Back in the Caribbean

Well, dear readers, I have neglected you for some time now.  The Kid and I have had several adventures since we came through the Panama Canal.  We docked in Colón, on the Atlantic side of Panama, and took a blessedly air-conditioned bus to Panama City, for the express purpose of having lunch in a delicious, albeit pricey, restaurant named “Casuale.”  It’s

 

in the colonial section of the city, which is slowly

 being converted from a red-light district into a restored and charming tourist attraction.  Our restaurant, in case you were wondering, is in the restored section. We had discovered it when we first visited Panama two years ago with Semester at Sea.  The Kid and I feasted on sweetbreads, grilled octopus, this fried yucca dish with a name I can’t remember now, langostionos in garlic sauce, and squid risotto.  Much to our dismay, they were not serving 

the dessert we were looking forward to, the tres leches of the gods, and we had to settle for a brownie sundae (the Kid) and an excellent flan (The Da). 

The next day we were back in lovely Costa Rica, where we had a most excellent adventure.  We took a ship-organized trip to a place called “Cacao Trails,” and then to a sloth sanctuary.  At

 cacao trails we had a nature walk that taught us about rainforest plants, or attempted to, and then a chocolate-making workshop.  This was the fun part.  We got to taste cacao beans.  We roasted them, peeled them, ground them, and then watched the guide as he mixed the cacao paste with milk, brown sugar and vanilla to make something that tasted like a very dense flourless chocolate cake.  Dense and divine.  Heavenly.  We scarfed as much as we could and then went to lunch.  Every meal should work with way. Start with dessert. 

After lunch, the Sloth Sanctuary.  This place was founded by an American couple after some locals brought them a baby sloth that had become motherless.  The have over a hundred sloths they care for, and that they try to release into the wild.  They also try to educate people about sloths, who are often victimized by kids or hit by cars because they’re so slow and defenseless.  They are also amazingly cute.  We got to pet the original sloth, Buttercup, and get our picture taken with her.  We saw the sloth nursery, spoke with some of the volunteers, and then took a canoe ride through some of the rainforest nearby.  Not many wildlife sightings, but a lovely ride through very dense forest surrounded by singing birds.  The Kid was so impressed by the experience that he wants to go back to the Sloth Sanctuary as a volunteer one day. 

Without question the best of the five days we spent in CR on this trip. 

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