Rum Runners

Tomorrow is March 1st, which means we have been living in our Jungle Mansion for one month, which also means we have now been in Costa Rica for as long as we were on the road. During this time, we have meet a lot of interesting characters and had a handful of different experiences. One of the best is the notorious Panama Run.

Groceries, among other items are very expensive here, with this being the proverbial end of the road. As such, beer, wine and liquor is also quite expensive. When we asked where one could find cheaper products, thinking maybe we would have to go to Limon, the nearest big city, or all the way to San Jose, to find better deals or bulk items, we were told that for alcohol, we would need to go to Panama. As we are only about 30 minutes to the border crossing at Sixaola, this didn't seem like that crazy of an adventure. We decided to ask our neighbors, Jeff and Nancy, if they could tell us directions for the Panama Run. We had been introduced to our neighbors on the road back from our houses the day we decided to rent this house. We had seen them out a few more times, but had yet to hold a real conversation with them. When we saw them at Trivia Night on Thursday at Tasty Waves, an event that has become our marker for the passage of time, I decided to strike up a conversation and get to know the two of them. They have been living in Costa Rica for about a year and half but have been traveling down in this country for a number of years. They rent two properties on the same "farm" where we live, and essentially, we are the only people living back here. From South Carolina, in their 60's, their personalities shine. They are friendly, funny, at times brutally honest and vulgar, and lots of fun to spend the evening with.

At Trivia Night, I asked Jeff if he could explain the roads to Panama, or maybe even draw us a map. Roads down here are not labeled, and with nothing but jungle all around, it can be a little confusing finding your way places. He said he could explain the way, or even draw a map, but what would be better, would be if he came with us for our first run, so we would know how to do it in the future. Agreeing that this sounded like a good plan, we made a date for the following Saturday. We headed over to their house around noon on Saturday and our day began. After stopping at Tasty Waves and The Point to grab beers, since if we were going to have a day out, why not make it a good day, we continued on our journey.

Heading out of town, we turned off on the road toward Sixaola, but we didn't stay on that road. We took another turn and yet another until we wound up on a dirt road, with a sea of banana plantations to either side. Green leaves went on forever in every direction. At the end of our dirt road, we reached a river bank. There was a small cart selling pipas (coconuts) and some food. A few cars were parked on the bank and a team of men ran a set of two boats. In order to cross into Panama without the bureaucracy of the border officials, this boat system has been set up to take people back and forth across the river, to where on the Panamanian side, you find duty free shops with booze, electronics, and clothing. The river is not particularly wide or deep, although it was deep enough for one young kid to be enjoying a swim in the hot afternoon sun, but the boats are necessary so that when you cross back, your goods don't get wet. We got into the boat with two other women and made our way across the river to a sand bank, where you get out of your first boat, and transfer to your second boat. On the shore of Panama, you climb the steps to the duty free liquor store, and as Jeff said, you're like a kid in a candy shop.

Not only do they have a larger selection than you will find anywhere on the Caribbean side of Costa Rica, but everything is cheap! Fifths of Jameson for $10, 24-packs of Milwaukee's Best for $9 (yeah, I know it's Milwaukee's Best, but hey, it's $9) Patron for $20, decent bottles of wine for anywhere from $3 to $12, Baileys, Kahlua, Flor de Cana Rum, Johhnie Walker Black and Red, Vodka, Gin, anything you could think of! (Note: this store would not be so amazing in the states, but down here where your only options are 6-packs of Imperial or Pilsen for $10, this place is a wonderland.) We gave ourselves a $100 limit for the three of us to stalk up so we wouldn't need to spend so much money on having a beer once in a while. Jeff got a few things for himself and after about 20 minutes, we had made our purchases and headed back to the boats.

Once back across the river, we tipped our boatmen, who share in the money they make, seemingly without issues. We loaded up the car with the help of the boatmen, and started our drive back. "Now, is where the real rush begins," Jeff informed us. The dirt road leading back to the main road is where the cops will stop you. Some days they wait, concealed in the banana plantations, to pull you over and take what you have just purchased. Nothing more than that takes place, no ticket, no reporting you to Immigracion, they simply help themselves to your bounty, which should be expected every once in a while when one is partaking in illegal rum running across international borders. We were lucky, no search and seizure this day.

We drove home, with one more stop at The Point to celebrate our success. It was just getting dark when we got back to the "farm" so we sat with Jeff and Nancy and enjoyed our spoils. We heard more of their stories from their early days together and learned more history of the place where we are living. In the end, not only had we succeeded in becoming Rum Runners, but we also bonded with our amazing neighbors. Friendship and booze, what's better than that?

 * I had brought my camera in hopes to document the day, but considering what we were doing was illegal, I decided it best not to have evidence of said illegal activity.
**Names have been changed to protect the not-so-innocent.