Sunday, 3 March 2019
Panama City, Panama
Today is the start of the organised group tour travelling from Panama through Costa Rica, El Salvador and Honduras to Guatemala. Meet up with the other three English members of the group and the tour escort, who is Guatemalan.
The local guide for Panama City meets us. He’s tall, exotic looking, nattily dressed with a Panama hat, speaks fluent English but with an accent one assumes to be Panamanian.
But. There’s a surprise.
He’s actually from Leeds.
You would never know.
It’s carnival weekend so everyone is going crazy and various roads are closed for the procession. Plenty of police about too.
Early start to beat the crowds at the Panama Canal museum and visitor centre at the Miraflores Locks, where I sailed through on Friday.
Unfortunately, we just miss a ship transiting the locks so don’t get to see the locks in action from another perspective. Can see a massive neo-Panamax container ship transiting the new lock system some distance away though and it makes you realise how small the original locks now are.
Having travelled through what I thought was the old town enroute to the canal on Friday, not looking forward to a tour of the old town. It looked squalid on Friday and as we approach the centre of the old town, it still looks squalid and dirty. Lots of grubby blocks of flats with grubby people hanging over the balustrades with their grubby washing hanging out to dry with their grubby chairs and tables on the balconies.
Grubby.
Grubby.
Grubby.
And then.
Within the space of one block, and this is not an exaggeration, it really is one block, it’s as if we’ve been transported through a worm hole because it’s all shiny newly refurbished apartments, shops, restaurants, bars and hotels.
The contrast between one block and the next is staggering. Can’t recall anywhere else where the change is that instant. There are plenty of towns and cities where you see a gradual change from squalor to shiny but nothing as quick as this.
The newly refurbished part of the old town is stunning. Some money has obviously been spent converting the old grubby blocks into shiny new places. Pass an upmarket hotel. People quaffing champagne with their Sunday brunch. All the more staggering as it’s within view of the grubby old town.
The local authority is gradually gentrifying the old place and investing lots of money to make it a lot more upmarket but the local lower classes who live in the old town are protesting as they’re being moved out to make way for champagne and caviar.
Panama City has redeemed itself. Was thinking that all there was to Panama City was the newer skyscraper area of the city. Its skyline very much like Dubai’s but with pockets of squalid housing amongst the skyscrapers.
But this. The upgraded old town is stunning and architecturally fascinating. Very enjoyable walking around the cobbled streets but still some streets have newly refurbished buildings but adjacent are squalid apartments with locals that haven’t been forced out yet.
Outside the French embassy, a park contains an obelisk to commemorate the French that started the Panama Canal engineering. A plaque on one side of the obelisk opens inwards to reveal metal rungs to climb inside, to the top of the obelisk. Forego the pleasure, purely on account of it being very hot and humid.
Many of the tourist tat stalls have indigenous women, called ‘guna’ dressed in brightly coloured clothes. One stall has a selection of foreign coins for sale. One is a British 20 pence piece. Ask how much. It’s one dollar. Laugh and say it’s not worth that. To which the reply is, “Very rare, come from a long way.”
Local guide (from Leeds, remember) needs his Panama hat servicing. Of course, everyone knows that the Panama hat is actually made in Ecuador, don’t they? Treated to a comical shop assistant showing us how to care for and roll up a Panama hat. They roll up easily and are transported in balsa wood travel boxes. The last time I played with balsa wood was about 1981 when we all used to make models out of balsa. Remember?? There’ll be men of a certain age nodding sagely now and going, “Ah yes…I remember.” See the two YouTube videos below for a demonstration.
Back at the hotel, tour leader explains that we’re on and adventure tour and we’ll be using public transport throughout.
Hmmm. Not sure I booked an adventure holiday using public transport. I’m more of a private bus with air-conditioning, comfort and space type of holiday.
Fortunately, one of my travelling companions is the same height and build as me and it becomes clear we’re not going to be fitting into any ‘chicken buses’ any time soon.
Tour leader realises and promises he will try and arrange private buses where he can.
But.
We will be doing an 8hr journey tomorrow by public bus.
Really can’t wait for that.
One response to “71. Panama Hat”
What a contrast! You have captured some very different sights and lifestyles.