us to leave. The Taking of Pelham 123 was shown on the bus. I took a taxi back to Casa Rica. Joelson said he was going to try and take a boat from San Blas to Colombia.

This morning I mailed my postcards and then headed to the airport. But there were no flights left. I spent $380 on a ticket for tomorrow afternoon. They wanted me to buy a roundtrip ticket for proof of onward travel but I explained the situation with my car and they okayed my purchase of a one way ticket. After that I took another twenty dollar cab ride back to Casa Rica only this cabbie was sick and did not take the expressway because I didn’t want to pay for the tolls.  The first cab did not ask me for any toll money.

Taxi to the airport

Casa Rica looks like an apartment building but its a hostel. It used to be called Zuly’s and is located at the end of an alleyway which makes it difficult to find. Everyone I’ve met has said it took them forever to find this place. Apparently the previous owner was a tyrant but now it’s owned by a friendly Venezuelan. And it’s located near a lot of places (clubs, restaurants) unlike some of the other hostels.  It’s only a few blocks away from Calle Uruguay which is a hot spot.

This business is also near the hostel

I spoke with Evelyn from Barwil and told her the problems we encountered. She assured me the container will ship tomorrow and arrive by Monday. Colón may have a high crime rate but they have bible verses at every intersection on Central Ave.

18 November 2010

Getting the necessary papers from the shipping company and obtaining an exit permit  from customs was both quick and painless. The Port of Cristobal however has been a slow wait. It took us four hours to finally drive our cars into the container and it still is not over. We must wait for someone to come secure the cars because the ropes they used are not enough. I really want to take the train back to Panama City but it leaves in thirty minutes and even though the station is right outside the gate, we have to go all the way back to the front entrance to exit. Having Joelson though has been a great blessing from God because he speaks fluent Spanish.

Joelson and his Dodge Charger

Driving his car into the shipping container.

Now my car is secured. 

17 November 2010

It turns out the guy I met yesterday, Joelson, is the guy whose container I’m sharing. So after all the final paperwork and instructions I started off to Colón. But not before visiting the Mira Flores Locks. The drive was incredibly easy and I can’t believe how stupidly I got lost yesterday. I watched the introductory film and then went to the observation deck and there was Rachel. I knew I was going to meet her there.

Bridge to Panama City

We watched a large Grecian oil tanker navigate through the locks and then I dropped her off at the bus station. Last night I went out with guys form the hostel an we got stopped by the police who wanted to see our passports. No one had their passport and after some stalling they let us go. I told Rachel this as a warning to carry a copy everywhere. I also told her about the clown last night who practically ate 6 cigarettes at once. Lit cigarettes.

Last night I was out with Chris, Carne, and a Norweigan named Stian. Carne is a Brit. Chris is deep into conspiracy. Said he did surveillance on Alex Jones when he worked for the government. Said he helped set up data mining centers. Talked a lot about Bill Cooper. Said he, at 28, was a retired millionaire. Said something big’s going to happen in the U.S. by mid 2011. He’s very interesting in that respect. Also wholly without morals and has said so himself.

Colón is dirty and the traffic is the worst. No lights or signs. All go, go, go in a mad rush at every intersection. The Free Zone is a waste of time. Shops and all. I don’t want or need to shop. But I went back to Colón 2000 to Café Iguano to eat. The hotel restaurant sucks.  I had a club sandwich and fried octopus rings which were like onion rings except with octopus. 

Colón may have a high crime rate but they have bible verses at every intersection on Central Ave

I cannot find a flight I want to Cartagena online. I’ll just have to go to the airport.

16 November 2010

The only problems I had at the police station were my fault. This morning I went to the wrong office. Needed to be across the street. So I made a turn on the highway that ended up taking me on a long return. I should’ve just gone down the road at the light then cut over a block as the street I was going to turn down was one-way. The first stop took maybe ten minutes. They looked at my car right away. They said to come back at 2 p.m. to the building across the street for my papers. 

So I lounged at the hostel and invited Rachel to come with me and we would drive to the Mira Flores locks on the Panama Canal. This step took an hour because I had to find the right office and there were two people ahead of me. The clerk also entered in the wrong VIN information twice.

The guy ahead of me was a homeless, mohawked older man on his way back to Brazil from Los Angeles. It turns out he is probably the guy I’m sharing a shipping container with. He is eager to leave for Colombia as soon as possible.  He has been stuck in Panama for almost a month because of the ceaseless national political holidays which have kept the government offices closed.

Meanwhile Rachel waited outside lying in the grass. I apologized for the wait but she said it was no big deal. We were off to Mira Flores. Somewhere I took a wrong turn and we ended up on a highway and then back downtown. Eventually I got my bearings and just drove us back home. I apologized for the waste of time but she was okay about it. She said she’d probably take a bus tomorrow. I did my laundry today (I dropped it off at a laundry mat) and ate dinner at a vegetarian chinese restaurant. 

