A brief venture back into the USA for some family time

Erica contemplates the Everglades

After our stay in Panama City, we took a quick flight to Florida, saying goodbye to Central America for a while.  We had decided to set up a family reunion in the Sunshine State after discovering it was actually much cheaper to fly to Florida and then to South America than it was to fly from Central America to South America directly.  Which makes absolutely no sense.  As my sisters, their families and my parents were all coming from the typically cold midwest, we figured that south Florida would offer a reprieve for them from a weather perspective.  For us, it was a bit cooler than Panama City and much welcomed.  The weather did not disappoint.

There were many geocaches found by our crews, occasionally protected by alligators.

On the hunt on Christmas day

One of the highlights of our visit to the Gulf Coast was a trip to the Ringling Museum (http://www.ringling.org/), an immense and stunning museum complex dedicated to the Ringling family of circus fame.  We'd never heard of this unique complex but were quite impressed with the grounds and the circus museums.  We had no time to even set foot in the supposedly excellent art museum.

Massive scale model of the traveling circus years ago

Circus life in miniature

Madeleine and her grandparents at the Ringling Mansion

A calmer moment for the Jones family circus

Twins?  Or Madeleine and her Aunt Anastasia?

Happy parents

Boy cousins will be boys

A relaxing adult moment

Good times with Grandpa

No caption needed

During our travels over the next year, we are hoping to be able to reconnect with many friends we haven't seen in a long time.  In Florida, we were fortunate to be able to spend some time with two of Erica's college friends from a few years back and their families too.

Erica and Suzanne

With Tal

For us it was an interesting time briefly readjusting to the US while at the same time readying ourselves for extended travel in South America.  The week together was a special time for our close family.  We said our goodbyes, handed off our lone remaining suitcase to my folks for transport back to Ohio, packed up our backpacks and headed to the airport to begin the next phase of our adventure:  Peru.

Traveling lightly

Panama Canal and Casco Viejo

Panama Canal spectacle

On our last full day in Panama City we were excited to visit the Panama Canal, which was really the main reason we made the trip to Panama City before leaving central America.  We took a taxi to the Miraflores Locks, one of three systems of locks on the canal.  Here there is a really nice visitor center and museum.  We went directly to the viewing bleachers that overlook the twin locks, but we soon heard that there would be no ship traffic passing through until 2pm.   Although the locks are open 24 hours, there are break times, including this 11am to 2pm window.  We learned that 35-40 ships pass through the canal per day, which seemed like a low number until we saw how long it takes each ship to pass through the locks.  While waiting for the show to resume at 2, we visited the museum and watched the short movie about the canal.  I knew that France had begun the canal (in 1881), then gave up due to insurmountable problems including mudslides and disease.  The US took up the project in 1904, and Panama’s declaration of independence from Columbia in 1903 was facilitated by the US in preparation for the canal.  What I did not know is that a 1970s agreement between Panama and the US after bloody protests by Panamanian students in the 60s resulted in Panama taking over the canal in 1999.  They seemed to be doing an excellent job, and a project to build wider locks to accommodate larger ships is underway.  Work has just recently begun on a Chinese-funded canal through Nicaragua.  It will be interesting to see how this progresses and how it affects the Panama Canal.  I was impressed by the canal as an engineering feat and game changer for world commerce.  When we did finally get to see a small tourist cruise boat and sail boat navigate the locks toward the Pacific, and later two very large ships also heading for the Pacific, we were not disappointed by the spectacle.  The first of the two large ships, the Challenge Phoenix, an oil/ chemical tanker from Singapore, is in the class of the widest of ships that can make it through the canal.  In the second lock and passing through at the same time and same direction was a yacht transport ship; a ship so big it can transport several huge yachts at once.  We learned that in the morning, ships can travel north through the canal to the Atlantic, while in the afternoon ships can travel south toward the Pacific.  Ships pay canal fees based on their class and size, and fees can be up to $300,000! 

The Challenge Phoenix from Singapore enters the first of the two-step locks

As the Challenge Phoenix descends, the Yacht Express enters the parallel lock

Gates opening for the Challenge Phoenix

Two of the "mules" assisting the Challenge Phoenix into the second lock

The spectators enjoy the show from the bleachers

Hasta luego, Challenge Phoenix!

While Nik and I could have stayed longer watching ships pass through the locks, the kids had seen enough, so we caught another taxi to Casco Viejo, the second old Panama City.  This was where the settlement moved after the pirate Henry Morgan sacked and burned Panama Viejo twice.  Here the buildings have a very colonial look, reminiscent of New Orleans, only much older.  Some of the stones from Panama Viejo were transported to the new site and used in the original buildings here.  We visited the Iglesia de San Jose, famous for its golden alter, which is actually carved wood covered in gold flake.  The alter was originally in Panama Viejo and was painted black at one point by Jesuit monks to keep it from being stolen by Henry Morgan.  The plan worked, and the alter was later moved to this church in Casco Viejo.

