SING TO THE EAST AND THE WEST....

Panama is the farthest south of the Central American countries.  It really has more in common with South America than with Central America.  The city is large, the largest in Central America, about 1 million people, and modern.  There are hospitals, banks, universities, skyscraper hotels.

  The sea is all around, but there are no beaches for 1 hour or more outside the city.  All the large construction has taken the beaches and contaminated the water.  

 The country side, while rural. does not suffer the abject poverty that is so evident in its neighbors to the north.  Its people are diverse, coming from the islands, from Spain and Europe, from South America.  Its native people are the Cuna Indians.

 There are blacks, whites, and every shade of brown between.  They are all Panamanians.  

The Canal was conceived and accomplished 100 years ago this year.  It painfully was cut through the narrow strip of land dividing Central and South America. It literally connects the East to the West,

and is the only place in the world where the Atlantic and Pacific meet, with a series of huge locks between, to raise or lower the boats to the opposing ocean on the other side. 

People came from all,over the world to work on the canal.  They were called "Zonians".   Many lost their lives in the unkind, uninhabited  forests to disease , or to accidents.  But many stayed and made Panama their home.  Much of Panama's economy comes from income from the canal.  Huge cargo ships pass through daily.  There is work now to widen the canal to allow even larger cargo and cruise ships to pass.  Panama also is a huge banking center, much like Switzerland, and has a large duty free zone, making business attractive here.  

The climate is hot and humid, with a rainy season in the fall.  I am told that there are no faults here, and thus it is safe to build the huge and numerous sky scrapers, that earthquakes do not happen here.  Same with hurricanes. By the time they pass East to West, over the high mountains to the north, the flat country is little affected.