Panama - A Dream of 50 Years

Monday, March 7 – Monday, March 14

Panama – A Caravan Tour

Jim and I have never travelled with an organized group (there is a first time for everything), but after such an extensive time away from home we knew we would be running out of energy to organize opportunities and adventures on our own. So we decided to join a Caravan Tours group to explore Panama. This tour promised to give us several different experiences around the Panama Canal and several different experiences in Panama City and around the countryside as well.

On Monday morning we flew from Mexico City to Miami and then on Panama City where we were met by a Caravan Tours representative. Several other members of our group had arrived on the flight and we were all transported to our first hotel in a van.

Our first impression of Panama City was amazement. There are so many facets to this complex city. Firstly, the traffic was horrendous – multiple lanes of cars, trucks, busses and other conveyances, all vying for space on crowded and narrow roadways. Drivers were shifting from lane to lane with barely enough space between vehicles to slide a thin piece of paper between them. I knew early in our journey into the city from the airport that I would NOT be driving in Panama City.

The skyscrapers took us totally by surprise. Not one or two skyscrapers but hundreds of them towering above the roads and parks and smaller, older buildings. Many were condos; some were corporate offices for international businesses; many were under construction and changing the skyline in quick order. Architectural styles varied widely, ranging from the beautiful green glass corkscrew to more traditional towers adorned with bright colours. It was a sight to behold.

Another component of this city is the old town with congested twisting streets and storefronts and sidewalk shops of all varieties. As we passed by, we could tell that you could buy anything at all at these shops – anything from hardware products to cooking utensils to clothing and shoes to toys for children. And, of course, street food was abundant.

We arrived at our hotel (an upscale Courtyard Marriott) in Panama City and settled into our very comfortable room. The day had had a very early start and we were grateful for some time to relax and settle in before dinner. Dinner was a beautiful buffet meal in the hotel dining room.

Following dinner, the members of our tour gathered as a group for our first briefing. We met Oneil who would be our guide for the week and listened to an overview of our activities as well as getting specific information about the agenda for Tuesday. We were immediately impressed with Oneil. His English is excellent; he is well informed and comfortable raising and addressing delicate topics as well as answering questions. He also demonstrated a great sense of humour as he conducted the meeting.

Then, back to our rooms and off to bed …. Tuesday will be a busy day.

Tuesday, March 8, 2016

The Heart of Panama City/ Ships through the Locks

Tuesday began with a substantial breakfast at the hotel and then off to the bus. We met our driver, Rohelio, who is very friendly, helpful and best of all, an excellent driver. It is lovely to be in the hands of someone so confident at the wheel.

Our first stop of the day was at a small museum in the oldest part of Panama City. The museum was highlighting the history of the area as far back as the pre-Columbian era. There were artifacts and stories of indigenous peoples who had populated this region for hundreds and hundreds of years before the Europeans arrived. Beautiful coins, pottery, and fishing tools were among the articles on display.

Next we moved on to the old heart of Panama City, established in the 1500’s after Balboa crossed Panama to the Pacific Ocean (1513). Remnants of old buildings and a particularly beautiful and well preserved tower are open to visitors as a historic site. Oneil, our guide, was able to provide detailed stories about the various structures and their significance in that early city. Most importantly, it should be noted that Henry Morgan, whose name we associate with rum, had a significant presence here and actually burned the original old town to the ground in 1671.

After the fire, a second ‘new town’ sprung up in another area. Off we went to see it. Rohelio, our driver, navigated the bus through a myriad of narrow streets congested with traffic to arrive at our destination. From the bus we would walk along some of the old streets, visit a beautiful church (Iglesia de San Jose), meander through a stunning park and reconnect with the bus at a location near the sea. By strolling down these narrow streets, it was easy to get a sense of how congested the city actually is and how businesses and housing are blended together. We encountered several groups of school children as we walked along. They all looked crisp and well dressed in their school uniforms, young and older students alike.

Education is mandatory for all children in Panama City and all schools have uniforms.