Golden alter at Iglesia de San Jose in Casco Viejo

Casco Viejo architecture

We also stopped at Arco Chato, the “flat arch” and walls remaining of the 17th century church and convent of Santo Domingo.  It was destroyed by fire in 1756 and was never rebuilt, but the arch stood as a testament that Panama was spared from major seismic activity and helped convince the Americans to build the canal here.  The arch finally collapsed in 2003 from age and neglect, but is currently being restored.  We stopped in a very cute cafe for a snack, including some fantastic artisan chocolate from Bocas del Toro on the Caribbean, the only other place we have visited in Panama.  We enjoyed walking along the narrow sidewalks and trying to stay dry once it started to rain.  After a stop in a very American-style frozen yogurt shop with acres of sugary toppings and some entertainment from an older gentleman playing an equally old banjo, we returned to our hotel via taxi, one of our several very long rush hour taxi rides.  Nik helped our novice taxi driver with directions from his iPhone, for which our driver was grateful.

The rebuilt Arco Chato (flat arch)

Parque in Casco Viejo

Banjo Man played Day-O (Banana Boat Song), in Casco Viejo

We walked from our hotel to another middle eastern restaurant for dinner, Beirut.  Excellent food and a real treat for us after being “deprived” of non-Costa Rican ethnic food.  The next day we headed to the airport earlier than needed to avoid the Panama City rush hour and had no trouble with our evening flight back to the US.  We flew into Ft Lauderdale and spent the night there before driving across Florida to the Gulf coast to meet up with Nik’s family for a Christmas week of fun.

Nik and Henry at Beirut restaurant for our final Panama City dinner

Panama City: Panama viejo & Multiplaza

Sullivan enjoys the view

After a good night's sleep we headed out to explore the vast urban playground of Panama City.  While walking to the waterfront, my first impression was that this city is super clean and really large.  I'd anticipated a bit more grit but was very pleasantly surprised.  We strolled down to the Cinta Costera, a greenway with sports courts, palm trees and a brand new bike trail with killer views of the bay.

Panama city

Thanks to our late start after sleeping in a bit, it was pretty warm by the time we got out and moving around.  A breeze off the water kept it from being unbearable.  We walked for an hour or so along the coast and soaked up the views along the water.  There is apparently a large project underway to clean up the bay.  A main cause of the problems is apparently house trash dumped into the rivers upstream from the bay.  They say that the water is much cleaner now than it has been in the past but there is work to be done.

La Cinta Costera

As is typical for us during our travels, we managed to find our way to a park and take a little time to relax.

Henry works on his balance

Sufficiently exercised and warm, we realized that any more walking would be a bit too much in the heat.  We flagged down a cab and got into the car with Victor.  He explained that he could take us to Panama Viejo, but he'd have to make a quick stop at the pharmacy first to pick up his vitamins.  The vitamins help to keep him in good health and feeling young, he says.  The 30 minute ride to Panama Viejo, through sometimes heavy traffic, cost $5.

Victor

Panama Viejo is one of the most famous places to visit in Panama City.  It was the original site of the city, first founded in 1519 by the Spanish conquistador Pedriarís Dávila.  Panama Viejo is a UNESCO World Heritage Site (http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/790/ for more detail) and was the first European city on the Pacific Coast of the Americas.  Its existence itself was interesting enough, but was made much more so by the fact that the famous pirate Henry Morgan sacked and burned the city.  Twice.  More of the story can be seen here:  http://www.historynet.com/henry-morgan-the-pirate-who-invaded-panama-in-1671.htm .  After the second sacking, it was felt that the city was not defensible and was moved to another site.  There is an interesting museum and many ruins to explore.

Panama Viejo

Vista from church tower ruin 

Remaining monastery ruins

During our time Panama Viejo we met tourists from Mexico and Costa Rica.  Erica and I did manage to understand a bit more Panamanian history and maybe the kids learned just a bit too.  We ended the day's adventure with a trip to the Multiplaza, easily the largest mall I have ever seen, all decorated for Christmas.  Filled with all the high-end shops one could ever want, it was impressive.  There was even a Lego store and a Chuck E Cheese, which was almost disturbing.  We didn't buy anything except dinner at the food court.  Movie tickets (and a large popcorn) were US $3 each so we couldn't resist watching The Hobbit, a great movie.  It was in English with Spanish subtitles, which came in quite handy when characters were speaking Orc or Elvish.  The theater was immaculate and a far cry from our movie experience in Granada, Nicaragua which included live bats during the movie but which made for everlasting memories.

