Search Results for: boquete

Things to Do in Boquete, Panama

July 31, 2014 by Cate Brubaker

Life as a full time expat is pretty great for the most part. We get to live, work, and play in some of the most beautiful parts of the world, but it seems as if not everyone shares my affinity for this kind of lifestyle.

Over the last four years I’ve tried and failed miserably to get everyone I know to come visit us in the various places that we’ve lived. A few friends and family have traveled to see us, but not many. I’m really not sure why this is.

When we made the move to Panama six months ago I expected that we’d see more visitors than we did in the United Arab Emirates, Peru, or Taiwan. It’s closer to the United States and not as foreign feeling as the other places to which I’ve tried to lure people.

So, here we are, six months in, and do you think we’ve had any visitors?

Nope. Not a one.

What is it about Panama? Do people just not realize how cool this country is? I recently had a conversation with a friend who was to meet us in Cancun during our upcoming trip in September. This is how that convo went down.

Friend: I can’t make it to Mexico, now just isn’t the right time.

Me: No worries, that just means you’ll have to come to Panama!

Friend: That’s what I was thinking. Can we go to Costa Rica?

When I read that I almost cried. Yeah, Costa Rica is cool and all, but it’s pretty much the same as Panama. It’s not as if everything changes like magic when you cross the border that lies a mere hour and half from my house.

So in the spirit of that old adage that say something about beating that dead horse until you succeed in making lemonade, I’ve compiled a list of a few things about our little town that are pretty wonderful, and none of them involve going to Costa Rica.

Hiking

This beautiful waterfall wants to see you.

Boquete lies in the shadow of a really big, very extinct volcano called Volcan Baru. People like to climb it for eight hours in the dark so that they can see the sunrise from the top. I am not one of these people. While I do enjoy a good hike, doing in in the dark is not really my thing.

It’s best to hire a guide for this trip, although there’s no requirement that says you have to. There are several outfits that will let you pay them to come with you on your hike, and some of them also do organized group hikes, as well.

For those who’d rather try something a little more tame and a little less nighttime-y, one or more of the other trails might suit your fancy. There is the Quetzal Trail that allows you to hike all the way to Cerro Punta if you so desire and the Pipeline Trail offers some pretty spectacular waterfalls. The trail known as El Pianista is, despite some recent very bad press, a really beautiful area and will take you over the Continental Divide and into the Bocas del Toro district if you follow it until the end.

Birdwatching

Panama has a ton of birds; they’re everywhere. If you’re my friend on Facebook then you know how I feel about the birds. At any given time throughout the day our yard is inundated with birds, from giant pterodactyl-like vultures to tiny hummingbirds who like to come inside the house like people. I even saw a beautiful male quetzal fly through our yard one morning. I know that birdwatchers often go their whole lives without seeing this holy grail of feathered friends and I was just like, “Cool. Where’s the coffee?”

Of course, your birdwatching adventure could be combined with a hike, but you could also sign up for a tour that more or less guarantees that you’ll see the quetzal. Finca Lerida offers a good one, as does Boquete Outdoor Adventures.

Whitewater Rafting

Doesn't that look like fun? — Doesn’t that look like fun?

The Boquete area has some really nice rivers, although dams have recently been put in place that have altered them to some degree. However, river rafting here is a lot of fun. If you’re in town for just a few days, as most visitors are, this is the one activity that you should be sure to include, in my opinion.

The river has some really good rapids and is blissfully uncrowded. You might see monkeys doing monkey things in the trees along the river, and there are sloths hanging around too. Even if you’re not that into rafting simply lazing around on the river and ogling the sexy scenery is a day very well spent.

A shameless plug this is not, but I really like Boquete Outdoor Adventures for this tour. Jim and his crew are very, very good at what they do and they run a first class outfit. You really can’t go wrong with any of the tours and activities that they offer.

Coffee Farm Tours

Panama grows some really delicious coffee, and most of those coffee farms are right here in Boquete. Several different tours are available that allow you to see the coffee trees up close, learn more about the harvesting of the coffee cherries, and discover the secrets of the roasting process.

Of course you get to taste some of the different types of coffee, and many of the farms give you a sack of coffee beans when you leave. How can you go wrong with that?

Of course, there are many, many more things to do here and I could go on and on. However, the best way to learn is by doing, right? That just means that you’ll need to come down here and see our pretty little mountain town for yourself.

Just don’t talk about Costa Rica, okay?

Author’s Note: All photos are courtesy of Boquete Outdoor Adventures and are used with permission. Still not a shameless plug, I just think Jim is a stand-up guy who operates a great business.

Is Boquete Safe?

May 31, 2014 by Cate Brubaker

Following my earlier post, I thought it might be necessary to address the concerns that the post might have raised. As we travel all around the world I’ve noticed that, more often than not, the planet is a safe place and the people who inhabit it are kind and generous. However, when tragedy strikes, no matter where it is, people automatically wonder if a particular city or country is safe for travelers.

Despite recent news, which includes my own post, Panama in general and Boquete specifically are safe places to travel. Unfortunately, bad things happen everywhere, even in our own backyards, but isolated incidents are not reasons to dismiss a beautiful part of the world outright. If we did that then we’d be closing our minds to the entire planet and view everything and everyone as deadly.

That’s no way to live.

I have traveled all over the world, in places that many would dismiss as too dangerous, and I’m unscathed and I live to tell the stories. I love Boquete and the people that live here and I wholeheartedly encourage you to visit if you have the chance.

