David and Panama City
Trip Start
Aug 16, 2003
1
80
92
Trip End
Apr 21, 2004
David and Panama City,
Panama
Sunday, March 21, 2004
Seven hours later, and desperate to stretch out, we at last arrived at the border where we all piled out of the bus and into the first of many queues. Once we'd received our exit stamp, a cute little local boy led us to the Panamanian immigration office, where we joined another queue in the sweltering heat. The lad was delighted, beaming from ear to ear, when Dan shook his hand and gave him some small change to thank him for his help.
Despite not being in possession of a valid travel ticket back out of Panama (one of the requirements for entry in to the country), Dan and I were very relieved that the immigration officer was obviously feeling fairly lenient and he let us through without too much hassle
A Lovely Building In Panama City
.Yet more protocol followed as we queued again to get our bags searched before being allowed back on the bus. Just as we were about to sink into our seats at the back of the bus, Dan pointed out that the last few rows were riddled with cockroaches - they must have been attracted by the discarded food and drink wrappers and bottles strewn all over the place (it does seem that throwing one's rubbish away in a litter bin is a distinctly British trait!).
After waiting for all our fellow passengers to be processed at the border, we surreptitiously found a seat nearer the front of the bus and were finally off again on the last hour of our journey. We arrived at the city of David in the late afternoon and checked in to the Hotel Toledo.
Tired, hungry and both suffering in the humid heat, we went out to explore and find a suitable restaurant for our first proper meal of the day. An hour or so later, however, we gave up and returned to the sanctuary of our air-conditioned room. We were extremely disappointed by the few 'eatery' options David afforded - whilst we did venture in to a couple of 'cafes', we quickly came back out again having caught a glimpse of the congealed buffet-type food on offer
Miraflores Locks, Panama Canal
. David is certainly not a gastronome's idea of Heaven!Not particularly sorry to be leaving Panama's third city, we headed for the bus station the following morning, where we discovered that we would have to wait for the 11am bus to Panama City (the 10am bus was already fully booked). Although our bus was very comfortable and thankfully air-conditioned, we unfortunately had to contend with a family of five sitting in the two seats behind us. The little kids kicked the seats constantly and they even brought their pet chicken along for the ride who proceeded to squawk annoyingly for the duration!
Just as Dan announced that someone in one of the seats behind us had thrown up and I was almost ready to jump off the bus, we mercifully pulled into Panama City's Transit Centre. After surviving another hair-raising taxi ride, we pulled up at Hotel Lisboa at around 6pm. Our well-appointed and comfortable room was much appreciated and we ended up collapsing on the bed and watching a film before venturing out for something to eat.
The next morning we got up fairly early and walked in to the city centre. Whilst there are a number of 'undesirable areas' in Panama City, there are also some really attractive places, particularly on the sea front. Many of the houses that we walked passed were extremely pretty, although we couldn't help feeling that they looked a little out of place and would have been more suited to a rural setting.
Our first stop was at a travel agency where we purchased flight tickets, for the following day, to Lima
The Commercial District Of Panama City
. After breakfast at 'Manolo's', we stopped by another travel agency to see if we could book a city tour for the day. It transpired that we were too late to do that, however, the lady that we spoke to was extremely helpful and gave us a number of suggestions to make the most of our short stay.That afternoon we took a taxi 20 km or so out of town to the Miraflores Locks on the Panama Canal. We timed our visit pretty well and were able to watch as a huge freight liner was guided through the locks.
Once back in the city Dan decided that he could no longer put up with his long, curly hair, so he set off for the nearest barbers, praying that they would speak a little English. Unfortunately this wasn't the case, so it was via the medium of mime that Dan attempted to explain the cut he required. Luckily his game of charades paid off and his haircut wasn't too bad at all!
Following the advice of our friendly travel agent, we decided to eat at Restaurant Tintja where we were treated to a display of Panamanian singing and dancing. We both enjoyed the show, but while the six dancers put on a good performance, the show did not live up to the standard of the amazing Guelaguetza that we watched in Mexico. Nevertheless it was a fitting way to spend our last night in Central America.
Andrea and Dan