We reunited at the bus and returned to the hotel for lunch and a short break. This afternoon’s outing was going to fulfill a dream of 50 years for me and I was very excited. For some reason, since I was quite young, perhaps even under 10, I dreamed of seeing the Panama Canal. In all the travelling that I have done over many, many years, Panama has never been a destination until now. Today was the day …. I was on my way to see the Panama Canal.

We once again travelled by bus and Oneil provided insight into the history of the canal as well as stories about the politics of the canal. As with all large projects, there are stories of corruption, power struggles, financial woes, delays and abrupt changes in staff at high levels. The Panama Canal was no stranger to any of those. Yet, when it opened in 1914, it was deemed the greatest engineering achievement anywhere on earth. And, using the same technology today, it continues to connect the west with the east as ships travel all day and all night back and forth between the Pacific Ocean and the Caribbean Ocean.

We arrived at the Miraflora Locks near the Pacific end of the canal about mid afternoon. During the early hours of the day, ships that are travelling from the Pacific to the Caribbean move along the locks that form the canal. About midday, the direction changes and a convoy of ships moving from the Caribbean to the Pacific enters the locks and makes its way across the fifty mile waterway.

Each ship or small vessel is given specific instructions from the pilot who oversees each lock. The pilot will determine which channel will be used by each ship, in which order the vessels will move, and where the ships need to wait for instructions, either in the ocean or in Lake Gatun.

While we were at the Miraflora locks we were able to see two large ships and 3 sailboats move through the locks. It was fascinating to see how the process unfolds. Everything moves slowly. A tugboat assists in guiding a large ship into the lock until 6 small train engines (3 on each side of the lock) are attached to ropes from the ship which will be used to adjust the ship’s speed and ability to stop. Each of the engines has one of the ship’s ropes. The engines moves slowly along train track adjacent to the canal locks as the ship moves forward under its own steam. The engines ensure that the vessel comes to a standstill at just the right time and in the right place. These are very skillful trainsmen indeed.

Then the magic happens. In our case, the ship needed to be lowered in the locks. The water was slowly and gently released from the lock until the water level was the same as the next lock in the series. Only then will the lock gates open and allow the ship to move into the next lock. The Miraflora Locks have three lock compartments in each of two channels. So each vessel needs to complete this process three times. I loved watching the ships move forward and finally be released from the third lock to continue its journey into the Pacific Ocean.

Back to the hotel for dinner and a special Panamanian dance presentation – 6 wonderful dancers entertained us with their energy, their smiles, their many and varied dances, their costumes and, mostly, their energy. It was a wonderful performance.

Wednesday, March 9, 2016                          Under Construction

Today we drove through a national park en route to The Free Trade Zone of Colon on the Caribbean side of Panama. It was refreshing to be outside the big city and to see some of the Panamanian countryside. Agricultural land, small villages, wide rivers, rainforest, stands of bamboo, many kinds of palm trees and banana trees everywhere … these were a few of the things that we passed by as we travelled along the lightly trafficked highway.

The focus of this outing was the construction on the new locks that would parallel the original locks, now more than 100 years old. The new locks have been built to accommodate much larger ships than the original locks. The new locks are 55 m wide in contrast to the 33 m wide original ones.

There has also been new technology developed for use in these locks. No longer will there be hinged doors that swing open but instead, there will be rolling doors which will slide back into a wall cavity like a pocket door in a home. These doors are also much thicker than the original doors. They are actually wide enough for a vehicle to drive across. And that is exactly what we did! We had an exciting opportunity that will not be available to the public after the new locks open later this year  We were actually able to traverse the canal by driving across on top of one of the new rolling doors. How cool is that! The locks were totally empty of water at the time so we were able to see all the way to the bottom, all 85 metres.

Also, there is an emphasis on preserving fresh water so, in the new design, there are holding tanks so the water used to raise and lower the ships can be reused. Only fresh water fro the Chagras River is used to operate the locks. No salt water at all. With climate change at the fore, it seemed prudent to develop a design that had a built in conservation component.

