Panama: Final Thoughts

Even though it’s been almost a month since I was in Panama, I still have a little more that I want to write.  Panama is a fascinating and diverse country and in my short trip there in November I got to see quite a bit of that diversity.

While Panama has beaches and rainforests and thriving, vibrant indigenous cultures, what it is most famous for is its canal.  I did spend some time at a museum dedicated to the canal’s history on my first day in Panama City, but I didn’t actually get to see it firsthand until my last day there.

I had arranged for a taxi driver that I had met a few days earlier to pick me up at my hotel at 9 AM Tuesday, to take me to the Panama Canal, as well as a few other destinations around Panama City.  When I woke up on Tuesday morning it was raining, but since that was my last day, I still wanted to see as much as possible.  Well, my driver didn’t show up.  I tried to call him….no answer. Finally, around 9:30 I was able to reach him and he explained that he didn’t come because it was raining.  OK, dude, I get that but it would have been nice of you to call me.  After all, I had given him a card with the name, address and phone number of my hotel on which I wrote my name as well.  Anyway, we decided that he would pick me up at 1 PM instead and I was hopeful that  it would no longer be raining then.  That seemed to be a good plan, since it seemed to rain either in the morning or afternoon, not usually the entire day.  I wasn’t motivated to do much in the rain, so instead I spent the morning hanging out in one of the common areas of the hotel with my laptop.  Around 12 noon, one of the hotel staff came to tell me that my driver was outside.  This guy really wasn’t great with time.  He ended up having a fight with the manager because she wouldn’t let him into the hotel and made him wait for me in his taxi.  I told him that I needed a few minutes to get ready but figured that since it had stopped raining, it made sense to just go.  He had also wanted to take me to the airport the next morning, but since he didn’t seem to be able to tell time, I decided that wasn’t the best idea.

So shortly after 12:00, I set off with my taxi driver, Carlos.  Our first stop was the Miraflores Locks of the Panama Canal.  These locks are the closest to Panama City and include a small museum, visitors center, fancy restaurant with nice views as well as a snack bar and gift shop.  There was an admission fee for me but my driver was able to enter for free.  Unfortunately, at the time we arrived there were no boats passing through the canal, because at mid-day they switch the direction of the passage.  So we started out by watching a short film about the canal and it’s history and visiting the museum.  About 45 minutes later, the boats began to arrive.  From the viewing platform, there is constant narration in English and Spanish about the canal, the types of boats that are arriving, and exactly what is going on.  I didn’t get to see any large cruise ships go through, but I did see 2 large cargo ships,  which were impressive.  The largest ships only have about 2 feet of clearance on either side of the canal.  It takes a long time for the boats to pass through, and while I can appreciate it as an engineering marvel, after a while I started to get bored and we left.

Next Carlos drove me to Cerro Ancon (Ancon Hill).  This small mountain offers a trail leading to a lookout point with panoramic views of the city.  I had originally wanted to hike to the top but I didn’t have enough time, and I’m not sure I would have felt safe doing it alone.  It seemed pretty isolated as we drove there.  The views were nice, but it was a grey and cloudy day so they weren’t as spectacular as they might have been if it had been clear and sunny.

Our third and final destination was the Amador Causeway.  I still don’t really understand what this is.  It is a basically a highway, with foot and bike paths as well, that goes to 4 small islands, with restaurants, nightclubs and duty free shopping.  It just struck me as very artificial and touristy.

I’m glad that I had the opportunity to see the canal and these areas of Panama City.  Spending about 4 hours with my taxi driver Carlos, also provided a great opportunity to practice my Spanish, although I had to listen to his sexist views on relationships and hear all about how his wife takes care of him.  All part of the cultural exchange, I suppose!

Panama is a fascinating country.  I was struck at how poorly developed its tourism infrastructure is.  I don’t see any reason why it can’t be as well known as its neighbor, Costa Rica, as an eco-tourism destination.  People I talked to about this explained that Panama does not need to focus on tourism because the canal generates so much revenue for the country.  More than tourism, Panama is becoming known as a destination for expats to invest or retire.   The government makes it very easy and attractive for foreigners to invest in businesses or retire with a low monthly fixed income.  The country is now attracting many wealthy Venezuelans who are being driven out by the policies of Chavez.  It’s almost as if there are two parallel societies existing side by side in Panama.  While the majority of Panamanians are poor and seem as simple and unsophisticated by the expat community, those expats are helping with the economic development of the country and establishing their own communities.  Everywhere I looked in Panama City I saw construction of new buildings and renovation of old ones.  Many businesses are owned by foreigners.  For example, the bed and breakfast where I stayed in El Valle is owned and operated by a Costa Rican.  The owner of the tour company that arranged my trip to the Emberá village is American. At my hotel in Panama City I met a Spaniard looking to buy a house to convert into a  boutique hotel.  This can be seen all over Panama.

I am still leaning toward Costa Rica as my retirement destination (in about 20 years or so) but am curious to see how Panama continues to prosper and develop, and who knows, maybe I’ll change my mind and end up spending my winters in Panama instead!

