Part -4 The skyline of Panama City, Panama-Incredible!
Part -4 The skyline of Panama City, Panama-Incredible!
At this point, we just let Alberto take us to where he thought was best. Up until now, we had only seen the skyline of Panama City from the ground. I was anxious to see it from up high. Alberto said he was taking us up on the high hill, Cerro Ancon, for the view we were looking for. It was a beautiful drive up to the top-lots of flora and fauna-several hikers on the trails doing birdwatching.
At the top of the hill was what we were looking for-breakthtaking views of the skyline of Panama City, Panama. It looked like Miami Beach-unbelievable! Panama City is the most cosmopolitan city in Central America and when you see it from Cerro Ancon, you will believe it! Also from the top, you can see all the ships at anchor waiting their turn to go through the Panama Canal. I think I counted 40 of them. If you go to Panama City, you have go up Cerro Ancon.
Panama City skyline-taken from the hotel room
Panama City, Panama skyline
the old part of Panama City
On the other side of the hill was a great view of the Panama Canal and Balboa. Alberto was very patient with us, wanted to give us lots of time to take pictures, and was interested in answering all of our questions-in Spanish, of course!
Bridge of the Americas-entrance to the Panama Canal
Entrance to the Panama Canal-container unloading area
entrance to the panama canal-container yard
After we took all the photos we wanted, it was off to the Canal.
Steve Barrymore
ssb11@prodigy.net
Panama City, Panama-part 3-breakfast and off to see the sights
Panama City, Panama(cont’d)-Part 3-Breakfast and off to the see the sights
Before we ventured out to see the sights, we ate a really good buffet breakfast at the Panama City, Panama, Marriott hotel. The continental buffet was $13.50 and the full buffet was $16.50.
Breakfast at the Marriott
The breakfast smoothie bar at the Marriott in Panama City, Panama
Breakfast at the Panama City, Panama-Marriott
We stuffed ourselves for breakfast–after all, it was a buffet! The plan on this day was to first visit the Panama Canal and then see different segments of the city as time permits. I had read on the internet, that if you ask the doorman the price of a taxi to anyplace, they will try to up-sell you a tour package, or charge you more than you would pay if you found your own taxi.
I asked the doorman for the price to the Canal and he said $20. BTW, the official currency in Panama is the U.S. Dollar which makes it easy. Anyway, I knew the $20 price was high based on my research. So, we went across the street and waited until a decent looking taxi stopped. He had a Jesus decal on his window so I figured he was safe. He introduced himself as Alberto and said $6 to the Canal. A good deal, so we took it.
Alberto did not speak English and spoke that fast Panama Spanish, which gave me some really good practice, and a really good headache. Good thing I had done some research before the trip because when he spoke of some places I was already familiar with, I was able to understand him.
Alberto wanted to up sell us on a couple of side trips, such as show us the view of the city from the mountain, etc, etc. for $20 for 2 hours including the ride to the Canal. At first, I said no, but Steph said, “for only $14 more, we can see some sights with Alberto that we might be paying extra for later”. So, we took him up on the offer and were really glad we did.
We ended up hiring him for 6 hours and saw sights we never would have been able to see. Otherwise, we would have been piece-mealing a bunch of little trips together, and would have wasted time. He turned out to be a great hire and a great use of our limited time.
Steve Barrymore
Next-part 4-The skyline of Panama City
Panama and Ecuador-From Sea Level to 9,000 feet
Panama and Ecuador
Earlier this year, I was looking to head to South or Central America to work on my Spanish. As I began to search for air fares, I found a reasonable fare to Quito, Ecuador. I had been to Quito once before, but just for one day. I had always wanted to return.
I had also always had a desire to go to Panama and see the Panama Canal. As I started to check out my options, I discovered the round trip fares from Oklahoma City to Panama City, Panama were the lowest I had ever seen–$380.80 to be exact! As I continued my research, I found I could really do both cities, Panama City and Quito, for just a little bit more money.
My wife was not able to go due to work, so I asked my daughter, Stephanie, if she would go with me. She could go for only 3 days due to her own job, but was certainly up for the adventure if we could make it work.
The plan was set—We would fly to Panama City for 3 days, see the Panama Canal and whatever else we could possibly squeeze in. After 3 days in Panama City, Stephanie would fly home to OKC alone and I would fly southward on COPA airlines to Quito, Ecuador. I could have saved a little bit of money by flying from Panama City back up to Miami and then down to Quito all on AA, but time was money for me. Plus I figured it would be more fun flying Panama City direct to Quito.
