“A Man, a Plan, a Canal, Panama!” – Leigh Mercer, Mathematician

We had a 10-hour layover in Panama City on our way down to South America, so we decided to take advantage of it and see the Panama Canal and the oldest neighborhood in Panama City (Casco Viejo).

We arrived at the Panama Canal just as the final boat of the morning passed through the Miraflores locks. In order to move traffic through the canal as efficiently as possible, the locks on both sides operate in one direction in the morning (into the giant lake between the oceans) and the opposite direction in the afternoon (into the ocean). This creates a lull in the middle of the day where the direction of the locks is reversed and no ships pass though, so we were lucky to see the locks in action.

It’s hard to overstate how impressive the canal is. There is a major construction project underway to build a new set of locks to handle ever-larger ships, but the original canal still operates with few changes to its original design and equipment. Some machinery and control systems have been upgraded over the years but the locks are still the same concrete walls and reinforced doors that were used when the canal opened in 1914. It’s amazing to see the engineering that harnessed the power of gravity and water to effortlessly move giant ships.

After staring at the locks for longer than our driver seemed to expect, we headed to Casco Viejo. The history of Panama City is fascinating – it was the first permanent European settlement on the Pacific Coast and the old city retains much of that design. We wandered around for an hour taking in the beauty of the old buildings before heading back to the airport for our long flight south.

–Phil