After recovering from my Road Trip From Hell, I decided to return its terminus, Punta Abreojos, and give the town a second look. On second glance, it looked like a town that really wanted to be more. They had built a sweet little malecon lined with lovely streetlights, whimsical animal garbage can toppers, a beautiful bandstand at one end of the malecon, a children’s playground in the center, and a nice terrace at the other end. In addition to the malecon, the town boasted one of the prettiest, bright yellow churches I had seen since arriving, two new schools, and a grand new Civic Center. It appeared to be a bright and shiny, up and coming destination.

On closer inspection, the cracks began to appear in the facade. Osprey nested in the streetlights amongst the broken bulbs. The median and the malecon were strewn with garbage. The two schools in town were eerily silent. The crab pots appeared long-abandoned. The shiny new convention center looked like construction had stalled some time ago.  The streets were empty and the pongas, rather than being out to sea trolling for the days catch, were crowding the beach. It appeared that Punta Abreojos was suffering the same fate as Bahia Asuncion – the feast had run dry.