Sunday, February 28, 2016

Costa Rica to Panama



Dinner at the Captains Table.






The Star Breeze
200 Passengers in nice suites and mostly tiny ports.  All landings by zodiac some wet and some dry. 
The zodiac

Dry Landing 
Jon's packing secret.  In checked luggage size 14 sandals holds a 2001 Brunello perfectly.
My Travel buddy and best friend

Valentine's dinner on deck
Center staircase and we adhered to rule number 1 on a ship and never got in the elevator!
Sports Bar in Costa Rica
Monkey
The Mangroves
Birds

Never saw the snakes and croc's


Bahia Drake
Our favorite spot.  There is a nice big bar and small hotel overlooking a little harbor and in one direction is a gorgeous garden and beach and a small village with a few shabby shops.  In the other direction and 30 minute trek through the jungle to a very deserted beach.  The bar had ice cold beer and great rice and beans and free wifi.  We started off with breakfast beer and the day just got better.


A strangler fig

A bamboo clump


This Mimosa is full of hummingbirds but there is no way to catch a photo.

The garden beach.
The bar


Drink beer and check email and watch birds feed on chopped pineapple in a banana peel.  Ahh!

The suspension bridge.  A bit rickety. 



Path goes up and up and up and then way down.  It is 91degrees and humid.  Plus there are very poisonous snakes.  It is fun. 
Add caption
Nice to have re-assurance we are on the right path.


Success...the beach!

Not very many souvenir shops or monster cruise ships.

The beach barbeque had a local resident



Panama City
Back to civilization and the southern terminus of the canal. 




Gehry Biomuseo with the bridge of the Americas connecting North and South America in the background. 
A trip to the canopy by tram and climbing an observation tower.  We have been to the Amazon and this did not compare.  Oh well that is not fair to do much comparing.


Indigenous tribe's village by the grace of Jon's great camera.  It is barely visible to the naked eye from the tower.

The Culabra Cut section of the Canal.


Blue Jeans Frog
Butterflies and if wings would be open the other side is iridescent blue. 




                                                             The canal

The donkeys that pull us through.  Going North we discovered usually means passage at night so that was disappointing but
we still did it.

Entering the lock

In the lock and it is easy to see the water mark we have to rise to.

The gates open.  They are the original gates and equipment from 1914 when it first opened.

The next lock
At the top and we sail out of the Milaflores Locks and into the Culabra cut.

On coming traffic, they are close enough to see the buttons on their uniforms.
Because we are a very small ship and so is this one, we went through all the locks together.

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