We had planned that day to do a tour of the city with Michaela and John. We met them at 10 am at the Panama canal, and proceeded to visit the museum, and to watch ''live'' the process of getting a large ship across the locks. It was a very interesting visit. You can read more about the canal here. I had previously seen a documentary about it, but what I didn't know is that Panama is currently building another set of wider locks, in order to accommodate even the largest cargo ships in the world.
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| There are actually two sets of locks in parallel, so two large ships can be moved up simultaneously. |
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| These locomotives stabilize the ships laterally with steel cables, preventing them from colliding with the concrete reinforcements. |
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| One of the several beautiful maquettes in the Panama canal museum |
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| Photo of a photo of the construction site of one of the 3 new locks. |
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| How the new locks will look like. |
From the canal, we headed to Casco Viejo, which apparently was supposed to be a point of interest. I was a little skeptical, based on what we've seen on our first day in Panama City. Well, it turned out that we had previously seen the shitty area of the neighborhood and it had a lot more to offer than I expected. Casco Viejo has many beautifully renovated buildings. The government is spending a lot of money in rejuvenating the area. With roughly 50% of the work done (my approximation), it is already looking real good. Five years from now, this place will be very impressive.
From Casco Viejo, we jumped into a cab to check out the modern part of town, with its condo towers and office skyscrapers. We ended up our tour at the impressive Trump Ocean Club tower, and had some drinks on its awesome terrace.
It was a great day, all in all. Tomorrow, we are off to Carti (2.5 hrs from Panama City), where we will load the motorcycles on the ship that will take us to Colombia. Next entry should be sometime after Jan. 17th. Hasta luego!
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| Old in the front, modern in the back. |
From Casco Viejo, we jumped into a cab to check out the modern part of town, with its condo towers and office skyscrapers. We ended up our tour at the impressive Trump Ocean Club tower, and had some drinks on its awesome terrace.
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| Trump Ocean Club in the middle. It is supposed to be a sail-shaped building, but on this photo it reminds me of something else. |
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| Terasse at the Trump Ocean Club. Can you see where the pool ends? |
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| Trump Ocean Club: view from 35th floor. |
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| Trump Ocean Club: lobby |
It was a great day, all in all. Tomorrow, we are off to Carti (2.5 hrs from Panama City), where we will load the motorcycles on the ship that will take us to Colombia. Next entry should be sometime after Jan. 17th. Hasta luego!
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| Last but not least: I finally got my new keyboard. Sweet! |
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