Is Boquete safe?

Absolutely. Come see for yourself.

Photo by Ayaita from Wikimedia Commons.

Lost in Boquete

May 30, 2014 by Cate Brubaker

It happens all over the world. People go missing, sometimes of their own accord and sometimes not, but it happens. Sometimes these people are found or return home when their walkabout is over and they can then give an account of the circumstances that led to their disappearance. Unfortunately, there are too many friends and families of the missing who never receive that kind of closure. Such is the case of the two young Dutch women who went missing in Boquete, Panama. Kris Kremers and Lisanne Froon, ages 22 and 21 respectively, disappeared on or around April 2, 2013 after indicating that they were going to hike the trail known as El Pianista. They were seen on the road near the trailhead at about 2pm, but never again. There have been no signs of them since that day. What happened? Where did they go? Who, if anyone, is responsible for their disappearance? These are the questions that people in two countries are asking, and specialists in law enforcement and search and rescue are desperate for answers.

When It Began

According to sources that included local hoteliers and the girls’ families, the girls had been in Boquete for approximately two weeks. They had stayed at a local hostel, Spanish by the River, and were taking an intensive Spanish course in preparation for local volunteer work. When they left the hostel on the afternoon in question, they took little that would indicate that they were planning anything but a hike. Search efforts were not launched until approximately forty eight hours later, which has led to some criticism of the Panamanian authorities for not acting quickly enough. Several groups of Boquete locals, including myself, set out to search the hiking trails in the area, but found no sign of the young women. Helicopter searches of the area were performed, and professional climbers canvassed in and around El Pianista trail with no results.

Horse Trail — Searching the area on horseback. Photo by Cate Brubaker.

Two Months Later

Nearly two months have passed and the girls’ smiling faces are still visible on the missing posters all over the town of Boquete. Candlelight vigils have been held as Boquete locals have joined with the families of the girls to pray for their safe return. Specially trained search dogs have been flown in from the Netherlands to aid in the efforts.

Specially trained dogs aiding the search.

But they’ve found nothing. There are no traces of these two young and adventurous women. However, rumors spread like wildfire in this small town, which does little to help an investigation and ultimately hinders it. Tabloid style websites and newspapers have published information that has ranged from the discovery of bodies to the statement from a medium that the girls were underwater. Unfortunately, the spread of misinformation leaves people unable to discern facts from falsehoods, and creates an atmosphere of hysteria that detracts from the task at hand. So many people want these girls to be found, but as more and more time passes the possibility of that diminishes.

Moving Forward

Many more questions exist, but the most pressing one right now surrounds the search efforts and how they will proceed. The families and friends of Kris and Lisanne have been tirelessly raising money to fund the search. They have hired private investigation teams and offered a substantial reward for information leading to the girls’ whereabouts, but all efforts seem to be in vain.

The parents of Kris Kremers at a candlelight vigil in Boquete.

The Panamanian authorities seem to have hit a wall, as well. While there have been many criticisms of the way that they’ve handled the search, the fact remains that much of the country of Panama is uninhabited and remote, with dense forests and jungles that are often impenetrable. This is not an easy place to search for two lost girls. Additionally, by traveling overland one can be beyond Panama’s borders in as little as ninety minutes from the Boquete area, so the possibility exists that Costa Rica needs to be the focus of a search as well. Unfortunately, there are too many questions and not enough answers, even after sixty days have passed since the disappearance. As a resident of Boquete I’ve been saddened by this case, as most of Boquete has been. It’s been difficult knowing that the girls’ parents are here as well, doing what they can to find their daughters or even the smallest shred of information about them. However, it’s becoming abundantly clear that time is no longer on their side. Photos courtesy of Radio Chiriqui unless otherwise indicated. Visit their Facebook page for more information.

Mulegé

September 4, 2016 by Will Brubaker

Of course traveling is all about the places you go. And then again, its not at all about the places you go. I am fortunate to have had great experiences all around the globe. I’ve seen many beautiful things and have sometimes even taken photos of those beautiful things. The places and the beauty however, are rarely what make a visit to someplace stick out in my mind. The people I meet, on the other hand, solidify the memories of beautiful (or not so beautiful) places.

Mulegé is a non-descript small town on the east coast of the Baja Peninsula. For me it was a convenient place to stop for the work week. We found an inexpensive campground which had good wifi (this is low-season so nobody else was using it). All of my requirements were met here so the decision was made to spend the week.

For our first couple of nights, we really didn’t get out much. There’s really nowhere to get out to, it’s also pretty hot at this time of year and leaving the shaded area of the orchard where we were camped was less than pleasant. Boredom and monotony eventually drove us to brave the heat and seek out something resembling entertainment. So far as we could tell by Google maps, the nearest bar/restaurant within walking distance was nearly 2km away. That’s not very far at all under normal circumstances but if I have neglected to mention how hot it was, well, it was hot and I would just as soon not be drenched in sweat by simply walking to dinner.

We set off towards the beach and after about 5 minutes walking saw what appeared to be your typical Mexican bar/restaurant. It didn’t really look open, but there were two ladies about so we inquired. Indeed, they would be happy to have us. That didn’t really mitigate the dreaded sweating, but by stopping here, it didn’t get any worse.

