4:30 a.m. is never an easy wake up, but our destination in Panama was well worth it. We had a great couple of days in San Jose, but were happy to return to the beach and ocean breezes – this time on the Caribbean side of Panama. Our flight from San Jose was 50 minutes, on a slightly larger plane with two propellers. Again, flying low enough to see the ground from our window, we enjoyed beautiful vistas of the uninhabited lush green mountains of southern/southeastern Costa Rica.

Soon after our first view of the ocean, we spotted the archipelago of Bocas del Toro and landed on Isla Colon where we will be staying for the next week. Muhammed, the friendly proprietor of our condo was there to greet us and give us a quick tour or Bocas Town. The main section of town is small, but busy and full of things to see and do. Our condo is on the isthmus, between the main town and the rest of the island and is a mile and a half walk, (which had to be done once) from the center of town.

I’m thinking that surfing will be our first stop, since the boys are chomping at the bit. In the meantime, getting our bearings and exploring the town is my favorite part of arriving in a new place. More to follow…