Strolling in Panama City (10-26-2007)

So I decided to ditch the group and go off on my own for a little bit during the day, so that I could pick and choose my path through the city without having to think of others first. Call it selfish, but I really wanted to just relax.
I took off towards the old colonial district of Panama City along the Pacific, recognized for the historical significance through Spanish, French and American colonization. It is a mixture like tofu...some of the buildings stand firm and very nice, and others are crumbling do the ground, showing the curse of years of rain and neglect. It was quite interesting, much like Harlem, NY today, seeing the wealthy empire sit right next door to a poverished community.
I strolled by the government offices, known for their large protests back in the ´60´s and ´70´s when Panama was seeking independence from the United States. President Carter finally gave Panama rights to the area surrounding the Canal in ´77, but they did not receive full access of the canal until 1999. I walked through a few galleries and around the bay, and also visited one of the two canal museums.
The canal itself was started in the late 1800´s by the French, who then went bankrupt and gave up on the large task, selling the equipment and project to the Americans. We finally finished ahead of schedule in 1914, when the first ship crossed the canal from the Atlantic to the Pacific, connecting the world.
On the way back home, I was walking through a neighborhood on the northern side of the city, looking at the old buildings with steal bars over each window, and clotheslines connected from balcony to balcony. Kids were playing soccer in the streets, old women sitting on park benches talking, and men smoking cigarettes outside from the shops. I was walking in front of a major Fire station admiring the old school machinery, when I felt a quick firm pull on my backpack. I quickly spun around in self defense yelling profanity, and saw a skinny Panamanian young man jump back and run away. Just by looking around at the poverty in this community; a community that is run off of capitalistic influence and popular advertisements, while it´s citizens are struggling to eat but forced to live a ´high life,´ you can understand why something like this may happen. Luckily for me, I didn´t loose anything and I was surrounded by the public eye. One of the firefighters was nice, and gave me a ride back to the hotel. I did not let the situation affect the rest of my day; I simply looked at the reasoning behind the actions, realized the outcome, and prepared myself for situations in which it may be avoided. So...I bought a gun!
Just kidding...