Banal, not Carnal, Canal for Me
Trip Start
Apr 27, 2006
1
98
110
Trip End
Apr 01, 2008
Panama,
Panama
Wednesday, June 25, 2008
Panama, like the other Central American countries is pushing development. It is the 3rd largest economy in Central America, offers both coasts, no property tax (maybe since, like Costa Rica, it spends $0 on a non-existent military), and has no major disaster issues - no earthquakes or hurricanes. Panama used to be part of Colombia, but the U.S. engineered its independence in 1903 and was the first to recognize the county. The U.S
Another Old City Church
. then signed the treaty giving it the rights to built and administer the Panama Canal "in perpetuity" with a Frenchman who did not entirely have the right to do so. Panamanians later rioted in 1964 on Martyr's Day and several U.S. soldiers and Panamanians were killed over a dispute at the canal. Overtly, the dispute was over a flag display, but the underlying issue was some people in Panama wanted control over the canal. In response to the U.S. Military's overreaction to the demonstration, Panama cut diplomatic ties with the U.S., but the U.S. continued to run the canal. In 1979, Presidents Carter and Torrijos signed a treaty to return the Canal Zone to Panama over time, the U.S. reserving the right to intervene militarily in the interest of its national security. The transition was complete on December 31, 1999. Meanwhile, in 1989, the U.S. invaded to depose and kidnap Manuel Noriega.Yet I met no animosity, although one cab driver happily pointed out to me all the former U.S. army buildings, barracks, YMCAs, banks, etc. that are now being used by Panama as apartments, offices, schools etc. I am told that, and will be curious to see whether, some Colombians still hold some animus regarding the U.S. engineering the loss of Panama. Since the Canal makes about $335 million in profit a year, I could see why.
Bird Guarding the Presidential Palace
I stayed in Casco Viejo, which is the Old City. Like many others, it is charming and colonial, with pleasant plazas, churches, and vistas, in particular the view from the Old City across the Pacific Ocean to the downtown area. There are some run down buildings, but it looks like a lot of reconstruction is being done which will preserve the facades, but modernize the interiors. My "hospedaje" was nothing special other than its location and price - $15 a night for my own room. The first day (Saturday) I wandered around it, and into the neighboring shopping district. There was a music festival going on and most of the plazas had a stage and multiple bands. I caught a couple that I enjoyed, but there was a lot of salsa, reggae and other Latin styles of music which can be fun to dance to, but grow repetitive to me to just stand (or sit) and watch.
The presidential palace is in the old town and, since he was gone, security was relaxed enough that the guards were letting people view the rare birds that roam the courtyard (see pic), which was cool. I also really enjoyed my lunch at Rene's Cafe. For $8.00 you get salad, two appetizers, an entree (your choice of chicken, meat, or fish with no choice about the preparation) and a dessert, all of which are different everyday and depend upon what was fresh in the market that day
Buying Street Food
. Rene used to manage Manolo Coracol (Frommers raving description) a restaurant in the Old Town famous for doing a similar thing for dinner, but much more elaborately. (Rene's dinners are apparently also more elaborate, but I did not go back.That night I tried to go to Coracol, but they were booked, which was not surprising given the festival going on just outside their door, so I went to another snazzy-looking and populat restaurant (S'cena) above the Old Town's main lounge/bar Platea. Oops. I was excited to try raw grouper, but the carpaccio it was drowned in so much oil that it was hard to tell what it tasted like, and the lamb chops were dry and smallish. I looked into the club below, but a Latin music band was playing, not in a social-dancing way, but in a sit-and-stare way, so I moved on to a lounge looking out on one of the plazas, but it was pretty mellow. What then? My old fall-back of course - the English/Irish pub. So I took a cab into the main restaurant/club area around Calle Uruguay to the The Londoner. Of course, there was not a single native English speaker in it, which I found to be typical of Panama City. I saw almost no expats or Western tourists, which I found kind-of odd, but, upon checking, their tourist revenue is not that big and "Panama City" is not a name that comes up when I talk to other travelers and backpackers. I completed the evening by sticking my head into a couple of clubs, which were typical nightclubs
Car Carrier
. The best part of the evening was getting mystery street food from the vendors in front of the clubs with a couple of other travelers.On Sunday, I went to the Canal. I can't explain why watching large ships move verrrry slowly through the locks, then slowly sinking 27 feet in 8 minutes, held my interest for so long, but it was hypnotizing. I ended up spending about three hours just watching. All the information was interesting, such as that 52 million gallons of fresh water is lost to sea for each ship that goes through, and about 14,000 ships went through last year. All of that is replenished by Panama's incredible rainfall, some of which I witnessed first-hand, which flows into the lake that forms the natural lake that composes the middle of the Canal. And, even with the deliberate use of all that water, the lake still provides all the local drinking water.
I also learned, for example, that the highest toll paid was $313,000 for a container ship, that the lowest was $0.36 for a guy to swim it in ten days in 1928, and that they are building new locks that will allow for more and much bigger ships. As it is now, the width and length of the locks effectively limit the size of ships (called Panamax) that can use the canal. Supertankers and large cruise ships cannot
Classic Casa
. Plus, a guide describes each ship as it comes through, what it is carrying, how much toll it paid, where it is registered, and its route. For example, I watched a car carrier containing 3,500 BMWs and Mercedes bound for California come through. It had paid $210,000 in tolls, or roughly $60 per car. Further, the engineering is rather amazing, given its 1914 provenance, and, as I said, watching the ships cruise through under their own power with less than two feet of water on each side was captivating.That night I was able to eat at Caracol, which was very good, but not divine. It was ten small courses, mostly seafood but also chicken, pork and a beef ravioli. Yeah, one, call it two bites, ravioli. Most dishes were good, but the fish was dry, and the portion size left me hungry. Still, for $25 before wine, it is a great deal and experience for the price, and I chatted most of the time with an interesting couple who have retired from Vermont to their boat and cruise the world, although they had not been through the canal ($500 for a boat under 50 feet and you have to wait until there are enough other small boats to make the waste of the water worthwhile). The Old Town was dead, dead, dead, so I checked out the supposedly popular martini bar at the Radisson Decapolis - it looked like any bar at a W Hotel and had about 6 people in it - before concluding my evening trying to figure out how the casino across the street made money on a no-commission baccarat game
Engine Rollercoaster (and check out the lifeboat)
. The answer (for anyone who even knows baccarat) is that they push instead of pay when the bank had a three-card seven.Monday I went out to the end of a spit of land similar to the Florida Keys or the Coronado Strand. At the end is a marina, some restaurants and bars, and a good view of the ships waiting to enter the canal (which goes one way in the morning and another in the afternoon). It was dead as was the Old Town that night. I thought about checking out one of the "all-you-can-drink" for $20-25 strip clubs cum brothels (prostitution is legal, but not streetwalking, so the "girls" work out of clubs) just to check it out, but even at that price they don't appeal. I also thought about checking out other bars in the restaurant/party district, but it was Monday and I had to get up at 8:00 a.m., so I had a light but boring dinner and called it a night.
Overall, I found Panama City interesting and think it could be fun on the weekend, particularly for someone with passable Spanish, although I would stay in the restaurant bar district next time and just visit the Old Town. As for that 8:00 wakeup, it was to go to:
Cartagena, Colombia
