Taboga Through Time: A Return to 1995

I go back to my first visit to Taboga, one November back in 1995. Yes, I know that doesn’t sound like much time, but it’s already twenty-five years; I remember the sea breeze, my classmates, and happy moments on the beach.

Of the old Hotel Taboga, only a fence and a handful of paths remain. Time has passed, but very little has changed: the boys who used to play soccer are now men devoted to their families, and new little ones are starting to live in this paradise without knowing how lucky they are.

La Cruz watches over us from the hill, waiting for more visitors, and El Morro shelters any visitor who’d rather skip the beach umbrellas at La Restinga.

The locals, a few more wrinkles now, still greet visitors with a smile, ready to chat and help however they can.

Part of Taboga’s magic is that, through all these years, it’s changed so little: it’s still a small town of narrow streets, surrounded by beaches and kind people. I’ll never forget that first visit, that moment I saw it and fell in love; I hope to live many more years so I can keep coming back to you, my beloved island.

(Photos from November 2003.)