Friday Feb. 25 - to Mira Flores Locks, Panama Canal. Hypnotized with watching ships squeeze through the narrow canal, pulled by minature locomotives (AKA donkeys). Toured the Air Con 3 story museum (thank God). Sitting to catch return bus it POURED!! 90 deg. F and absolutely pouring rain -grateful the bus stop was covered. Drive-by fans? admirers? smiled, honked and waved to us. Perhaps most travellers take tour buses.
Wandered up and down 2 kms Central Ave. for safety reasons not after dark though, solid with street vendors and pedistrian traffic only. That means every Panamanian within 20 miles (plus 1 Canadian and 1 American). Two foot police told Sherry to put her camera around her neck (against thieves) then decided to be our personal escourts going as far as taking us to a seedy restaurant...with pretty good cheap food and showing us how to order.Spent the evening touring a safer area.
Saturday 25th Toured Panama Viejos - original city ruins (400+ years old). Found refuge under enormous, thick tropical trees for the daily afternoon downpours and watched wild parrots flying, squacking and complaining about wet feathers...we think. A Saturday Night celebration and break from our 'budget' - taxi to Casco Viejo, (another) old section of town with ancient and ornate French architecture in various states of restoration-or not. The President resides here and police presence is everywhere, usually standing on street cornersor or zipping (?) around in golf carts on narrow cobblestone streets. Our night out: dinner and to a tavern with a live, quite good, rock band. Strangely, nobody danced. This drove Sherry nuts so we went 'home' by 12.
Sunday 26th Research day for reservations Mar 5 - 8 Panama Carnival time. What a challenge, Louis must have called 8 hotels on our behalf. Bless Deb 'wonder woman' and extraordinary research friend for helping from Canada. The Internet 'connection' was terrible and repeatedly kicked us off every 20 - 30 minutes. Back to Casco Viejo for dinner-again, excellent Italian restaurant for 1/2 the cost of previous night.
Monday 27th had 'scheduled' as departure day. In a sick and disturbing way we feel attached to this seedy area of town. We agree to ONE more day. Exhausting research continues (you think this is just fun ha). Chicken dinner on hotel Rooftop Mezzanine overlooking downtown Panama city lights and chaotic action below us, of our local streets. Romantic, excluded and safe. we know, wierd.
Final Thoughts :
Adjusting to our new surroundings was... an adjustement. Our location is somewhat difficult to describe. Lets see...here are some of my impressions during our stay:
- We spotted 4 other travellers - as rare as a Spotted Owl, and scurrying quickly in an effort to escape Central Aveneda and Calle B.
- Desk Clerk and Police Officer ensured we understood safety issues....thoroughly :)
- Web Travel Advisory: 3 blocks from us- presence of 5 youth gangs.. with firearms, seemed the author relocated rather quickly
- 24 hours: honking cars, taxi's and busses; NIGHT TIME: firecrackers (I perfer this as opposed to Jim's alternative...gunshots!), music, talking, yelling, dogs barking
- Buskers selling literally everything on the street - Pineapple 3 for $1, grilled burger with all the fixings $1, clothes so cheap it's hard to believe - trendy looking skin tight jeans 2.99 I controlled a brief impluse to buy and squeeze into a pair.
- Rojo Diablos - 'Red Devils' Panama Cities unique city busses: artistry on hood, roof, and all around'; flashing neon lights on the flamboyant. I have never seen anything like it! Very Fun.
- This place is mesmerizing, every excursion another opportunity to gawk and try to capture the spirit on the street with my camera - a frustrating goal
- Louis, Nightime Desk Clerk - couldn't ask for a more enthusistic travel assistant, with our evening chats he helped us understand his Panama
- clean countryside, glaring difference between Guatamala and Hondouras, and here.
- People: very friendly; weak and pathetic attempts to communcate in Espanol is greeted with warmth and appreciation
Tuesday 28th Bus to Santiago (4 hrs. $7.50) a mini bus (1.5 hrs.) to Santa Fe - seats 20 but carrying 30. Much to our dislike and embarressment the 'barker' moved several indeigines people so we could sit. We protested to no avail. Expats here tell us this is the norm, this society has a chaste system and they are at the bottom. The Wheelie Beasts were tossed on the roof to fend for themselves in the rain....like us, they're becoming survivors.
JIM'S First Hostel experience (without bathroom)
A bamboo-walled hostel, shared bathroom much to Jim's dismay. Very poor sleep, could hear the neighour next door breathing, many barking dogs and awoke (very early) to the sounds of even more roosters. We were outta there by 11 am. and are now in another hostel a few blocks away, a hangout for American and Canadian expats who have moved to this isolated village of 3000. Forty years ago the only access was by airplane, we have no idea where it landed as this area is nothing but beautiful hillls and valleys with rivers and waterfalls....and of course lots of dogs, roosters and other noise making animals.