Whenever I heard people speak about Panama, it made me think of Prison Break (if you know you know). But there I found myself, flying in to Panama City from Colombia. After 2 days spent in Panama City, mostly spent lazing about, I headed for a town just 2.5 hours away by bus - El Valle de Anton. I was accompanied on my bus journey by a Russian traveller named Sam (I later found out this was not his real name, I still don’t know what his real name is in fact).
Panama is expensive. Especially compared to Colombia. So as I sat on the bus I contemplated where I could ‘volunteer’ in Panama, exchanging my time for accommodation and food in a hostel. This is quite a popular mode of travelling - it allows for slower travel, finding home for a short while in a place, meeting people, not having to pack and unpack your backpack every 2 days, and extending the length of your trip.
I stayed in a hostel called ‘La Casa de Juan’, it was rustic, mismatched, and had the feel of a vintage or second-hand shop. But that was part of the allure for me - it was a true backpacker’s hostel. The place was run by three Panamanian brothers, their dad had owned a hostel in Panama City years ago and had passed on his love for socialising, travel, and culture exchange to his sons.
After a few days staying here, I enquired about volunteering. The town was small - there was a select amount of shops and restaurants, and an abundant fruit and veg market (which I loved). But it was surrounded by green mountains, waterfalls and jungle. They had a spot for me and so I began the next day at 7am. The work was mostly cleaning, preparing breakfast and lunch, chatting to guests and advising them on the hikes that were available to do. My shifts were around 5 hours a day, and the rest of the day was mine to spend how I pleased. I joined guests on their hikes, read, started a workout routine, and decided to paint one of the tables in the hostel as a form of art therapy.
The hostel’s dogs, Pedro and Juanita, were the most loyal companions I have ever encountered. They became attached quickly, often joining guests on their hikes, barking whenever they felt like the guests were straying too far from the hiking trail.
It was rainy season and so this meant that there was a LOT of downtime. Which was nice for a while, but I tired slightly of this after three weeks. My favourite part of the whole experience was the countless chats with the eldest brother, he was a small 42 year-old Panamanian man named Juan (nicknamed Pepe) who became my Work Dad. With him I practiced my Spanish, albeit often with immense difficulty due to the fact that he spoke incredibly quietly an quickly. But I definitely improved from all of the time that I spent with him. We occasionally shared a tipple of red wine together, and we often shared stories around life, love, and all of that good stuff. I’ll always remember the advice he gave me, and his patience whenever I burnt the pancakes at breakfast time. His daughter is super lucky to have him.
I think I saw the most beautiful sunset I’ve seen thus far whilst being in this tiny town in Panama. The viewpoint is called ‘Cerro de la Cruz’. It is reached on foot or by car through long, winding roads, and is surrounded by the vivid greenery of the valley. You can even see the ocean in the distance. The first time that I visited the viewpoint here, the sky was a lava-like orange. Fitting for a town nestled in the crater of an extinct volcano. What made that day even better was that we went for ice cream afterwards. There was a place where I had found real Italian ice cream, and I used any excuse to visit it. I think I had ice cream at least seven times in my three weeks there.
The things I’ll carry with me from my time in El Valle de Anton are undoubtedly that mind-blowing sunset, it was a super special moment shared with friends, and of course my Panamanian Work Dad. Thanks for everything, Pepe.
