January 2015
We got back to Jinja to find Mandy and Lindsey had polished off a box of wine in our absence. Well, if you can’t beat ’em…
The next day was a Sunday so we all piled over to Rana Azul, the secret pizza party place in the jungle. Since we couldn’t all fit in one boat, we had to split into two groups, half going with me and the other half going with Bill and Janis. Let the good times roll!
On the Monday, Anna and Susan went scuba diving in Bocas while the rest of us headed over to Red Frog beach. And who should we see on the way, but a friendly sloth come to say hello.
It wasn’t really beach-y weather (it’s not supposed to be rainy season, but it’s totally rainy) so we all dived into the bar at the Palmar Tent Lodge to escape from the downpour.
The next morning the guy who helps me with the garden, Ricardo, turned up with a load of langoustes (lobsters). Since Sarah is the queen of crustaceans, she was in her element as we cooked them up in a big pot.
Delicious! But before we knew it, it was time for my friends to wave goodbye to Jinja Island. The girls baked Jinja Bread Men…
Cannibalism.
While I made little souvenir Jinja Island cayuco paddles for them all to take home. (I kept the big one though.)
And then we set off for our last night as a gang on Bocas! We had dinner at Gringo’s, the Mexican place by the airport. We played giant Jenga and ping pong at the Bookstore then partied the night away at Aqua Lounge. It all got very emotional.
The next morning I put Mandy and Lindsey on the boat to the mainland, and then Sarah and Susan on the plane to Panama City. I don’t actually know what happened to Matt and Alice, maybe they teleported back to Liverpool by magic.
So then. A few days by myself on the island. Fidel and I got to work on a few more improvements on the house.
The chickens went nuts laying their eggs in the barbecue.
And I slipped on the ladder coming down from the bedroom and absolutely twatted my head on one of the rungs.
But before I could forget who I was, I was met in Bocas by my good friend AB, who had come all the way from Liverpool (via Florida) dressed as me. For some reason!
We had our obligatory couple of nights out on the tiles in Bocas Town. We were there for Mardi Gras, so got to prance around with the whip-cracking demons that come out at this time of year. After sobering up, AB and I spent a few days on Jinja. Because I know how to show a man a good time, we went to check out this mangrove island in Dolphin Bay in which the vegetation had been eaten away by worms or caterpillars or something.
One night, since it was pissing down with rain and it was the only film in my collection that neither of us had seen, we watched Frozen together. True story.
And then, suddenly, AB was gone and I was alone again. Not to worry though: this is Jinja Island. I wouldn’t be alone for long.
