We started at a wildlife sanctuary and were led around by a volunteer who told us the stories of each of the animals being kept there. Some were being held and taught to fend for themselves, later to be released back into the wild; some were horribly abused and past rehabilitation but were there to be cared for for the rest of their lives; some are on the verge of extinction so they were brought there to reproduce. We saw many different types of monkeys, countless species of birds, some jungle cats, and some other things that I'm not even sure how to classify. One animal was explained to us as a mix between a cat and an otter. I'm still not really sure how that worked out. I pet a baby anteater.
After the wildlife sanctuary we got some strawberries at a strawberry farm and ate them. They were delicious. We didn't have enough time to do river rafting or horseback riding, so we decided to go to a coffee plantation we read about that was supposed to have lots of good trails to walk along. We got a taxi and drove about 10-15 minuted into the mountains, much further than we had expected it to be. When we got up there no one was around and I asked the driver if it would be difficult to get a cab to take us back to town. He said yes, nobody goes up there unless they are going to that place specifically, and since there was no one there, there wouldn't be a lot of cabs around. Then he offered to drive us around and show us all the best sights of Boquete for $30. Since it was a $7 cab ride each way and entrance to the coffee farm was $10 each, we figured we'd actually be saving some money going that route. So we agreed. Best decision we could have made. This guy was born and raised in Boquete so he knows it very well. He drove us on paths through the mountains, showing us where all the produce for the grocery stores in Panama City is grown. The entire place was pretty surreal and out of a story book. We would chase rainbows and he knew exactly how long it would take for them to be fully formed and exactly how long they would last. I swear I saw a unicorn. He took us to waterfalls, to the entrance to the trail to the volcano, showed us crazy rock formations. We went to a botanical gardens that is some rich guy's house that he's landscaped like crazy and has it open to the public. The best part was the driver wasn't able to speak a word of English, so my Spanish really came into use, and I understood every part of the tour and was able to converse with him. If I had more situations like that while I've been here I'd be relatively fluent by now. He ended our tour by driving up to a high point with views of the entire city below, with the volcano in the background, then taking us to the best coffee place in town. It was the most delicious coffee I've ever had. We got up at 5 the next morning to catch a bus back to David, where we would change buses to take us to Bocas del Toro. We had to chase after the bus because it left 10 minutes early. But luckily they stopped for the crazy gringos running after the bus flailing their arms.
Boquete was full of all types of sweet flowers
After the wildlife sanctuary we got some strawberries at a strawberry farm and ate them. They were delicious. We didn't have enough time to do river rafting or horseback riding, so we decided to go to a coffee plantation we read about that was supposed to have lots of good trails to walk along. We got a taxi and drove about 10-15 minuted into the mountains, much further than we had expected it to be. When we got up there no one was around and I asked the driver if it would be difficult to get a cab to take us back to town. He said yes, nobody goes up there unless they are going to that place specifically, and since there was no one there, there wouldn't be a lot of cabs around. Then he offered to drive us around and show us all the best sights of Boquete for $30. Since it was a $7 cab ride each way and entrance to the coffee farm was $10 each, we figured we'd actually be saving some money going that route. So we agreed. Best decision we could have made. This guy was born and raised in Boquete so he knows it very well. He drove us on paths through the mountains, showing us where all the produce for the grocery stores in Panama City is grown. The entire place was pretty surreal and out of a story book. We would chase rainbows and he knew exactly how long it would take for them to be fully formed and exactly how long they would last. I swear I saw a unicorn. He took us to waterfalls, to the entrance to the trail to the volcano, showed us crazy rock formations. We went to a botanical gardens that is some rich guy's house that he's landscaped like crazy and has it open to the public. The best part was the driver wasn't able to speak a word of English, so my Spanish really came into use, and I understood every part of the tour and was able to converse with him. If I had more situations like that while I've been here I'd be relatively fluent by now. He ended our tour by driving up to a high point with views of the entire city below, with the volcano in the background, then taking us to the best coffee place in town. It was the most delicious coffee I've ever had. We got up at 5 the next morning to catch a bus back to David, where we would change buses to take us to Bocas del Toro. We had to chase after the bus because it left 10 minutes early. But luckily they stopped for the crazy gringos running after the bus flailing their arms.
Boquete was full of all types of sweet flowers
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