Soon after we were seated, a lone man sat at a table nearby. Cate made several attempts to strike up a conversation, but he didn’t really seem chatty. He would politely respond to questions but was perhaps a bit hesitant to elaborate on any answers to questions that he had given. Not too long after he arrived, a friend of his showed up. That’s when what amounts to entertainment in Mulegé began.

Cate and I had had a conversation a few days earlier about what might make a person choose one place over another when deciding to expatriate from the US. She was trying to make sense of why people flock to places like Boquete, Panama. More specifically, why do people leave the US and travel to a strange country to only do the exact same thing they were doing back home (in many ways, we exhibit this behaviour as well). Once these two old friends got to talking, Cate seized on the opportunity to explore her questions more. “Will you ever go back to the US?” she asked. “Nope” was the response. “Why not?” Cate asked. “People in the US park too fast”. Yep, you read that right – park as in park their vehicles. That’s the kind of place that Mulegé is. Life is a LOT slower there. There were many other great quotes from that night – the only other one that I can recall is “Lobsters are the groupers of the shrimp world”. I don’t know what that’s supposed to mean, but I found it hilarious at the time.

In so many places that we’ve lived and traveled, expats from wherever show up and try to change wherever they’ve moved to to be more like wherever they came from. It’s an odd phenomenon.

Later in the week, we were invited back to the same restaurant/bar for a potluck. More of the local expats were there. The vibe here is definitely different. None of the people that have adopted Mulegé as home complain about the Mexicans. This is the exact opposite of our experience in Tulum where that seemed to be all the expats would talk about. Nobody here is interested in changing a damn thing. I get the sense that if one decides to expatriate to Mulegé, they do it because they simply want to be left alone and I also get the sense that these folks have succeeded in that endeavor.

If you ever find yourself in Mulegé on a Sunday afternoon, you should seek out the Carlos Racing Bar & Grill. Sit down, relax (but slowly) and learn a thing or two about just letting go. Thanks, Mulegé for reminding me how to relax.

Back in the Saddle

August 25, 2014 by Cate Brubaker

I grew up on the back of a horse and I mean that in the literal sense of every word. When I was six years old my family moved to a farm in rural Oklahoma. The post and rail fences that surrounded our property soon contained a multitude of horses. There was Betsy, Charmin, Okie, Carrot, Honey, and all of the others that came and went over the years.

I was that girl. The horse girl. I was the one who spent every unscheduled moment of every day in the saddle. I was the one who got up at 4 am to prepare for a horse show, or to ride in the dark, often in my nightgown, during the early hours of July days, before the oppressive heat of an Oklahoma summer sent every living creature scurrying for shade.

Me and Honey. If the glasses are any clue this is circa 1982.

I spent rainy days when it was too muddy to ride scrubbing tack and cleaning stalls. I learned about thrush and laminitis and birth and death. I learned about patience and control and quiet strength. I learned about bravery and fearlessness, and that fences meant nothing when jumping them was the fastest way between point A and point B.

I fell, I crashed, I broke bones, and I was knocked unconscious. I screamed, I cried, and I lost my temper. Throughout it all, I never failed to get back on, and my horses never failed to forgive me for being human.

Most of all, I learned about love.

Charmin and myself with our spoils from a local horse show.

My life changed, as it is wont to do, and the farm was sold. I watched the horses travel away to their new homes, victims of a circumstance they never understood but one that still haunts me to this day. Life is never fair.

My life took me in various directions over the next several years, but I was the one who still had riding boots and a box full of Black Stallion books. I was the one who refused to obey the no cantering rule on a trail ride. I was the one who attended horse shows, fidgeting in the stands because I knew I could have done it better. I was the one who never really stopped being that girl.

As I began my world travels I had more opportunities to ride than I had in the previous twenty years. I trained at a dressage barn in Kaohsiung, Taiwan where, despite my decent Mandarin skills, I needed a translator for my lessons. I rode a champion Peruvian Paso stallion through the Moche ruins of Chan Chan in northern Peru. I galloped a feisty Arabian mare along the road to Petra in Jordan. I drooled over the fancy stables in the United Arab Emirates and I regretted that the prices were too high for me to take lessons in the air conditioned arenas.

Riding through the ancient Moche ruins of Chan Chan in Trujillo, Peru.

Then we moved to Panama.

I met Jess on our first trip to Boquete in 2011. As we rode in the taxi from the David airport to the little, mountain town 45 minutes away I spotted the barn on the side of the road, the outdoor riding ring set with a jumping course. As soon as the niceties were exchanged with my husband’s friends who we were there to visit I asked who owned the stables. I rode with Jess on that visit and again a few months later, just prior to our move to the UAE.

When we made the final decision to settle in Boquete for a while I knew that I had to make riding an important part of my life. It wasn’t about anything other than claiming a passion that had been on the shelf for too long. You see, I need to ride, I need to fill my head with the scents of hay and horseflesh, I need to recognize that my life will always be intertwined with that of a horse.

It’s not always that I allow myself to be so reflective. There are too many portions of my past that I’d really prefer to forget. However, years spent in unfamiliar places around the world have taught me to relax and live in the moment. Through travel I’ve discovered a strength and resilience that I hadn’t seen since those days when I was that girl, the skinny blonde on a horse.

And through horses I’ve learned that, in very unexpected ways, it is absolutely possible to go home again.