From the Visitors’ Centre, it was possible to see overview of the entire construction project at the Caribbean end. (There is a similar construction site at the Pacific end.) It is indeed a massive undertaking in size, cost, and engineering. Many impressive statistics were shared about the amount of concrete poured and the number of cubic metres of soil moved and the volume of water to fill the new locks. The numbers were all far too large for my mind to comprehend. I will simply repeat …. It is a breathtakingly large and impressive project.

And an alert to all shipping enthusiasts - although the new locks will enable much larger vessels to pass along the canal, there are already ships in use in the Pacific that exceed the dimensions of the new locks and will not be able to make use of them. They will either have to offload cargo onto the Panama railway system for land shipping or travel around the tip of South America to get to the Atlantic – about 18 extra shipping days if that is the choice.

We viewed a short film about the construction of the new locks followed by lunch at the Visitors’ Centre and another dance presentation. This one was more about telling a story than precise dancing. The costumes were colourful and entertaining. It reminded me Kathakhali Dancing in Kerala in southern India.

The bus next took us to Lake Gatun, the artificial lake created by flooding the rainforest during the construction of the original locks. This lake sits approximately 26 metres above sea level which is one of the reasons there is a need for locks in the canal as opposed to a straight flow of water. We boarded a small boat and travelled along the lake and around some of the islands in search of wildlife. We were not disappointed. We saw a crocodile, two different kinds of monkeys, a range of birds and some butterflies and, best of all, two capybaras. I had never seen capybaras in the wild before so this was a highlight for me.

We checked into the Gamboa Rainforest Lodge, a beautiful, remote and comfortable home for the next two days. Dinner was excellent. We are  enjoying a of change location every two days so as not to get tired of the food in any one location.

Also, the great thing about an organized tour that includes food is that it has all been paid for in advance and there is little need to ever have to dip into one’s pocket.

Thursday March 10, 2016                    Our Day on the Canal

Today began with an early rise and breakfast. We had to be on the road by 5:45 to meet our appointment with a ferry at the Pacific end of the Panama Canal. Our long bus ride began in the dark. The sky lightened as we travelled along and soon the sun rose … but, what is that? It rose over the Pacific Ocean. Yes, the sun rose over the Pacific due to orientation of land in Panama. It was hard to get our heads around, even after we had had our coffee.

We arrived in ample time to catch the ferry. There were only 55 people on board although it had a capacity of 350. How very fortunate for our group.

Everything related to the canal is timed carefully to maximize the number of ships passing through the canal and thus maximize income for the canal. Ships pay for their passage according to the cargo they are carrying. Most ships transport cargo via containers. Each container is assessed at a predetermined rate, no matter what the contents are. Large, full ships pay up to $80,000 to pass through the canal.

Vessels that pay lower rates (ie passenger ships and ferries) often have to wait for a slot in the timetable as they are not good income producers. We learned more about this later in the day, firsthand.

Each ship is steered by a pilot who boards the vessel. A pilot boarded our ferry and took over the wheel.  A vessel may not travel through the canal without being pre-approved and the fee paid in full. The engine has to be in good working order as well. If a breakdown occurs during transit, the ship that blocks traffic is responsible for all costs and lost revenue incurred during that time. Ships must also fly a pilot flag when pilot is guiding ship.

We were teamed up with another ferry and an empty tanker as we embarked on our journey through the locks. It was significant that the tanker was empty as passenger ships cannot travel through the canal with full tankers due to safety issues.

Soon we reached MiraFlores Locks.  We entered the first lock with the  tanker in the lead and two ferries side by side and lashed together. The lock gates closed and water poured in to raise the water level to be even with the second lock. It took only 8 minutes to fill the lock. How different it looks from within the lock than looking down at the lock from the Visitors' Centre, as we had the other day.

The gates slowly swung open when we were level with the next lock and the tanker moved forward, then us, then other ferry. Only one ship moves at a time.  An overseer on land gives instructions just like an air traffic controller at an airport. Once we were all secured in the third lock, the gates closed again and water poured in.  We were raised to match the water level in the third lock. After we passed through the third lock, we were released into the small Miraflores Lake.

