- Bocas del Toro & Panama City
August, 1999
Bocas del Toro
Not far from the Costa Rican border on the Caribbean side is the island of Bocas del Toro. This is just one of the little shack houses that sparcely line the shores of the nearby islands.
I didn´t, however, stay in Bocas del Toro. I crossed from there to the less touristy, more tranquil Bastimentos that had better beaches - wait, it had beaches. Sorry about the tilt, the motorised canoe got a little unstable in the waves.
Panama City
A view of the street outside my Hotel in the old part of Panama City (San Felipe) at 1 o´clock in the morning.
The 'Puente de las Americas', or Bridge of the Americas, spanning the Panama Canal. It is the only physical link now between the northern and southern continents.
Eratum: I since found out that there is one other small bridge passing at water-level at the Gatun locks.
Cargo ship exiting the Panama Canal on the Pacific side. Navigation of the 50km canal takes roughly 24 hours to complete, not including the time spent waiting in line before entering. This photo was taken from the Bridge of the Americas.
A cargo ship being guided through the Mira Flores Lake Locks by tugboats along the Panama Canal. Taken from the Bridge of the Americas.
The rock, actually bigger than it may seem, is a monument to the workers of the canal (those who lived and those who died). The tall white monument behind is to Colonel George Goethals, one of the canal engineers, and a few other people of notable importance. In the background stands the Bridge of the Americas.
This photo was taken from inside the Panama Canal Administrative Building (just before I got escorted from the top floor, restricted for employees), inside of which is a 360° mural of the Canal under construction.
Old Panamanian guy sitting on a park bench playing calypso music on his ukelele.
..he didn´t mind me taking a close-up, especially after I gave him a tip.
Another 1 o´clock in the morning shot. This is the Tower of the San Fransisco Church in the old section of Panama City. The flood-lighting brought out some beautiful colours.
And I couldn´t resist this artsy type one of a palm silouette.