ChecMark

Thank you to those of you who have been very helpful to me these last few weeks. Tomorrow is the "big day" when I leave the cold and slush of winter behind in Canada and head south to paradise.

I'm not sure what sort of internet access I will have on the way down, but I will try to post updates on my travels as I go. If anyone has any suggestions on the best way to do this please let me know. I have a wifi Dell Laptop, which around here anyway, searches for any available public networks. I also have an NEC 525 Quad phone, and I'm planning on buying pay-as-you-go SIM cards in each country. This isn't so much for internet access, as I assume it will be expensive, but just so I have a cell phone in case of an emergency.

I was delighted to discover my Automobile Association membership here in BC covers me all the way through Mexico. Hopefully I won't need it, but it's nice to have as a backup.

I'm new to the forum, so I'm not really sure whether anyone is interested in my trip reports, so please let me know if this is not the right place to post this type of report. If it is, your words of encouragement would certainly help, along with any advice you have on where to stay or eat. I'm optimistically hoping to do the trip in ten days.

Happy holidays to everyone!

MRWOOHOO

Keep us posted, always good to hear peoples experiences. This one will be especially interesting.

ChecMark

Well, those of you waiting in breathless anticipation of my adventures, okay, all one of you, will be ever so disappointed that I am not making the drive now.

It's a very long story, but I ended up catching a bus from home to Vancouver late last night, okay, more very early today. Merry Christmas to those of you celebrating today. I am flying to Mexico City this afternoon, then out to Panama City tomorrow night.

Naturally with the Christmas holidays I have been out of touch with my new found friend in Boquete - the one who found me the house. She has no idea I'm flying now and going to arrive a whole lot earlier than planned.

I have not been able to find any information on how I get from PC to David, then Boquete. I don't arrive in PC until 6:40 pm and I don't think there are any flights that late and, if there even is a bus, it will not get in to David until the wee hours of the morning - not a good time to phone my friend for the key to the house. If it's all too late to get to Boquete Wednesday night, let me know where to stay cheap and clean in PC, and close to where I need to be the next day to leave.

If anyone is actually checking my progress and can offer me some help that would be great. I'm hoping to get back on the net tonight in Mexico City.

Thanks.

MRWOOHOO

Find yourself a place to stay tonight in Panama city, check either hostels or hotels. This is getting to be busy season so dont expect that you can get a hotel room just anywhere. You will be able to get yourself a bus ticket tomorrow to get you to David and go from there. It is a long bus ride so get to the station early in the morning or get yourself a flight from maybe Albrook? best of luck.

ChecMark

Thanks for the info. I actually found bus lines who show leaving for David after my flight arrives, but I get into David about 3:00 in the morning.

If you have any idea where I might stay or at least wait until daylight to call my friend, that would be great.

MRWOOHOO

Showing up on Christmas way in advance with nobody to pick you up yet. My recommendation would probably be to stay at the airport if you can. Unfortunately at this point you are on your own, Merry Christmas and best of luck.

MRWOOHOO

OOoops, I meant bus terminal, to much egg nogg myself. There should be a Panaderia (bakery) open at sunrise at aprox 6-6:30am.

Peace