We waited for quite a long time in that lake. We had lunch during the pause and sat as patiently as we could in the growing heat. Some in our group even had naps. The hostess on board provided ice cold drinks throughout the day – it was very hot – especially when we were lower in the lock and no breeze could reach us to relieve the heat.

The problem at this juncture was that about midday the ships began moving south rather than north. In the morning, they travel from the Pacific to the Caribbean; in the afternoon, they go the opposite direction. By the time we had reached the small lake, the travel direction had changed and we were now going against the shipping flow.

The canal can only accommodate one way traffic due to difficulty in the Culebra Cut in the middle of the canal zone where two large ships cannot pass one another due to danger of even a small wake causing them to bash into the rocky surface on the sides. As a point of interest, more explosive material was used to create this channel than in any war that has ever been fought. The Culebra Cut extends right across Continental Divide, creating the only place in world where water flows into the Pacific and into the Atlantic at the same time from the same water source (the Chagras River).

Seabirds entertained us while we waited – seagulls, cranes, pelicans and frigates. They all enjoy the fish that are stirred up due to the passage of ships. All except the frigates are self-sufficient and fish for their own food. The frigates, however, are bullies in the bird world and wait for other birds to catch fish and then attack and try to get them to drop the fish.

We also saw a very large crocodile on the shore of the waterway. He slid toward the water’s edge and disappeared into the muddy water. It was not possible to track his movement beyond that. He could have been anywhere.

After a 90 minute wait, finally a large ship approached from the Caribbean and required the Pedro Miguel locks to be filled so as to begin its journey down to the Pacific. This was good news for us as it meant that the next lock on our journey would raise us to the level we needed to continue through the canal.

The two ferries were able to enter the first lock of two at Pedro Miguel and rise with the water to the highest level where the large, oncoming ship was waiting.

The lock gates opened and we moved forward past the ship and continued along the channel, happy to be on our way again. We cruised through the Culebra Cut (continental divide) and ended our journey in Gatun Lake quite close to our hotel.

We are staying at the Gamboa Rainforest Lodge, located in the heart of the rainforest. It is extremely beautiful and comfortable with many features that make life grand. Our room looks out over the rainforest and a beautiful area of fountains and pools. Birds and butterflies are plentiful in this area and we have seen several beautiful ones. Jim really wants to see a Toucan in the wild and that has not happened yet.

After a cooling rest in our room, we were ready to resume activities which included dinner. As we have come to expect, the food was delicious and plentiful with many, many options to match everyone’s palate. It would be hard not to find something to your liking at this buffet.

We shared our table with an older lady who is travelling alone on this tour. She is well travelled and had many stories to tell. We shared some of our favourites as well. It was a very enjoyable meal.

Ready to relax, we returned to our room for the night.

Friday, March 10, 2016                                 Off to the Pacific

Our bags got loaded onto the bus while we enjoyed breakfast. The lodge was filled with guests today and breakfast was not going well for the staff. But Jim and I managed to get some coffee and various edible delights from the buffet and enjoyed our meal.

Once on the bus, we headed to a boat dock not far away. We boarded a small vessel and travelled across the Chagras Rver to a village of indigenous Panamanian people. This tribe, the Embera tribe, welcomes visitors into their village where they present information about their lifestyle, their customs, their dancing, their clothing and their handicrafts. This tribe, one of many in Panama, lives a very simple lifestyle. No electricity, thatched huts for homes, scanty clothing, simple food. The children do attend public schools in nearby communities, travelling by bus sometimes up to an hour each way.

We were invited to walk around the village, interact with the children, dance with the women and appreciate their handicrafts. The baskets, woven by hand from local grasses (Chunga Palm), were exquisite. The carvings made from vegetable ivory (a very hard egg shaped white seed called Tagua) and from Cocobolo wood were detailed and expressive. Of course, we purchased a couple of items, in particular a beautiful basket for our kitchen.

Back on the boat and off to lunch, this time at a waterside restaurant. Sometimes it feels as if we are simply moving from one fabulous meal to another.