My goal in Quito was completely different from Panama. In Quito I planned to enroll in Spanish Language school, live with a local family, and travel around in Central Ecuador as time permitted. I had only 3 weeks to plan the entire trip. It would be a trip of 2 different experiences.
I will post a series of reports of my adventures in both countries. I have plenty of photos to share……so stay tuned.
Steve Barrymore
Colombia (Part 13)-Cartagena, My Journey to Colombia comes to an end
On Thursday, my next to the last day in Cartagena, Jenny insisted in taking the afternoon to accompany me into the center of the city to do some shopping and just generally show me around to some places I might not have seen. Jenny had lived in Cartagena for many years and seemed to know just about everyone. She seemed to enjoy introducing me to all her friends. She even took me to her bank and introduced me. Have to admit, I kind of liked this new found “celebrity status”.
She took me to a number of stores and gave me her opinion on many of the products on the shelves. She would tell me which products were overpriced and which ones she thought were reasonable.The most interesting store was one named “Exito”. It was like the Wal-Mart of Cartagena, but on a smaller scale. She walked me down aisle after aisle often times running into people she knew. All of her friends were extremely polite to me and all wanted to know my opinion of Colombia
Exito store, the Wal-Mart of Cartagena
After spending the afternoon shopping, we stopped at a sidewalk café for coffee. Jenny told me about her life and her goals for her family. Sitting in a sidewalk café, far away from home, drinking rich Colombian coffee with a relative stranger with whom you have shared their home for only 72 hours, reaches deep into your travel soul. Whether it is going to language schools with other people from around the world, talking with Dr. Olga in her country home, walking the streets of Cartagena with Jenny, or having Germán giving us the “Pablo Escobar tour”, this type of travel in my opinion, is about as good as it gets.
Here’s a twilight shot of one of the town squares where the Colombianos would stroll through in the evening.
The next morning it was time to leave Cartagena. Jenny and Gustavo wanted to take us to the airport. We agreed, but only with the promise that we would help with the cost of the gas. At the airport, they insisted on taking us inside, patiently waited for us while we stood in the ticket line, and wanted some last minute conversation with us before we cleared security. They were genuinely interested in helping us and making sure we left Colombia with a positive image of the country and the people. I can assure you, we did. It was a great trip and one that I will remember forever. I hope you enjoyed this blog about Colombia. I am interested in any and all comments or questions you may have. Feel free to post a comment here.
My next series of blogs will be about a recent trip through Southern Mexico.
Until the next trip,
–Steve
See my other travel blogs on NewsOk.com:
Colombia:http://blog.newsok.com/thewanderer/category/colombia/ Mexico:http://blog.newsok.com/thewanderer/category/mexico/
Caribbean island of Barbuda: http://blog.newsok.com/thewanderer/category/barbuda/
San Juan with a 5 hour layover: http://blog.newsok.com/thewanderer/category/san-juan-puerto-rico/
Fly around the U.S. for the day: http://blog.newsok.com/thewanderer/category/day-trip/
Colombia (Part 12), Cartagena, The hospitality of my Colombian family
We would usually return to our respective homes in the evening for dinner with the families we were staying with in Cartagena, Colombia . This is where it could get really lively because I never knew who would be at my house for dinner. Jenny had 4 children, 2 sons and 2 daughters who were always stopping by. Both the daughters were married. Gustavo was engaged to be married in July. Everyone was very friendly and we enjoyed each other’s company. They were very curious about my life.The one thing I enjoyed about Jenny’s family is that they were all very well read and enjoyed discussing the political and economic issues of Colombia and Latin America which is also something I like. Their Spanish was at times very difficult to follow and my accent was at times difficult for them. When they got excited about a topic there was no slowing them down! Often times I just sat there nodding as if I understood them while they left me in the dust.
The food is my house was very good and quite diversified. For breakfast I would usually have juice, Colombian coffee, and fruit or eggs. One morning for breakfast, I was served a toasted ham and cheese sandwich with fruit. Strange combination, but good. I would eat lunch out everyday and dinner at the apartment. The family usually didn’t eat with me but someone in the house was always at the table talking with me. Here is representative photo of breakfast one morning. That is eggs in the plate with a couple of bowls of fruit. 
Jenny was always concerned about how I felt about my accommodations and she went out of her way to make sure I was comfortable. There was no air conditioning in the apartment and it was very hot, but I kept the windows open all the time. She seemed concerned that I never turned on the fan in my room so she would come in every night and turn it on for me.