A Visit to Finca Dracula Orchid Farm

July 28, 2014 by Cate Brubaker

Not long after we arrived in Boquete Will decided that we needed to take a trip to the town of Volcan. According to our trusty GPS it was just a short distance away, and Will decided to prove it by taking a seemingly random road out of town.

I think we made it about 15 minutes on that one before we hit a dead end on the slopes of Volcan Baru.

We tried again a few days later on a different road and made it about 30 minutes on that one. It was a beautiful drive but, alas, no Volcan.

After getting proper directions from a live human being and conducting a brief round of Google searches we decided that we would head out on the coming Saturday, and we even had a specific destination.

The Finca Dracula Orchid Farm.

Home to a rare and magical species of orchid that only shows its spooky face by the light of the moon, Finca Dracula is located in the village of Cerro Punta, just outside Volcan. Now that we realized we had to go around the volcano instead of over it, and we had an ample supply of Pringles for the trip, we headed out to meet Dracula.

It’s about a 2 hour drive from Boquete through the rolling foothills of the volcano. Dotted with cattle ranches and highways that boast more horses than cars at times, the road swoops down then up and over rivers and gorges, and the weather alternates between rolling mist and bright sun depending on the mile marker.

Volcan is small, but it’s a great place to stop for lunch or a bathroom break. Cerro Punta is about 20 minutes further down the road, and you’ll know when you get close to it.

Have you ever had those moments when you stop and think, “Hey. I know I’m in X country, but I could swear I was Y right now.”

Yeah, Cerro Punta made me look over my shoulder for a fondue restaurant and people wearing Swatches. Bursting with lush green meadows and alpine forests, the Cerro Punta area feels so Swiss that there is even a village called Nueva Suiza. I’m not kidding.

It even comes with a little hotel dressed up as a chalet.

Finca Dracula is located just past the downtown area of Cerro Punta. If you feel lost there are several tourist kiosks on the main road, staffed by people who will be happy to help you. I was handed a very nice map and a coupon for a free night at the local hotel just for stopping in to use the bathroom!

The last portion of the road to the farm is badly rutted and is suitable only for 4×4 vehicles. However, you can easily park at the bottom of the road and walk in. You’ll cross the bridge on foot and work your way up the road to the small office and greenhouse area.

As I said, we visited on a Saturday and expected the place to be packed with orchid enthusiasts. After all, Dracula orchids are quite rare. However, we were the only ones there and the lady in the office said that they didn’t do guided tours on the weekends.

We then walked around the grounds on our own. There are a number of beautiful tropical trees and flowering plants on the well-kept path, but I came for the orchids. We hurried through the trail and went back to the office.

The lady then, very kindly, offered to take us into the greenhouse. Not all of the orchids were in bloom, but the ones that were took my breath away. I’ve seen quite a few orchids in my day, but I’ve never seen some of the varieties that they keep at Finca Dracula.

This is the beautiful yet shy Gladys. — The beautiful but very shy Gladys.

Sunny yellow Frank won't be ignored. — Sunny yellow Frank won’t be ignored.

This is Prince, one of the flashiest of them all.

Our impromptu guide rattled off the Spanish names of the orchids, but I couldn’t pay attention. I was too busy staring into the corner where Dracula sat in his pot, his purple face bent over against the midday sun that filtered through the roof. I had heard that the Dracula orchid could be placed into a bucket of water briefly and it would open, no matter the time of day. Our guide didn’t seem to understand what I meant when I asked, but I might have used the Spanish word for drown.

We looked around for a few minutes more and I tried unsuccessfully to buy some of the orchids. Either they simply weren’t for sale or the lady thought I’d drown them; I may never know the real reason why she wouldn’t let me leave with an orchid of my own. We then left and made it back to Boquete in time for dinner.

All in all it was a great day and a great drive. The Cerro Punta area is gorgeous and worth a visit, and that visit should always be capped off with a stop at the Finca Dracula Orchid Farm.

Note to Scientists: If you’re an orchid enthusiast or expert I apologize for the inaccuracies regarding the photos. I was never able to establish the proper names of the orchids, so I had to improvise.

How to Get There: If you’re driving take highway south from Boquete toward David. At the 14 kilometer mark take a hairpin right at the gas station onto highway 13. Continue to Volcan then turn right on the road marked Cerro Punta. If you’re taking the bus, grab a local bus out of Boquete to David, then change to the local Cerro Punta bus.
Consequently, you could ask a live human to avoid any mixups.

There is an admission charge of $10.00 per person, which may or may not include a guided tour.

A Flight Over the Andes: What Could Possibly Go Wrong?

July 28, 2014 by Cate Brubaker

Get a bunch of travelers together and you’re bound to hear stories. While the uninitiated might expect to be regaled with tales of museums and monuments, exotic food and even more exotic locales, what you’ll often hear is a whole lot of bitching, and most of that centers around transportation.

Of course, I’m always game to join in these types of conversations. There was the seven hour bus ride from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap that was a fun-fest filled with puking children, 100 decibel ring tones, and a driver who honked the horn relentlessly at the empty stretch of highway ahead of us. It was as if the road was full of ghosts that needed to be loudly reminded to give way.

Then there was the night train from Bangkok to Chiang Mai. As I lounged in my terribly uncomfortable seat beside a half open window that coughed sporadic puffs of humid air, a beetle the size of a healthy 4 week old kitten flew in and landed on my chest. My literal knee-jerk reaction was to flail my feet wildly, and I made solid contact with the seat ahead of me and knocked it loose from the bolts that fastened it to the floor, which unceremoniously dumped its sleeping occupant in an unflattering sprawl.

