A QUICK BORDER HOP - 3 COUNTRIES IN 30 HOURS

Greg and I recently did a quick border hop.  While tourists are able to stay in Panama for 6 months at a time, one's US driver's license is only valid in Panama for 3 months at a time.  Time was ticking, and Greg was needing a new entry stamp on his passport, so we decided to make a border hop with a quick run to Costa Rica and back.

We dropped the kids off at school early in the morning and drove to Paso Canoas, the Panamanian/Costa Rican border. After driving for about 1 1/2 hours we arrived at a roadblock and a Panamanian official told us that the bridge ahead was closed today until 4pm and that we'd need to turn around.  We turned around, along with all of the other vehicles, and started heading back to Boquete, feeling disappointed and frustrated that our plan for a passport stamp had unexpectedly fallen through.  After about 5 minutes we decided to turn around and head back to the border to ask the Panamanian official some addition questions, and we're so glad that we did!  The official remembered us, and was very friendly when I politely explained that we merely wanted to cross the border to get a passport stamp.  The official explained that the road was closed because there was a demonstration going on, but also said, "No problem, just leave your car right here and you can easily walk across from here.  It will only take 20 minutes".  Greg and I were thrilled, and since we had never been to the border before, we had no idea that we were so close.

The border hop and passport stamping process ended up being a cinch and actually sort of fun.  We walked to the border, stamped out of Panama, stamped into Costa Rica, paid an exit tax to leave Costa Rica, then stamped right back into Panama.  This entire process, including standing in a few short lines, filling out a couple of forms, and answering some basic questions, took an hour, and violá, we had our passport stamps.  In between Panama and Costa Rica there is 'no man's land' with duty-free stores selling everything imaginable.  We took a bit of time to check it all out before heading back to Panama.

Greg and I had come prepared with the necessary items that others had told us to bring (original passport, copies of passports, $500 cash or a bank statement, and exit tickets out of Panama...etc.).  While all of these items weren't needed, we were glad that we had come prepared and were both relieved when the Panamanian immigration officials let us back into Panama with stamped passports after having only spent one hour in Costa Rica.  Monica and Matt were at school in Panama and needed to be picked up that afternoon.  If there had been any problems at the border we would have been up a creek.  Thankfully, it was a smooth process for us that day.  Such is the life of a perpetual tourist!

The day before our border hop I had flown from the USA to Panama after having returned to California two weeks earlier to spend time with my Mom who had some unexpected medical problems.  After calculating the time after our border hop, we realized that I had been in 3 counties (USA, Panama, Costa Rica) within a 30-hour time period!

We passed this colorful fruit stand during our drive from Boquete to Paso Canoas, the Panamanian/Costa Rican border.

Walking along the highway towards the Panamanian/Costa Rican border in the sweltering heat, along with others who have chosen to walk that day since the road was closed due to a demonstration.

A small group of demonstrators, including young students, teachers, and parents, march along the highway protesting the government's proposed removal of their public school for a development project.  Since Greg and I were walking to Paso Canoas, we inadvertently ended up walking along with the demonstrators.  Little did we know earlier that morning when we decided on a whim to get our passports stamped, that we'd end up walking with local Panamanian demonstrators - a fun cultural experience!

Paso Canoas happens to be Panama's largest border crossing.  Greg and I were both amazed that a small demonstration by a local public school such as this one, could cause Panama's largest border area to be completely closed down to vehicles.  Wow!  As it turns out, within a few hours, the Mayor showed up and negotiated with the school and demonstrators.  We were told that they came to a mutual resolution in which the demonstration stopped and the road was re-opened.  

Greg stands at the Panamanian side of Paso Canoas, where we initially stamped out, then stamped in again an hour later.

Welcome to Costa Rica!!

BANANAS ATTRACT WELCOMED VISITORS

There are several banana trees growing on the property that we are renting.  Monica loves eating the fruit for breakfast, and Greg has been making delicious homemade banana bread and adding locally-produced coconut oil for additional flavor.  Recently, Greg has been hanging bunches of bananas from our porch, for two reasons; firstly, because it helps them ripen quicker, and secondly, because the birds and critters are attracted to the sweet fruit.  Each day we wait in anticipation to see which animals and birds will be drawn to the fruit.

