A bus trip of only about 45 minutes gave us a false sense of progress. First we had to clear Costa Rican immigration. Having got to the gate, we were informed that while we had to pay $US 7, we couldn't pay in cash at the gate. Apparently, not that there was a sign or anything, there was a pharmacy a couple of hundred metres back down the road that would take cash payments - I'd love to be able to tell Australian customs and immigration, "Don't worry about me - I went to Priceline on the way here". Otherwise, you could pay using a credit card (and watch your bank take as much for processing the transaction). Given that it was approaching 38 degrees, most of us just opted to pay by credit card.
The immigration office was air-conditioned but we weren't allowed to queue inside it. Instead we had to to queue in the sun but that was okay because there was a sign, in the finest of Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy traditions, saying "Stay calm".
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| Approach to the bridge to Panama |
From here it was a walk across a long, ramshackle rail bridge to the Panamanian side with many people offering to carry your luggage with no doubt an obligatory fee to be payable on the other side.
Having crossed the bridge, we were pointed to a very nondescript office, where we paid another $US 3 and had a sticker stuck into the passport. Now having paid some money and had a guy stick something in your passport, you'd be forgiven for thinking that you were now legally in Panama but you'd be wrong. Around the corner from this office was a much bigger office (still partly under construction) where your passport was properly stamped. That's where a guide is really useful. I'd have happily strolled on into Panama only to be picked up at the first checkpoint, which we passed about 10 minutes later in the bus.
Border difficulties notwithstanding, we were in Panama!
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