Panama feels a bit like Africa. Same muggy smell, same trees, same chaos getting off the plane. One day I will enter a country not VIP. Our last wheelchair helper took us thru all the custom craziness in the VIP line. Very nice of him. Everyone keeps asking if im English. I think I reverted to a Ugandan accent automatically since that is the only other experience I have with foreign countries.
But unlike Africa; the mugginess smell does not include the stench of burning garbage. Plus, the roads lack the jigsaw-like traffic of Uganda. Cars can travel at a normal speed. On the drive I recognized papaya trees as well as many other flora. Pelicans replace seagulls as we drive across the bridge into the city itself. Actually, driving into the city felt like driving into the future. But the soaring skyscrapers cannot hide the slums huddled at their feet. Slums sporting bright colors and multitudes of red tv dishes. That never fails to surprise me.
We get to the hotel place in old town. Lo and behold, our renter person is a young guy from Everett, wa. Commence singing “it’s a small world after all”.
I woke up after napping to find most of the little stores closed. I finally found one that reminded me strongly of an African grocery store. Same limited food choices. Local label-less potato chips, canned tuna, pasta, ice cream cups, and glass bottled soda. Even the same bread. Not exactly appetizing.
After waking Shannon up long enough to feed her, I broke down and went out for pizza. Ended up eating excellent pizza in a deserted restaurant, waited on by people who don’t speak English, and serenaded by Spanish rock bands on flat screen tvs. Its amazing how easy it is to communicate with no mutual language. Especially about food. When trying to communicate, I hope to simply not insult them too much as I enjoy the fruits of their culture.
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