This cute squirrel manages to jump right up on top of the bananas.

Nibbling away at the sweet fruit

This same squirrel actually pulled a banana off from the bunch and took it over to a nearby tree - pretty impressive!

This little guy just loves these bananas!

Many birds, such as this blue-gray tanager, are attracted to the bananas as well.

RAMBALA JUNGLE LODGE

Our wonderful neighbors, Cathy and Larry, recently invited us to join them on a weekend trip to Rambala Lodge, a sustainable and remote jungle lodge tucked away in a forested canyon in the Bocas del Toro province of Panama, just a  2-hour drive from Boquete.  Cathy and Larry happen to be friends with Eric and Lyn, the proud owners Rambala Lodge, and when we heard that there was an extra space available for our family, we jumped on the opportunity.

The small rustic lodge caters to nature enthusiasts and is comprised of 3 basic open-air wood cabins and a lodge where meals are cooked and served.  All structures were hand-built with minimal footprint and were designed in the typical Bocas fashion, on stilts.  Conservation was kept in mind, and we were pretty impressed by the fact that just one giant dead tree was used to build the main lodge and 3 cabins.  Solar power is used throughout, and each of the 3 cabins had an outdoor shower and composting toilet - pretty cool!

Eric and Lyn proved to be amazing hosts.  It was a pleasure to be served tasty home-cooked meals and enjoy the beautiful scenery of the lush and tropical jungle.  During our time at the lodge we enjoyed a fabulous jungle hike with Eric as our knowledgeable and enthusiastic guide, swimming in the natural pools and dunking under the waterfalls (all located on the property), and many moments sitting in the hammock soaking up the serenity and gorgeous jungle views.  All meals were served "family style", and it was really fun to socialize with the other guests and hear about their travels and experiences.  On this particular weekend two entomologists (who had an incredible knowledge of interesting critters and insects) were at the lodge, and a friendly young Dutch couple who had been spending the past several months traveling throughout South and Central America happened to be working and staying staying at the lodge as well. Talking with these guests and our wonderful hosts, Eric and Lyn (who have an abundance of knowledge, pride, and passion for the area), all while swapping stories and hearing about their many adventures, made this trip extra special.

Stopping to enjoy the view of La Fortuna reservoir on our drive from Boquete to Rambala Jungle Lodge.

After we passed through the small town of Rambala and headed on our way to the jungle lodge, we passed this incredible view of water buffalo grazing in a green pasture below us.  

Upon arrival at the Rambala Lodge property, we were met by one of the caretakers and a horse, who helped carry our belongings through the forest and up the hill.  There is no road access on the property, so all materials and goods are carried in.  As the horse carried our belongings while the rest of us followed, enjoying the scenic walk through the jungle, I knew this was going to be a special place and a unique adventure...

Poison Dart Frog

Greg spotted these two beetles mating.  

This is our open-air cabin.  It is rustic, but fully equipped with everything we needed.  The blow-up mattresses on the beds were comfy, the outdoor shower that opens up to the jungle (no hot water) was invigorating, and the composting toilet worked perfectly.

Our open-air cabin was fully equipped with an outdoor shower, composting toilet, and a bathroom sink, all with jungle views.  Lyn, the owner of Rambala Lodge, makes and provided all-natural organic soaps and shampoo bars to use during our stay.

Waking up in the morning to a beautiful view of the jungle, under the protection of our mosquito net.

Beautiful Hummingbird

Interesting colorful flowers seen on the property.

The electric greens and blues in this spider were quite impressive.

Matt always enjoys time in the hammock!

We met two very nice entomologists during our stay at Rambala Jungle Lodge.  They were aware of Matt's fascination with interesting bugs, and early one morning left these special gifts for Matt!

A nice rancho-style structure at Rambala Jungle Lodge that provides shade and a great venue to view the jungle.  

Greg, Monica, and Matt head out to scope out one of the many water holes for swimming.

We found the perfect water hole with its own waterfall!

