Convent ruins from the site of the original Panama City

Time Travel and Searching for Einstein

     You may have noticed that Peggy has been doing most of the blogging lately.  My neighbor, Henry Morales, a Venezuelan Canadian who lives for golf, has been keeping me busy golfing.  Because Henry has his own golf cart and has been a resident here for months, we can golf every day for no charge.  With Henry's in laws visiting, Henry's wife can't go golfing with Henry, so I have been.  That's my excuse and I'm sticking to it.
   

Time Travel to Panama La Vieja (Old Panama)

     We decided to check out the Metro (subway) system.  From the main station we rode the subway part way and took a cab the rest of the way to Panama La Vieja.  At that location one finds a museum and what's left of the original Panama City.  The city was founded on August 15, 1519, by the notorious conquistador Pedro Arias de Avila (who you probably know as Pedrarias, right?), and burned down during a battle with the equally notorious Welsh pirate Henry Morgan in 1671. 

The national terminal  located at the Albrook Mall.  This is the staring point for regional and local bus routes and is connected by overhead walkway to the Metro station which is the starting point for the subway.  The subway currently has one route which was completed in 2014.

 

The Metro trains are new, clean and run very efficiently.  The challenge was to figure out how to purchase the rechargeable card that is used to pay for the ride and get through the turn styles.  The instructions were in Spanish and the person selling the cards didn't speak English.  I plunked down a $20 bill and did my best to say I wanted a card for each of us and I wanted each loaded with $10.  I couldn't understand, at first, why the lady was hesitant to simply do as I asked.  At first I thought maybe I needed to pay extra for the card.  Not having any smaller bills I put another $20 bill on the counter.  What the lady was trying to tell me was that it didn't make much sense to buy two cards because we could simply swipe one twice (once for each of us) to get on the train.  The amounts I was suggesting to load were a little silly as well considering the one way trip was about 35 cents per person.  She gave us a card loaded with $2.00 and we pretty much had all we needed for our trip on the train. I've called it a subway because most of it runs underground although you can see from the picture that it also has an elevated track and stations for part of the route.

One of the structures at the ruins is the cathedral tower, one of Panama's national symbols.  From the top of the structure there is a great view of the the ruins site, Panama City and the ocean.

Arch and well ruins.  One the nice things about the site was that there were signs with English explanation of the structures and drawings of what the original buildings would have looked like.

Searching for Einstein

     While looking through our tour book about neighborhoods in and near Panama City, I saw a picture with the following caption, "A massive bust of Albert Einstein is a handy landmark in El Cangrejo".  The tour book doesn't contain any explanation of why the bust exists, but I was determined to find it.  After a fairly long cab ride from our travel back in time to the ruins of the original Panama City we were pretty hopelessly stuck in noon time city traffic.  We bailed on the cab and set out on foot, without a map in 90 degree weather, to find Einstein (just because he was there).

Eureka!  Located in one of the tiniest "parks" in the heart of a congested area of Panama City is Albert's bust.  I took a picture and we ate lunch at a New York style deli.

Urban "hiking"

   Today was the day for turning the rental car in.  After 29 days and over 1,000 km of using the car I drove it back to the airport.  I'm very proud of the fact that the car was returned with no dents, scratches or additional charges.
    From the airport I took the Metrobus (regular city bus) back to the main terminal at the mall and then a cab from the mall to our temporary home.  Regular bus fare is 25 cents although I took the bus with fewer stops which took the tollway (Corredor Sur) and paid $1.25 for the one way trip.
    Getting a cab is extremely easy as they are everywhere.  Cab fare is reasonable and negotiable.  Often the cab drivers speak English and it is interesting to learn a bit about their history.  My cab driver's grandfather was from Barbados and came to Panama in 1906.  He worked on the canal's construction.  My cab driver was a veteran of the Panamanian army/air force.  Along the way "home" we stopped at a couple of sites that I often drove past but was unable to take pictures of.

Statute in honor of Arnulfo Arias Madrid, who was elected (and overthrown) president of Panama four times.  He is flashing a "V for victory" sign at figures representing the Panamanian people, who are struggling to their feet.

The Bridge of the Americas we used nearly every day to travel across the canal.  The aging nature of the structure and its "used" pavement made the trip something of an adventure.

