December 6, 2003
Panama City, Panama

thoughts:

panama canal:  went finally to see the canal today w/ ricardo... from the shipping agent in colon... he stopped by today to get their cash... $1000 to ship Jesse to Cartagena.  (everything is a cash transaction around here.... if you want to be a pickpocket somewhere... panama city is the place to do it).  the panama canal is an amazing thing.

growing old:  ricardo & elissa + wilberto and his wife and i went out tonight.  we all went to the bolero and i treated them to diner.  it was an interesting evening.  the two couples had never been out together, even though willy has an employee at ricardo & elissa's office in colon.  i invited them all out to thank them for helping me, not knowing that their relationship had been primarily business until now.  so anyway, we went to the bolero... good times... and larry baker joined us after a while... he and i talked for quite a while... in all we were there from 7pm till 12.   free flowing conversation all around.. though larry knows no spanish.  it felt good to know even as much as i do know... every single word helps.  i try to make a point to ask as frequently as possible when i don't know a word...

later we went dancing at a small little club in the Panama Hotel.  a very old man... probably in his mid 80s or early 90s ... was dancing by the side of the dance floor.  a live band played salsa and meringue, with some 80s funk thrown in for good measure.  the old man danced like no one was watching... not as vigorously as the younger folks... but with as much heart or more than anyone in the whole place.  he came over later and said in spanish... 'they didn't have anything like this 40 years ago!'  he was enjoying himself so much.  what more can one hope for but to have your heart remain young, even while your body grows old?

a few words learned today:  calidad=quality, falta=missing, adelante=in front of, or ahead ...