Change Yourself…Change The World.

Hello dears,

Currently typing from an internet cafe in El Valle, just got here about an hour ago. Yesterday was another fun day in Panama City, but it was a tiring one- I needed some space. It is really nice to be out here in El Valle. It is much quieter, much more homely, and I feel a lot safer. I am almost reminded of Thailand being here- there is greenery everywhere, and it is a very laid back place.

Yesterday I braved El Diablo Rojo again (those crazy Panamanian buses) and made it to Panama Viejo, the old part of the city. There were crumbling ruins everywhere. Now, I am not really much of a person for crumbling ruins, but it was still interesting to check out. What was the most interesting to me was that the guards were so concerned about my safety, because I was walking down the path alone (Panama Viejo is not in an enclosed space, in fact it is in between a road, so many cars drive by). After debating about what to do for about 10 minutes, the guards decided that one of them was going to follow me around on his bike and stand around menacingly while I was allowed to take as many pictures as I wanted. Though I thought this a bit unneccesary, I deeply appreciated the extra precautions. Panamanian people are so nice.

I then headed over to the Panama Canal, the Mireflores Locks (one of the locks in Panama Canal that is probably the most famous since it is the tourist destination to see the Panama Canal). Wow. It was really, really interesting. I got there at the time when huge cargo ships were passing through. I just sat there in awe for over an hour, watching them move these huge cargo ships from one higher body of water to a lower one. Intense.

I ended my day at Albrook Terminal, which is basically the largest bus terminal in Panama. Right next to it is  HUGE mall. I wandered around a lot licking an ice cream cone. I was shocked to find that in most cases things were MORE expensive than they were in the United States. Since the US dollar is used here, I dont need to do crazy conversions in my head to figure out how much I am actually paying. I found a really cool pair of boots- $125 dollars. WHAT? No thank you.

However, I DID decide to finally watch The Hangover (which in Spanish is, ¿Que paso ayer? This means “What happened yesterday?”) and it only cost me $3.25. Exact same kind of movie theatre, same popcorn, same exact theatre. $3.25. This makes me very angry at the US for charging an obviously exorbitant amount of money to go see a movie. Also, a small popcorn was $1.30. Screw you, American movie theatres. I am glad I got to see the movie. It was hilarious, and even more so with a group of Panamanians, who appreciate everything (the movie was in English, with Spanish subtitles).

Panama has been a great experience, and I am enjoying El Valle. But I am definitely ready to go back to Costa Rica, to a nice bed with a hot shower. ¿Que pasaré mañana? We shall see.

Much love,

Brittany

Dear friends,

Pardon the lack of conjugation since I am typing from a Spanish keyboard and am not yet used to one.

Panama is absolutely crazy. I dont even know where to begin. I started my first experience in Panama by braving the Diablo Rojo, an bus that is just about as crazy as the country itself. It is basically a school bus in brightly painted colors, and they are used for transportation all over Panama City. Most tourists take a taxi from the airport into the city. However, a taxi costs 7 dollars, and a bus costs 25 cents. Besides, what is better than the experience of an insanely crowded bus, all goggling at the only strange white tourist?

The strangest part about Panama is that the US dollar is their currency. I did not expect to be using the US dollar here, but I am. I paid a quarter for the bus ticket. There are a few things I promptly realized when I started paying with US currency here. One, our coins are freaking tiny compared to other countries. Two, I felt as if I had time warped to the 1950s, because everything is SO CHEAP here that I feel I could recount the stories that your granparents told you- ´´when I was a kid, a sandwich only cost 10 cents´´ kind of deal.

The city. Panamanian crazyness. I dont know if I can last too long here. It is absolutely chaotic. I am happy that I am staying in probably the safest area of Panama City- the business district, El Cangrejo. Apparently next to five star hotels, there is one for eight dollars a night. Its in a safe area. I am happy.

Yesterday I went to Casco Antiguo, the old part of town. I have never in my life seen such a stark contrast of rich and poor. There are absolutely GORGEOUS buildings- they look like they were imported directly from Tuscany, Italy. And they are standing right next to crumbling, dilapidated slum houses. I have never felt so confused. There were cobblestone streets leading into wineries and restaurants with impeccably dressed waiters greeting you politely outside. Then there were people from the slums, dressed in dirty clothes, the frown lines in their face set in deep from so many years of hard work, dragging their children down the street. It was the most beautifully depressing place I have ever seen.

Like I said, I am staying in a very cheap hostel. I am staying in a room with five other people, with no fan (and the Panamanian sun is the devil, all right), a substandard shower, and a pretty unclean hostel. Thats ok, I can rough it for a few days. What I DIDNT expect was going out to dinner (especially dressed how I was and after sweating all day) to one of the nicest restaurants in Panama. I went out to dinner with two fellow hostel girls from Switzerland, who said that there was a Swiss restaurant in Panama they really wanted to go to because they had been traveling for a month and a half and missed home. When we showed up at the restaurant, my jaw dropped. There was a man dressed in a suit playing dainty music on a white piano. A live lobster lay on a dinner plate in the middle of the piano. This was by far the nicest restaurant I have ever been to while traveling.

But I decided to go along with it. Sometimes, you just need to treat yourself well. And let me tell you, nothing is better than expecting you are going to rough it for a few days, and then suddenly you go out to an unbelievably nice dinner. Also, in reality it wasnt VERY expensive- this is Panama, after all. I had a sudden hankering for Salmon when we were there, so I ordered Salmon carpaccio for dinner-12 dollars. It was some of the best salmon I have ever had in my life, and I felt that the 12 dollars were well spent. The conversation was great, the food was great, and the bathroom even had lotion that I ended up slathering all over my dried up shoulders from so much sun. It was a great way to end the day.

Today I plan to go to Panama Viejo, ruins in Panama City, and finally check out the Panama Canal. I got some sound advice from the two Swiss girls to go to this place called The Valle, a little town in the mountains two hours away from here. I think Im going to head there tomorrow- theres only so much time you can spend in this city.

Until then friends, much love,

Brittany