There is an open area behind the waterfall, and we each took turns swimming under the waterfall and positioning our bodies behind the water so that we could breathe on the other side.  In this picture, Matt is behind the waterfall and waving his hand out the other side.  Lost of fun!

Monica enjoyes taking a dip in the fresh water.

Various streams and pools of water are found throughout the property.  Eric, the owner of Rambala Lodge, took us on a fabulous nature hike where we had the opportunity to explore all of the property's beautiful trails, flora, fauna, and many interesting critters and birds.

A basilisk, camouflaged by the greenery surrounding it.

This area is known for having poison dart frogs, and the highlight of our nature hike was spotting several.  This bright orange one is a beauty!

A display of mushrooms

Monica explores jungle streams...

Leaf-cutter ants hard at work.  It is always fascinating to watch these insects methodically carry their leafs from place to place.  

Poison Dart Frog

We had the opportunity to see this lizard change colors - such an interesting process!

Matt has beads of sweat dripping from his forehead during a trek through the steamy jungle.  

Monica loves the jungle too!

Interesting flowers found growing on this tree.

These are our wonderful Boquete neighbors and friends, Larry and Cathy, who invited us to join them for a fun weekend adventure at Rambala Lodge.  It is always a pleasure to spend time with these two inspirational people who are kind, loving, and adventure enthusiasts who appreciate all that life has to offer.

A beautiful view of the Bocas del Toro Archipelago from the top of the Rambala Lodge property.

A view of the Rambala Lodge

Many beautiful birds such as this Kiskadee can be seen from the lodge.

Monica and Matt return from a swim at the fresh water pools.

 Beautiful Heliconia

This three-toed sloth was seen our first day at Rambala Lodge.

There is quite a story that goes with this mother and baby sloth, one that turned out to be quite a learning experience about nature and the complexities of living and surviving in the jungle.  Within the first few hours of our arrival at  Rambala Lodge, one of the caretakers announced that a baby sloth had been born earlier that morning, and we were so excited to be able to observe this mother and newborn baby together.  Unfortunately, the mother sloth seemed to be having difficulties bonding with her baby and at times seemed unaware of and even neglectful of her baby.  At various times during our observations, the baby was literally hanging from the mother's body or was making attempts to crawl on the mother's back, and the mother did very little (and sometimes nothing at all) to assist the baby.  None of us knew very much about typical behavior of a mother and a newborn sloth, but we all suspected that something was just not right here.  We couldn't understand why this mother would be neglectful of her baby.

Much to our dismay, after watching several painful minutes of the baby trying to crawl on the mother's body, trying to hang on for dear life, the baby fell from the mother's security and landed on the ground.  Unfortunately, the mother sloth did not make efforts to recover her baby, and at times seemed confused as to where the baby was.  Eric, the owner of Rambala Lodge, picked up this precious baby in a towel, hoping to assist this mother and baby in reuniting.

The mother sloth finally came down low enough in the tree so that the baby could be hoisted up and given back to the mother.  While the mother still seemed a bit confused and at times somewhat unsure of how to nurture and care for her baby, the baby remained with the mother for a period of time.  As we were all watching this process in anticipation, we were hopeful that the mother would gradually learn to attend to her baby.

As seen in this picture, the baby sloth appears to be clinging to the mother as she wraps her arms around the mother's neck, but the mother isn't making efforts to help support or hold her baby.

The next day, we spotted the mother and baby again in the same tree.  Unfortunately, this bonding process between mother and baby (or lack thereof) was painful to watch.  The mother didn't seem to hold her baby or assist her baby in feeding, but rather allowed the newborn to hang from her body, with very few attempts on the mother's part to assist the baby.  Unfortunately, with great dismay, we witnessed the baby fall again from a distant height onto the jungle floor below.  In this instance, we almost felt that this was deliberate on the mother's part.  The mother sloth had climbed out onto a tall and far tree branch (while her baby was hanging from her body) and made no effort to reach out to her baby with either of her arms.  Eventually, the newborn sloth could could not support herself any longer, and fell to the ground.  We were all devastated, and watching this process was painful and very sad indeed.

