Chiriquí: Volcan and Las Nubes This side of the Chiriquí highlands felt unexplored. I headed to what would be my favorite region and found myself stranded at a Catholic Church shortly after an accidental homestay. These small villages revealed hidden nature, a strong dose of Panamanian culture, and lots of strawberries. Day 6: Volcan I got up as the… Read More
Bocas del Toro: Rains, Runs, And Man Buns Day 5 I seriously can’t stop talking to people. Being alone has forced me to meet an overwhelming amount of freaking people. From freaking everywhere. I had talked to my bunkmate and stared at Thai and Vietnamese street food on instagram (yes while in Panama, call me greedy) till late last night and it… Read More
Short Stories From My Favorite Simple Man With A Man Bun The Ultimate Culture Slap Marcos started in Mexico eight months ago with shit for Spanish. His only encounters with people of the Caribbean all took place in Spain. The guys were thugs, the girls were prostitutes or purposely flirting with you while a group of guys hid, waiting to beat you. His words, not mine. Here he… Read More
Bocas del Toro: Surfing On Isla Carenero And Returning To A Warm Home Day 4 Did it really thunder during the night? I woke against my will to my alarm and a steady drizzle. Fried some eggs for breakfast. I met William at the Escuela del Mar office located across from the police station, and we boarded a lancha for Carenero. All I knew about William was that… Read More
Bocas del Toro: Getting Settled On Isla Colón Day 3 I was quite close to becoming a popsicle overnight. We made several stops but I chose to not ask my bladder if it ever needed relieving and chose to instead just hold it. Me and all the other foreigners (there’s only one place we all go) were hustled off the bus at 7:30am. And straight… Read More
Panama City Day 1 What do you do when you have an organic chemistry exam in 13 days? Obviously spend the next 10 in Panama. The only good thing about an awful flight delay was catching up on sleep with a row to myself. They kept having us board and unboard the plane. I talked… Read More
Medical Volunteering In The Esmeraldas Province I joined my university’s MEDLIFE chapter for our first South American visit over my freshman spring break. Each day we set up a mobile clinic at different sites around the underprivileged local community. Together, our group benefitted 1,578 patients in one week. One of the coolest things was that the doctors were Ecuadorean, removing any culture gap and… Read More
Quito In A Day After a week of medical volunteer work, my wing woman and I made the most of our last day in Ecuador. The organization said we’d have to give up protection by them and we said fine. Then it was just us and the capital city. La Mitad Del Mundo It’s hard… Read More
Backpack Guatemala The lakes are better, the volcanoes are better. Despite corrupt politicians and the prominence of gangs in certain areas, there’s plenty of good vibes and natural beauty in this favorite Central American country. BUDGET BREAKDOWN: Duration- 5 Days Drive to airport- 5 hours, one way Airfare- 217 Airport parking- 12 Gas to airport-… Read More
Antigua Antigua: Day Three Sunshine and Indian Nose greeted us as we left the ecolodge on this fine election day. The lancha back to Pana was 25Q. I waved down chicken busses until we found ourselves back in my favorite crazy market. But before we get to the cuteness of colonial and UNESCO Antigua, the… Read More