Panama City…..wow!

 

Last night we had a Folkloric dance group come onboard and entertain us. It was colorful, energetic and very musical! We headed to our room right after the concert to get ready for our tour in the morning. We were leaving early and it was a good thing.. the temps were warm and the humidity high… much more than we are used to in Tucson…

Looking at our ship as we leave the port for our excursion the skyline of the modern city a round about with a statue immortalizing the many men who dug the canal. Thousands of men came to age their fortune by digging.

The museum of bio-diversity

Walls of the colonial town the statue of Vasco Nunez de Balboa.

Modern buildings in the city

Seems to Al and I that there is lots and lots of foreign investment in Panama City. After driving through the modern city, although it was a Monday and museums are usually closed, the museum of the ruins of the first city was opened for our ship to visit. The original city was built with lots of convents, cathedrals and a hospital. Panama Viejo is the oldest European settlement on the pacific coast of the Americas.

Many of these walls were hidden for years

Inside the museum was a detailed history of the settlement including artifacts that have been found and outlines the future excavation of the site. It is a historical gold mine . 

The cathedral ruins.

There were stairs ,112 to be exact, you could climb to the top and get q great view of the city but we were were unsure of our ability to stay sure footed so gave it a pass.

At this point we were still smiling.. later the humidity would drag us down!

We finished at the Panama Veijo site and after heading back through the modern city, past Balboa’s backside,we found ourselves in the Colonial city of Panama. Here we saw the heavy influence of the French when they were involved with the city. Bright colors, wrought iron balconies and bricks. It almost seemed like we were in New Orleans the way the houses were built and decorated. Our goal here was to head to the Cathedral. This was the replacement for the ruin of the Cathedral in Panama Viejo. Legend has it that when the pirates (Morgan and friends) (pirates of the Caribbean 😂) sacked the first settlement, the priests painted the gold alter with black goo that dried and looked anything but gold… the alter was dismantled later,hidden and when the new cathedral was built it was rebuilt as the alter there. On our way walking we saw evidence of the renewal and renovation of the area.   This is also a UNESCO heritage site, although there is still lots of work to be done to completely renew the site.  Heading into the cathedral. It looks very plain on the outside but…

Walking inside gives you another. View!

Can you imagine how well the villagers must have covered this alter to be able to save it from pirates? It was massive and only slightly smaller than the alters Ive seen in Mexico made of gold. 

The main alter wasn’t the only impressive thing! Along the side there are various alters dedicated to other important saints And of course: Mother Mary!

Mary on her throne

I think the other alters were depicting the life of Christ . 

 Each alter had its own beauty but none as remarkable as the main alter. I didn’t have time to closely inspect them but am wondering if they might perhaps be the stations of the Cross as they were all along the side walls of the church, much as the stations are in American Catholic Churches. Our tour guide wanted us to quickly head into a little side room for a surprise… when we headed into the sacristy we found another room that was filled with the life of Christ.. in miniature form. It reminded Al and I of the Bethlehem nativity set we have ! Our kids would have had so much fun with this set!! It took up space in the entire room:

The detail was amazing. Our guide was so happy to show us this. Not everyone who entered the cathedral knew of its existence. After our visit,we walked to the city square where we were given a few minutes of free time to wander around or shop..

In the square we found the Raspado vender and got a lifesaving strawberry one! Wow was is refreshing and tasty!

Shaving the ice enjoying!

 Sights along the way to lunch

The main cathedral on the square

Our menu from lunch. Loo closely and you can see our choice was between fettuccine with braised mushrooms or Beef Humps….of course I chooses the Humps..having no idea what they considered humps of beef… when traveling you should always choose the choice that you don’t know!

Ta Da!! Beef humps! They were tender and delicious!

On our way back to the ship. Polaris is in the background next to a huge NCL ship(with water slide and go cart track)

The bus suddenly stops and somewhere in this picture is a two toed sloth

It’s kinda like a find Waldo book!

Anyway, it was a great day in Panama. The city sure is a combination of old and new. The people are trying hard to reclaim their history and tell the story of their city in a realistic and honest way. 

Tomorrow we enjoy a sea day while getting Al ready to. Leave the ship for a few days. When we arrive in Manta Ecuador he will leave the ship for four days to explore the Galápagos Islands. I will continue on the ship and will have a shore excursion to visit a world renown Panama hat weaver and see the process of weaving a hat from start to finish. We are both looking forward to our separate adventures. I’ll leave you today with our smiling faces drenched in sweat from ungodly humidity