One of the things that is included with my Spanish Course tuition is a tour of Panama City. I know that I don’t like organized tours, but I figured it would not only be a good opportunity to meet some of the other students it would also be a good opportunity to orient myself in this new city. Because the other thing that I forget is that while there are so many great things about traveling to a new place, there are also a few hard things as well. Especially for a person like myself, who finds so much comfort in routine. Part of the reason I do this to myself is because I know that my dependence on planning is not necessarily a good thing (although it does make me organized). And to me, there is a huge difference between knowing that you have faults and knowingly not working on them. It doesn’t always make me easy to live with, or easy to love, but I think that in the end, it brings me closer to the person that I want to be. So, after almost a week here, it was time to get myself out of the house.

The tour had a packed schedule for four hours: the Panama Canal, Casco Viejo (The Old Quarter), The Causeway, Punta Paitilla (The New Panama), and Punta Pacifica. The tour guide described Panama City as being in four separate parts…I can’t exactly remember what they are at this minute but I would bet that they relate somehow to the above sections. i really do need to spend some time reading up on the history of this city.

Panama Canal: Students

There are so many things that are fascinating about the city. For instance, take our street. There are two condo buildings that are so similar that I ran up to the wrong one and tried to get in. And then on one side of us, there’s this incredible mansion. And then on the other, a dilapadated older apartment building. And it’s the same everywhere. Apparently, they are tearing down the whole city, bit by bit, to build these new condos. There’s 800 buildings under construction right now, and it’s estimated that about 3000 will go up in the next ten years. I don’t get it. And I’m not the only one. One of the girls on the tour asked the guide who exactly was going to be living in these buildings. The tour guide said that they are planning and preparing for an influx of retirees. Yes. They are planning to fill all of these buildings with pensioners from other countries, due to the lower cost of living, the high quality of healthcare, and the perfect climate (read: HOT). But what if the people don’t come? They have all of these buildings, half of them all are empty (you can’t see any lights at night, but, in their defense, we never turn our lights on either). They’ve torn down the traditional housing in these areas, shipping the poorer people to suburbs outside of the city…and who knows what those are going to turn into. They buy the people out, give them enough money to buy a house, a car, and bank some. But it is, of course, the condo developers that get rich, not the people who owned the land first. I can’t tell you have many times I heard, “You don’t believe what this city will look like in ten years.” Court seems to second that, saying that it has changed incredibly even since he was here. I don’t know, something just doesn’t sit well with me.  They are building a first world infrastructure on top of a third world economy and I don’t know enough about any of this to know whether this is a good idea or not. And it seems like there’s way too many welfares involved to risk this kind of experimentation.

But with all the differences, the people here are incredibly friendly. I mean, not that I understand a word that they are saying, but they are polite and they smile and they are helpful. For the most part. Like, for instance, at the canal yesterday, after I bailed on the movie (look, I told you that I can’t do organized activities), I was sitting outside reading, waiting for the tour to continue on. The two other girls on the tour met me, and we were chatting, figuring out where everyone was from, why we were in Panama, etc. A guy, visiting with a few of his buddies, asked the French Girl (you would think I would have gotten their names!) if she would take their picture, and she stood up to oblige. But it turned out: he wanted a picture with us! He sat down in between us and his friends sat on either side of me and the girl from Montreal. We tried to move out of the way, not really knowing what was going on, but it was clear they wanted all three of us in the photo. And I’m sure that’s gracing someone’s Facebook page as I type. I mean, I know you’ll all disagree, but it’s probably because of my Ray Bans. You know how awesome they are. The attention you get here is undeniable, but at no point have I found it invasive or predatory. More just…flattering. In a really really bizarre way.

Cubic Breaker

I find this city endlessly intriguing. Difficult, yes, sometimes, but just because I’m new. It’s been less than a week, after all. There’s a whole new routine to learn, a whole new way of life to discover. Right now, the challenge is still very exciting. I start Spanish on Monday, but it’s only for a few hours in the mornings. I’m having trouble running, but I arranged to go to CrossFit on Monday. And our building’s gym should be set up sooner rather than later. It’s a new way of existing for me: learning to compromise, to be happy with different things. To be patient, rather than getting everything at once. To invest, rather than to withdraw. Of course, it’s all in moderation: tomorrow we’re going to the Beach and I plan on enjoying and relaxing for every second of it. And hey, if I can’t run, perhaps I can surf?