The Air Panama aircraft to take us from Bocas to Panama City was a 50 seater turbo prop. No problem - we get these in Port Macquarie!
We were given soft drink and biscuits on the 45 minute flight. There are 2 airports in Panama City - we had already been to the main one - but this time our plane landed at Albrook. A trap for new travelers to this area is to book a flight to Bocas via Panama and not allow enough time to get from one airport to another.
Albrook is a very basic airport. We arrived into a building, and told to wait for bags. And then a garage door lifted and bags were pushed into the room manually. Our driver was waiting for us and off we set. We did have to have light luggage for this flight. We did manage this - the beauty of a hot destination!
Driving through peak hour traffic was very busy and took about 40 minutes to reach our hotel. The Grand Sheraton is by no means Panama’s best hotel but is quite luxurious compared to ecolodges! On balance, we prefer staying in places with a local flavour but a nice hotel once in a while is nice! The hotel even has a casino not that we had any intention of going there! But we did. Tim can now say he played roulette in Panama. But the bed felt like a cloud, and the hot water in the shower was a nice treat!
Interesting observations:
- cars only have license plates on the back. Some cars just put decorative ones on the front (eg the car type - Toyota).
- There are many nice looking areas and many areas where homes have so many security grills everywhere it would be like living in a cage.
- Using indicators seems to be a suggestion rather than the norm - but using your horn is far more popular. I don’t think you would want to drive in this city!
- Panama means abundance of trees, fish and butterflies.
- It’s going to be crazy here next year for World Youth Day. It’s busy now! All accommodation is booked out, locals are bring asked to find rooms in their homes.
- No army in Panama.
- Mandarin is the 2nd most common language spoken after Spanish.
- Exports are pineapples, rice and sugar, but the canal is their big business.
- Fuel is cheap!
- Average wage is $650 US per month.
- You can buy a house out of the city for $40,000but it’s cheaper to buy land and build your own.
- Our guide is a dual citizen of Holland and Panama and has lived in Holland for 20 years - he prefers it here so this is where he lives - mainly for the weather, but does spend a month in Holland every year as his son lives there playing soccer. He speaks 5 languages and is 39. He was great - really knowledgeable.
Our first stop on our full day in Panama was the Panama Canal.
It is amazing to visit, and we saw a couple of ships pass through the locks. There is also a video and a museum about the canal on site.
- the canal is about 80kms long and depending on the size of the vessel it takes about 10-12 hours to transit through.
- We visited the Miraflores Locks.
- Gravity is used in making it work.
- Panama now has control of the canal.
- It only became commercially operated in the last 15 years or so, prior to that (for over 90 years) was operated on a cost recovery basis.
- About 14,000 ships pass through every year, with over 1 million now having passed in total. They come from 1,700 port towns in over 160 countries - including Australia.
- A private yacht pays about $2k and a large commercial ship $150k.
- The Norwegian Pearl paid $375,600 in 2010.
- The lowest toll paid was by Richard Halliburton in 1928 who swam and paid 36 cents.
- Due to ships increasing in size, the canal was recently expanded and opened in 2016. Ongoing widening will most likely be required.
- The tropical marina life of the Pacific and Atlantic oceans are very different.
- The best time to visit is first thing in the morning to see the ships. After 10.30am there may not be another chance until late after lunch (sometimes 4pm) due to traffic and distance from the other lock.
There’s a lot more interesting facts and the photos were just amazing! Truly an engineering marvel which is hard to explain.
We then visited the Biomuseo (museum) which is very modern and very interesting.
We learned a lot today.
They are still curating some exhibitions which will be finished by the end of the year. The theatre showcasing the biodiversity was great as you had to sit on the floor and at times there were images below sideways and above! A 360 degree experience! We even had a whale shark swim beneath us (so it seemed).
Some interesting things from the museum:
- Once upon a time, Panama did not exist and there was no bridge between the Americas.
- There were a lot of animals that are now extinct - really scary ones like carnivorous Terror Birds and also Sloths that could stand 6 metres high! And sharks that were massive!
- After the arrival of Christopher Columbus, the indigenous population suffered from defeat from fighting and illness from European diseases such as influenza. It took hundreds of years for the population to recover despite European settlement.
We then went to the old town of Panama (Casco Viejo) to have lunch and wander through. It is beautiful with many areas under restoration - although the facades must remain. In many places, the city with its many skyscrapers can be seen throughout the historical streets. Also very close, are many areas filled with poverty.
We have enjoyed Panama very much. Our Saturday morning transfer to the airport was quick (no traffic on a Saturday). Tocumen Airport is fairly efficient but they are expanding the terminal.
We are now looking forward to our next destination!
Suey
2018-04-07
Very interesting Bec and very well written!! I found the Panama Canal story amazing!! Pleased that you enjoyed the Panama experience!!