After lunch we visited three small displays in a nearby national park. The first was about the preservation of endangered frogs in Panama. In particular, there was a small green frog with black spots, a miniscule red frog with black spots and a yellow frog with spots as well. These were the tiniest frogs we have ever seen, so small that they were very difficult to pick out of the green, red and yellow plant matter that was all around them. We did manage to find a few and hopefully got some reasonable photos.

The second display was focused on Panamanian butterflies and their habitats. We saw several beautiful butterflies inside the protected sanctuary. There was also a simple display about the life cycle of a butterfly. Frankly, the Butterfly Sanctuaries in Cambridge and Niagara Falls are far more inviting and informative.

I have to be honest about the third display … this time, orchids.  Every day the temperature in Panama soars well above 30C with high humidity. As we walked from the butterfly display to the orchid display, we were passing by our air conditioned bus with bottles of ice cold water. Yes, I bailed. I sat in the cool of the bus with refreshing water to drink while other plodded on. The report afterward was that I had made the right decision. And it felt good.

Now the bus turned toward the Pacific Ocean once again (we are never far away from it) and we arrived at our resort destination. We are staying at the Westin Playa Bonita Resort, a very large skyscraper complex. We are in luxurious room on the 13^th floor. It is a long way down to the three pools and the multitude of restaurants but it is well worth the trip. Although each meal has been buffet-style, the menu at each of the places we have stayed has been quite varied. We have been able to find new and tasty foods at each one. I especially enjoyed the pasta here. It is the first that has been offered and I was glad I selected it.

Saturday, March 11, 2016                             A Day of Rest

Today is our day off, so to speak. We are free to relax and enjoy the resort as we wish. For Jim and I that meant a leisurely morning with no deadline to do anything. We dawdled for so long that we actually missed breakfast entirely. Then the pool captured our attention. Two chaise lounges nicely situated under cover at the pool’s edge. Predictably, after a generous application of sunscreen, I spent much of the time in the pool, swimming or reading at the edge, while Jim spent his time with reading material under the sunshade. A light lunch was served at the pool bar and plenty of interesting beverages to sample. Thank goodness for the green wristband we are wearing. We do not need to open our wallets at all.

Late in the afternoon, we returned to our room and got ready for dinner. We had a lovely conversation with Karen via Skype. We are also awaiting news from Iain as his house is on the market and more than 15 people have gone through it in just 3 days. Although we are miles away, we do try to stay in touch with home.

This may be a good time to talk about the tour we are on. Caravan Tours, based in Chicago, sure knows how to put together an interesting package of activities. Each day has been filled with engaging things to do and see. Busy … but not too busy. Our guide, Oneil, has been superb! He is knowledgable, humorous, well spoken and attentive to questions and needs of the passengers. The driver, Rohelio, has been friendly, helpful and a fabulous driver. The four hotels we have stayed in have all been of high quality with excellent service and meals. All have had gyms, swimming pools and spas for those who wished to indulge. All our meals have been included in this package and all tips have been covered by the company. While the meals have all been served buffet style, there has been a broad array of dishes to taste – soups, salads, main courses and desserts. We have not found it repetitive or bland in any way. Shopping opportunities have been limited outside Panama City but we were warned of that before we left. A large mall was immediately adjacent to our hotel in Panama City if there were things we wanted to purchase before leaving that area.

Additionally, the group we have been travelling with has been especially friendly. There are about 40 of us in total, all from the USA (many states) except us and one other Canadian couple from Toronto. Seats have been assigned on the bus each day so that no one can claim ownership to any seat. We were always seated with our travelling companions but the seat shifting did provide an opportunity to interact with various members of the group every day. The best thing about this group, though, is that everyone is punctual every time we leave for a new destination. Compared to some stories we have heard about tardiness on bus trips, this is a dream come true.

Sunday, March 12, 2016                      The Final Day

Another buffet breakfast got our day started. There was some confusion about Daylight Saving Time. The time on Panama remains constant throughout the year but many of our North American devices had automatically adjusted the time to reflect DST at home. We were among the many who got up an hour ahead and were waiting for a bus that would be a long time coming. It was not a tough place to wait though, looking out over the sunswept Pacific Ocean.