One day while I was doing homework in my room, Jenny insisted I come out to meet a friend of hers. Her friend was a vendor of homemade desserts and sold them door to door. Her bowl of desserts was full and she balanced it on her head. Jenny insisted we take some pictures. I bought some desserts to share with Jenny. Talk about carbs!! I was on a sugar high for hours after that. Here is a pic of the vendor and her desserts. She looks a little unhappy. I guess you would be too if you walked around all day with that bowl of desserts on your head!
Hang with me, there is only one more post about my Colombia trip and it will be my final one.
Next-My journey to Colombia comes to an end–
See my other travel blogs on NewsOk.com:
Colombia:http://blog.newsok.com/thewanderer/category/colombia/ Mexico:http://blog.newsok.com/thewanderer/category/mexico/
Caribbean island of Barbuda: http://blog.newsok.com/thewanderer/category/barbuda/
San Juan with a 5 hour layover: http://blog.newsok.com/thewanderer/category/san-juan-puerto-rico/
Fly around the U.S. for the day: http://blog.newsok.com/thewanderer/category/day-trip/
Colombia (Part 11)-Cartagena, Living Our Daily Lives in Colombia
Cartagena-Living Our Daily Lives in Colombia
The overall structure of each day was pretty much the same: Breakfast at 6:45, walk in the heat to school, classes begin at 8 a.m. and finish at noon. We would have a 15 minute break each morning where they would serve us “Cafe Tinto” which was very black, strong, Colombian coffee. 
During the break the students would all intermingle and discuss options for the afternoon. The school offered gratis tours in the afternoons for those interested. Usually several of us would eat lunch together and then go our separate ways for the afternoons. I would sometimes walk back to my apartment (about 1.5 miles) just to check in with Jenny or rest a little while before venturing back out into the heat. Often times, Jay and I would meet in the afternoons at an internet cafe and then spend the rest of the day walking through the old walled city of Cartagena. Sometimes we would meet up with other students to visit various tourist sites or just meet for “cafe tinto” to discuss what we were each discovering on our own.
Many of the streets in Cartagena are very narrow and it is easy to get run over. Taxi drivers abound. You have to nail down the price with the taxi driver in advance. You can take a taxi anywhere for around $2 
Shopping in Cartagena is diverse. There are many vendors on the streets mainly selling jewelry and assorted crafts. Colombia is known for emeralds and there are plenty of opportunities to purchase them. There are people on the street that will sometimes try to steer you towards a particular store for “special emerald discounts” but I wasn’t a buyer.
I had read on the internet that the accent of the Cartageneros (persons that live in Cartagena) would be quite different than the rest of the country. I found that to be very true. At first I was quite intimidated by the heavy accent, but the school director told me if I could understand the Spanish of Cartagena then I could understand it any place in the world. After a few days I relished the challenge of going into the streets to talk to the people to help my ear get accustomed to the special accent. I’m not sure how much I really got, but it was a confidence booster!
Everyone I met would ask me: “What is the perception of Colombia in the U.S?”. I always told them the truth: “From afar, many people in the U.S. consider Colombia to be a very dangerous place with killings, kidnappings, and drugs”. The Colombians always agreed that they knew their reputation is not always good, but it is a reputation of the past. Then they would ask me what my perception was after being in their country after a few days. I always told them I was really surprised it wasn’t the terribly dangerous place that everyone thought it was. It was a beautiful country and the Colombians were very friendly people. Of course, there were plenty of opportunities for danger in Colombia–you had to watch what you were doing and where you were going—just like any big city. The F.A.R.C. guerillas don’t help the cause any. With over 700 hostages it does make you think a little. For me, it really wasn’t too different from any other Latin American country to which I have traveled –or Los Angeles or Miami for that matter!
Next-Cartagena-Interaction with my family
See my other travel blogs on NewsOk.com:
Colombia:http://blog.newsok.com/thewanderer/category/colombia/ Mexico:http://blog.newsok.com/thewanderer/category/mexico/
Caribbean island of Barbuda: http://blog.newsok.com/thewanderer/category/barbuda/
San Juan with a 5 hour layover: http://blog.newsok.com/thewanderer/category/san-juan-puerto-rico/
Fly around the U.S. for the day: http://blog.newsok.com/thewanderer/category/day-trip/
Colombia (Part 10)-Cartagena-The First Day of Spanish school
At 7:30 a.m. Monday Morning, Jay, Rubi, Jenny, and I piled into Rubi’s car for the ride to school. The plan was for Rubi to drive us to school the first morning so we would know where the school was– after that we would be on foot. Rubi drove a confusing route of back streets and I thought “we should have left a trail of bread crumbs because we will never find our way home”! Fortunately, I had purchased a Cartagena map before leaving OKC. Secondly, I always carry a compass with me when traveling. The school was very small with probably 8 classrooms.
