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