More From the Canal

The View from Ancon Hill

Yesterday we went to the top of Ancon Hill.  Everyday we have looked out on the Panamanian flag atop Ancon Hill - as it is almost directly across from our complex.  We took a taxi to the top and were able to gain a new perspective on the area.

Its almost impossible to take a bad picture of downtown Panama City.

View from the other side of the hill - looking down the canal towards the Centennial Bridge in the distance

These are the docks we can see from our condo - the little white area that is tucked into the hillside immediately above the 3rd crane from the left. The docks are HUGE, loading and unloading container ships 24 hours a day.

We decided to walk down the hill and came upon these guys Geoffroy's Tamerin monkeys in a tree right next to the road.  They didn't seem to care that we were there.

The Bottom of Ancon Hill

The building at the bottom of the hill is the headquarters for the Canal De Panama.  It was built by the Americans in 1915 and was headquarters for the Canal under the Americans as well.  It gave the builders a sweeping vista of the canal zone.

Goethals was one of the chief engineers for the Canal project.  Gatun, Miraflores and Pedro Miguel are the 3 sets of locks in the Canal

There are beautiful murals (circa 1915) inside the Administration building created by William Van Ingen, an artist who painted murals for the Library of Congress and US Mint

MORE BOATS!  (Sorry, but this will be the last time)

The Island Princess is a Panamax boat - that means it was built specifically for the canal - its dimensions being as large as the locks will tolerate

Not quite sure why it needs what looks like jet engines???

It even looks huge from our balcony - which is about a 1/2 mile from the canal

I just had to see the Queen Elizabeth on her 112 day, round-the-world voyage.  We decided the best place to do this was Gamboa - a small town right along the canal.... no fences in the way and the boats come really close to the shore.

On her way to Mexico, then up the west coast of the US and on to the Far East. Today is day 17th day of their voyage.

Hope all is well with you.
Peggy

A Walk Toward Downtown

Yesterday we took a cab to the Fish Market and then walked along the beautiful oceanfront toward downtown.  There was lots to see.

The fish market is where the fishermen from small boats sell their catch of the day.

Yes, they were still moving.

Someone probably needed a fish head.

Octopus on the left (who did not appear to be still moving)

The tide had gone out since the fishermen had come in.

The view of downtown Panama City from the oceanfront walk.

The walkway was broad and beautifully landscaped.

A little later on, there was also a well-marked bike path.

I had never seen one of these before....very good idea!

There were small parks, fountains and places to excercise and play soccer, basketball and ping pong along the walk.

Our favorite Panama City building the BBA Tower - or as we call it the "Jenga" building

After we walked back, we decided to stop at our favorite restaurant, Tantalo's in Casco Antiguo.  They have a super reasonable lunch menu.  Gene always tries to find a good hot dog in all of the cities we have gone to over the past 4 years.  He found one here.  Beside the hot dog are deep-fried plantains.  They sort of taste like french fries.

We did a bit more walking around the historic Casco Antiguo and then went to the Panama Canal Museum - the gray and white building behind the trees.  It was very well done, especially if you read Spanish.

The doors in the Catedral de Nuestra Senora de la Asuncion.  Construction on this church began in 1688 and took 100 years to complete.

You can't go anywhere in the Panama City vicinity without seeing these buses called "diablos rojos" (red devils).  They provide transportation to the Panamanian people.  They are privately owned and all painted differently - either with buxom women or Jesus.

They often drive with the door open and a young man hanging out yelling things....we try to give them a wide berth when driving

Panama Canal Update:

We find watching the canal fascinating (and we know that not all people think that way).  We wanted to know if there was a way we could find out what boats were going to be passing by.  Of course, we turned to the internet and found the following website - that gives us up-to-the-minute information and webcam pictures of the boats in and near the canal: http://www.seacruisechat.com/.

We especially like to see the larger cruise boats - and there have been more lately.  The Norwegian Star passed through the canal last night - and that was the biggest cruise boat we have seen yet.  The website also gives a calendar of cruise ship passage.  Tuesday we will be looking forward to seeing the Queen Elizabeth pass by on her round-the-world voyage.  

Take care until next time:  Peggy

Time Goes By So Fast!

Both Alex and Emily have now returned to Portland.  We are extremely glad they came.  The time went by so quickly.  I can't believe that we have only 10 days left in Panama City.  We still have plans to drive to the Pacific coast to see where we will be staying in February as well as (try) to use the Metro system to visit the downtown area.  We are grateful to Alex for leaving us his Spanish/English dictionary so that we can put together semi-decent Spanish sentences on-the-go. 

