Tuesday, January 23, 2018 (Jana's birthday)
Panama City – Cinta Costera and the Panama Canal
We went next door to Pips Cafe this morning for our free breakfast, where the waiter pointed out the five different breakfast options for us to choose from. We selected the Panamanian breakfast, but they were out, so I had breakfast burritos, and Tom had the American breakfast (pancakes and bacon). It took about an hour, but we were in no hurry. The coffee was delicious and strong, even con leche.
Tom at Pips Cafe
For my birthday today, Tom gave me a nice card and concert tickets for Judah & the Lion, playing at the Mill & Mine in Knoxville on April 12. Cool! I couldn't receive any birthday texts today because I didn't set up international service with Verizon before we left, and so I wasn't going to turn on my phone and incur the charges. I did get a lot of birthday wishes on Facebook, and a few people knew to call/text yesterday before we left the U.S.
Ancon Hill and Casco Viejo
Late in the morning, we went for a several kilometer walk through the Cinta Costera Park, a pleasant greenway along the Bahia de Panama, beginning across the street from our hotel. We walked east from Casco Viejo past the fish market and as far as Punta Paitilla, enjoying views of ships lined up at the entrance of the Panama Canal, the site of old fishing boats juxtaposed with the modern financial district, and gorgeous vegetation along the way.
Panama City, old and new
Cinta Costera Park
Jana with some funky flora
In case you're lost...
We were pretty hot after about 6 km or so, so we caught a taxi back for $5. There was a protest blocking the street just before the hotel, probably an anti-gentrification rally, as we saw signs to that effect around the neighborhood last night, so we got out of the taxi and walked the last 50 meters or so, giving the protesters a wide berth.
After cooling off in the room, we took a taxi to Albrook Mall, the biggest mall in the Americas. It is HUGE, with over 700 businesses, and located immediately adjacent to Panama City's main bus station and its domestic airport. For $11 we got a +Movil SIM card with all the cheap data we'd need for the duration of our trip. We also bought some cheap sunglasses and had lunch at the mall (Greek gyros) before moving on. It poured down rain while we were inside but quit by the time we left.
The main purpose of getting the local SIM was to use Uber, but I wasn't able to get the app set up with the new phone number on the spot, so instead we took a taxi to our next stop, the Miraflores Visitors Center at the Panama Canal. We paid $15 for the taxi, which was way too much. We didn't realize how close we were to our destination.
The Panama Canal is a 48-mile passageway linking the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, saving a ship 8,000 miles versus traveling around the tip of South America. It takes eight to ten hours to make the crossing via canal, compared to two weeks going the long way. A series of locks lifts the ships 85 feet above sea level, where they then cross the continental divide on Lake Gatun before being lowered again to sea level on the other side of the isthmus. Approximately 14,000 transit through the canal each year.
Tickets for the Miraflores Visitors Center are $15, allowing access to a large viewing deck overlooking the locks, a three-floor museum, a restaurant, and a short film on the history of the canal. I had to show my passport when purchasing visitor center tickets and also when I purchased the SIM card. By the end of our vacation, I think I'd shown our passports to almost every man, woman, and child in Panama.
We started with the fourth-floor viewing platform, where two large cruise ships were negotiating the locks, pulled by the locomotive “mules” that control their passage. These were Panamax ships, built to the maximum dimension possible to fit into the locks, so there's not much room to spare. We watched the process for over an hour.
Miraflores Locks, Panama Canal
Panamax cruise ship
The locks in action
Next we rushed through the extensive three-story museum in about 45 minutes in order to finish in time to catch the last English-language showing of the film downstairs. We'd both just finished a book about the building of the canal, so it was all pretty interesting.
As we were in the stairwell heading down for the film, I looked out a small window and spotted a submarine going through the canal! We ran back upstairs to get a better look, just as they were shutting down the viewing platform for the day. However, I asked very nicely, and the guard let us back out to see the sub. The submarine crew was standing on the top deck of the sub as it passed through the locks. Very cool.
Submarine passing through
We still managed to make it to the last showing of the 10-minute film about the history of the canal. They booted us out immediately afterwards because it was closing time, and after some haggling, we got a taxi from Miraflores back to the hotel for $10. It was rush hour and the traffic was horrible, so we ended up giving him $12.
By 6:30 we were at our hotel. Later we walked around Casco Viejo checking out the numerous restaurants before returning to La Rana Dorado brewpub. Their microbrews are so much better than any of the national beers. We had the pale ale, the English style pale ale (which was a brown ale), and the saison, along with chicken tostones and a burger. A nice birthday dinner!
Jana's birthday dinner
Tom
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