Sailing from Panama to Colombia
I had planned to got from Panama to Bolivia directly but at the last minute decided to cancel the flight and join a boat sailing for Cartagena in Colombia. All the travellers I had met raved about Colombia and I had to thow caution to the wind and go and see it for myself.
We followed a coastal route which was fortunate since the North Koreans decided to test their nuclear weapons while we were in the water. Although we were on the Atlantic side, and in relatively sheltered waters, we still experienced waves 8 metres high. Apart from the risk of tidal waves caused by errant dictatorships the San Blas islands are also the area in which most yachts are struck by lightening in the world. I was quite worried about this risk but apparently it is very rare that people are hurt even if lightening does strike. All this was in marked contrast to the the reality of being on the water which was tranquil and frequently breathtaking.
After leaving Portobelo in Panama we would head to the most beautiful border post in the world to get Panamanian exit stamps and then onto the San Blas Islands. The whole experience would last 6 days in total.
The trip was magical, stopping at deserted islands and beautiful beaches along the way. The San Blas islands between the two countries are owned by the Kuna, indigenous people of Panama, and are fairytale white beaches complete with palm trees. Most are uninhabited apart from a few birds and are very small - small enough to walk around in less than an hour. Frequently they were surrounded by spectacular corals and fish so the snorkelling was amazing.
Along the way we fished for our dinner, and one day the skipper caught a beautiful feathered snapper (which is actually a wrasse - for those of you who did BV). We constantly ran a fishing line off the back of the boat and managed to catch a small shark which we ate as ceviche.
We stopped in a small bay where South America begins, just after Cabo de Tiburon (Shark Point) and there experienced the wonderful Colombian hospitality. This coast, which inspired Gabriel Garcia Marquez´s One Hundred Years of Solitude, is truly worthy of Magical Realism. Apart from the beauty of it all the joie de vivre of the people is really special. We hadn´t beenon land 5 minutes before a Colombian bought us drinks to welcome us to Colombia. He then gave us a ride to nearby Capurganá, plied us with rum and then when he went to take a phone call. In the man time he forgot that we were with him and drove back to the yacht without mentioning a word to the skipper about where he had left the crew.
Two days later we would arrive in Cartagena, the beautiful walled colonial city, to a sunrise.
Photos from this trip are here:
http://viewmorepics.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewPicture&friendID=98429512
Not on Blogger due to technical problems.
We followed a coastal route which was fortunate since the North Koreans decided to test their nuclear weapons while we were in the water. Although we were on the Atlantic side, and in relatively sheltered waters, we still experienced waves 8 metres high. Apart from the risk of tidal waves caused by errant dictatorships the San Blas islands are also the area in which most yachts are struck by lightening in the world. I was quite worried about this risk but apparently it is very rare that people are hurt even if lightening does strike. All this was in marked contrast to the the reality of being on the water which was tranquil and frequently breathtaking.
After leaving Portobelo in Panama we would head to the most beautiful border post in the world to get Panamanian exit stamps and then onto the San Blas Islands. The whole experience would last 6 days in total.
The trip was magical, stopping at deserted islands and beautiful beaches along the way. The San Blas islands between the two countries are owned by the Kuna, indigenous people of Panama, and are fairytale white beaches complete with palm trees. Most are uninhabited apart from a few birds and are very small - small enough to walk around in less than an hour. Frequently they were surrounded by spectacular corals and fish so the snorkelling was amazing.
Along the way we fished for our dinner, and one day the skipper caught a beautiful feathered snapper (which is actually a wrasse - for those of you who did BV). We constantly ran a fishing line off the back of the boat and managed to catch a small shark which we ate as ceviche.
We stopped in a small bay where South America begins, just after Cabo de Tiburon (Shark Point) and there experienced the wonderful Colombian hospitality. This coast, which inspired Gabriel Garcia Marquez´s One Hundred Years of Solitude, is truly worthy of Magical Realism. Apart from the beauty of it all the joie de vivre of the people is really special. We hadn´t beenon land 5 minutes before a Colombian bought us drinks to welcome us to Colombia. He then gave us a ride to nearby Capurganá, plied us with rum and then when he went to take a phone call. In the man time he forgot that we were with him and drove back to the yacht without mentioning a word to the skipper about where he had left the crew.
Two days later we would arrive in Cartagena, the beautiful walled colonial city, to a sunrise.
Photos from this trip are here:
http://viewmorepics.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewPicture&friendID=98429512
Not on Blogger due to technical problems.
posted by Brigitte at 5:17 PM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home