Indigenous Panama: A Day with the Emberá

On Monday I had a tour scheduled to visit a traditional village of the Emberá people. Panama has approximately 8 different indigenous groups and most have been able to maintain their cultures to varying degrees. The Emberá originated in Colombia and most now live in the Darien region of Panama. About 35 years ago, some moved nearer to the capital.  This area was later declared a national park and commercial agriculture was banned, causing the Emberá to lose their primary source of income. In addition, they could no longer hunt for their own food.  Today they rely on tourism to sustain themselves, receiving fees from tour groups that visit their village, where they demonstrate their traditional way of life and sell their handicrafts, most notably beautiful woven baskets and wood carvings.

I’ve written before about my interest in traditional indigenous cultures but also my ambivalence about visiting such communities. It can feel artificial and disrespectful, and I have often wondered how the residents of these villages feel about all of the tourists that constantly descend upon them.. I felt good about this tour, however, because Anne Gordon, who is the guide and owner of the company, Emberá Village Tours (www.EmberaVillageTours.com), is herself married to an Emberá man. Anne is from Washington, and while working in Panama as an animal trainer for a movie, met her husband Otniel, and now they live in Panama City. Being able to visit the village with someone who was so intimately connected to the culture was truly a special experience. Before we arrived at the village, I had the chance to talk to Anne about some of my concerns about this type of tourism, and she assured me that the Emberá are proud of their culture and are happy to share it with visitors. She also said that they would be just as interested in learning about my life as I would be learning about theirs. Anne told me that according to an anthropologist that she spoke to, tourism has positive effects on the Emberá people in that it helps a group that has been marginalized and discriminated against for generations maintain pride in their culture and continue their traditions. Talking to Anne on the way to the village only heightened my enthusiasm about the day to come.

The trip to the village involved driving approximately one hour, to the shore of the river, where we then boarded a boat, basically a large canoe with an outboard motor. I was lucky to be in small group with just 3 other adults and a 5 year old. The boat ride was about 40 minutes and the scenery was beautiful. Anne pointed out several different species of birds that we saw along the way.

When we arrived at the village of Emberá Puru, several of the residents greeted us on the shore by playing musical instruments for us. They maintain a traditional style of dress, with the men wearing loincloths and women wearing a brightly colored sarong-type skirt with nothing on top (except women who are cooking). Nobody wears shoes. Both men and women also paint their bodies with tattoos made from a natural dye. The patterns of the tattoos all have some significance and also serve as a natural insect repellent and sunblock. It’s a bit disconcerting at first to see topless women and girls but because they were so unselfconscious, it soon became comfortable for me as well. The village has no electricity and no running water. To get cell phone service ,you have to climb a mountain and then climb a tree. There are 2 outhouses for visitors, and the residents have their own latrines (which we did not see). The village has a school up to 6^th grade, and the Panamanian government sends a teacher who lives there during the week. When the kids go to school, they have to wear a uniform and shoes, even though the school is located right in the village. There is also a Peace Corps volunteer living in the village who is helping them to market tourism and with her help, they produced a CD of their traditional music. There are about 24 families living in the village (approximately 110 people total) and each family has a small wooden house on stilts.

It was raining when we arrived, so we took cover in a big covered area where each family has set up a table displaying their merchandise for sale. It was an opportunity for us to talk with some of the members of the community and to take some pictures. Since the day of my visit was a national holiday, the kids didn’t have school so it was fun watching them play and interact with both Anne and the little girl from the tour. Everyone was open and friendly, and as Anne said, interested in our lives as well. Soon it was time for lunch, which was served in one of the houses which also functions as a guest house. At the time of my visit, there was an American, Len, who was staying in the village for a few days so it was interesting to hear about his experiences and kind of funny to think that we were eating in what also served as his “home” for the duration of his stay. Lunch was fried tilapia and fried plantains, cooked over an open fire and served in a banana leaf, with fresh fruit for dessert. Nothing artificial, nothing processed. Also no napkins or utensils. When we were done eating we rinsed our hands in a bowl of water with basil leaves, and voila, our hands were clean.

During the course of the afternoon, we also listened to a presentation by one of the members of the village explaining a bit about their lives, and then she performed some ritual songs and dances. We also went on short hike, where we learned about some of the natural medicinal plants that they use. Before we left, we had time for shopping and to get a tattoo. I was the only one in our group who got the tattoo; it is supposed to gradually fade over the next 2 weeks, but until it does, it is another memento of my visit to the Emberá village.

Shortly before we left, a large tour group of maybe 50 people from a cruise ship arrived. I felt overwhelmed by the presence of such a large group and can only imagine what it must feel like for the Emberá. But as Anne explained, since they are so dependent on tourism to survive, they do not feel they can turn away any visitors. I’m glad that I was on a small, intimate group led by someone as knowledgeable as Anne.

On the boat ride back at the end of the day, it gradually started raining harder and harder. I had a rain jacket but instead of putting it on, I held it over my tattoo, because otherwise the natural dye would have just washed away. Drenched, we eventually made it back to the car and continued on to Panama City. The tattoo got a little smudged but did manage to survive the rainstorm!