The Canal

 
Panama – most people would immediately think of the Panama Canal and not much else. But this country at the heart of the Americas has a lot more to offer: beautiful islands, beaches, natural reserves, unspoiled highlands, and unfortunately, f***ing thieves.    

Panama City,  located next to the Pacific entry of the Panama Canal, thrives on international trade and real estate speculation (at least this is what I thought when I saw the dozens of residential skyscrapers being built at the moment). 


Unfortunately, our impression of Panama City was negatively affected by the fact that Lene & I got pick-pocketed and Judith's pants were stolen when drying outside (who steals used pants for f***'s sake?). Me getting pick-pocketed was a true classic: my wallet with 60$ got stolen on a crowded chicken bus, even though I had covered my pockets for all but 15 seconds when I tried to squeeze through the people to exit. I noticed immediately and we were even able to stop the bus, but the guys had left already. Lene's phone was stolen out of her backpack, too, but we cannot exactly tell where this happened. Little f****ers.

Adding to this, we all agreed that the average Panamanian seems to be far less friendly (not only towards foreigners, but also towards fellow countrymen) than, let's say, the average Colombian. For example, Panamanians just smile a lot less. Service mentality is quasi non-existent – even worse than back home in Germany or in France. Mmmmh, sometimes it just feels good to over-simplify & stereotype.

Anyway, not all is bad. The Canal itself is quite impressive. After the French had failed to complete its construction in the late 19th century (their workers/slaves all died of tropical diseases), the Americans succeeded some 20 years later. The USA retained control of the Canal until 1997, when it was formally handed over to the Republic of Panama. Today, the Canal is too small to handle the larger ships around, which is why the Panamanians decided to build a new set of locks & a new canal. This still won't be enough to cater for the super-tankers, but it's a start.

For a more positive image of Panama, please also see our next post “The beach – Part 2” on the tropical paradise islands of San Blas.