We are getting closer. Now we stay in Portobelo, some 20 miles down the road from Colon, on the Panamanian Caribbean coast.
We are waiting for two things:
- The shipment of our car which, if everything goes well, should be completed on Friday morning. I should see it again once we arrive in Cartagena, Colombia.
- Our own trip to Cartagena is now scheduled for Friday evening. We will spend the night on a sailing ship and leave early on Saturday morning. The boat will stop for almost three days in the San Blas Islands, and arrive to Cartagena after five days. I may not have good internet connection so it may take me a while until I post anything else on the blog.
In the meantime we are having a great relaxing time at Portobelo. Definitely, this is the place to go if you want to forget about the entire world.
Portobelo was one of the main exit points for Spanish ships departing to Europe loaded with American treasures. It was also very much appreciated by British pirates, who attacked the place several times.
Portobelo Bay. One of these boats may be our transport to Cartagena.
A view of Fuerte de Santiago, on one side of the Portobelo Bay. It was also used as a 'casamata', the place to store the explosives.
Hey, did you meet any of those British pirates? They're lovely friendly chaps who will gladly buy you a beer and chat about the weather before they cut your throat and steal your gold teeth.
ReplyDeleteYour lovely location in this post brought to mind Portobello Road in London, a long street most famous for its weekly market. Lo-and-behold! Wikipedia offers: "Portobello Road was known prior to 1740 as Green's Lane ... In 1740, Portobello Farm was built in the area ... The farm got its name from a popular victory during the War of Jenkins' Ear, when Admiral Edward Vernon captured the Spanish-ruled town of Puerto Bello (now known as Portobelo in modern-day Panama)." And more: "The War of Jenkins' Ear was a conflict between Great Britain and Spain that lasted from 1739 to 1748 ... Its unusual name, coined by Thomas Carlyle in 1858, relates to Robert Jenkins, captain of a British merchant ship, who exhibited his severed ear in Parliament following the boarding of his vessel by Spanish coast guards in 1731. This affair and a number of similar incidents sparked a war against the Spanish Empire, ostensibly to encourage the Spanish not to renege on the lucrative asiento contract (permission to sell slaves in Spanish America)."
So, I hope you make it happily to Colombia with all ears still attached. Thanks so much for the wonderful stories and pictures.
Hello TC:
DeleteThanks for reminding me of Wikipedia. As usual, they have an excellent description of the events. Thanks also for a good laugh.
I added more picturres and comments in a new post.
Roberto
Hello TC:
DeleteThanks for reminding me of Wikipedia. As usual, they have an excellent description of the events. Thanks also for a good laugh.
I added more picturres and comments in a new post.
Roberto