3/26/02 | Colón runaround

Sometimes, cruising just seems like an exercise in frustration. We sure experienced this in Colón. One day I took a cab to a grocery store, and started shopping, only to be told ten minutes later that the store was about to close. Arrgh. Another day we visited the Zona Libre, where huge warehouse-like stores advertised duty-free shopping. But it turned out that the stores we were interested in sold wholesale only, and I didn't feel like buying a whole crate of bikinis just so I could get a new swimsuit. Then there was the cabbie who wouldn't tell us where the train station was but agreed to take us there for $1...a distance of about 1/4 mile, as it turned out.

The worst was the propane fiasco. Since one of our tanks was down to a two-week or so supply, and the other had been filled by a drip hose from another tank and we had no idea how much was in it, we figured we'd better get both filled. We went in on a "propane run" with several other boats, leaving our tanks with a taxi driver who dropped them off at the Tropicgas facility in the morning and brought them back in the afternoon, for a fee of $1 per tank plus the $7.50 to fill each. Not too expensive, right?  

But when we got our tanks back and hooked the first one up, the pressure pegged the gauge; apparently the Tropicgas people hadn't noticed that there was a little gas in the tank and had just pumped a whole load in. We let that one run out through our barbeque grill hose (disconnected and hanging off the side) for half an hour before reconnecting it. Our second tank, which had a new-style overflow prevention valve, wouldn't open at all. Britt finally broke the valve handle off just trying to turn it.

So the next day, Britt took the tank in to the Tropicgas station, where they replaced the valve with new (but old-style) valve for $15, and refilled the tank for $10. Plus cab fare to get out there to drop off the tank, and again to pick it up in the afternoon. Along with what we'd originally spent to fill the tanks the first time, our total cost to get our two 10-pound propane tanks filled came out to $45, probably a record for us!  (And more than it cost us to get 130+ gallons of diesel in Venezuela last November!)

In the cafe of the Hotel Washington, ships at anchor behind the breakwater by the plaza

We don't mean to imply that our whole time in Colón was miserable. We had a nice visit to the old Hotel Washington, a neat old landmark with a great view of the breakwater. We found a great supermarket with lots of US brands at darn good prices, in a beautiful new shopping mall attached to a new cruise ship terminal. We got the boat restocked with staples, did some laundry (although that task was fairly miserable!) and did a little socializing. But all things being equal, we'd just as soon be somewhere else...so as soon as we had accomplished all the things we needed to do, we were eager to move on.

Getting out of Colón was a task in itself. We didn't expect to return before leaving Panama, so we took a cab over to the Port Captain's office so we could check out of the country. We handed over the thick sheaf of papers we'd acquired when we checked in at Porvenir.

The official thumbed through the paperwork, then held up one form and scowled at us. "You were supposed to bring this zarpe here immediately. How long have you been in Colón?"

The official in Porvenir had told us several times that we didn't need to check in at Colón after checking in with him. The whole point of the cruising permit, according to the guidebook, is that it eliminates the need for checking in and out of each port in the country! But we didn't argue, we just apologized. We filled out all the forms that were shoved in front of us, and paid the various fees we were charged -- about $10 in random small amounts, including a tip to the guy who ran down to the bank to photocopy documents on the three separate occasions that the Port Captain decided he wanted a copy. The Port Captain sent us next door to do more paperwork. The official next door wanted a certain form, which was off being photocopied...so we went back to the first office. Another form. Another $1.50. Sign here. An hour and a half later (!) we were free to leave the country. Whew.