It was located in a neighborhood named Getsemaní.Here are some photos of the neighborhood:
Inside the school we met Jesús, the director, who gave us a brief interview in Spanish to check our verbal skills. After that we took a grueling, written exam. It was one of the toughest Spanish exams I have ever taken at any immersion language school. There were a total of 10 students in the school. I found the administration to be friendly and helpful and I liked all the other students and teachers.
Jay was assigned to a class with 4 other students, all of which were from countries other than the U.S. I had 2 classmates: Margarite who was a 60 year old doctor from Manhattan and Travis, a 42 year old software engineer from California. Travis was retired and just traveled the world. Rough life.
Class was 4 hours per day and totally in Spanish. The teacher allowed us to structure our own curriculum which we all agreed should be made up mostly of conversation. Travis and Margarite were both more advanced than I, but I felt it was a good opportunity to learn from them.
Here is a photo inside the school and their website address.
After class on the first day, 5 of us walked to a small neighborhood restaurant for lunch. Inside it was hot, busy, loud, and chaotic, but it was exactly what I like to experience in foreign countries! We were now totally immersed. There was not another foreigner in sight. We had become just another group of neighborhood people doing their own thing in Cartagena, Colombia. Life had become seamless.
Next-Cartagena-Living our Daily Lives
See my other travel blogs on NewsOk.com:
Colombia:http://blog.newsok.com/thewanderer/category/colombia/ Mexico:http://blog.newsok.com/thewanderer/category/mexico/
Caribbean island of Barbuda: http://blog.newsok.com/thewanderer/category/barbuda/
San Juan with a 5 hour layover: http://blog.newsok.com/thewanderer/category/san-juan-puerto-rico/
Fly around the U.S. for the day: http://blog.newsok.com/thewanderer/category/day-trip/
Colombia (Part 9)-Cartagena and my new family
When we arrived in Cartagena it was very hot and muggy. A representative from the school was supposed to meet us at the airport. I don’t know what happened, but they weren’t there. Jay got the girl at the information booth to call someone for us. After about an hour, a driver finally showed up with some weak excuse about why the first driver never showed up. He drove us directly to the home-stay families with whom we would be living for the next 5 days. Jay and I were staying with different families, but in the same apartment complex. Jay was staying with a single, 40ish female attorney named Rubi, and I was staying with a 60ish woman named Jenny and her maid Rosa who appeared to be around 80.
Here is where I lived. click on the photos for the description and to enlarge.
Based on the info packet that the school had sent me I had concluded that my accommodations would be in a two bedroom, 1 bath apartment with 2 women: Jenny the owner and Rosa her maid. Turns out, it was a 3 bedroom apartment, but the other bedroom was rented to another boarder named Jamie who was a newscaster for the Colombia Radio Network in Cartagena. Okay, so now we are up to 4 people and 1 bath. Then Gustavo, Jenny’s son shows up. Apparently he lives there too!! That makes 5 and one bath! Over the course of the next 5 days there would be other family members that would come and go. I never did know exactly how many people really stayed there but there were times it seemed to bump up against 6 or 7. However, I will say, they were all very courteous to me and let me have the bathroom in the mornings when I was getting ready for school.
The interesting thing here is that Rosa, the maid, slept on a bed in the kitchen. No kidding!! Turns out that is fairly common in Colombia. At first, I was a little uncomfortable when I would go into the kitchen for water and Rosa would be laying on the bed in her nightgown, but she didn’t seem to mind and after a day I just got used to it too. There was no air conditioning in the apartment and Cartagena is very, very, hot. I had a very small room with a single bed and a fan. We were on the 4th floor and at night I opened the window for a little cool air. The cost for my room and 2 meals a day for a week was $140 including laundry service and all the Spanish I could handle. They did not speak English. I liked them all from the moment I met them.
Here are some pics of the family:
(I’m the one in the red shirt in the back)
Jay’s Colombian mom, Rubi, had a very nice well decorated apartment. She was a gourmet cook. He had a private bath.
We had arrived at our final destination in Colombia. It would be here in Cartagena that we would spend the next 5 days weaving ourselves into the fabric of Colombian life. The nice hotels of Bogotá and Medellin were behind us. Now, we were sharing apartments with people we had never met and who did not speak our language.
