THE BIG DITCH

"Speak softly and carry a big stick."

And so it was that Theodore Roosevelt's big ditch was built with the prodding of his big stick and American gunboat diplomacy. An accidental consequence would be the creation of the Republic of Panama.

The canal has dramatically reduced travel time from the Pacific and Atlantic sides and vice versa. Between 37 to 42 ships passes through it everyday and generates almost a billion dollars in revenue for the Panamanian government who have been ceded full control over the canal since 1999.

A series of locks raise or lower passing ships to 85 feet which basically is the difference in elevation between the Pacific and the Atlantic sides.

I was able to take a shot of the Gatun Locks on the Atlantic side as our plane approached Panama City. During the Panama Climate Change Talks, I squeezed in a quick visit of the Miraflores Locks (shown below) with lawyer par excellence Ping Peria.

And so I came, I saw, I clicked.

THE SPIRES OF CASCO VIEJO

Panama City's Casco Viejo are in many ways similar to Manila's Intramuros.

Both were founded by the Spanish: Intramuros in 1571 and Casco Viejo 100 years later later in 1671.

Both are walled cities.

Both have lots of churches.

Casco Viejo's centerpiece is the Catedral Metropolitan which is as San Agustin Church is to Intramuros. It was built from 1688 until 1796 from the stones taken in the pirate-ravaged old city of Panama Viejo.

A walk away is the Iglesia de San Jose which dates back to 1673 and repository of the Altar de Oro --- painted black and smuggled out of the city as the pirate Henry Morgan pillaged Panama Viejo.

Then there is the Iglesia San Francisco de Asis (top photo below), said to be the smallest but the most ornate and striking of all the churches in Casco Viejo. It was razed by fire in 1737 and 1756, and fully restored to its former glory in 1998. Just across is the Iglesia San Felipe Neri (bottom photo below), inaugurated in 1688 and considered to be the oldest in Casco Viejo. It also underwent restoration work in 1995.

There are a couple of ruins too: the Iglesia de la Compania de Jesus (top photo below) that was built between 1677 and 1741 and once housed the Royal Pontifical University of San Javier until it was razed by a fire in 1781 and and then by an earthquake in 1882; and the Iglesia Sto. Domingo (bottom photo below) that was built in the 17th century and also destroyed by fire in 1756, and features the Arco Chato or flat arch --- a 50 feet unsupported brick arch that is considered as an engineering marvel --- which served as proof of the absence of earthquakes in the area and hence the building of the canal across the Isthmus of Panama.

What separates Casco Viejo from Intramuros is it has been declared as a UNESCO World Heritage. Only the San Agustin Church has that distinction within Intramuros.

And it is being properly restored to its former glory. I think Intramuros is not...  

WHY WE ARE IN PANAMA

The following are excerpts from an entry in Comm. Yeb Sano's Facebook account:

Pinoy Climate Team in battle for PHL survival as climate talks open in Panama

(Panama City, October 5) A battle-weary Philippine delegation quietly arrived in Panama with a vow to fight for the survival of Filipinos facing worsening climate change. At least three climate change-linked consecutive typhoons recently battered the country in a span of two weeks, resulting in damages reaching PhP 8 billion (USD 200 million).

“Millions of Filipinos are already suffering yet we are only seeing initial climate change impacts. Progress must be made in the climate treaty negotiations. We are here in Panama to tell the world that climate change is a matter of life and death for the Philippines,” said Commissioner Naderev “Yeb” Saño of the Climate Change Commission.

The CCC is leading the Philippine delegation in what is considered the most critical round of talks concerning the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) in Panama. The Panama round "has enormous implications on the success or failure of the Durban Climate Change Summit in November," Saño said.

Together with Saño are other government members, including Director Ivy Banzon  of the DFA, Dir. Alicia Ilaga of the DA and Albert Magalang of the DENR. The team is bolstered by a pool of advisers from civil society represented by Bernarditas Muller, Antonio La Viña (Dean of the Ateneo School of Government), Victoria Tauli-Corpuz (Tebtebba), Atty. Elipidio Peria (Aksyon Klima), Jasper Inventor (Greenpeace), Atty. Vicente Paolo Yu (South Centre), Shubert Ciencia (PRRM), Athena Ronquillo-Ballesteros (World Resources Institute),  Atty. James Kho, Joanne Dulce, Lawrence Ang, and Leticia Labre (Ateneo School of Government)...

