EDUCATION IN BOCAS

Liz is excited to be on a glass-bottomed boat tour hosted by the Instituto Smithsonian.
That's "Smithsonian Institute" in English, by the way. We learned that.

Traveling is learning. 

On any trip far from home, travelers unwittingly acquire all sorts of new knowledge. There are lessons on cultures, for example, how to greet a person properly in Nepal and why not to eat with your left hand in India. 

Plenty of classes get taught on patience, which comes in handy for 11-hour boat rides that were supposed to last only three. 

On our trip through Bocas del Toro, we ended up learning new stuff everywhere we turned. Like how to say Smithsonian Institute in Spanish:

Yes, the Smithsonian...

Liz looks at coral growing. It's slooooow.

While visiting the Instituto Smithsonian, a research station set up to study the region's diverse flora and fauna, Liz also learned the different growth rates of coral when living in clean ocean water vs. coral exposed to dirty/toxic water.

We also learned that the best place to rent a motorbike is from a Rasta man who hangs out on the corner in Bocas town.

Although he doesn't give out maps of Colon island, you really can't get lost...since there are only two roads. One of which becomes impassible at high tide. 

Since we weren't able to leave the Bluff Beach area, we decided to take one of the midnight turtle tours, which taught us another lesson: Sometimes, people tell you it's turtle season, when it really isn't. Also, walking five miles in the dark in deep sand is exhausting. 

Oh Bocas, you taught us so much. But there's more!

On a beach nearby, Kip re-learned why palm trees line the beaches of coastal areas around the world (because coconuts washed ashore and took root where they dropped).

Kip learns palm trees come from coconuts. Duh.

I'd like a number 18 please... or is it number 1?

We also learned that if you have a restaurant that offers incredible cheap and greasy breakfast, people will come. Even if your signs are riddled with gramattical and numerical errors.

If you happen to add things to the menu, do it in no particular order. 

You can even start with the number 18. 

Certain American tourists will still eat there every day, and maybe re-learn the number system. 

Why not, 18, 1, 2, 4, 7, 6, 8, 9, 10? 

After a week of her egg sandwiches, it made perfect sense to us.

Starting with 1 is just boring. That's what everyone expects you to do.



And no visit to Bocas del Toro would be complete without a visit to the famous Starfish Beach, just one of the locations in Bocas where the upcoming Benicio del Toro as Pablo Escobar, "Paradise Lost" was filmed in April. 

True to the name, there are some huge starfish in shades of red, yellow and orange. The beach even had a small hut with a display of fun starfish facts. Liz was very excited.

Liz excited to visit Starfish Beach.