We finished all that we could inside the park within a few hours, there were lots of people who were enjoying the two beaches in the park, but we liked the main beach where the surfers do their thing. We once again made it down to waters’ edge for another amazing sunset. When we were eating supper at the hotel, another couple at the next table asked if we were on the bikes, it turns out they are doing a similar trip in a car. We shared travel stories and border experiences; it is funny how that keeps coming up in conversation. The man was from Germany via Atlanta and the lady was from Mexico via Atlanta, so they had a slight advantage with the language. Then their friends showed up, and the dude looked like a friend of mine (Phil the limey), he was about 6’3” tall darker complexion and a big mop of black curly hair. We had seen him a couple of times that day and kept saying “There is Phil”, so it was funny when he came to our table and started talking with us. I kept calling him Phil even though that wasn’t his name, he probably thought I was drunk or something.
The next morning we left Manuel Antonio and moved to Golfito, in preparation for the Panama border the day after.
This turned out to be a great move. This is a port city on the eastern shore of Gulfo Dulce, it used to be a busy port that exported bananas around the world then in 1986 the banana company closed and left town. There was a very hard financial period for the locals until they developed the market area. This is not the typical Central American market. It is a duty free market filled with all kinds of electronics and appliances from all the major players. There is also clothing, sunglasses, hats, chocolate, liquor, pretty much everything but shoes. The usual rules apply, if there are prices on the items do not expect much negotiating, if there is no price tag it is fair game.
Just to backtrack a little, while we were walking the town earlier we stopped in at the marina to look at the boats. There were a couple of real luxury yachts worth a look. We spotted a couple with Canada Flags so we went to take a better look and the owner was sitting on the deck. After a quick intro, it turns out that the owner of the sailboat ‘Precious Metal’ has been floating around for over two years, and the owners of the other large, over the top Canadian yacht(named Wench) is being paid for by you and me, and everyone else who has Shaw cable services. Yes, that is right, the owners are the Shaw family from Calgary. We did not get to talk to them, but I may cancel my cable when I get home. LOL. Just kidding, they have worked very hard to build their company and deserve all the perks that success brings.
So back to the Precious Metal, this 46’ sail boat is home to the Captain and small dog and the occasional guest/hired help. I did not think of it but there is alot of work involved to keep all the mechanicals working properly in the salt environment of the ocean. The rigging, the motors, everything down to the door hinges requires constant attention or it will rust and seize up. This never ending lists turns into about 8 hours a day in maintenance, on top of all the usual household chores that are required whether you live on a boat or in a house. So it was really quite shocking to know that Pamela has been doing all this by herself, yes the Captain of the ‘Precious Metal’ is a little lady named Pamela. She has a very interesting background but an even more interesting current life. It is hard to imagine conquering the ocean alone on such a large boat.
Nothing but beautiful sunsets.
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