Nicaraguan markets

So, who doesn't enjoy shopping? :)

One of the first things I do on my trips is locate the best local markets to check out the food scene and what’s on offer.  It’s the place where you can learn the most about people and their culture. While traveling, you get stimulated in many ways. The first is eyes, then you hear something new, then you smell something funny, well, whatever. Markets in developing countries still have this wild way and functioning like an organism itself. It is the place to get by cheaper, but also, you have the feeling that the whole village is there. Maybe this is almost true, and for hours everyday the markets are full and everybody sells something. You can get breakfast or lunch, go wild and overdose yourself on vitamins and fruits, witness slaughter of chicken, get dirty, enjoy the wonderful world of spices and herbs, buy special herbs, chat with the locals, meet a culture and in this time of instant traveling and gringo pollution have a feeling that you actually traveled somewhere.

Puerto Viejo and roots

Everyday I left the forest, before I cross over to the road and head towards town, I want to say a blessing for these woods, for monkeys growling and birds singing, for the trees and leaves and mushrooms and crocs, when the sunlight touches the leaves, through each branch, a stream of light, these paths have taken me in. And you listen to the sound, feel the presence all around, a graceful flight of a butterfly and it takes your breath away. Remember your place among all living beings, embrace with joy the changing seasons, for each yields its own abundance.

Bocas del Toro

The Bocas del Toro Archipelago is a group of islands in the Caribbean Sea in northwest Panama. It's a Caribbean tropical paradise with perfect beaches and world class surf breaks, coconuts, crabs, party and sandflies. 

Christopher Columbus visited Bocas del Toro in 1502. During the 17th century, the archipelago became a haven for pirates. The buccaneers repaired their ships on the islands, built others with wood from their forests and fed upon the many sea turtles that nested on the beaches. The pirates are said to have buried treasure on a number of the islands, but to date none of this loot has been found. Later the islands became a Chiquita banana production hub.