Mar 28 2010, 09:00 PMSan José, Costa Rica5 photos

Traveling is dramatic. This is not because a traveler is constantly in the presence of wonder or in the act of accomplishing magnificent deeds. Quite the contrary. A traveler is surrounded by the ordinary and devoted to the accomplishment of the mundane. Transportation, food, and shelter are the...

Mar 24 2010, 06:00 AMBocas del Toro, Panama23 photos

Our trip to Panama was kind of a smash-and-grab affair: we took an overnight bus from Costa Rica to Panama City to see the canal, and then we took another overnight back up to the border, stopping in Bocas Del Toro to briefly indulge in the beaches of the Caribbean. Bocas Del Toro...

Mar 19 2010, 08:00 AMPanama City, Panama24 photos2 comments

The relative degree of cleanliness and order surrounding us confirmed our entrance to Costa Rica. The prostitutes on the corner proved that we had returned to San Jose. Both contributed to my sense of being home—or closer to it. But our time in San Jose was brief, just a one night stop-over...