I typically don’t include air travel when I complain. Despite my morbid fear of flying I can’t really find fault with air travel itself, save for the random time when I’ve been seated next to someone of questionable size, or I’m right in the middle of a toddler party in the back of the plane. If I have a particularly terrifying flight I usually just keep it to myself.

Until now.

On July 3 we left Boquete, Panama for Montevideo, Uruguay. This involved an all day bus ride to San Jose, Costa Rica then a flight to Montevideo with a connection in Lima, Peru. The bus ride was uneventful, as was the flight to Lima. After a brief layover we boarded our last flight and took off.

I don’t remember crossing the Andes Mountains on that flight. It was pitch dark so I couldn’t see the mountain tops at all, nor was there any turbulence, at least until we hit the Argentinian plain. The plane began to shiver and shake, and the lights flashing out of the corner of my eye weren’t attached to the plane’s wings.

I alternated between fascinated glances out the window at the lightning storm that raged around us and clutching the armrests and moaning. As I fought and lost a battle with tears I told myself that this couldn’t go on for two more hours, but it did.

When we successfully made the bumpy landing into Montevideo the passengers erupted in applause, as some are wont to do. The last two hours of terror faded quickly as my mind became newly occupied with exploring another country. My last thought was simply to assure myself that it couldn’t be that bad on our way back.

I was so wrong.

We arrived at the airport in the stupid early hours of July 22, ready to reverse our course back to San Jose. The sky was dark and clear, and a few stars twinkled overhead as the plane barrelled down the runway. As we began to climb and the light from the sun became slightly visible through the clouds, the bumping started. Then the lightning started. Then it all went to hell.

As I methodically picked apart the rubbery omelet and tried to maintain some sort of sanity through the turbulence, the pilot’s voice clicked through the intercom. I tried to decipher as much of the Spanish as I could, impatient for the English version that would follow. I got nothing.

While he droned on in Spanish, the flight crew had sprung into action. They frantically gathered breakfast trays in carefully balanced stacks in their arms and hurried to the galley. My fellow passengers were scrambling for seat belts and securing bags.

“Passengers, this is your Captain. We are now entering the turbulence zone. Please fasten your seat belts tightly and remain in your seats. I regret to inform you that we will not be offering duty free shopping at this time. We apologize for the inconvenience.”

I cinched my belt as tight as it would go, and marveled at what I had just heard. The captain apologizes profusely for the lack of duty free shopping, but not for the turbulence zone? What is the turbulence zone, anyway?

Then it started. The flight crew buckled up behind me. I glanced past the Japanese woman sitting in the window seat and spied the peaks of the Andes looming out the window, almost close enough to touch. The plane began the first of a long series of lurches, and my seatmate grinned widely and held her hands up, roller coaster style.

I wanted to punch her.

The plane continued on, like a meth-addled Pegasus gleefully bucking and leaping on big, silver wings that flailed through the air. Muffled shrieks and gasps echoed through the cabin, and I think I added my voice to the chorus once or twice.

As the plane maintained its predetermined course to hell, filled with sickening dives and sways from side to side, I just knew it was the end. I found myself in a terror-induced trance of sorts, unable to move a muscle save the ones in the hand that had a vise-like grip on the armrest. I tried to recall if the film Alive had any practical tips on surviving a plane crash in the Andes, outside of eating my fellow passengers.

The plane would level off occasionally and I would find myself at the brink of a relieved sigh, but then another nose dive would take place and my hopes were dashed. I kept glancing over my shoulder at the flight attendants in their seats, deep in some funny conversation and oblivious to the fact that we were all teetering on the edge of disaster.

I wanted to punch them too.

This nightmare continued for almost an hour. When I had the courage to glance out the window I could still see the Andes, taunting me with their beautiful, snow capped, turbulent glory. Shouldn’t they be long behind us by now? It’s been an hour! How big can a mountain range be, anyway?

When the skies quieted down and the flight crew left their seats I finally allowed myself to relax, which translated into an only slightly decreased level of vigilance. I kept looking out the window at the rapidly retreating Andes, going over my South American geography carefully in my head. Nope, no more mountain ranges. We should be okay.

As we broke through the perpetual cloud cover that shrouds the city of Lima, I breathed a sigh of relief. The wheels gently touched down onto the runway and I was poised to join the round of applause that I was sure would follow. You see, I placed these pilots on a pedestal reserved for those who manage not to kill themselves or the people around them while in the line of duty; people like doctors who perform experimental surgery during a power outage or day care workers.

The applause never came. Just the typical grumbling and shoving, as if it were any other flight.

Really? Those pilots just saved us from certain death and none of you fucks can clap for them?

Then it occurred to me…

They never got their duty free shopping.

There Will Be Bugs

May 29, 2014 by Cate Brubaker

After our interesting yet ultimately soul-sucking two years in the deserts of the Middle East the thing I was most looking forward to in Panama was the life. The green plants, the fruits and vegetables that thrive in a year round growing season, the birds, and all of the other creatures that live in the highlands of Boquete were such a draw for me and I was terribly excited.

But then I realized that, while nature is cool and all, this shit can and can and will try to kill me,

I wasn’t prepared for the bugs.

