Travel is something Andy & I are both extremely passionate about. Not surprisingly, our relationship began while we were each traveling in Spain. Travel is the thing that seems to magically transport us back to the easy-breezy lifestyle we had when we first met nearly 15 years ago. We were young and free of responsibilities and expectations. Life was an open book and our experiences filled the pages with adventure.

There is something about traveling to new places, meeting new people, eating new foods and experiencing new cultures that makes us truly come alive. Maybe it’s just the way we travel. My sister thinks we’re crazy. She’s a five-star hotel kind of girl and me, well, don’t get me wrong, I like down comforters, fluffy robes and chocolates on my pillow as much as the next girl. But, for me and Andy, stepping completely out of our comfort zone and taking away the creature comforts we’re used to has a way of putting life squarely into perspective.

Here in the US, we’re constantly bombarded with messages telling us we how important it is to be number one, to accumulate lots of stuff, and that to be successful and happy you not only have to keep up with the Jones, but beat them down on your way up. The kind of traveling we like to do peels all that clutter away and brings us back to basics, reminding us of what is truly important in life — love, laughter, health, happiness, family, friends and basic human interaction. The rest is all just stuff.

It’s been a few years since Andy & I took a long vacation. We’ve been super busy and taking a big chunk of time off just wasn’t in the cards. But, this year, we made the commitment to ourselves and to each other to get away for three weeks and give our batteries a much-needed recharge.

Destination…Panama.

Panama was chosen without much forethought. In the throws of a miserable February winter, desperate to get away…somewhere, anywhere, Andy asked me what I was looking for in a vacation. We went to Nicaragua three years ago and we both absolutely loved it there. So, I said I’d like an experience  similar to that. I didn’t want anywhere too touristy, somewhere that had cute towns to leisurely stroll through, jungles to explore and beaches for doing lots of nothing. I love trying to speak Spanish…emphasis on trying…so I told him I’d also like to go somewhere where Spanish is spoken.

With that, Andy headed off to Borders to do some research and called me back a few hours later. “How do you feel about Panama?” he asked. “Panama? Sounds great!” I said, without knowing much of anything about Panama. But, with it’s close proximity to Nicaragua and precisely because I didn’t know much about it, it sounded like the perfect destination for our adventure.

And, that was it…vacation planned. We booked our tickets, and our first night’s accommodation in Panama City and figured we’d use the guide books Andy got at Borders to map out a rough itinerary before we left on March 1. Then, just let our instinct be our guide.

We spent our first two nights at a hostel in Panama City. Hostels have changed a lot since we first met at Hostel del Pilar, in Marbella, Spain…or at least the people who visit them have changed. When we began traveling, there was no internet…God, that makes us sound ancient. Backpackers didn’t carry laptops, cellphone or wireless USB modems. They didn’t check facebook several times a day, tweet regularly or make movies of their adventures to post on their personal websites.

Back when we first got bit by the bug, you traveled to get away; to leave all things familiar behind and open yourself up to new experiences. If you needed to reach someone or had something to say, you bought a payphone card or sent a postcard.

Today, the new generation of backpackers seem to spend more time chatting about what they’re doing than actually going out and doing. It was very strange to us. We were there to unplug and get away. I admit, we did Skype with family at home to let them know we were okay. We even checked Bello e-mail a couple of times just to make sure all was well. But, for us, the joy in getting away is to disconnect as much as possible so that we are completely in the moment, enjoying the experience as it happens.

And enjoy the experience we did! Although we had a few bumps in the road, including two trips to Health Clinics for a seriously dodgy stomach and sun-stroke, Panama was exactly the experience we were hoping for — a perfect mix of adventure, culture and relaxation.

Here are some highlights from our fabulous Panamanian Adventure. Enjoy!

As I mentioned, the hostel in Panama City wasn’t the best. Our room was a 8′ x 8′ blue box with dirty walls, a super uncomfortable double bed, tiny window and an old AC unit that only went on from 9PM – 9AM. And, it was HOT…crazy hot, especially coming from winter temperatures. This first photo is a sort of self portrait I took our first morning in Panama City. I remember laying in bed, sweating my tootsies off, thinking about the crappy room and how the scene, with the thin sheets and dirty walls felt like something out of an insane asylum. It’s kind of dark spirited for the start of our post, but it makes me smile because at the time Andy & I were wondering if we’d made a big mistake with Panama and if we should leave, go home, go back to Nicaragua…what?

It all turned out fine and as it happens, we loved Panama. After the self portrait, we headed out to see the Canal at the Miraflores locks, which was very cool. The Canal is quite a marvel of human engineering. There are three separate locks, but the government is in the process of expanding at least one of the locks and I think I may have heard talk of adding another at a new location.

During our few days in the city there was a constant queue of ships of all sizes waiting to pass through the Canal. During our trip to the Canal Visitors’ Center, there was a giant freighter carrying some sort of explosive hazardous materials from Hong Kong on its way through the lock. Inspectors check the ship as it passes through the Canal and emergency personnel could be seen on stand by just in case. It was a little freaky, but surprisingly efficient. It takes about 8 hours for a ship to pass through the series of three locks transiting from the Pacific to Caribbean.

I think the guys in the next photo were Panamanian inspectors…they don’t look terribly busy inspecting, but with 8 hours to pass through the locks, I guess they had lots of time to take a break and wave to onlookers.

The next day we walked around Casco Viejo, or old town, and this next photo is a view of Panama City from Casco Viejo. We were surprised at how many skyscrapers there were in the city. We were told the majority are apartments and many are actually vacant…yet construction continues. It was really hot and humid in the city and thick smog hung in the air. Sunken ships left abandoned complete the scene.

In a slightly different direction from the same perspective…

This next photo is one of those moments you just live for when traveling….

Like the gates of an abandoned heaven…

These were just a few of our photos from the big city. We’ll be posting more tomorrow from our visit to the mountainous regions of Panama. And then some more later in the week from our visit to the coast. And, we’ll wrap up with a slideshow. Thanks for visiting! And as always, please feel free to leave a comment or spread the love. Chris & Andy xo