Lyn, one of the owners of Rambala Lodge, contacted an animal rescue center (which happened to be in Costa Rica) to get some advice on what to do.  Unfortunately, the information she received was not promising, and she was told that once a sloth rejected her baby and stopped caring for it, the likelihood that things would turn around for the better was minimal.   In addition, she was told that these particular sloths do not do well in rescue type situations and that if any of us brought the baby sloth a rescue center, the likelihood of survival or success was low.  Unfortunately, at this time, the mother sloth was high up in the trees, and we were not able to bring her baby to her, nor was the mother making any attempts to seek out her baby.  We all discussed a variety of options (taking the baby to a rescue center, feeding the baby goat's milk in hope that the mother would later be able and willing to feed her baby...etc.) and weighed the pros and cons of each option.  We ultimately decided that the best course of action was to peacefully set the baby down on the ground underneath the tree and let nature take its course (whatever that may be...).  While we were all hopeful that the mother would eventually climb down the tree to be with her baby, we also knew that it was a possibility that the baby would die in peace under the tree.

In this picture, I'm holding the baby sloth, as we all are trying to decide what to do.

Monica and Matt were aware of the different conversations we were all having about this mother and baby, and they participated in some of the discussions about how to handle the situation.  A few hours after we had laid the baby sloth down on the ground below the tree, Matt approached me and said, "Mom, I went back to the baby.  She's still breathing,  and put leaves on her to make her a bed."  His eyes started to well up with tears as he told me about what he had done and as he expressed his sadness.  Yes, this was a very sad situation for all of us to witness, and it was a good lesson that survival and life in the jungle can be complex and challenging.  At this point, we all had given up hope.

This is a picture of the newborn sloth, after Matt had covered her with leaves.

Later in the afternoon, I noticed that the mother sloth had climbed down the tree and was only about 10 feet from the ground.  Not only was she in a potentially reachable position, she was hanging from the tree, parallel to the branch, with her belly and chest open and facing outward.  The baby was miraculously still breathing and remained in the same position on the ground below this same tree.  I found Eric and presented him with the idea of bringing the baby to the mother, so that the mother could have another opportunity to bond with and care for her baby.  I thought that if we could reach the mother, someone could place the baby onto the mother's open belly, in hopes that the mother would cradle her baby and respond in a nurturing way.  Eric was enthusiastic and willing to give it another try.

Eric brought over a small ladder, picked up the baby with a towel, scaled the ladder, and placed the baby on the mother's belly.  We all watched in awe, as the mother slowly wrapped her arm around her baby.   During the next hour, I stood diligently, and watched the mother gradually respond to her baby.  While the mother did not seem confident in her relationship with the baby, she did have some eye contact with the newborn and occasionally put her arm around the baby, which was more nurturing behavior than we had previously witnessed.  

In this picture, the mother is clearly looking at her baby; however, the baby seems to be doing all of the physical work in terms of climbing on the mother.

In this picture mother and baby are together after having been reunified, and the mother clearly seems to be making a nurturing gesture by putting her arm around her baby.  It is late in the afternoon, and it's been a long day.  We leave them alone, hoping that mother and baby can learn how to survive together.

Unfortunately, after having much hope, the ending to this story is not a good one.  The next morning, the baby was found on the jungle floor.  The mother must have dropped her once again, this time during the evening when no one was watching.   

Observing this mother and newborn baby sloth was an extraordinary experience, even thought it was a very painful one.  We, and even our children, had the opportunity to learn more about some of the harsh realities of the jungle.  Death is part of the life process, and our kids were able to learn firsthand in an experiential way, how challenging and complicated life can be.  Life is precious...!

Interestingly enough, while all of this was going on, Greg was sitting in the hammock of our cabin and spotted yet another mother and baby sloth.  This mother was one of the largest Greg had ever seen, and clearly her baby appeared to be thriving.  

Monica and Matt at Rambala Jungle Lodge

After a fabulous and adventurous two nights at Rambala Jungle Lodge, we make our way home to Boquete.  On the way back we stop at this cute little coffee house for some homemade empanadas and a delicious latte.  Life is good!