These things are terrifying in their numbers and even more terrifying in their singular mission to invade my house. I am constantly waging war against moths, june bugs, ants, fruit flies, regular flies, wasps, and even a damn slug that I found on the kitchen floor one night. I know that slugs are not bugs but whatever. If you creep me out then you get lumped in with all the other creepies.

Sorry, slug. At least I just swept you out with the broom when I could have gone for the salt. Consider yourself lucky.

There are the leaf cutter ants that march proudly by the light of the moon and stars and systematically tear apart the leaves of my plants. They seem to prefer the flowering plants, so I’ve given up on having anything that blooms in my yard. I’ll sometimes sit on my steps in the evening, armed with the bottle of bleachy kitchen spray and shoot streams of death at them as they saunter by, the petals of my flowers in their evil mouths.

While I’ve never really paid much attention to moths in the past they’re hard to ignore here in Boquete. They’re everywhere and they only want to flap their wings in my face. There seems to be some weird subsect of moth behavior happening here, and those bitches think they’re people. I even had one who repeatedly insisted on landing in my hair. I finally escaped her advances and retreated to the house, only to come back out in the morning to find her laying eggs on our porch stool. I’ve never seen a moth lay eggs before, and I hope it never happens again. I’m all for the propagation of species, but that was too much. I mean, this moth had her lady parts on my head just the night before!

Hordes of little red ants have decided that the electrical outlets on the outside of the house are the perfect nesting sites. I watched a herd of them move their eggs from their underground lair and march across the patio and squeeze under the electrical outlet cover. When I decided to investigate further and lifted the cover I backed away in disgust. There were thousands and thousands of them and they just poured out, eggs in their tiny jaws and the queen scampering away, desperate for cover. I called the landlord, concerned that the ants would somehow destroy the wiring in the house. He was unfazed.

I thought that I’d become desensitized to all of these things, then today happened. I was sitting out on the porch, looking at the tree like I’ve done every day for the four months that we’ve lived here, and I saw this.

What the hell is that! I mean, really, what is that? I’m feeling pretty fragile right now and I’m not sure I can go on. Sometimes I feel like I’m existing in some alternate universe, and the bugs are the overlords and I’ll soon be enslaved. I imagine that this might entail knitting tiny sweaters for them and drinking lots of beer so that they can swarm the empty cans and get drunk on the leavings, and their power.

I’m not really sure how much more I can take.

2012: The Year in Review

December 31, 2012 by Cate Brubaker

2012 has been a big year for us here at The Life Nomadic. We made the move from South America to Southwest Asia, and between that move and our need to escape Abu Dhabi, if only for a weekend, we visited sixteen countries.

It was a hectic year of travel to say the least, and while we’ll be modifying our travel schedule in 2013, I wouldn’t change a thing about the things we did this year. Here are some of the highs, and a few lows, of 2012.

January: We rang in 2012 in the lovely little town of Boquete, Panama. Some of Will’s friends from his days in Antarctica own a fantastic restaurant there, and it’s one of our favorite places in Central America. Following that we made our way south to Santa Catalina, Panama where Will completed his advanced open water SCUBA certification at Coiba Island. One of the interesting things about that time was that the owners of the hostel where we stayed were away at the time, effectively leaving us and a group of Canadian travelers to run the show. There were some great nights spent dancing in the moonlight on a cliff overlooking the Pacific Ocean. During this time we also made the decision to accept the job in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.

Heidi and Michael, our favorite people in Boquete.

February: In February we returned to Huanchaco, Peru to collect the things we had stored with friends and to say goodbye to our favorite little beach town. As the details of Will’s new job were solidified, we gathered our lives into our suitcases and journeyed to Washington, D.C. to prepare for our trip to the Middle East. Washington, D.C. is one of my favorite cities in the USA, and although the cold weather was a shock, we had a great time experiencing city life again, which included a hockey game, the fantastic museums, and a reunion with our good friend Natalie who was in town on business.

March: We spent March exploring the amazing country of the United Arab Emirates. A lot of time was spent on details, such as securing our residency visas, which ended up being a bit more problematic than we initially thought. Our marriage certificate had to be sent to Taiwan to be authenticated, and because that process was delayed, we had to apply for an extension on our tourist visa. However, we did manage to have some fun in Dubai, which included a visit to the Burj Khalifa, the tallest building in the world, and Ski Dubai, which is the largest indoor ski slope in the world. We also visited the oasis city of Al Ain and its famous camel market, and watched the sunset from Jebel Hafeet, the highest point in the country. A trip to the famous Blue Souk in Sharjah was also a must.

April: I rang in the month of April with a much needed surgical repair of my knee. Of course, any type of surgery is not much fun, but the immobility I was forced to maintain was more difficult than I expected. However, we had to make a visa run to Oman, as our residence visas were still in the works. We decided to make a weekend of it, so I bundled my braced leg in the car and we drove through the desert to Muscat. I was dumbstruck by the beauty of the Omani coast and the desert interior. Camels and mosques dotted the landscape and we were both pleased to finally take a road trip in our own car, after years of travel on someone else’s schedule.

May: After my knee was in better shape for extended periods of walking we took a long weekend trip to Istanbul. This city simply charmed the pants off of me. I loved everything about this wonderful place where east and west meet to say hello. The Blue Mosque, the Hagia Sofia, the boat cruise up and down the Bosphorus Strait, and the Grand Bazaar represented everything that I love about this part of the world. We ate delicious food at the restaurant owned by a Turkish man who had returned from New York City to run the family business, and he did so with a unique Brooklyn style. My knee was screaming by the end of the weekend, but I was so glad to have visited this wonderful city.

