Panama City!

We made it!
Our final (and sixth!) country!
Panama!
My parents leaving was hard on the boys. Michael is old enough to understand that this is our last place and that we'll be seeing them soon. Jack, on the other hand, cried the entire day they left. And Gabe's just happy his brothers are still here to entertain him. We left a couple days later, so with the extra fun of another round of chivitos and a few trips to the park (complete with scrapes!), we made it through ;)

We flew out of Uruguay's only international airport, right outside Montevideo, which, while small, is very clean and modern. And after 7 1/2 hours (and three near-perfect children! snacks! juice! lunch! movies! seriously. they were thrilled.), we arrived in Panama City and had a driver waiting for us at the gate. We drove to our host family's home while our English-speaking driver showed us various sights along the way. We were welcomed by a lovely family who also had three boys and made us feel right at home!

The next morning, we didn't want to waste any of our (only) two days so we were off! We boarded one of the famous Panamanian school busses and took off for our first stop, the Panama Canal!
It took us almost two hours to get there...about 30 miles away. The traffic is really quite bad in Panama and it took us an hour just to get to the main bus terminal, Albrook Station. Then, we waited for another hour to board the bus for the Miraflores Locks center. The bus to Miraflores only took about ten minutes and cost $0.50 for all five of us! And luckily we got there when we did...there are an average of 40 ships that pass a day but at noon when we got there, the very last ship was passing through! It was very cool and after, our admittance tickets ($15 for adults, free for kids) included a short 3D movie that the boys loved and an excellent, interactive, 4-floor museum. We had a snack at the little cafe (if possible, you should pack your own luck because food and drink here is fairly expensive) that was at the facility and then we were back on a bus for home! A long day of bus travel but worth the money saved in taxis (a couple dollars opposed to $30-$40 bucks in taxis and we still would have been stuck in traffic!) and definitely worth seeing the famous canal!

these busses are legendary...they are individually owned and decorated according to the owner to attract customers. they are being phased out for more modern and air conditioned transit so we were lucky to ride on a couple before they disappear! 

i don't know if you can see it but this kid sweats like crazy! every time we went out in the hot Panama sun, it took about 30 seconds for beads of sweat to pop up all over him! 

their first 3D movie!

the Panama skyline from the bus

a cool, motorcycle food vendor

enjoying the more modern busses...with air conditioning!

 The next day, we explored Panama Viejo, the Old City of Panama. It's a beautiful section of town that reminds you of New Orleans or what the movies show old Cuba looking like. It's filled with gorgeous, albeit some crumbling, architecture and cobblestone streets. It's home to a beautiful cathedral that is currently being renovated and (luckily for us!) Panama's famous snowcones! The vendors hand-shave the ice in front of you, add the juice, and a huge dollop of condensed milk...all for $0.75 to $1.00 depending on the size. We enjoyed our cones and got mobbed by tons of beautiful and curious school children on a field trip! They see tourist often but probably not a lot of foreign children so our blonde-haired and blue-eyed boys were a huge hit! They asked to take pictures and posed for ours, all while chatting with the boys, in Spanish of course. After, we did a bit of artisan shopping and got some great deals on Christmas presents.

That night, we left on a seven hour overnight bus to David, Panama, but not before we ate at our favorite outdoor restaurant once again! Just a block away, this little local lady serves up authentic Panamanian food...something new each night! For $4.00 per plate, it's a tough deal to beat.  She had Panama fried chicken, red beans and rice, yuca with green sauce, ropa vieja, flank steak with onions and chiles, arroz con pollo, cornmeal empanadas, green plantains, and more! We rarely repeat a restaurant when we travel (we like to try as much as possible!) but this was so delicious, that we ate here all of our three evenings! And we'll definitely be returning when we return to Panama City the night before we fly home!

We had a wonderful (albeit hot and humid!) time in Panama City and we are currently in Boquete, in the mountains, enjoying the cool breeze, warm sun, and beautiful scenery! Stay tuned for next week's update!

As always, get daily updates from our instagram (#dclandromomania) or facebook (MikeandKatieDeSa).