Well, I'm back from 10 days in country in Panama, and here are my observations, as well as some pictures. I took one of the Dry Season tours put on by Condor Travel, which advertises here in CZBrats.  Check them out in "Section I" near the bottom of the Main Page. They are multigenerational former Zonies, and give you a very personalized tour. Often you will run into people in their groups you haven't seen in years.

The main feeling I had this visit, as opposed to a year or two ago, was that things seemed to be moving a little. They're aren't out of the woods as yet. (The unemployment rate is still around 15%.)   But you could see things getting done. The most obvious is the Fort Amador area which seemed to me to be totally inert a year ago. A new hotel is up and running at the old Yacht Club, whose club house has been replaced. The old yacht club pier is still being used. A couple new high quality restaurants are up and running, and there are plans for renovating or replacing (I'm not sure which) the old Officers Club. A number of gated residential complexes were being built. There were rumors of time-share condos in the works, but I didn't get any specific details. Fourth of July Avenue (AKA Avenida de Martires) now goes straight into Amador. There is a cruise ship pier and tourist welcome area in the final stages of construction on Flamenco Island. I wasn't allowed up close, but here is a picture of the bill board at the site.

The pier was really needed since cruise ships can't use the old Port of Balboa. Pier 18 has been demolished and a lot of land fill has gone in to provide for a modern container ship port.

An exciting event for me was taking a ride on the "new" Panama Railroad. The railroad is mainly for freight. However, there are passenger cars to take care of tourist as well as business people using the Colon Free Zone. The day I went, the train was going across non-stop to meet a cruise ship. So the trip from Pacific to Atlantic was only 55 minutes. We left from a new passenger terminal near Corozal, and ended at the old station in Colon.

One way fare was $25.00.  The company (a subsidiary of the Kansas Southern)tries to create a Nineteenth Century atmosphere, such as having conductors with arm garters.

There are two types of cars.  One is a dome type, which I didn't get a chance to ride in.

The other has a quite elegant air conditioned and wood lined interior.

The cars also have open air platforms at the rear which allow you to get out, "smell the jungle" and have photo opportunities.

They have retained the tunnel near Miraflores Locks, but had to lower the floor because the cars are taller.

As usual, the ride by Gatun Lake was very picturesque.

I have to say that if you grew up on the Atlantic Side, there is not much left that is recognizable, or if it is, it can be depressing. Colon remains a dump. The old Coco Solo area has been totally industrialized, which is good for the economy, but leaves nothing much for a former Zonie to look for. Interestingly, there are large numbers of Arab business people in the area. They have built their own large gated community along the road from Colon to Gatun. From the looks of the residences, they seem to be doing well. The old "School of the Americas" is now a very elegant hotel, run I believe, by a Spanish chain.

The sense of progress is much stronger on the Pacific Side. The old Fort Clayton continues to be converted to the "Ciudad de Saber," a high tech business park. I was told that 5 or 6 American Colleges and Universities now have some kind of presence there.

A new visitors center is being built at Miraflores Locks. When completed, it will be a multi-story structure where you can take in exhibits or watch the ships go by while lunching in air conditioned comfort.

One of the more amusing things is an ongoing debate between the current residents of Diablo Heights and some prudish bureaucrats who thought this was an undignified name for a community. An attempt was made to rename the area "Jesus Heights" ("Altos de Jesus") and a highway road sign to that effect set up.

However, the local residents decided they were having none of this and set up their own sign with the old name. The issue remains open but I, for one, am with the "Diablo" side.

While I was there, the official ground breaking took place for a new high level bridge across the canal which will be in the Pedro Miguel area. I mentioned in earlier articles about the new freeway that comes in from Tocumen and now dead ends near Avenida Balboa at the water front. There is discussion of extending it through Chorillo to Avenida de Martires.  The problem with the freeway and the new bridge is that both are expected to be paid for by tolls on users. Many people simply can't afford to use them. Speaking of roads, there is a new highway by Albrook Field (now a general aviation airport) and both Diablo Road and the nearby stretch of Gaillard Highway will be demolished and become part of the port expansion.

In the meantime, a widening project of the canal has been completed (ahead of schedule).  The Canal Authority has now initiated a project of dredging out a lot of silt from the channel area of Gatun Lake in order to increase water storage capacity.

A contract has been given to a Belgian-French business group to design a third set of locks.  They would be largest locks in the world when completed. The original locks are 1000 feet long, 110 feet wide, and usually do not take a ship with a draft of more than 39.5 feet. The exact dimensions of the new locks have not been finalized, but would be more than 186 feet wide, more than 1,309 feet long, and take a vessel with a draft of 50 feet.

Building the locks would only be half the problem. They would be so big that they would use more than twice the water as the current structures, and there is simply not enough water in Gatun and Madden Lakes to allow them to function. One possibility being considered is building a second artificial lake in the mountains to the west. As you can see from the map below, it could be as big or bigger than Gatun Lake.

The fact is that something needs to be done to increase capacity. About 10% of the world's ships no longer can fit through, especially grain and oil carriers. Ships have an average 22 hour wait before their turn to transit. They don't want delays so long that shipping lines find it more economical to use other routes.

Every time I go to Panama, I wonder whether things will have changed so much that I wont want to go back. But every time, I still find much to enjoy. It's not "our" Panama anymore. (And, as I noted earlier, the Atlantic Side is really gone from what we knew.)  However, I'm already planning my next trip.