June: By June the incredible desert heat had begun to set in and we were miserable. A tropical getaway was just what we needed so we booked a trip to Sri Lanka. The flight left from Dubai at some ungodly hour so we drove over the night before and checked into a hotel near the airport to sleep for a few hours. The alarm was set and we both dozed off. I woke a few hours later to see the clock flashing 3:30 am, the time when our flight was leaving. Unfortunately, the alarm on the phone was set for 1:00 pm, not 1:00 am. This was the first time in my life that I had missed a flight and we were both so bummed. We drove back to Abu Dhabi the next morning, collected our cat from the neighbors, and spent the long weekend at home, vowing to never miss a flight again.

At least Bean was happy that we missed our flight.

July: Initially we hadn’t planned a trip for July, but restlessness from the heat combined with a fantastic airfare sale saw us booked for a weekend in Kiev, Ukraine. I quickly realized that a visit to Chernobyl was a real possibility, so I got to work on the details. Government approval is necessary to receive a pass into Chernobyl, and that takes time, so after a change of date on our tickets we were approved for entry. Visiting that place is one of the highlights of my life. It was surreal and beautiful and haunting all at once. The city of Kiev is a stunning place as well. It has all of the aspects of the former Soviet Bloc that I expected, and a good dose of beautiful European architecture to boot. This trip was was probably my favorite of the year.

The Ferris Wheel in the abandoned town of Prypiat, Chernobyl.

August: August was to be our big trip for the year, which included both of our birthdays. We decided to fly to Prague and rent a car, then drive south through Austria, Slovenia and Croatia, then return to Prague for several days in the city. Those two weeks were amazing. We visited the Bone Church in Kutna Hora, Czech, spent a crazy night wandering the streets of Graz, Austria, camped in Plitvice National Park, Croatia and followed part of the Bourdain Trail in Zadar, Croatia. We rented an apartment in Prague for a week, and stomped back and forth across the Charles Bridge, delighting in the sights and sounds of that amazing city. It was truly a spectacular time in Eastern Europe and, of course, I can’t wait to go back.

September: A trip to Jordan has been on my bucket list for years and when we made the decision to move to the Middle East it was one of the first places we talked about visiting. However, my knee surgery forced us to push this trip back several months due to the level of physical activity required. By September, I was ready to go. We only had a long weekend so this was a jam-packed time, but it was incredible. We spent a night sleeping under the stars in Wadi Rum, visited Petra and took a donkey ride through the cliffs, gazed at Israel across the Dead Sea and drove our rental car through tiny villages. Jordan is a spectacular country that deserves a great deal of recognition for the wonderful Bedouin hospitality.

October: Eight years ago I visited Thailand right before the devastating tsunami that struck in 2004. So much in my own life has changed in those years and I was eager to revisit this country that had fanned my travel flame so long ago. Air Berlin and Etihad Airways had opened a non-stop flight from Abu Dhabi to Phuket so we decided to visit over the long Eid holiday weekend. In addition, we received our first invitation from a hotel to stay at their property and write a review! We spent five days at the beautiful Hilton Phuket Arcadia Resort and Spa, went diving with Sub Aqua, kayaked the beautiful Phang Nga Bay, and ate curry until we could eat no more. A lot has changed in Phuket since my last visit, and I was pleased to see this beautiful country has rebounded well from that terrible disaster.

The James Bond islands in Phang Nga Bay, Thailand.

November: As the year was winding down, our travel schedule ramped up. We had two trips planned for November, and the month started with another attempt to visit Sri Lanka. We made the flight this time, and spent a weekend in Unawatuna, about three hours south of Colombo. This sleepy little beach town was everything we could have hoped for. The Thaproban Beach House with its idyllic setting on the beach was perfect for lazy days sipping beers between bouts of sun and thunderstorms. As usual, the weekend was over too quickly, but what a weekend it was.

Despite another round of protests in the Egyptian capital, we made plans to go to Cairo over the last weekend in November. I couldn’t have been more enchanted with that wonderful city. Of course I loved seeing the Pyramids and the Sphinx, but I was more intrigued by the amazingly strong people who are so dedicated to changing their country and their lives. Although we only spent a short time in Tahrir Square, that time will stay with me forever.

December: I am still processing the time we spent in India over the Christmas holiday. I don’t think one can leave India with thoughts and opinions lined up neatly in a row. There is too much in the way of emotion to categorize in one fell swoop. However, as we arrived in Delhi, the city was reeling from a recent horrific gang rape of a young woman on a city bus. Tension was high as protests and riots occurred citywide. I loved being there to see these people standing up for an end to violence against women.
We saw the tourist sights, but there is so much more to India than the Taj Mahal. As soon as I have organized my thoughts, I’ll share them with you.

A very foggy morning at the Taj Mahal, Agra, India.

So that’s it. What a year! While I loved each and every trip we took, I learned a lot about what I do and don’t like about that type of travel. We have decided that 2013 will include fewer, but longer, trips to destinations like Northern Europe and China. However, as is the case with us, nothing is set in stone.

Thanks to all of you for following us around the world during 2012. We wish all of you a healthy and happy New Year full of adventure!

