CAG on travel: Santa Catalina, Panama

That machete was already in the tree

During my epic journey to Panama, I saw quite a few amazing places. First one on the list was Santa Catalina, in the Veraguas Province. Santa Catalina is a beach town, surfer spot, and really well kept secret... for now. There are literally two major streets with a few hotels, restaurants, and a couple of bars, so you get to know the people in town very quickly.

Little friend on the first night

We stayed at the Hotel Santa Catalina, which totally lived up to the reviews and had really amazing views, food, and service (when people were around).

View of Hotel Santa Catalina

The gate to the beach from the hotel

The surf was also really amazing, and it was the first time I've ever surfed water so warm you didn't need a wet-suit.

View from the beach

Tree roots visible at low tide

We borrowed bicycles from the hotel, and I had a very typical Panamanian day. I wanted to organize a scuba trip, and so I biked to the nearby scuba shop, but no one was there. I was told to go to a nearby restaurant at 2p to find the scuba man. At 2p, he wasn't there, and I was sent to find him down in town again. Still, he wasn't there.

Then we decided to go for a very late lunch, which as usual, we ordered and it took over an hour to come (at least you can say the fish was super fresh). After lunch, I decided to explore for the scuba man again, only to find him and be told that no boats would be doing scuba trips to Isla Coiba, because of a city-wide boat inspection taking place. Basically, the typical way of interacting with Panamanians. Very helpful, non-direct answers, and running around in circles, while you wait a really long time. But it's vacation, so not that big of a deal. We were there for swimming, yoga, crazy nights at the 'No Worries' bar. Hakuna Matata!

Sign at La Vida Buena, before taking a yoga class