Stay tuned—school starts the next morning
See my other travel blogs on NewsOk.com:
Colombia:http://blog.newsok.com/thewanderer/category/colombia/ Mexico:http://blog.newsok.com/thewanderer/category/mexico/
Caribbean island of Barbuda: http://blog.newsok.com/thewanderer/category/barbuda/
San Juan with a 5 hour layover: http://blog.newsok.com/thewanderer/category/san-juan-puerto-rico/
Fly around the U.S. for the day: http://blog.newsok.com/thewanderer/category/day-trip/
Colombia (Part 8)-Retiro and meeting the family of Dr. Olga
When we arrived in Retiro at 2:30 p.m., Olga was nowhere to be seen. We stood around in the town square for about 10 minutes second guessing our decision. What had we been thinking? We meet a stranger in an airport in Bogotá, Colombia and then drive out to the countryside to meet her in a small town? But, our gut told us we were still doing the right thing. It was an opportunity to have a unique experience. One of life’s “wow” moments! Finally, we heard a horn honk, and there was Dr.Olga!
Here is a photo of the town square of Retiro:
Germán was a little nervous about what we were getting into so he didn’t want to leave us until he met Olga. He spoke with her and her sister for a few minutes and when he felt everything was fine he gave us the “thumbs up” and left. We piled into her SUV, luggage and all. Olga drove us a couple of miles through beautiful countryside where there were a number of what I would call very nice, “weekend country homes”. When we got to their house, they introduced us to the other 2 family members: another sister and their 82 year old father. They showed us around the house, walked outside with us on the beautifully manicured grounds while explaining about the different types of plants. Then we all went inside and for 2 hours drank Colombian coffee, ate cookies, and had very stimulating conversation about the economic and political climate of South America and the relationship with the U.S. It helped to have done a little research on Colombia before our trip. The family was all very highly educated and well-read. They knew all about what was happening on the campaign trail in the U.S. Presidential race It was a great experience to spend those 2 hours with such a nice family.
At 4:30, Olga and her sister drove us to the airport for our 6 p.m. flight to Cartagena where we would spend the next 5 days in a very different kind of life.Next-Cartagena and my new family
Colombia (Part 7)-Medellin-the Pablo Escobar tour
We were up at dawn on Sunday morning. I gorged myself on a big buffet breakfast while Jay went to Sunday mass. We had agreed to meet Germán at 8:30 for the big tour and he showed up right on time.
Here is the breakfast buffet:
First stop was the house where the final battle occurred when Pablo and his driver were killed in a hail of gunfire. I had seen photos of the house on the internet so when we drove up we recognized it immediately. I had to have my picture taken in front of it! This is now a quiet neighborhood and many people were on the streets walking to church while I am having my picture taken in front of the house. I am sure they thought “crazy tourists”. Germán described the battle in detail and it pretty well matched up with what I had read. It was unbelievable, just having finished the book, and now I am standing in front of the very house! It was like living the story. 
Next, it was off to the cemetery to see the tomb of Pablo. Again, as soon as we walked onto the cemetery grounds I recognized the tomb after seeing pictures of it on the internet. Quite an impressive little plot of dirt! Several family members are buried right there next to him. Germán told us that Pablo was considered the “Robin Hood” of Colombia and that people still bring flowers to his grave every day.
Here German is giving Jay a little history of the events surrounding the burial of Pablo:
For the next 4 hours Germán drove us around Medellin visiting various sites which were major points of interest including many of the buildings that Pablo used to own and some of the apartments where he lived. We finally got our fill of Pablo.
One more thing I wanted us to do was to ride the cable car that is an extension of the metro system in Medellin. The cable car is part of a transit system that serves a rather large, lower socio-economic neighborhood that is built up into the hills. It is the main system of transportation for this neighborhood and connects with the metro for travel throughout the city. It is a series of 3 different cable car stations; each one located a little higher up the hill than the other–similar to a ski lift. We jumped on a car and rode it through all 3 stations and back while Germán waited on the street for us.
It was quite interesting to go over the top of the neighborhoods and see how people are living below you. Each car held about 6 people. The other passengers were all very friendly so we chatted with them a little in Spanish.
As you can see, it is an interesting way to travel through your neighborhood:
(click on the photos to enlarge them)
By this time it was 12 noon and we still needed to call Dr. Olga. Germán dropped us off in the park where we had dinner the night before. We used a pay phone to call Olga. Olga wasn’t there but her sister answered and said she was aware we might come by the farm. She said Olga would return in an hour and suggested we call back then. We used the hour to have lunch at an outdoor restaurant. Great cheeseburgers!
When we returned to the hotel we called Olga again and this time she answered. She suggested we get Germán to drive us to the little town of Retiro which she said was on the way to the airport (sort of). She told us to have him drop us off in the town square and she and her sister would pick us up at 2:30. So, on a wing and a prayer we told Germán…”It’s Retiro for us, Amigo”!
Next-Retiro and meeting the family of Dr.Olga
