Written 20-4-08
Good Morning class.
(Good Morning Miss Rachel.)
Today's history lesson is about the Panama Canal. Yes, I am now in Panama City, staying with friends of mine I used to work with at Fado: Kyle, Langdon, and little Maddox. I actually learned quite a lot yesterday about Panama, Colombia, and the United States' involvement in the building and keeping of the Canal. Well, I didn't know this until yesterday, but Panama used to be a part of Colombia. The Colombian government gave a contract to the French to build the Canal, but they were unsuccessful due to 22,000 workers dying of malaria. The architect worked out a deal to see the commission to the States, but the Colombian government refused. There would be a lot of financial loss for both the French and America, so they promised to back Panama if they decided to gain their indepence. When a revolution claimed Panama, Colombia sent troops to quell the rebellion, but didn't even reach land because there were American battleships blocking the way. A treaty was made to give America rights to the Canal, with pocket money given to a few Panamanian elite. It took 10 years to construct, with 75,000 workers finishing in 1914, and is one of the top engineering feats of the 20th century. America held the Canal until 1977, when Jimmy Carter gave it back to Panama. Most were skeptical that Panama would be able to keep it running, but Panama apparently has some outstanding safety records, and actually increased the flow of boats.
Today's Panama Canal is really interesting. It runs between the Pacific Ocean and the Caribbean Sea, with 3 different locks, each lock also having 3 locks. Some interesting information for you: It's not that easy to get through the Canal. It takes 24 hours to be cleared, and comes with conditions. The captain must yield the boat over to a trained Canal driver, and if anyone was interested in this career oppurtunity, know that it takes 10 years to train the drivers that get the boats through the Canal. (The boat I saw yesterday cleared the Canal with only 2 feet of space on either side. It was HUGE.) Once the boat is in the lock, the water is drained into these giant underground tanks, stopping when the boat is level with water in the next lock. Basically it's a giant staircase for 200,000 ton boats. Another fun part about crossing the Canal is how much it's going to cost, and don't think you can pay with a credit card. The Panamanian government only accepts cash, or a transfer from your bank account straight into another one off-shore. Yesterday's boat cost 170,000 dollars to get through. (Kyle says they do this because it's harder to track exactly how much the Panama govt. is raking in per year.) Last year 14,721 boats went through, accumulating over 165 million dollars that they admit to...and did I mention that the national currency of Panama is the American dollar?
I also learned an impressive amount of information on that crazy bastard Noreiga, American politics, and the war in Iraq, as Kyle's father is a Colonel in the army, and raised his family not far from where I'm staying now with them. But that's for another day...
Well I must say I've been having a blast here. Kyle and Langdon have a 2 year old little ball of energy named Maddox. She is absolutely beautiful, and I've figured out that my personality suits 2 year olds. The first day I was here we watched Aladdin twice, with a stack of Disney movies waiting in the background...so basically I'm in Heaven. We speak in english and she's learning spanish, paint our nails, dance to Bob Marley, and color all day! I'm telling you, the 2 year old lifestyle is the good life. Plus I think that the world would be at peace if everybody had enforced nap time.
I hope you enjoyed my little history lesson. There is so much information and so much history out there to be learned that we are just not taught. If you want some more information, don't wait around...go look it up!
"Those who do not understand history are doomed to repeat it." Or something like that...
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