PRIMERA SANGRE

MISSION: Buy coffee at McDonald's.

WHAT HAPPENED: Found Iglesia del Carmen, my first Panamanian church.

LOCATION: An intersection along Via Espana two blocks from my hotel where traffic stops to buy the morning paper.

WHAT HAPPENED TO THE MISSION: Poor Spanish. I got tea instead.

5 CONTINENTS DOWN, 1 MORE TO GO

The Republic of Panama was created by an American dream .

Its story as a modern country began in 1902 when the United States senate approved the building of a canal that will link the Pacific to the Atlantic at the Isthmus of Panama that was then part of Colombia.

For such design, Colombia signed the Hay-Herran Treaty which gave the United States a vague "renewable lease in perpetuity" over the land where the canal will be built.

Colombia's senate did not ratify the treaty so a secessionist revolution in the isthmus was encouraged and supported by the United States.

The Republic of Panama was officially proclaimed independent in 1903 only 8 months after the signing of the rejected treaty, and the United States was among the first to recognize the new country.

A French citizen who was then serving as a Panamanian ambassador signed another treaty granting the United States rights for the canal and an indefinite period of administrative authority that would later become an irritant between the 2 countries.

Colombia was appeased with a $10 million compensation and would recognize Panama as a sovereign nation in 1921.

Unrest ignited by popular resentment over the United States' sovereignty in the canal zone prompted the signing of another treaty in 1977 which gave Panama equal rights in its administration.

On 31 December 1999, the Republic of Panama assumed full control over the canal.

On 29 October 2011, I disembarked at Panama City's Aeropuerto Internacional de Tocumen and claimed the bragging rights of having been to 5 --- Asia, Africa, Europe, North America, South America --- of the world's 7 continents.

FOOTNOTE: Historically and geographically, Panama is part of South America. However, the United Nations geoscheme placed Panama and other Central American countries within the North American continent. But Panama's people call themselves South Americans and their culture is as South American as it can be. 

MANILA TO PANAMA CITY IN 3 ACTS

ACT 1: Typhooned in Nueva Ecija, Striked in Manila

SCENE 1 SYNOPSIS: Typhoon Pedring flooded Nueva Ecija, bus services cancelled, so I have to burn lines until I got me somebody willing to risk the submerged roads and find a way to Manila. For 5k.

SCENE 2 SYNOPSIS: Travel agent called to say that PR 102 to Los Angeles is striked out. I crossed fingers and actually prayed that be the case. I went to the Centennial Terminal just the same and waited as replacement crews (scabs?) learned the ropes and finally got me checked in. Two hours delayed. 

ACT 2: Before Sunrise, 27 Dresses, The Lake Tree

SCENE 1 SYNOPSIS: Harrased and exhausted, I got myself a choice seat for $50. Long haul. Before Sunrise is almost all conversation and got me asleep. 27 Dresses is a B-movie I think. Keanu Reeves and Sandra Bullock in The Lake House are still difficult but I finally got the plot of the magic mail box.
 
ACT 3: Almost lost in LA, breakfast in Houston, and a seaman arrives in Panama

SCENE 1 SYNOPSIS: Two hours delayed means rushing through immigration and the luggage carousel in LA (with an orange slip of paper), locating Terminal C that was really Terminal 6 (forgot that I now have reading glasses), realizing that departures are on second level not below (should have asked), and losing my tickets in the process (must be when I finally asked).

SCENE 2 SYNOPSIS: Continental got me a premium seat along the emergency exit and loaded my luggage for free. Had what I thought was a Texan breakfast of grits, sausages, bacon, and java coffee in Houston. And shot the canal from above as we approached Panama City.

SCENE 3 SYNOPSIS: "Are you a seaman?" / "No."/ "Do you have papers?" / "Yes."/ "Please wait here." / "Okey." / That's how I got a visa-free entry and a $40 taxi ride to my hotel.

PHOTO CREDIT: The top photo was taken by Bulan at the height of Typhoon Pedring's landfall in Nueva Ecija the day before my scheduled flight to LA. It shows a transformer in front of our house minutes after the province's electric power went out.