9/29/08

Began at 8. By the time we were all ready, packed, and on the bus, it was close to 9. A quick stop to pick up the gear and we were off. The bus was about -50 degrees Celsius, but it was hard to say whether to scolding heat was any better. It's almost normal to have Panamanians guys fawn over "gringas" (US girls) accompanied by a cheesy line, creepy looks, and occasionally a bit of stalking. This happened a bit at the gas stop. (--edit-- 10/14: This is a cultural thing, they aren't actually being creepy or anything. It's very normal).
Anyways once we got to Cocle we had to switch to a truck. That's right, a regular pickup truck. We loaded all the stuff overhead on a metal framework and sat underneath in the truckbed. The ride was slow and extremely bumpy (we were going up and down "trails"). It was so bumpy that the metal framework that was holding up our luggage broke. Yep the metal snapped if half. Luckily, we were almost there... and hey we survived, more or less. (--edit-- 10/14: and now have a story to tell! Awesome experience :D) The afternoon was spent getting introduced to the trails of Parque Nacional El Cope and to the equipment we'd be using (a lot). Nevertheless, most of the day was spent resting after a long journey...