Our first stop this morning was at the Kuna Indian Marketplace. It featured crafts created by members of the Kuna, an indigenous tribe near border of Costa Rica. The crafts were actually being sold by members of the Kuna tribe, dressed in traditional style clothing. The Kuna are known for fabric crafts – bags, clothing and, in particular, mola embroidery as well as wood carvings. The products were beautiful to look at, so colourful, and as hard as we strove not to acquire more things for our home, we could not resist buying some mola fabric to make into cushion covers. It was just too colourful to resist.

We moved on to a second marketplace but this one was much larger and more commercialized. Items such as shot glasses, key chains, jewellery, and mugs were on display as well as some of the more traditional fabric crafts. It was easier to resist temptation at this market.

We stopped for lunch at the Intercontinental Hotel. On Sundays, they offer a sensational seafood brunch. Crab, calamari, oysters, prawns, mussels, ceviche … and a host of other enticing salads and desserts. Of course, we indulged and indulged again. Delicious!!!

After lunch, we visited the Museum of Biodiversity. The building stood out because of its vivid colours and unique design. It was designed by Frank Gehry, a Canadian architect whose wife is Panamanian. He donated his design to the people of Panama.

This museum has several displays arranged in chronological order to reflect the changing landscape and flora and fauna of Panama across milions of years. We learned that at one time millions of years ago, South and North America were not connected by land. The area was totally submerged except for a few islands. Gradually the sea level lowered and the islands transformed into a bridge of land, now known as Panama. This land bridge enabled species to travel from north to south and south to north, thus altering the biology of the entire world. There are more species of flora and fauna in Panama than anywhere else in the world. One statistic that fascinated us is this: there are more flora species in one hectare of rainforest in Panama than in all of North America. The entire museum was fascinating and the oral commentary was very easy to listen to. It was a highlight of our overall journey.

We returned to the Intercontinental Hotel to spend our final night on this tour. We were blessed with a beautiful water view and cityscape from the window in our room.

Just prior to dinner, we were treated to a dance presentation with live musicians and energetic dancing by Ballet Folklorica de Panama. The costumes were amazing – especially the very elaborate dresses worn by the women – all hand embroidered, brightly coloured, with ribbons and pompoms, valued at $17,000 each! 3 or 4 women spend a month creating each dress, layers of hand embroidered fabric. Each head piece consisted of 24 individually crocheted items, each representing a component of nature, plants or animals. These were placed one by one in the dancers’ hair. Each component had to incorporate the movement of nature with the dance. And then, the pure gold jewellery!!! Crowns, rings, several necklaces, each with a significant meaning to the woman who was wearing them. Some were religious in nature; others had more personal symbolism. All were incredibly beautiful.

The men’s costumes were much much simpler – hand made and embroidered white shirts, black trousers, specially made leather dance shoes (black and white) and a small cloth shoulder bag, for carrying the female dancer’s valuables.

Following the dancing, Oneil, our guide, spoke to our group for the last time and expressed a special thanks to Rohelio, our driver. And then we moved on to our final meal together. Jim and I continued to have interesting conversations with many different people. It was such a great group to travel with!

But the day was not yet over for us. We returned to our room for a quiet evening of repacking and reflecting. Jim left briefly to go to the ATM in the hotel (of course, we needed more cash to start the next component of our journey). Soon, the telephone in the room rang. It was the front desk calling to tell me that Jim was caught in an elevator and security was trying to rescue him. I was not to worry as he was not injured in any way and would return to the room as soon as possible. For better or worse, I found the whole situation quite funny and laughed right out loud all by myself in the room. Of course, Jim would get stuck in an elevator. We have travelled so many places and had such unique and wonderful experiences, but we should never think that something new cannot happen. And this was it - always something new and unique to handle!

Happily, Jim did return to the room in a very short time and he was fine. But, he still had to go to the ATM which he did reluctantly … and successfully.

Thus ended our first ever organized tour. We enjoyed it thoroughly and would certainly join another one. And we have nothing but praise for the tour company, Caravan. We will give them our highest recommendation.