Can We Find Happiness in a Tropical Paradise?

We don't take many group excursions. We have had some great guides and I don't mind hiring a tour guide or joining a short tour, but I almost always avoid full-day group excursions. I have several reasons for that, but the primary reason is that they usually look like misery to me. A fixed schedule you don't control; early morning pick-ups; and no escape if you're bored. When we were planning our trip to Panama, though, a day trip from Panama City that included a kayak tour of a remote lake and bat cave intrigued me so much that I signed us up without asking Randy! When I did tell Randy he immediately pointed out that you don't want to get up close and personal with bats because they carry rabies. After some research into rabies, bats, caves and Panama, the tour didn't sound so good. So. The tour company had a clearly stated no refunds policy and to avoid losing our $340 investment, we switched to the trip to Guna Yala. In many ways the excursion was all I had feared it would be. Yet by the end of the day, we'd gotten into the rhythm of the day and both of us are glad we got to see these beautiful islands and learn a little bit about the Guna people. In fact, we agree that we would love to go back and stay overnight sometime.