learning, living and loving in nicaragua

We’ve found a new favorite corner of the world in the form of Boquete, a quaint, little town nestled at the bottom of Volcan Baru (the tallest mountain/volcano in Panama with a view of the Atlantic AND Pacific from the top).  Yesterday I felt like a modern day Panamanian Huck Finn and Jim, not in the running away from home sense, but in the ‘extreme river adventure’ sense. Along with a German girl we met at our hostel, Josh, Emily and I embarked on a white water rafting expedition organized through a local company here in Boquete.  This rafting tour was apparently one of the best in Latin America as it spanned 26km with 91 rapids ranging from class 1 to class 4+!!!!  The owner informed us that a good rafting trip contains between 12-20 rapids, so this was some intense stuff.  Not only that but the river was extremely rocky, which made for a more fun, but possibly dangerous, ride.  Our guide was a young, local guy named Freddy who had rafted this particular stretch of the Chiriqui River thousands of times.  Freddy was wiry, little and strong (and quite mischievous as we found out later).   Emily and Josh started out in front because they had rafted before; this was my first time ever!!  There wasn’t much of a warm up to this adventure – the first half of our 4 hour boat ride contained the more challenging and higher class rapids.  The river rushed and roared through a jungle-esque setting, narrow gorges, and beautiful views of the nearby mountains.  Freddy expertly steered us down the raging rapids, giving us the proper commands the whole time — all forward!  stop!  backwards!  After 1.5 hours we stopped for lunch on the river bank.  Chef Freddy laid out a spread of sandwich fixins, fruit and cookies, and topped it off by ringing a little bell to call us to eat!  The second half of the trip I was up front with our German friend, and Freddy decided to get tricky.  He sent us in circles, tried to tip the boat a number of times, and was SO good he was able to maneuver the boat in such a way to throw a certain person out.  Victim one was yours truly.  Dominating the currents with his paddle, he angled the boat in such a way to send me flying overboard and within seconds was able to pull me back into the boat as well!  This was only the beginning of his shenanigans.  He would silently get into the water during a lull in the rapids, swim towards the front and yank someone into the water!   It was the most fun that I’ve had in a long time.  We didn’t spot much wildlife but the rich, lush foliage was more than an eyeful.  Lesson of the day – a helmet and lifejacket can be your best friend, and incredibly stylish at that.