The Panama Canal
Well, Aunty Mary, I think you should realise your dream.
We arrived at night (3am) which is spectacular and interesting, but I can’t help thinking that a daylight arrival wouldn’t be better.
Essentially it all begins with the Miraflores Locks, which work exactly like the ones at the back of the Home Guard Club only a little bigger. And when I went on the Llangollen Canal you occasionally got a surly lock keeper to unhelp you on your way. Here you get a team of sleepy Panamanians, who burst into action whenever a frighteningly dangerous manoeuvre with ropes and cables is required. Also you have six locomotives on tracks (attached to above mentioned ropes and cables and unique to the Canal) per lock, which guide you on your way along with a pilot on the bridge. Now I can imagine being a pilot is a fairly stressful life – and it seems to be a point of honour that he doesn’t allow the boat to touch the sides. Add to that a sapping night shift and what do you imagine the average Central American geezer does to keep himself sharp? Well, I didn’t see him use the gym and for a guy with a cold coming on he didn’t half talk a lot.
I went to bed at 5am, wanting to catch the locks into the Atlantic at the other end – and this is why I think that the day time start night be better. When I got up at 0930 it was to see the lovely islands and forests of Lake …….. I still got an hour of them, but the day was overcast (as it normally is according to the electrician).
1100 and another crew of sleepy-but-active-when-required deck hands boarded for the 2 hour passage through the descent (…………) locks. And then we were in the Atlantic/Caribbean. My understanding is that tropical storm Gamma has gone now in this ridiculously long hurricane season, but it absolutely poured down the minute we left the Canal.
I settled down to an afternoon of preparing to leave the boat and 20 minutes later it was bright sunshine. Which is good.
[I notice Che Guevara was having a lot of trouble with rain at this time of year in Bolivia according to his blog at the time. The fact that Bolivia is 2500km away from here doesn’t dissuade me from comparing my epic journey to his. Although I must remember to refrain from telling guards that I’m here to overthrow their Yankee-Imperialist puppet governments. And to be fair, there are fewer of them these days than there used to be. Perhaps I’ll just use my time here to have a holiday instead. Although I do want to be able to come with a sentence that in some way matches either of the following:
“We set off early, leaving Joaquin to digest and finish preparing his half of the horse…” (18th March) or:
“Tinned milk is a great corruptor.” (14th April)
Perhaps in Brazil.]
Further good news is that we expect to dock in Cartagena just after lunch tomorrow. I was a bit concerned we’d get there in the early hours meaning an undignified scramble for me first thing.
Have just had a little look at my South American guidebook. Bloody hell it’s big (the continent, not the book – although that is quite sizeable). I’m very excited now.
Today’s song, after that little lot, better be The World is Full of Crashing Bores by Morrissey.
Tags: Travel
JohnnyBoy