Our Five Most Memorable Trips

December 3, 2012 by Cate Brubaker

If there’s one question I get more than any other it’s this one: What’s your favorite place that you’ve been? I love that people are interested enough to ask, but I hate the quantification and limits that an answer requires. Each and every place that I’ve been has made the favorites list in one capacity or another. Some are more “favoritey” than others, but if I couldn’t find something amazing in everything, then I probably shouldn’t be traveling.

Will and I have discussed this topic, as well. Since many of our trips were made before we even knew each other, we have our own favorites and our mutual favorites, and some that fall somewhere in between. For the sake of argument, we have whittled down a list of the five most memorable trips that we have taken together.

Here they are, in no particular order.

1. The Panama Canal

Cate’s Take: Our trip to Panama did NOT go as planned. It was supposed to be visa run from Peru combined with a visit to Boquete to see friends and a cruise to the San Blas Islands. The Boquete portion was amazing, but when we returned to Panama City to start our journey to San Blas, things went horribly awry. Suffice it to say that we got up at 4am for nothing, but we did get our money back. On the plus side, that left us with nothing to do in Panama City on the one day a month when a tourist cruise through the entire Panama Canal is available. What an incredible sight to see! It’s a full day of locks and lakes, huge ships and engineering awesomeness that is not to be missed.

Will’s input: The San Blas Islands are my bucket list item that almost happened. We could have gone anywhere for our visa run, but we had the time & resources to go to Panama. The motivation came in the promise of free drinks in Boquete and the possibility of going to San Blas. When San Blas obviously wasn’t going to happen for us, it caused us to explore our options. We decided on a full transit of the Panama Canal. The Canal is one of those things that has had a huge impact on the world as we know it and to have the pleasure of seeing it up close and personal is an experience I will never forget.

2. The Peruvian Amazon

Cate’s Take: I just love how this trip was “planned”. We were sitting on our lanai in Huanchaco drinking wine with friends and it just popped up, “How about we go to the Amazon?” Two days later we were on a bus headed northeast. We made a few leisurely stops before we boarded a cargo boat, complete with bananas and livestock, in Yurimaguas. The river was high so the trip to Iquitos only took forty eight hours, but the sunrises, sunsets and stops in the little villages along the way were some of the most wonderful hours of my life.

Will’s input: This trip was very unique in that the journey itself was the destination. The vast expanse that is the Amazon region remains mind-boggling to me. We really just surrendered ourselves to the trip and let things happen and everything went very smoothly. The interactions that we had with others along the way really make this trip stick out in my mind.

3. Chernobyl, Ukraine

Cate’s Take: We booked tickets to Kiev simply because they were inexpensive, and it’s a direct flight from Dubai. It wasn’t until a few days later that it dawned on me, Chernobyl is near Kiev! It did take some leg work and a change of date on our plane tickets, but we got permits and went on a tour of Chernobyl and Prypiat, the abandoned town nearby. I was simply speechless the whole time. The beauty of the landscape really belies the disaster that occurred there just twenty five years ago, and the ghost town of Prypiat is haunting and compelling to look at. I feel very fortunate to have seen that place. And Kiev is a spectacular city as well!

Will’s input: When you think of ruins, you usually think of ancient structures abandoned for whatever reasons the inhabitants had for vacating them. The reason that Prypiat was abandoned is something that I witnessed on television. The thing that really sticks out in my mind though is that my expectations of scorched earth were completely shattered. Our visit to these modern ruins was a truly unique experience.

4. Angkor Wat, Cambodia

Cate’s Take: Cambodia was one of the places I had visited long before Will and I met, and I was beyond excited to see it again with him, especially as this was something of a honeymoon, kind of. Regardless, Cambodia will always be a very special place to me, and sharing the hikes through the temple complex with my favorite traveling companion was a delightful experience. Plus, it was our first trip together that involved something other than resorts and room service, and I think we worked as a team really, really well.

Will’s input: Angkor Wat was the first place that we visited together that Cate had been to before. She got to fill the role of destination expert and I got to enjoy it without putting too much thought into the logistics. Beyond the grandeur that is Angkor Wat though, this trip occupies the front of my mind because it was both a honeymoon and where our engagement became official when I presented Cate with her ring. Of course she said “Yes”.

5. Sihanoukville, Cambodia

Cate’s Take: This could have been combined with the above post and simply labeled as “Cambodia”, but Sihanoukville was a very different part of the same trip. We took a death-defying cab ride from Phnom Penh to get there, then the shenanigans began. Those few days were a booze-filled extravaganza and I wouldn’t have had it any other way. From a drunken walk home in the torrential rain with a gigantic “borrowed” beach umbrella to our own personal booze cruise in the Gulf of Thailand on a boat that later capsized (we weren’t on it, of course), Sihanoukville reminded me why it’s so important to be with someone that makes me laugh. Uproariously.

Will’s input: The tension caused by getting there (I’d recommend against being on Cambodia’s roads in the dark) followed by the relief of being there are what I remember most about Sihanoukville. This seaside town is a bit off the beaten path and I’ll always remember it fondly for the rustic beach bungalow, the golden sand beaches and the aforementioned “borrowing” of the beach umbrella during a violent deluge.

Rustic Beach Bungalow, Sihanoukville, Cambodia

So there you have it. Will and I don’t always agree on everything, but we do agree that these five journeys were memorable and important in so many ways. I look forward to updating this list frequently.

What are your favorite trips? What makes those journeys special to you? Let us know in the comments section below!