Panama. We left Costa Rica at 4 am and made it to Panama City at 8 pm, traveling on regular taxis, collectivo taxi, boat, and a big bus. Panama City is a very large, bustling and cosmopolitan city. There's over one million people here, and it's very hot. We went through the canal, from Pacific to Atlantic oceans in 8 hours. It was very cool. Our boat was pretty small compared to oil tankers and cargo ships. It's a bit intimidating to be next to one of these giants when you are stuck in a lock. The canal is owned and operated by the people of Panama for the last 10 years- not to be confused with the government. It is it's own authority that is separate from the politicians- a very good There are three conditions the Panama Canal Authority requires before you can pass thought the locks. First, you pay in cash (up to $400,000) 24 hours before passing, your motor has been recently checked and certified, and that you hand over control of your ship to a Panamanian captain to take your ship through the canal.
Unbeknownst to us, Panama is known for great prices on clothes, electronics, etc, so many people come to shop. No one told us or we would have brought bigger suitcases. We spent part of a day in a huge mall and came away with a few pieces of clothing. TVs are half price if you are planning a driving trip to Panama. In the city of Colon, the second largest duty free zone exists, second to Hong Kong.
Another 8 hour bus ride and we made it to another cloud forest in the northern part of the country. It was similar to the cloud forest in Costa Rica, but much less touristic. We went on a couple of hikes thought the forest, and went on a zip line over the canopy. That was pretty exciting. I'm not afraid of heights, but it took my breath away standing on the first platform, looking several hundred feet down into the forest. Then they push you off. I'm pretty sure I didn't breath during the first couple of "zips". After the first one it got better. It took about one hour to do all 13 zip lines. Sheila didn't even scream. I was impressed. We have a video to prove it.
When we got back to our hostel, they asked us if it was OK to change the bed. We thought it would be nice to have clean sheets after 3 days. We were surprised to see the whole bed go down the hall. Something was lost in the translation. It was a laugh when we saw the bed leaving the building. Anyways we got a brand new bed, and new sheets.
Four days later we are back on a bus again for a 6 hour ride to some islands on the NE coast (Bocas). The most memorable part of this "chicken bus" ride was seeing a dog thrown up on top of a big bus, along with the bags. The poor thing looked terrified. You would too if you had to balance on top of a bus going down these roads. I guess the good news is it wasn't tied down, so if it fell off I guess it would bounce a few times,and with any luck, it might survive. We never saw the bus, or the dog, after it left the bus terminal. We did pick up a squealing piglet part way to our destination. I think it was in a grain sack, and obviously not impressed with its accommodations.
We have 10 days left on our trip before one more 12 hOur bus ride back to Panama City where we fly home.