Since we haven't traveled to a specific attraction in the past few days, I thought I would write a bit about the Panama Canal just outside our window.

Panama Canal Fun Facts:
- The Canal is 48 miles long
- It runs basically north/south connecting the Atlantic side (on the north) with the Pacific side
- France began working on the Canal in 1881, but had to give up because of engineering problems
     and too many people dying from disease
- The US took over the project in 1904 and completed the Canal in 10 years
- The Canal was run by the Americans from 1914 until 1999 when it was returned to the Panamanian
    authorities
- There are three sets of locks that boats pass through
- Right now the largest boats are not able to pass through the Canal because of the size of the locks
- Much larger locks are now being built for those ships.  These locks are being built right down the
    road from our condo complex.
- Once a ship is to enter the Canal, one or more special Canal pilots come on board (there can be up
    to 4 Canal pilots depending on the size of the ship) - to pilot the ship all the way through the canal
- A Canal transit takes approximately 10 hours
- It is extremely expensive to go through the Canal.  Cost for the transit depends on the size of the
    ship, the weight and if you want to cut to the front of the line.  Cargo ships pay anywhere from  
    $100,000 - $300,000.  Cruise ships pay about $115 per passenger.
- Around 15,000 ships transit the Canal each year.
 

Things We Have Noticed from our Balcony:
- In the AM ships proceed from the Pacific side to the Atlantic side (from our right to our left)
- In the PM ships come from Pacific to the Atlantic
- The Canal is not wide enough in many spots to accommodate two-way traffic - so there is a break
    in the middle of the day for re-aligning everyone
- Generally there seems to be about 5 kinds of ships that pass through

Huge container ships

My personal favorite, ships that carry cars and other vehicles.  They are HUGE and are all lit up at night.

Fuel (like propane, natural gas) ships

 

And of course cruise ships

The 5th kind are small cargo and pleasure boats.
We hope you are all doing well.  We think about everybody often.
Submitted by Peggy

Sloths, Jazz, Island Beaches and Night Time in the City

Sloths, Sloths, Sloths

Emily and Paige were disappointed that there were no sloths to be seen on Barro Colorado, but the Smithsonian folks recommended that we go to a small Smithsonian-run park called Punta Calebra very near to where we are staying.  They said we were sure to see sloths there... and we did!  With the help of park guides we saw 3 sloths in all - 2 adults and one baby.

They say sloths move very slowly, but this one moved from one tree to another in just the time it took us to go and see the tree frog exhibit (about 20 minutes)

Emily and Paige at Punta Calebra.  This small park is on an island that is part of the Amador Causeway.  It looks out over the entrance to the Panama Canal

This large guy was about 3 feet from head to tail.  He appeared to have no problem with people around him as he walked the grounds.

The Jazz Festival: Every year in January Panama City hosts an international Jazz Festival.  It is held in a place called The City of Knowledge.  This is an area of schools and international agencies.  We went over for a free lunchtime concert.

The concert was held at La Plaza where there were lots of places to eat and shop.

They had these amazing 10 foot tall puppets dancing to the music.  You can see the people dressed all in black who were controlling all the puppets' moves.  They did this for over an hour.  We were all very impressed.

 A trip to the top of the Hard Rock Hotel: One of the Top 10 things to do in most guide books for Panama City is a night time visit to the outdoor bar at the top of the Hard Rock Hotel.  It was spectacular!

The tables lit up and you can see in the background the amazing view of the waterfront from the 62nd floor.

A Trip to Isla Taboga:  Another recommended stop is Isla Taboga - about 10 miles off the coast.  It is a small island with little traffic and some nice beaches.  The ferry trip lasts about 45 minutes - moving around all the large ships waiting to enter the Canal. 

The town on Taboga.  There are a few hundred residents and about 40 hotel rooms. 

It is very typical for Panamanian families to come to the beach for the day. 

This is the place where we all had lunch.  All places on the island are small and run by extremely friendly people.

The lunch table with the outstanding view.

Tomorrow we say Adios to Paige and Emily as they head back to the states.  We will miss them.  Alex will be staying until Tuesday! 

Go Pack!

Submitted by Peggy