Recall, before undertaking the formalities at the border posts; I discussed with Armelle and Christian Blot who expected me. The formalities started around 8:00 in Costa Rica with immigration for a exit stamp, cost US$8 paid to a woman in a van! then customs for obtaining the exit certificate of my vehicle. The duration of the procedure was approximately 40 minutes. In Panama at immigration, I obtained a visa after the photograph of my portrait. For the customs I due to buy beforehand an insurance for my vehicle, cost US$15. Finally I paid US$8 for the fumigation of my truck. The procedure lasted with waitings approximately 1:20. At 10:00 all the formalities were filled for the two states. But alas my vehicle was wedged between two trucks behind a collectivo. I waited one hour to be able to release me! In David I made the tour of the banks to withdraw cash at ATM at a rate of US$500 per withdrawal, then of supply at a supermercado. Finally I decided to go to bivouac in the cold mountains at Boquete, 1143 meters of altitude. Around 15:00 a violent downpour fell down. I stopped on the carpark of the gymnasium.
While going down from the mountain pastures at Boquete to David I took a light breakfast at McDo to read my mailbox and to publish the pages of my website concerning Costa Rica. Then I moved towards Santa Clara to bivouac at XS.Memories while waiting for the American couple to share their HighCube container, http://crossingpanama.blogspot.com/p/blog-page_13.html, from Colon to Cartagena.
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On Monday, November 23rd I prepared the route to go to French Guiana via Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Paraguay, Brazil, Guyana and Suriname, i.e. approximately 20,000 km. At the beginning of afternoon my American friends arrived. We prepared our way towards Panama City as well as the two formalities to be filled.
Started from early morning and thanks to the Victoria's navigation we arrived around 10:00 at DIJ Inspection to check N° Vin of the vehicles. Then as from 14:30 in Policia Nacional to obtain the ad hoc document. Meanwhile we visited the lock of Panama Canal at Miraflores. In middle of afternoon we went to Colon where we made five photocopies of five documents, formular of control vehicular obtained at the entry in Panama, document of Policia Nacional, the certificate of insurance of the vehicle, the passport and the automobile license. Finally we bivouacked in La Granja Campo y Aventura.
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Wednesday, November 25th we had appointment at 9:30 with the forwarding agent, here, for the loading of the vehicles in the container. As a preliminary we went to the customs to give the five photocopies of the five documents. On ground in front of a derelict land a truck expected us with HighCube Container. Then another truck with a lifting platform was able to load them into the container. Around midday the vehicles were in sealed boxing. A taxi led us to a bus station to go to Panama City. Victoria sought a hotel on Internet with her smartphone. After a first test we chose the Hotel Villa del Mar.
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On Thursday morning at 7:30 a minibus led us to the airport by making the collecting of the customers at the hotels of the vicinity. My one-hour flight to Cartagena was at 11:29. The day before I had found on Internet the last room available in a hotel in the old city. I left my American friends to see them again next Monday for starting the 25 steps to get our vehicles in the port.
I left Panama, no formality at the exit of the territory. look at the border crossing.
