What's Funny in Panama?

Wednesday (yesterday) was the canal visit. Witnessing the Panama Canal in operation was an exceptional experience. A very animated, bilingual commentator explained the functions and statistics of the Mira Flores Locks (Escluvas). Electric cars (mules) guide these gigantic ships (barcos) into the locks (escluvas) and special lock captains take temporary command of the vessels in order to assure the safety of both boat and lock. The locks are seven stories high and made of steele. The boats are piled with cargo boxes destined for the Pacific Ocean and will eventually be transferred by cranes onto railroad cars. One sight that caused us to smile was a boatsman taking time out to exercise while on the ship. He was in shorts and t-shirt doing laps along the flank of the ship, taggin each end of the ship, turning on heal to traverse back and forth.
Our GAP group hired the hotel chauffeur for the afternoon to take us to the canal and a couple of other nearby points of interest, including the Causeway (linking three islands to the mainland) consisting mostly of yacht clubs and beaches. Last night we dined en el aire libre, al Restaurante La Cascada. My roommate, Dale (22) (from Australia), and I shared a more than sufficient platter of seafood, consisting of shrimp, flounder, mussels, and oysters. We couldn't finish the mound that arrived. Steve McKay (25), our GAP guide, is a veritable giant, stretching 6'3", lanky and blond. He's from British Columbia, Canada and has been travelling with GAP for about a year and a half. He's so easy going, one would easily mistake him for a surfer dude from California. Lorraine (40) is our British gal who just finished a multi-month GAP tour of South America. She's delightful, well-traveled and witty. We, an unexpectedly small group of 4 (including guide), will eventually arrive in Costa Rica and merge into a larger group.
Today was very light. We slept in, grabbed a light lunch and headed for the Parque Natural Metropolitaneo. This is a 256 hectare park located on a hill, tucked behind the city and easily accessible via taxi. We had hoped to spot the Tati Monkey, but without success. The flora and fauna were impressive. Several exotic birds, butterflies and lizards accompanied us on our two our tropical jungle walk. The Smithsonian Institue erected a crane in the center of the park, for the purpose of exploring the jungle canopy... life on the tops of the trees.
My sopa de pollo (chicken soup) just arrived and is getting cold.
Buenas Noches.
What´s funny in Panama?
Everyone beeps their horns (day and night)! Anything from musical melodies to your ordinary toots. Panamanians use them at every opportunity... a quick beep to say "hello, I´m coming up behind you" or they annoying long beep say "hey, get out of my way/get moving!" Panamanians love to drive, and drive fast. A bit impacient behind the wheel. Taxi drivers edge their way out into the fast moving rush hour, and the other cars amazingly zig-zag around them with Mario Andreti precision.
Bicyles have license plates. You´ll see one, two, even three people riding along... and all dressed up. Father peddling and seated, wife sitting sideways on the bar, and child in the handle bars. Panamanians look immaculate when they go out. All groomed, hair slicked back, shoes shined, and white crisp shirts or neatly fitted dresses. They take great pride in their appearance.
I am surprised by the stark contrast between poor and wealthy. Many nice vehicles on the road, and yet several areas have those adobe-walled, tin roofed shacks. Nonetheless, everyone is happy and moving. Music whereever you go... on the bus, in the reastaurant, blaring from open windows in every neighborhood. Lively, spirited music accompanied by animated dj´s and silly games where you can call in and get teased by the commentator.

Upon returning from the Metropolitan National Park (the jungle within the city limits), we stopped in the downtown center for a bit of grocery shopping al Supermercado El Rey. You can find nearly everything, including unexpected products, like all the favorite shampoos from the US (Pantene 2 in 1, Fructis, and so on). As I may have mentioned, it seems prices are so randomly set, as some items vary from more to less expensive in comparison to our own commerce in the states. We grabbed our goodies and headed back to the hotel for a picnic in Lorraine´s room (she´s our GAP Adventurer from England). We sampled Chilean red wines, munched on a variety of fruits and played a domino game while listening to Dale´s cd´s (he´s our Australian GAP Adventurer with the piercings and tatoos).
Yes, we´ve had red, green, yellow, orange, and pink fruits, some luscious and exotic, others mealy and leaving unpleasant aftertastes. But that´s total immersion for you. You´ve got to take a bite of everything and hope for the best.