It’s been a rather steady pace for this first week. I haven’t seen much of Panama. We arrived and spent less than 24 hours in Panama City. Initial impressions were that this is probably what Miami looked like in the 60’s and 70’s. The infrastructure was beginning to crumble and nobody seemed to notice, they were all too busy bustling along with their busy lives. The 1 hour drive north and parallel to the canal was scenic had lots of diversity and rainforest jungle to look view.Driving across the canal for the first time was a thrill. We cross at Gatun Locks at the North entrance to the locks. There’s usually a wait for a ship to enter and then as the gates close the road swings out and vehicles get to cross. It’s amazing to look up at the stern of a freighter that is just 10 metres away from you and is already floating up above your head. Friday was especially neat because we had to wait as the new Queen Elizabeth cruise ship was entering the locks right in front of us. Even some of the yachties who have been here for a while jumped out to snap for photos. Anticipating an uneventful bus ride to grocery and hardware stores I didn’t have my camera. The novelty of driving across the canal quickly wore off as we are taking the marina’s shuttle to the stores almost daily.
Thursday was an exciting day as it’s not everyday that you buy a boat. Paraquina was as expected which was a huge relief. She has a handful of small jobs completed before we head out cruising. The week has been filled with morning trips to town and afternoons of tinkering with boat jobs and organizing all the officialdom of papers, licensing and all that boring stuff.
We’re heading out in a couple days to Portobello and then to cruise through the San Blas Islands for a few weeks. Not sure when we’ll get some internet access out there but I should have some great photo’s to upload. -Jamie
