Next up was a little town called Santa Fe north of Panama City where we were looking for more rural impressions of Panamá. To get there, we went to the communal bus station in Albrook. It had several counters with destinations written on top, so we went to the one that stated Santiago (the main city of the district 1.5h away from Santa Fe). The counter was abandoned but soon a man hurried towards us and told us something in rapid Spanish. Being surprised and not able to remember any of our little Spanish skills we just answered with “Santiago”.

He nodded, said “Sí, Sí” and shooed us towards a bus. Our questions “como compramos” and “como pagamos” (how to buy, how to pay) were followed by more rapid Spanish while he was already lifting our backpacks into the bus. So when entering we didn’t know how much and when we would have to pay. Towards the end of the trip, someone collected just 9$ per person for the four hours on the bus. With our subsequent bus rides, we learned that this is just how things are done here.

The bus ride was great for watching the countryside and went smoothly. We fetched some snacks and lunch beforehand, but during some congestion, various people entered the bus to sell their goods like plantain chips or homemade empanadas and churros. We treated ourselves to some churros 😉

We had to change the bus from a big overland bus to a small local bus in Santiago and could watch the breathtaking sunset from the drive up to the mountains. In both buses, we were the only tourists, as far as we could tell.

The hostel (Qhia Retreat) was fantastic. We basically had a whole building for ourselves including a huge balcony with hammocks and seating areas. It was surrounded by nature and clean. They had a nice little restaurant and bar where we had frozen mango and strawberry daiquiris. We only stayed two nights because they were booked out afterward which was a pity but we very much enjoyed our stay.

The morning after our arrival, after having breakfast, we went to a yoga class and then spent most of the day hiking. Santa Fe is famous for its many hiking trails and waterfalls. We choose a hike that was supposed to reach a waterfall after around 1.5 hours. Unfortunately, we missed the junction and found ourselves on a different route.

When realizing this, it was too late to go back, so we just headed on. We didn’t see any waterfalls but still had an awesome time with great views walking through wild nature. Along the way stood countless orange trees. We took a couple that fell down — their taste was just amazing. In particular on such a hot day.

The weather was generally fascinating. Because of the heat, the humidity, and the landscape clouds formed very rapidly, quickly followed by a few minutes of remarkably strong wind and another few minutes of light rain. It then cleared up again and the cycle started over. It was very refreshing.

Even more refreshing was the river pool that we took a bath in just before reaching back to town. The water was perfectly clear and the river surrounded by nature created a lovely atmosphere. Relaxing in the morning, having a good amount of exercise during the day, and swimming in the afternoon. It felt like everything just came together that day.

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