Through the Panama Canal and Into the Rainforest

continued from We're Back From ... Panama

Saturday

A subterranean project on a far larger scale was the subject of our next day’s activity: a cruise on the Panama Canal. Departing from the small town of Gamboa, we spent the next four hours cruising the waterway that took 10 years to construct, linking the Atlantic and the Caribbean in a series of locks and lakes. Our vessel, the Panama Queen, was a three-deck tourist boat that makes the journey in anywhere from four to six hours, depending on canal traffic. The cruise includes two sets of locks before docking at the Amador Causeway where we headed off on a guided tour of Panama City, once again with Robert, who had picked us up at the airport.

For the next two hours, Robert pointed out landmarks in the oldest portions of the city, the 16th century Panama Viejo known as the first city on the West coast of the Americas.

But it was two modern accomplishments—the Panama Canal and the Bridge of the Americas—that were the highlights at dinner Saturday night. We dined al fresco at Café Barko, an excellent seafood restaurant overlooking the end of the Panama Canal and the bridge, illuminated by evening lights.

Sunday

But we found that the best had been saved for last. On Sunday, we were headed to an Embera Indian village, led by another expert guide, Ian, a former park ranger in the US and now a naturalist offering trips for Gamboa Tours. About 45 Embera residents live in the Tusipino (“Village of the Wild Pheasant”), located deep within the Chagres National Park. This was no ordinary tourist stop, however; our trip took one hour by car then half an hour by dugout canoe upriver to a remote area of the forest.

When we parked and moved to the canoe, we picked up our Embera guide, Mecha. Leaving the pavement behind, we headed upriver, trading in the sounds of the street for exotic bird calls. Eventually we pulled in and hiked for about half an hour to a cascading waterfall and a welcome dip in the cool waters.

Between the hiking and the swimming, we were ready for lunch and one awaited us back at the village. Mecha’s family was preparing a lunch of tilapia fish, plantains, and fresh fruit in an open-air hut raised above the jungle floor to keep out insects and animals. When we reached the village, another group of five or six travelers was also in the hut, ready for lunch and the program ahead.

After lunch, the Embera explained more about their musical instruments, their village, and their handicrafts, made by the women from the local palm and dyed with native plants. Soon we were headed to an open-air dance area where the residents performed several of their healing dances: the bee, the jaguar, and the pelican dances, each designed for very specific healing needs.

After the dance, it was shopping time and we had a chance to purchase a mask and Paris got a temporary tattoo made with local plants. The Embera, both men and women, are heavily covered in the temporary tattoos which last about 10 days.

Soon we were leaving the friendly village and headed back for our last night at Gamboa. We had an early departure the next day from Panama City so it would be an early night for us. As we sat out at sunset in the hammock of our Gamboa Resort balcony, watching the last rays of light on the river, we could see the round-bodied agouti (similar to an overgrown guinea pig) scurrying around the grounds looking for one last snack. The howler monkeys were hooting in the distance, disturbed by the rumble of thunder. It really was paradise.