Colombia

It is such a pity that news about Colombia in modern times has been dominated by the likes of Pablo Escobar, the Medellin drug cartel as well as the 50 year war with FARC. This is so not the real picture of Colombia. Today Escobar is dead and a peace deal has been signed with the FARC who are disarming and being brought into the mainstream Colombian society.

It is a country of stunning beauty, a vibrant economy, a rich culture and very friendly people who go out of their way to help a foreigner.

I spent 5 days is Cartagena getting my land legs after the time spent onboard the Stahlratte.

Cartagena has so much to offer from the very modern to the old walled city that has withstood  not only the passage of time since its founding by the Spanish in the early 16th century but also numerous attacks by the dastardly British. 

Fruit seller

The Magdalena River at over 1500 kms is Colombias longest and most important river, draining a vast swampland and providing transportation inland. I decided to explore part of this huge area by taking roads and ferries to the old colonial town of Mompox which at one time was a very important market town before the river shifted and left it literally out of the mainstream. This town, like many in this part of the world boasts that Simon Bolivar passed through it on his way to liberate Venezuela from the Spanish in the early 1800s 

Entrance to Mompox market

Bored angels on church wall

The road east out of Mompox needed a few repairs

Once I hit the main road on the eastern side of the country I had nearly 800 kms to ride to the capital Bogota, mainly through the sweltering heat and humidity of the lowlands of the Magdalena River valley. At the town of Honda the road follows a tortuous route out of the valley into the Colombian Andes to the capital of Bogotá at an altitude of over 8600 ft. It was not long before I was complaining about the cold. 

Gas station attendants love my bike

Road signs along the way

The main reason to go to Bogotá was so I could obtain a Brazilian visa. Filling in the online form has definitely been my biggest challenge of the trip so far. ( I HATE any type of official form and this one confirmed just why that is the case) Anyway at the time of writing my passport and $200 is in the hands of the Brazilian Embassy and so now I wait. ( anywhere from 2 days to 3 weeks)

Bogotá, the sprawling city of more than 8 million people as seen from Monserrate. 

I decided to hike the top of this mountain on a public holiday when it seemed that most the city had the same idea. A hard hike at this altitude and stairs that climbed the mountain for 2000 meters in a fairy short distance - I suppose I could have taken the funicular but just seeing all the locals buying food and drink at all the little food stands on the way up was well worth the effort. I have no idea how you do that hike with a bellyful of beer, chicken kebabs, cheesecake and other unrecognizable delights.

Panama

All I really knew about Panama before arriving here was that there was  a canal going through the middle of it. 

Panama Canal

I always try to find a small border to cross into a new country with the, often Quixotic hope that this is going be the one where the burden of paperwork is somehow dramatically reduced. This was not quite the case crossing from Costa Rica to Panama but I sure found a small border post. After riding down a very rough dirt road I saw a few building and a petrol station on the side of the road. Having still got Costa Rican currency in my pocket I decided to fill up with gas. The pricing on the pump did not make any sense until it finally dawned on me that this was being shown in Balboas ( 1 Balboa = $1 ) — I was already in Panama!!

Not immigration of customs on this road but not wanting to run into trouble when leaving Panama I thought best to backtracking find real border post.

Next stop was  Volcán and then on to Boquete which was stunning. National parks, volcanoes and magnificent mountain views were the order of the day and the hostel in Boquete was a converted castle. Built just a few years ago as a private residence the Bambuda Castle had recently been converted to apostle that catered to all budget levels. I splashed out a little and had a private room in one of the turrets. 

The Castle in Boquete

Onwards to Panama city via Anton de Valle, another spectacular valley with lush vegetation. The roads in Panama have in general been extremely good with a four lane highway through the middle of most of the country.

Panama City - another huge surprise with not just a quint old town but also an ultra modern new city 

Old town Panama City

Ultra modern Panama City

"Screw" building in Panama City

Inductee into the hall of shame - Willy

Shame on you!!!

I left my hostel early in Panama city and as I was packing up I left my room door open. Willy the resident basset hound/ devil who I thought was my friend snuck into my room, pissed on my backpack, not just a little pee but a full bladder’s worth and then topped off this shameful act by taking a dump right on the bed.

Not all the animals were mean

Getting from Panama to Colombia requires getting self and bike on a ship as the Darian Gap region, although only 100 km wide has no roads through the impenetrable jungle. I have been told that everything in that region from insects, animals and drug smugglers all await their opportunity to kill you and probably will succeed in their efforts.

My solution to this problem was to take a 5 day “cruise” on the Stahlratte, a steel sailing vessel built in 1903. This vessel is run as a non profit organization with the sole purpose to preserve this floating relic of a bygone era. stahlratte.com

The Stahlratte

We had 10 motorbikes onboard which were winched up on deck. What a fabulous experience sailing down through the San Blas islands, which are a semi-autonomous region of Panama governed by the indigenous Kuna people.

Take it easy with that

Many wrecks on the reefs

Climbing the mast

Food onboard was great

The Stahlratte arrived in the port of Cartagena, Colombia on the fifth day out of the port of Carti in Panama, however it took another two days before customs decided to release the bikes.

Costa Rica Week 2

I have only been in Costa Rica for two weeks and yet that does not seem possible having seen such a diversity of places from high mountain cloud forests in Arenal and Monte Verde to tropical rain forests on the Osa Peninsular. What a spectacular country with so much crammed in to a relatively small area.

Finca Wilcox- home of a friend

It seems to me that there is nothing that will not grow in this country. The farm fence posts are living trees that start by the farmers just shoving a stick in the ground which then shoots out and becomes a tree in no time at all. I even saw a cement telephone pole with something growing out the top of it.

So I am going to dedicate this post mainly to the flora and fauna of Costa Rica 

A back road mud bath in the mountains between Dominical and Uvita.

On the road to San Luis

Encanta La Vida Lodge on Osa Peninsular

Green Lored Parrot

 This photo does not do justice to this little guy as the green stripe are almost florescent. The local indigenous tribes used the poison secreted by this frog to place on the tips of their arrows and darts for hunting.

Poison Dart Frog

Black Iguana

Spider Monkey

Rear end of a Coati - Adios Costa Rica