Out of nowhere it stormed and now the power is out.

15 November 2010

Today I woke up early and took a cab to Seaboard Marine. They quoted me a price of $1200 to ship my car and sent me to Barwil Agency which is where I went Friday. But they gave me the correct address which is way out in the boonies across the bridge away from the city in Howard which is a former U.S. military base. I asked the cab to wait thirty minutes and then go if I didn’t return.

I was told tomorrow I must go to the police to get the car inspected and I must be there at 10 a.m. because they only do it between 10 and 11. I was given all the forms I needed and then sent on my way. It took about fifteen minutes but the taxi had already left. I was able to flag one down despite my remote location.

This girl Rachel had moved into the dorm this morning and we walked in the rain to Casco Viejo, old Panama. My shoes got soaked. We took in the view of Panama’s skyline and then walked around the town square before taking a cab to Panama Viejo which is the ancient older capitol of Panama.  There were plenty of ruins from the late 1500’s. Jesuit churches and a convent as well as the foundations of houses and other buildings.

12 November 2010

Got stopped for speeding and bribed my way out of it with two bottles of water and two packs of cookies.

Driving in Panama City is nuts. Crazy. No street signs. Got lost and drove around for an hour. Finally found the hostel tucked away in a corner. Lots of one way streets. Walked to the shipping office but google was wrong so I got a cab. The office isn’t there anymore. Very maddening. A waste of time. A waste of two hours. Emailed more for quotes. Gotta wait for the responses.

11 November 2010

I woke up this morning at 4:30 because all the girls in the room woke up to catch busses. I didn’t leave until 10 and I decided on going to Pedasí, a small coastal town. At Las Tablas I made a turn towards Tonosí but this took me way out of the way on a road not on my map. A twisting road through mountains so fertile and green I thought I was in Scotland or New Zealand.

At Tonosí I gave a guy a ride after asking for directions to Pedasí. He was probably only 15.  Pedasí sucks. The hostel I was going to stay at turned me away for some reason even though the old lady initially said she did have a bed.  I didn’t understand at her at all. So I got a more expensive room for thirty-three dollars.

After measuring my car I headed to a cafe for dinner and wi-fi. The waitress made no effort to serve me. I had to walk up to the bar to order. A coke here in a can is $1.70!!!!  That is outrageous.

Most importantly however, there are no beaches. I thought the town was on the beach but it’s not. This defeats the whole purpose of coming here. I sent out emails asking for quotes to ship the car. Tomorrow I will be in Panama City. I should’ve done that in the first place. After the Costa Rican jungle fiasco I purposed not to take any side-trips. This side-trip has just been a waste of time and money and hasn’t provided a fun diversion or helped achieve my end.

10 November 2010

This morning I woke up at four and laid in bed for a bit as the day began to dawn. I took waking up early as a sign and quickly and quietly packed up my things and left Punta Banco at 5 a.m. in a slight drizzle. Though the road was better in some parts it was still absolutely horrid. At one spot I got stuck on a bridge and was scared I was about to go over but I managed to wiggle out. At a steep incline the bottom of the car started dragging which stuck the car. Some guys helped me push it up. I was angry the whole way and started screaming at the top of my lungs and gunning the car as fast as I could. Anything to get out of the jungle. I was overcome with rage that I even decided to follow Neil. By the time I made the 18 kilometers to Conte my strut was completely thorough the rear and my tire was scrapping the wheel well. There was no way I would make it to Golfito so I asked at the supermarket for a mechanic and was pointed to one just down the road.

This mechanic, Reynaldo, was fantastic. He was head first deep in a car’s engine when I pulled up. In three hours he had taken everything apart, welded it back together, and placed everything back. He also strummed my guitar for a second. He was a good player. For all his labor, welding, he only wanted twenty dollars. So I gave him forty. It was a relief to have my car fixed properly and to be on my way again. Many times when I think it’s the end it’s only the beginning of something new. God has answered all my prayers for safety.

With the car patched up the ride was a whole lot smoother. No dragging and scraping. Outside of the border town of Pasos Canoas I got a car wash. All the mud finally gone as well as the “FUCK YOU” someone scrawled in the dirt on my roof in Granada. He even cleaned the under carriage and I looked under there to assess the damage from the road. Aside form he scrapes and scratches everything was intact.

While I was waiting on the car I was talking to this guy and I ended up showing how to make stop motion videos with a cellphone video camera. 

