Dead Calm...

When I was on the catamaran to Colombia, in the middle of the open sea, for a couple of times I've thought at the movie "Dead Calm" (Ore 10: Calma piatta, 1989). I was thinking what the hell I gonna do, in a such place, if someone goes crazy? That was the kind of thoughts everybody does, but everybody knows it's just a stupid thought resulting of the too many movies we have watched in our lives. Well, sometimes imagination is closer to reality than what you ever may think. Especially when me is involved.
The captain wasn't the friendliest person on Earth, but I must admit he has been almost always kind with me. He taught me the first steps how to swim, he gave me as a present an (half) bottle of rhum before leaving, and he asked me if I wanted to help him on the boat for the next month. What if I said him "yes"? What if I decided for living that experience in the Caribbean Sea?

http://www.tvn-2.com/noticias/noticias_detalle.asp?id=46978

Sad news from Panama

God, that`s too bad and it`s not a joke as I was thinking at a first glance.
Jean Pierre Bouhard, the French captain of the boat I took from Panama to Colombia, has been found murdered last Saturday, thrown into the ocean with the body tied up with chains and an anchor.
Javier, the Spanish guy who asked us 60 dollars each at the hostel the day before sailing (and the same one who Jean Pierre reported as a scam on us), he`s supposed to be involved in the crime.
At the moment, Don North - the owner of the catamaran Levante - and the boat itself are missing.
You can read the full articles here:
http://www.panama-guide.com/article.php/20110210144018231
http://www.panama-guide.com/article.php/20110210171954941

San Blas islands, Panama

The fact that I've broken the promise once to cross the Pacific ocean doesn't mean that now I'm allowed to fly during this travel. This journey is an overland journey, and still it is. For this reason, to reach Colombia and avoiding to walk through the infamous Darien gap (which guidebooks defines it like a potencial suicide trip) I've sailed with a catamaran through the San Blas archipelago for 5 days to reach the coast of Caribbean Colombia. It has been a nice adventure to live and, even if some things have gone wrong because of the bad organization of the journey and the unpleasant neglect of the "captain" I have great memories about that, about the beauty of the islands crossed, about the fun had and all the rest. The group was right so it was fine to share time with them even if sea sickness made my time sometimes quite hard. Almost all the world was heading to Colombia on that boat: 5 australians, 4 dutchmen, 3 french, 1 danish, 1 english, 1 greek, 1 gringo and, last but not least, 1 italian lonelytraveller. Central America is gone now, welcome South America!Here is a short chronology of the 5 days spent on the catamaran "Levante":
Day 1 - As soon as we arrived to Puerto Lindo where the catamaran was anchored we met the "captain" of the boat - an aged French pirate - who told us that the "vice-captain" who came the day before at our hostel to explain the details of the trip and collecting 60 dollars each, had nothing to deal with him, so was a scam... He also told us that the boat had 15 beds only, no matters if we were 17, two people had just to sleep on the floor, it's easy. We also knew that the departure time was supposed to be at 8am, but it was late and the "captain" decided to leave the harbour only the next day. All day long drinking rhum, beer and vodka on the boat. One day wasted, but good party at least.
Day 2 - Recovering from day 1 drinking session. We sailed at 6,30 and the sea was extremely rough. It was hangover first, then hell for many hours to me. I discovered to be not a good sea wolf: sea sickness stroke me, I puked twice. For dinner the "captain" fished one small shark and one barracuda, so we ate shark ceviche and fried barracuda. Strange story this one, I was pretty sure that catching sharks was illegal almost everywhere in the world... Maybe Panama is part of that "almost"? No, I don't think so.
Day 3 - The perfect day. The sunshine was high in the sky, and the San Blas islands with their palms and reef barrier were rising like lonely mushrooms all over the sea. Waters were calm and warm, colors unbelievable. The "captain" stopped the boat near an incredible island, like a dream one, those kind of places you think exist only on postcards or Hollywood movies. No other boats, no tourists, no buildings at all: just a small spot of white sand surrounded by a deep green/blue sea with coconut trees, that's it. Well, maybe few people knows that I don't know at all how to swim, I just tried few times when I was kid and then no more for all these years. Facing that sort of paradise on Earth I thought within myself - now or never - then I jumped off the boat and, you know what?, I swam! Yeah, maybe more than swimming it's better say I was floating like shit, but, hey!, I did it! And few minutes later the Australian teacher took me off the safety jacket and I started swimming and swimming and swimming like I never thought it was possible for me to do before. An unbelievable day to toast at evening with the guys on the boat and few shots of cheap booze. Cool!
Day 4 - Sailing all day long. Sea a little rough mixed with a little hangover made me sleep almost all the morning, trying to avoid sea sickness: this time no problems. We passed near an island with a village of Kuna indios, was astonishing to me to see their huts, their colorful clothes, sometimes their painted faces... Unfortunately, the "captain" decided not to stop down there, even just for few hours: big shame on him. In the afternoon, he fished another big barracuda that we ate fried for dinner. We officially went out of drinkable water. By the way, one of the aussie guys woke up in the middle of the night and found enough water in his body to start pissing on the matress of the main hall instead out of the boat...
Day 5 - Cloudy and almost rainy day. The last leg of the trip. Few hours' sail then we approached the Colombian coast at Sapzurro around at 2 pm. Then we took a small boat to the nearby village of Capurgana' where is settled the immigration center.

Panama City, Panama

Capital cities in central America are all nasty sights: they're ugly, dirty, dangerous. Cities like Guatemala City, Managua, San Jose' and, yes, even Mexico City, are those kind of places where you never would like to be after dark. And when the sun is high they shine in all their endless decay: just holes in central America's ground. Panama is not too much different from them, but maybe is the best one. The modern skyline with skyscrapers reminds of Asian or North American metropolis, the old town is colorful and well restored, charming enough for those who face for the first time the Caribbean area, and, last but not least, there is the canal, one of the most incredible and challenging infrastructure ever built. Weather is extremely hot, sometimes cloudy, often rainy. Time to sail away, time to reach Colombia in 5 days by boat on the Caribbean sea through the San Blas archipelago!

Boquete, Panama

It's since few weeks heavy rains hit Panama all day long and flooding kill many people. Now I know what heavy raining means... I arrived yesterday night in Boquete, a small mountain town settled in the middle of coffee plantations (the coffee which grows here is considerate as one of the best worldwide) and supposed to be kinda heaven for outdoor activities. Maybe it is, for sure it's not when rainy: I've hiked through the forest to the way of San Ramon waterfall (the one in the pic), an easy walk with the right equipment, a sort of hell with 13 euros no-waterproof shoes and just plastic bags to preserve the other stuff... Was just 1 hour, 1 hour and a half walk, but all time long has been under the rain, with a stupid umbrella in the hand and the most heavy rains I've ever seen on the way back. Useless saying I'm completely wet now. As no buses were passing there, with two other american guys, we hitched a lift from a couple from Panama City, ending all together eating strawberries and drinking coffe in a local bar... No reason to stay longer here as forecast weather is bad as well.