Panama - The Bad News

The morning was foggy as I headed off early to reach Panama. 

It was more or less a straight road, not as interesting as the mountain road with much of the road to Santiago under repair and construction of a new road to either side. After Santiago the road became better and was actually smooth for most of the way. My iPhone had failed to start charging and I thought I would be up for another replacement. The immediate issue was that I had no map so I approached blind the looming towers that make up Panama City.

My first priority was to find a hotel and I was hoping to find something outside of the city then make my approach the following day. I took a turn towards Vera Cruz on the coast and enjoyed a short ride off the main highway, winding downhill to the water. It was Sunday and the little beaches were crowded with cars and people having picnics. I continued past this area because there were no places to stay and soon came to a much more run down area, getting my first look at the slums of Panama. I rode the length of the small town only finding a sign to one hotel. I eventually found it and asked about prices and they wanted $45 a night. I figured I could do better than that.

I continued the ride back to the highway and over a mini Sydney Harbour Bridge…the bridge of the Americas…and there was Panama, a conglomerate of skyscrapers, each trying to express their individuality with shape and form, each trying to reach higher than the rest. 

I had no map nor any idea where I was going. The roads split regularly into overpasses, underpasses, big looping circles feeding into other arterial roads. It was really a guessing game and a bit of luck that you made a decision quickly enough not to run into the wedge of concrete that separated a split in the road.

I followed one of the splits and wound around into the port area, not really where I was hoping to go. I found my way back to a major road pointing to the city and took another side split. This took me through a jungle of high-rise slums and I knew I didn’t want to be spending any time here. Eventually I found an inner city area with a range of hotels. I shopped around and took a room for $35 for the night, hoping to find something better tomorrow.

 I pulled into Bavarian Motors BMW Plaza around midday and asked for Arturo. He had been the contact and help for Martin when he was here getting repairs on his motorcycle. Arturo spoke good English and we chatted and talked about the problem with the bike. I met Hector, the head mechanic, and they asked me to leave the bike for diagnostics and they would contact me tomorrow.

I had been looking at some hostels and decided on one in a suburb called El Congrejo, an area recommended by Martin and some others. It was only a short taxi ride, maybe 4kms from the workshop to El Congrejo but finding the hostel I had chosen was another matter. I soon found out that taxi drivers are all private, they charge a minimum of $3 for each trip but if it is a little on the complex or longer side they will try their hand at asking $10. They also don’t know where a lot of places are, do not have maps or GPSs and if lost will stop and ask or phone a friend. One hour later we were unable to find the hostel but had passed another one I had seen online so I decided to stay there.

 Mystico Hostal Spa was a welcoming place with comfortable lounges, spa baths, sauna, massage service and a choice of dorms or private rooms. I booked for three nights and was shown around the building to my room, the kitchen and the outdoor terrace. It was clean and comfortable and at $15 a night including breakfast, the dorms were not the cheapest around but half the price of a hotel and in a great central place. So began my extended stay in Panama.

I returned to Bavarian Motors the next day and was told that my ABS unit was not functioning and it would cost $3000 to replace and take four weeks for the part to come from Germany. OUCH!! I had avoided hearing this news in Costa Rica and had taken a cheaper option with a recommended mechanic who had ripped me off for $750 and left me with no brakes still. I decided to have a look around for a second hand part to reduce the cost and eventually found one with a supplier in Texas that offered a money back guarantee. Trying the cheaper option again. Hector agreed to fit the part that I would supply.