On Wednesday, January 15, the full moon was still shining brightly at dawn.
After our morning chores, we caught a taxi to take us to the Panama Canal Museum, located in a neighborhood called Casco Viejo, which is the oldest part of Panama City. The building that is now the Panama Canal Museum was originally built as a hotel. When the French began building the canal, they bought the hotel and turned it into their headquarters, so it is a fitting location for the museum.
15-years ago, the signs were only in Spanish, so today when we bought tickets, we asked for the English audio tour. Just as it happened 15-years ago, we were told the audio tour was currently broken. But we were delighted to see that now the signs are both in English and Spanish.
Panama has been a coveted piece of land throughout most of time, and as such, its history is complicated and fascinating. The museum briefly covers eras before the canal construction, but as the name implies, the majority of exhibits are devoted to the canal’s construction and maintenance, as well as the messy international politics surrounding the canal’s control. While the museum is small, it is packed with information. There are a lot of signs to read, and many interesting old photos and memorabilia.
The museum is located along the Casco Viejo main town square, called Plaza de la Independencia. After we finished at the museum, we had lunch Al Alma, which was a cafe in one of the majestically restored buildings along the square.
Eric ordered a Peruvian Saltado stir fry, which was chicken strips sautéed with rocoto chili peppers (a variety indigenous to Peru that tastes fruity), yellow chili pepper, onions, tomatoes and potatoes. Eric really liked it.
Keith ordered a club sandwich with chicken, bacon, mozzarella, egg, cheddar, lettuce, tomato, pesto aioli, and cream cheese. Keith really liked his, too.
Our timing was great because it began raining as we entered the restaurant, poured while we were inside, and was mostly done raining by the time we left.
In November 1903, Panama declared its independence from Colombia in the Plaza de la Independencia, hence the name. Here are some more photos from around the Plaza.
Not all the buildings along the square were fully restored. The building next to the Palacio Municipal was extremely dilapidated, as were several more around the plaza.
We walked around the Casco Viejo neighborhood for a little while. A couple of blocks from the Plaza de la Independencia was another town square, named Plaza Bolivar.
Plaza Bolivar was also surrounded by important buildings.
From there, was wandered aimlessly, admiring the old buildings. Some were in better shape than others. With the narrow brick streets, it felt like we were in Europe.
Unfortunately, it was really hot and humid. We tired out quickly and caught a cab back to Kosmos, where we laid low for the rest of the day.