Day Three - Panama Canal

Today was the day we got to sleep in! YES!!

It was also the day we were going to do some things the kids actually wanted to do. Like go to the Panama Canal.

I've been hearing about this canal my whole life, how it was one of the major miracles of the world, one of the greatest things man had ever accomplished. After seeing it, I must agree. Pretty danged cool.

We watched some smaller boats go through, but seeing how they close the locks, let the water out (or in) and fill the adjacent locks to the same level, then open the gates and let them through was pretty cool. I found myself wishing I'd see Ginger and Mary Ann out for a three hour tour, but no. Just some drunk guys on the deck of the catamaran. Oh, well. Next time we go to Panama, maybe.

The photo on the left above is of Hannah and me before we went up to view the locks. That's the visitor's center in the background. We were at the Miraflores locks. If you want to look it up on the map, it's here.

The second photo is of the gates that closed so they could even up the water levels in the different sides. If you look closely, you can see the different levels of water on either side. It only takes them about ten minutes to level them up, too. Danged cool.

The third pic is of Hannah at the controls. Note the quality of the haircut on the guy next to her. Now that's comedy! "What do you mean you're giving it all you've got, Scotty? I need more power!!"

After the canal we headed over to the Caiz de Armador, which connects Naos Island, Perico Island and Flamenco Island to the mainland. These islands, were not there when the world was created. They were created by all of the dirt that was dug out for the canal. Imagine, if you will, that you are the head dude digging all of that dirt out of the Panamanian landscape. What in the world do you do with it all? Sell it for topsoil? I think not, McDuff. Of course, you make a new island, or two, or three. Instead of making the mountains higher, they made the ocean lower, making islands where the people can go and goof off. And goof off they do!

The two pictures on the far right above are of Hannah and Jacob riding Segues on the islands. Fun times, man. Hannah wrecked, I got run into by some kids on a bicycle built for two, and Jacob nearly ran into the Pacific Ocean because he couldn't make the danged thing stopped. I kept yelling at him, "Lean back! Lean back!" He finally got it to stop, but after that he went A LOT slower.

Now look at the fourth picture from the left. If you blow it up you'll see a bus in the water. Not a great shot, but it's a bus in the water, nonetheless. We were sitting eating lunch (just before the Segue rides) and saw what looked like a bus gliding through the water. As it got nearer it looked more and more like a bus. "But, Ralph. How can a bus float on the water?" "Good question, Ed. I don't know." But it was a bus, I swear! It floated right up to the a road and drove up into the parking lot. Amazing! Gives new meaning the old term busman's holiday.

Nothing left to do today but put the B&B address into the GPS and drive home. Bless Garmin for their wonderful little invention. I don't know how we would have gotten around Panama without it. Of course, we had to drive through some of the nastier parts of Panama City, as evidenced by some of the pix below, but it was a good edumacation for the kiddos. Not everyone in this beautiful world lives in the same semi-luxury they do. I think that goes way underappreciated today.

By the way, don't let me EVER give you the impression that Panama is nothing but a gorgeous land with WONDERFUL people. They have problems just like everyone else.

Peace out!

Coming soon - Day Four - Pipeline Road

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