Panamá 2024 - Students Going Global (Day 3 - 5/29/2024)

 Today was a bit on the adventurous side and was not for the faint of heart. It was a day for students to overcome fears and step outside of their comfort zones, in more ways than one! We also learned a lot about Panama's relationship with the United States and the history of the Panama Canal. 

We started the morning with hotel breakfast. The hotel is where we eat all breakfasts while on tour. Each day they provide cereal and toast (foods that the kids are familiar with), as well as different hot dishes each day that are many times more local to the area. I am very proud of this group for trying everything! They may not like all of the things they try, but they are open to giving everything a shot. 

After breakfast we took a drive to Colón. This is here we stopped at La Granja - Adventure Park. A couple of the roads had to be navigated very carefully so that gave us some time to check out the scenery. We even spotted our third sloth of the trip! La Granja - meaning "the farm", is where we would begin our adventures for the day!

We were taken by tractor/wagon to a station to get a training on how to zipline. After a tutorial and our gear fitting, we were ready to go. MANY of the students had never done this before and several were/are afraid of heights. 

While we were waiting for all to finish with their gear, Irving pointed out a termite nest, how the "hallow trees" work, and showed us what cilantro looks and smells like. 

It was time! We were all suited up with out gear (helmets, straps, harnesses and more). We listened to Miguel tell us about how to use the breaks and where to place our hands on the lines. He showed us how to lay and off we went!

   

Some were excited, some were nervous and some were downright terrified, but ALL kids and adults participated in the zipline!

These pictures don't really do it justice. Here is a video of how it looks while you are riding... Please ignore the last 30 seconds... I was trying to get off and figure out how to turn the camera off with my gloves on. 

YOUTUBE VIDEO LINK HERE!

After we finished the 7 lines of ziplining, we were VERY hot! The heat and humidity in Panama is no joke. The kids jumped in Gatun lake and hopped on kayaks for races and facing more fears. It was clear that we could not discuss all of the animals that live in the lake...

It was time for lunch! 

  

After a nice meal and a chance to cool off, we were ready for the ride back to Panama City. On the way to the city, we discussed gas prices, the metric system, chiva busses and checked out neighborhoods and schools. 

 

 

Our next stop on today's journey was a drive through "forest road". This road was/is used by the US Army/Marines when they do drills and convoy training in Panama. The canopy of the forest shields vehicles. We learned that Panama does not have an armed forces as they are considered a "neutral" country. They have the National Police for protection in the country and as part of the treaty deal, the United States provides protection for the Panama Canal. 

We saw a train on our ride back to the city and discussed how the shipping containers from the barges are loaded and unloaded to be transported throughout Panama. 

Irving did an amazing job with our timing today. We returned to the city just in time to go to the artisans market before making our way to the Panama Canal. The artisans market, while it may be set up for tourists, is a GREAT experience for my students. They are keeping track of their own money, evaluating purchases, thinking about others back at home with respect to souvenirs, and using their Spanish skills. They have to ask about costs (not everything is labeled), barter for an appropriate price, and then determine if they have enough money to make a purchase. I really enjoy watching them process all of these skills. Did they all make purchases? Yes. Did they all make purchases that I think were the best decisions... no. However, as one student put it, "Mrs. Potter, it was the experience of buying it that counts." He is absolutely right. 

After our stop at the market, our next stop was the Panama Canal! We were just in time to be the last group there and to watch a ship cross! Irving walked us through the visitor center, discussed the process of how the locks work and the types of ships that pass to the canal and then took us to the overlook!

We were there to watch this ship make its way through the locks. We saw a bird fishing when the water level dropped (smart thinking on the bird's part), and learned a lot about how the canal works. 

After watching the ship pass through and learning about the role of the mules, the tugboats, the pilot of the canal/the pilot of the ship and more, we were headed to watch a 45 minute IMAX documentary about the Panama Canal directed and voiced over by Morgan Freeman. Students bought snacks and then headed in for the movie!

The movie was a great reminder of how connected the world really is. We learned about the history of the Panama Canal, as well as the people that it impacts on an everyday basis. After the movie it was time for dinner and our daily wrap-up meeting! We have a big day ahead of us tomorrow and today was full so it is time for rest!

Untill tomorrow...

Quotes of the Day:

1. "I'm Lewis and she's Clark. We are using our compass. We don't need your map. We're Lewis and Clark."

2. "You gotta be careful in the tall grass... you never know how far down it will go."

3. "Mrs. Potter, I really don't think I can make it."

4. "We are going to go on these electricity wires?"

5. I feel like a hot dog on one of those rolling things at Quicktrip with this lifejacket."

6. That's water from Mrs. Potter. That's exclusive.

Top Traveler Top 5:

1. Claudia

2. Brooklyn

3. Piper

4. Zaine

5. Presley