We've been here for a whopping day and a half but we all agree it feels like a week since we left. We lived an awful lot in that first 24 hours. We drove four hours to the airport (while so stressed/worried we would miss our flight that dinner consisted of a gas station lunchable) then flew 3 hours on a plane so tight that our knees held our chins, took a taxi at 2AM to a second airport (where our driver nearly vaporized a wandering capybara on the road: check out the picture if you aren't sure what they look like), waited for three hours while our desperate hopes of sleep were dashed by the shrieks of a malfunctioning fire alarm panel, and finally flew on a second plane to Isla Colon, Bocas del Toro where we are staying. It sounds pretty darn terrible but we quickly decided it was all worth it. The change in planes was pretty fun too; our first plane from Florida was brand new and transported people like mistreated cattle while the second plane was held in the air by prayers and was so old that the chairs still had ash trays. Interestingly, the second plane was the most comfortable. People had leg room in the 70's! We touched down on the island a little after 7AM but couldn't check in to our house until 9:30, so we had no choice but to wander. We ended up needing all that time because the house wasn't super easy to find and Google Maps decided to pretend it knew where things were but really didn't. Psych! We killed a little time at a tiny restaurant and kept our sleepy heads from falling to the table just long enough to eat our eggs (which we shockingly expensive) and leave. The house is in the middle of everything and couldn't be better. We've got a balcony on the ocean AND on the street, which gives us an awesome cross breeze. We knew we should sleep but with the sun up and curiosity taking over our naps barely pushed an hour before we were plotting our next move. Just a couple of blocks away we caught a little bus (no chickens on it, sorry Joe) and rode in to Boca del Drago. It was supposed to be a great beach but there really just wasn't much to see. Fortunately (after we downed some excellent fish and Joe discovered that he can no longer function without Panamanian hot sauce) we walked 15 minutes down the beach to Playa Estrella (starfish beach). The weather wasn't perfect but there was still plenty of sun. As we walked along the quiet beach lined with coconut palms we caught glimpses of big orange starfish in the water. They were really beautiful but I was expecting to see more than one or two every fifty feet on "Starfish Beach". I'm really glad we got in the water before we left! Once we did that we could spot them EVERYWHERE, sometimes five or six in a group. I guess the glare on the water kept us from seeing them from the shore. The water is crystal clear and, while it's definitely obvious that this place is a major backpacker hangout, nothing is all that crowded. As Bill and Ted would say, "EXCELLENT!" Make sure you read that with a slightly addled surfer dude tone... The bus ride back to the house was extra rough because we'd lost our ability to trick our bodies into thinking we'd slept in the previous 24 hours. I'm just glad we didn't try to make that trip on a bike! The guidebook says it's a popular thing to do but pfffbbbbtttt, anyone who'd rather pedal uphill for an hour and a half each way while being run off the road by SUVs instead of paying five bucks for an air conditioned bus is just plain nuts. Back in Bocas Town we scouted a restaurant for our first cocktails on the island. We picked one down the road because it's supposed to have great views of the sunset. Problem was the clouds were so thick we never saw much. Totally didn't matter because we enjoyed an extended happy hour of $1 beers and $2 mixed drinks while munching freshly-caught shrimp and tuna. Paradise found! Until we went to bed and discovered that our amazing middle-of-it-all location puts us within earshot of the drunkos being kicked out of the bars at 3:45AM. No biggie; I learned that if I kick on the AC in the room I can be lulled to sleep by its oddly soothing mechanical hum. Problem solved! We had booked a beach tour for this morning but were ready for the worst; every weather report we checked said to expect clouds and rain the entire day. Seriously? We flew all the way out here for rain? The weatherman appears to have joined Google Maps in just pretending to know what's going on: we had FANTASTIC weather! The sun was up all day and we didn't have a drop of rain. The tour left from just a couple of doors down and our guide really knew what he was doing. Our little boat of ten headed to Dolphin Bay to see the...dolphins. Imaginatively named, eh? I'm all for dolphins and it was great watching them jump, but after the first half hour of people stumbling over themselves to take a video they'll never watch again to see something I've seen a thousand times I was over it. Fortunately, only moments before I ended it all by throwing myself overboard to be brutally mangled by these silver demons of the deep, we started toward Cayo Zapatilla. I had high expectations for the island and it DID NOT disappoint. The water had the thousand shades of blue typical of every Caribbean getaway brochure and gorgeous jungle to boot. It wasn't packed and we were able to walk around the entire island. Our guide brought us chunks of freshly cut coconut to nibble on and we took it slow. About half way around we got split up from Kim and Joe, which was actually kind of awesome. We could've waited there for them to catch up, but we decided to just go do our thing and let them do theirs. We eventually caught back up with each other at the boat and had good stories to tell. It's a really good start to the trip; we don't have to be together all them, which means we can really have fun when we are. No forced "together time" :) When our guide finally pried us from the sand we got lunch and quintessentially Caribbean pina coladas to wash it down (is there any better drink for the beach? Just give up Corona, it ain't gonna happen). Most of the group snorkeled for a while after lunch but my oddly shaped face (sorry Brittany) didn't fit in any of the masks. Alas I floated with my eyes to the featureless sky while others marveled at the coral below. I'm smiling as I write this; I feel absolutely ridiculous complaining haha. Finally back in town at 4:30, Joe gave some locals a good laugh when he accidentally dropped his sunglasses into the water and promptly jumped in after them. Walmart sunglasses never meant so much to a man... Right next to the house is another bar with a great happy hour (we've got forty+ to choose from around here) and an amazing bartender. There was a board that listed everything Rudy (as our friendly genius was called) could make, but we learned to just watch what he made and ask for "that" with a pointing finger. Mounds of pineapple and copious amounts of the good stuff blended to perfection with a setting sun in view. Nice. He even made an entire cooler of sangria, starting with half a tub of cherries, pineapple, rum, cane sugar, passionfruit and coke. Wine was one of the last ingredients, but eventually made it in. We didn't even have to ask. By this point Rudy looked over to us and simply asked, "How many?" Life is good!!! We bought some shrimp at a market with the somehow familiar "Where shopping is a pleasure" line painted above the entrance and walked back to the house to make dinner. Joe and I snagged some tasty street food on the way back. Will we get sick and regret that decision? Probably. Will it be worth it? Totally :) The weatherman says tomorrow will be terrible, but now that we all know he's a moron we aren't taking his warnings of impending vacation doom so seriously. We're kind of playing it by the hour on what we'll do tomorrow. Right now the plan is to head to another side of the island to watch a surf competition. It's on the beach, it's free, and it was Joe's idea. I knew I brought him for a reason... (SIDE NOTE: I forgot my stupid yet crucial adapter that lets me upload photos to my iPad. The only things I can post are the few that Kim takes with a cell phone (which turn out pretty good!). It's better than nothing but I'll have to wait until I get home to put up the really good ones)