Just say NO to buses!
Trip Start
Jul 07, 2009
1
21
29
Trip End
Oct 05, 2009
David, Panama
Sunday, August 16, 2009
Saturday
7:00 am: taxi from San Juan del Sur to Rivas
7:45 am: arrive in Rivas and find bus station (not a station actually, just a place on the sidewalk)
9:30am: catch the 9am bus to San Jose, CR
10:30: arrive at immigration/customs between Nicaragua/Customs
1:00pm depart immigration/customs and head for San Jose
5:30pm: arrive San Jose, CR (at the bus station in the middle of the 'red light' district)
Wait, wait, wait for connection.....
11:00pm: depart San Jose, CR
5:30am SUNDAY: arrive immigration/customs between CR and Panama
8:15am: depart immigration/customs and head for David
10:00am: arrive David, Panama
10:10am: get directions from Panamanian policeman to hotel and head there on foot w/bags
10:20am: realize Panamanian policeman sent us the wrong way.
10:30am: catch taxi and ask him to find us a hotel
10:40am: find hotel with no rooms available
10:50am: find hotel that allowed us to check in after seeing the look of sheer misery and desperation on my face
...And about 27 hours after departing from Nicaragua, we made it to our present destination.
I'll skip the part about the freezing airconditioning on the bus that had everyone shivering and piling on layers of clothing (be careful what you ask for). I'll skip the part about trying to use the toilet on the bus in the pitch black and splashing unknown liquid down my legs when I accidentally stepped on the flusher on the floor that I couldn't see. I'll skip the part about Mom and I having a knock-down-drag-out in the San Jose bus station when we were tired and frustrated. And I'll spare you details about getting stuck sitting in front of some bratty wailing kid on the overnight bus, wondering if the night would ever end.
Mom wanted to mention that it rained nearly the entire trip and her window leaked the whole time. Water just poured down the inside of the window for hours....
We'll be flying to our future Panamanian destinations. Buses suck.
