Stopover in Panama

So my first destination after leaving Guatemala was Panama, mostly for reasons of airfare. But like many places I went simply because they had the cheapest airfare for my intended route (Poland, the first time to Guatemala), Panama was a good decision. It did, however, make me feel insecure about my Spanish as I struggled to understand the stream of words that poured out of my taxi driver's mouth once he learned I knew the language.

Panama City was great to walk around during the day. I also got what were probably some of my most interesting souvenirs here. What was strange was paying for these souvenirs with US dollars, the official currency, after having carried none for the past 4 months. You can use US dollars nearly anywhere in Latin America, but only a few countries have decided to take the next step and adopt it as their own. Panamanians also use US coins as well as issue their own.

Being in Panama City was also a chance to see the iconic Panama Canal. I was lucky enough to show up when a series of large container ships were passing through.
The scale is massive: in the photo below you can see a few workers crossing the closed gate. The water level changed something like 40 feet in this one stage of the locks.