Goodbye to Costa Rica & the long journey to Panama City

Goodbye to Nuevo Arenal

It is with heavy hearts that we readied ourselves to say goodbye to sweet Costa Rica.  After nearly two years, we’ve had such a great time exploring, have made many dear friends and have all experienced some pretty amazing personal growth.  But, as was our original plan, we planned on heading out at the end of the school year, at the end of November.  We gave away what we weren’t going to bring with us and made our rounds for our final goodbyes (for now, anyway).  We do plan on coming back again in the future because we feel like we really have some roots here.

Lorena and her family will be missed

We drove about 4 hours to San Jose and dropped our car off to a great small business who helps folks to buy and sell cars locally.  They know our car well as they helped us to buy it when we first came.  After a long, slow cab ride through unpleasantly heavy San Jose traffic, we ate our last supper at a local chain, Rosti Pollo, which is much enjoyed by our crew.  After another (somewhat less slower) taxi ride, we arrived at the TicaBus terminal in central San Jose.  Our bus was scheduled to leave around midnight and was "Executive" class.  Executive class was meant to include a pillow, a blanket and food and drinks.

TicaBus terminal waiting

We'd heard that TicaBus offers the nicest buses and the comfiest service in all of Costa Rica.  Our bus and the ride itself didn't disappoint at all.  We'd prepared for the 15 hour journey and knew we'd be crossing the border into Panama sometime in the middle of the night.  In my mind, the border crossing would be relatively quiet and therefore painlessly quick.  It's here where our assumptions were wrong.  We slept peacefully from just after midnight until the bus stopped at 4 am, at the Costa Rican side of the border crossing at Paso Canoas.  We got off the bus, lined up and waited.  And waited.  And waited some more.

A tired crew at 4 am

We finally learned that the border on the Costa Rica side would open at 6 am.  The painful realization of a two hour wait was softened somewhat by chatting with other passengers, none of whom were excited to be waiting for two hours in the middle of the night.  We met a sweet family from San Jose with impressive English skills who were going to Panama City for a few days to shop.  Talked with a tall, Yankee capped Panamanian who was traveling home after working in Managua, Nicaragua.  A young German couple traveling through Central America.  Two men from Barcelona who'd only met on the bus.  

TicaBus

Paso Canoas, early morning

Of course, nobody could believe how crazy it was that the bus arrived at a time when the border wouldn't be open.  For me this typified some of the unexpected challenges we can expect to face when hauling our family through Central and South America.  We were in no particular hurry, but it was still painful to have to wait for so long in the middle of the night.  Finally, just after 6 am, the line moved quickly, our passports were stamped with our exit visas and we walked across the border into Panama.  Any sentimentality for leaving Costa Rica was overshadowed by the sheer joy of actually finally making some progress getting across the border.

Immigration, with Christmas decorations

By the time we'd cleared immigration and customs on the Panamanian side it was getting warm and 8 am had arrived.  As we were celebrating driving away, eager to sleep again, I notice that the guy I had been sitting next to (from Barcelona) on the full bus was not there.  I brought this to the attention of the attendant and we were informed that he had not been permitted to go through immigration!  In addition to your passport, the two (apparently strictly) required documents to enter Panama are proof of travel out of Panama and either US $500 in cash or proof that you have at least that much in a bank account.  He apparently had tried to borrow money to pass this requirement and it didn't work out so well.  The only problem was that his shiny iPhone was still sitting on his seat.  We were reassured it'd would make its way back to him through the TicaBus office.  Glad it wasn't us.

Happy riders

After a couple more hours of really good sleeping, breakfast was served:  sandwiches of ham, ketchup, mayo, lettuce and tomato, added to a package of cookies in a retro-looking TicaBus box.  Though we'd brought snacks, I was hungry enough that I could have eaten the box itself.  

Sunny Panamanian bus vista

After yet more sleep, we stopped again.  Maybe for lunch I wondered?  Our the window across the road I saw a large McDonald's and then it dawned on me:  our executive class bus ride would be capped off by a McDonald's catered lunch!  I chuckled as our friendly attendant came through the bus delivering warm McPollo sandwiches from a large box.  You can't make this up.

Lunch catering company

By this time, our crew was generally well rested and enjoying the ride.  The bus made good time into Panama City.  We knew we were close when we crossed the famous Panama Canal and followed side streets into the surprisingly clean and huge city itself.  We said our goodbyes, gathered our belongings and left our home of the last 15 and a half hours, emptying out into the national transit center.  Loud, fast, brightly colored and dual-exhausted "adorned" buses and several equally brightly dressed indigenous women caught our attention.  The size of the transit center and the appropriately scaled Christmas trees were impressive.

Welcome to Panama City

A very reasonable taxi ride later, we arrived to the Hotel Terranova in downtown Panama City.  We put the shower through its paces, soaked up our view a bit more and wandered out to feed ourselves.  It was an easy decision to eat at Habbibi, a Panamanian Middle Eastern restaurant, which was quite tasty.  We wandered back to the hotel and slept well.

Cityscape, as seen from from Hotel Terranova