02/08/04- 08/08/04 Bocas Del Toro

When we first thought about coming here I built up a picture in my head of a Caribbean paradise island so when we first arrived and the rain was absolutely lashing down I thought that I might be very disappointed. However despite it raining nearly everyday whilst we were here this is one of the most beautiful places I have ever been.

Whilst we were here we took a couple of tours, the first around various islands to go snorkeling and to see the red frogs, all of which were really amazing, especially the snorkeling. The other trips were to the beaches around the island which were also very beautiful. We also took a trip at night to one of the beaches to see if we could find any turtles, we didn't which was a bit of a disappointment but we did get to see the sand glow because of a special kind of algae which I had never seen before so that was pretty cool.



There's a man in Bocas who silently drags a giant wooden model airline around the streets at night- it has a wingspan of about 5 or 6 feet- and only once did he demonstrate why by running which gave the plane enough lift to take off. The rest of the time he walked it like a sad dog whilst diners watched bewildered.

Snorkelling in Bocas was amazing as the coral was beautiful and the sea life in abundance- looking forward to scuba diving a lot more now. The coral needs a bit more care as it looks like it is dying out a bit as no care is asked for by the many tour companies with regard to touching it. Go to Bocas while there is still coral there (if you are in the area).