I got disoriented at the border because I did not come down the Pan American Highway but up from the south. I pulled up to the cop station and asked a lady wielding a machine gun where customs and immigration were. Exiting Costa Rica was easy. Entering Panama was easy as well. All the services were in one location. I also did not get swamped by hordes of tramitadors offering to get me through for a fee.  Though there was a s guy I had heard about in Golfito named Joel who helped show me around then asked for a tip.  I gave him a five.

I drove all the way to David after unknowingly missing the turn for Puerto Armulles. I’m staying at the Purple House Hostel.  Everything here is purple and Hebrews 13:2 is quoted on the wall outside “Be not forgetful to entertain strangers: for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.” I met and had dinner with an old man, 69, from Boston. He was really kind of gross. A dirty old man.

28 October 2010

The power was on this morning. I took a shower and headed to El Gato Negro for breakfast. The Norwegian girls were there and I sat with them.

27 October 2010

Woke up around 11 a.m. and had lunch with Gerry at El Gato Negro before he left for Granada. Spent the rest of the day at the hostel napping in a hammock or trying to read. For dinner four of us guys went out to a Mexican restaurant to watch the world series. I do not care for sports or for doing such American things as watching sports while I’m here but it was comfortable. Jim, an older guy from Boston, was explaining to Paul, an Irishman, the rules of baseball. Later that night the power went out in town and Jim and I watched a movie, Lenny, about Lenny Bruce. Today there was a parade of trucks with a presidential candidate visiting. Arnoldo Alemán.

26 October 2010

This is the first day in San Juan del Sur in which I did not spend all day in bed recovering from a late night of drinking and dancing. That’s because we went home early last night.

This morning at ten Gerry, Paul, Helena, Ana, Sigma, and I all hiked up to the large statue of Jesus overlooking the town. The walk was only 90 minutes but part of the path was very steep to walk up. There are two large Rottweilers at the entrance gate guarding from vandals. The view from the side of the mountain is gorgeous. You can see all the green hilly countryside and the reefs in the ocean. 

We only stayed for about 30 minutes then hiked down the other side to the beach and back into town. The tide was low but my shoes got soaked crossing a small stream pouring into the ocean. We all had lunch at the market then went out separate ways. I dropped off some laundry and headed to El Gato Negro for coffee. I also had a detox bomb smoothie. I met two Jehovah’s Witness ladies who had moved here from Hawaii. They had Watchtower magazines and left them amongst the other magazines in the cafe.

Later that night Gerry got into a heated discussion with the sports bar owner (Republik) about America and why America sucks. Gerry says he wants to talk about girls and he likes simple music that doesn’t require you to think but he cannot be so simple. All his conversations turn to politics or something learned. He is a very intelligent individual. He’s an Irishman from Kerry.

25 October 2010

Stayed in hostel sleeping and in bed all day. Went out for dinner. Met a girl I’d met earlier and had dinner with her. Then to the Iguana for drinks where we met other people. 

24 October 2010

Stayed in my bed mostly all day sleeping and on the internet. Went out and at a show a guy was playing “Piss Up a Rope” by Ween. Went to see live music at another club. I have been here way too long.

23 October 2010

Today I spent most of the day in my room in bed. I went out to buy some water and powerade and came back for a nap. Went out for dinner but probably ate something too heavy and my stomach is not well.

22 October 2010

Left Granada and came to San Juan del Sur. Walked around town a bit after getting a hostel then took a nap. Had dinner at an American sports bar.  I didn’t realize it till I’d ordered a drink. The owners are from Wilmington, N.C.. Met two guys at the hostel. One played my guitar very well. We all went out for drinks and came back late.

In Granda someone wrote "Fuck You" on the roof of my car.

21 October 2010

Last night I met at the hostel a guy from Chicago named Jake and a guy from Australia named Patrick and we hung out for a bit and then went to a bar for an hour where we met a friend of Patrick's who said he lost all his money playing Pokerville. He plays poker online for a living.  

I decided to stay in Grenada for another day to research shipping from Panama to Colombia and buy a few things. I had breakfast at Kathy’s Waffle House and the owner, Sandy, came out to meet me. I was reading my bible while waiting for my food and he asked if I was a Jew. He had a huge star of David ring. After breakfast I explored the cathedral across the street then walked to Lake Grenada. I took a boat tour of the lake which I did not intend to take. There was an American couple and two Nicaraguan sisters. The tour was around the tiny islands and was mostly a tour of summer homes of the rich and famous and powerful of Nicaragua. There was an island with monkeys.

I bought a tape measure and mirror and tape at the market then got on the internet for a while before I had dinner at a guy named Dan’s house. Sophie cooked with Dan and I hung out with Nancy and Jake. Chicken cordon bleu, fish, mashed potatoes, red wine. The corkscrew was broken and the bottle of white shattered and the bottle of red ended up having bits of cork in it but I used a coffee filter to filter the wine into glasses. I talked with Sophie into the morning just past one.