Crossing the border into Panama was painless enough. Soon we were aboard a fast boat heading through mangrove edged canals and out towards the islands of Bocas Del Toro. I'm sure you remeber Andrew - a Scottish chap who shared our pain in Guatemala during our exit from the World Cup? Well we have on numerous occasions run into him. Bocas was one such occassion. Recognising our vexed demeanour, Andrew made a wise suggestion. 'Throw money at the problem'. Wise words indeed. We sought sanctuary in a mid range hotel and enjoyed relative luxury. The town of Bocas stumbles through life in a sort of Caribbean style malaise. Tasty Indian curry, plentiful snorkeling and generally relaxed ambience has placed Bocas in a top ten spot for this region. Dolphins followed our boats wake as we whisked between the islands of this lesser known archipelago. We chose flight over bus and chuckled for the full duration of our walk from our hotel to the airstrip. 4 minutes to be exact. Looking forward to slapping down our air tickets and announcing that, for the first time in a long time, we are REVENUE passengers. Our smiles were soon wiped off our faces as we were informed that our 16kg per person checked baggage represents excess weight and we would need to pay a surcharge. The bag opened and Phill doned three layers of clothing. Dressed for the North Pole in 34 degree humidity, we boarded the plane. Phill wore jeans as a necklace, Sue tried her best to calm the situation. Panama City offered extremes. A modern banking district of glass tower blocks was a far cry from the inner city area we passed on several occassions. Derelict, though occupied, we witnessed some of the worst deprevation seen so far on this trip. The locals have a tendancy to be, shall we say, frugal. McDonalds hand over only one napkin per person and our receptionist was only too keen to kill the power to our room each time we wandered out into the mayhem. A bank of switches isolating the air con in the hotels habitacions meant you always returned to a swealtering room. Visiting the Panama Canal today marked the end of our 12 weeks in Central. Time to reflect perhaps. 140 hours on buses, 29 beds since Mexico, not a minute passing without us watching our backs. We need a holiday. Here`s the best bit. Tomorrow we get to have one. We head for Florida. A week of luxury awaits and we can't wait. PaS