Building a Canal Across Panama

In his exhaustingly detailed book Panama Fever, Matthew Parker says, “Apart from actual wars, it is the costliest project ever yet attempted in history….” After reading his book about the Panama Canal, I don’t doubt that this is true.

Ferdinand de Lesseps, who built the Suez Canal, promised France that it would become the #1 country in the world if it constructed a canal in Central America and began seeking financing for it in 1881.  Malaria, weather, and money problems eventually defeated him and his 25,000 workers.  Construction ceased in 1889.  One third of the canal across the Isthmus of Panama had been built.  The man who created the Eiffel Tower was involved in its locks’ design.  Five years later Americans became involved, and about 5 years after that the United States earned the legal right to build a canal. The American government began operations in 1904 because it took 3 years to complete plans and begin construction.  The 1st ocean going ship passed through the Panama Canal’s locks in 1914.  639 million dollars had been spent, the 1st earth dam ever built had been constructed, and a huge artificial lake, Gatún, had tamed the Chagres River and filled an incredibly large space.

Many human beings died to build the Panama Canal.  I don’t recall every hearing that a female worker took part in the Canal’s building.   Parker’s book talks a lot about the racial discrimination that occurred.  White workers were favored and paid far more than the ones who came from places like Jamaica and Barbados.  Living conditions for all were dismal, however.  Many drank to reduce stress.  Panama City had 200 bars and Colón had 131.  The Culebra Cut through the most difficult passage to excavate became known as “Hell’s Gorge”.  One West Indian worker commented, “Today you dig and tomorrow it slides.”  In the peak month of 1909, 68 shovels were at work in this Cut.  The sound of them and exploding dynamite must have been stress producing.  Eventually 2 million cubic yards of dirt were excavated despite adverse conditions.  Ten feet of rain fell in the Cut that year and tons of explosives were accidentally ignited.   Mountains were literally moved to create valleys.   The story of the building of this wonder is way too big to tell succinctly.

I have learned a lot.  Yellow fever and malaria are not the same thing.  They are caused by different mosquitos.  Both plagued Canal workers.  Those who got Yellow Fever either died or recovered and didn’t get the symptoms again if they survived.  Those who got malaria almost always got the symptoms again.  Ruth & I talked to a young man with children who had already had 4 bouts of malaria.  Any time it came back could mean his death.  When Europeans first came to Panama, there were already 2 well-used trails across this isthmus.  When gold was discovered in California in the mid 19th century, 600,000 gold seekers crossed here rather than travel all the way around South America.

de Lesseps biggest mistake was in thinking that the Panama Canal would be as easy to build as The Suez, which cut through desert but not a continental divide.  His involvement broke his gung-ho spirit.  

Hank

Going to Sydney’s Rocks?

Most visitors to Sydney, Australia, spend some time in The Rocks area.  Just a short walk west of Circular Quay on a hill, The Rocks are at the heart of Sydney tourism.  This is Sydney’s oldest neighborhood following settlement by convicts from England in the 19th century, and this city has done a good job of preserving its past.

Miraculously preserved, Susannah Place was home for more than 100 families over time.  The building was erected in 1844, which by European or, say, Chinese standards was yesterday.  But for Sydney this is as close to real history as you can find, and Susannah Place is one of 12 self-described living museums and historic houses that have been identified and preserved in the Sydney area to help 21st century people envision this city’s origins.

Working-class people, many of whom were Irish immigrants, lived in Susannah Place between 1844 and 1989.  Their stories are surprisingly well-preserved and recounted on tours that are only given between 2 and 5 pm daily.  It helps that tours are kept small because Susannah’s rooms are small with many still furnished as they have been for decades.  Tour tickets are acquired in the 1915 corner home/shop that was once a cash-only grocery store. It has been preserved as it once was with, among other historic items for-sale, old-fashioned lollipops, which are called lollies in Australia.

Susannah Place, which is directly across the street from Sydney’s most important archaeological site, was for 150 years part of a tight-knit community in a high crime, disreputable harbor neighborhood.  Rocks Walking tours are available and are a worthwhile alternative to a tour of Susannah Place if its limited opening time is a problem.

Not far from the typical skyscrapers of Sydney’s downtown, these four connected terrace homes are remarkable in that they have not been torn down for yet more high rises.  The stories told within bring it alive.

Hank

 

Visiting Troubled Nicaragua

Every country has national heroes that other countries don’t know about.  Nicaragua’s is Rubén Darío.  On our way to his house in León, we saw how the common folk live and get around in this country.  They generally ride on bicycles or in 1 to 2 person conveyances that look like a Central American version of rickshaws in a nation that is currently under a Level # 3 (reconsider going there) Travel Advisory.  The Federal Government warns potential travelers about armed and violent uniformed police and much, much more.  The US State Department lists 15 precautions for those who must go to Nicaragua.  We heeded them all and stuck with our protected group as we visited León to learn about Darío, a true Renaissance man.

We visited the dwelling where he lived and died.  It was a typical Spanish home with many rooms around an interior courtyard that looked like a place for quiet contemplation.  Big plant lover Ruth could not identify the beautiful purple flowers blooming in Darío’s courtyard and asked about them.  They were morning lilies.  Darío lived from 1867 until 1916.  Primarily a poet, he wrote more than 40 books that highly influenced Nicaraguan culture, traveled widely, started newspapers in El Salvador and Guatemala, lived in Paris for 5 years, was a noted diplomat and ambassador, etc.  He was also a  pacifist who tried to get the world to live in peace.  He would surely be appalled at the current condition of his native country.  His funeral remains one of the biggest in Nicaraguan history.  

On our way to his town, we saw brief glimpses of  San Cristóbal, the tallest active volcano in Nicaragua.  It’s near another active volcano called Telica that erupted in 2015.  Our local guide, who should know, told us that there are 8 active volcanoes in his country.  Other sources speak of 19, so I began to question everything he was saying.  Surely he didn’t mean that 8 volcanoes were currently erupting in his country.  What is undoubtedly true is that Nicaraguans live with lava.  This is not true in Panama, which is one of the reasons why it was selected for the isthmus-crossing canal that once had 6 proposed routes.  The one through Nicaragua was the 2nd most favored, and it  still may be built if the Chinese have their way.  However, their proposed canal is currently on hold.

Famous Nicaraguans include baseball player Roberto Clemente, who died in a 1972 plane crash while on a mission to deliver aid to earthquake victims, Bianca Jagger, who has become a political activist trying to address her country’s troubles from afar, and Daniel Ortega, Nicaragua’s current, controversial President.  But not so much Rubén Darío.

Hank

 

 

Orlando Fireworks

Ruth has been to Epcot.  I have not.   Going to Epcot was one of the 2 reasons why we went to Orlando after our recent cruise.  I wanted to see what this venerable Disney property is like and maybe sample a 2nd major attraction.  One woman tried her best to persuade us to go to her favorite Orlando lure, a wildlife park called Gatorland.  But then we talked to people and decided against buying tickets to Epcot, for now.  Some said that it has become tired and rather dull.  Others said that it remains entertaining only if you go with small children who have never been there.

But then we learned that Epcot is scheduled for major changes over the next couple of years and decided to seek out some of the lesser known attractions in this city built to thrill.  This will give us an excuse to come back to the only city of more than a million, if you count the entire metro area, that I’ve never been to.  This was our 2nd reason for going to Orlando after 3 weeks of cruising.

Epcot’s nightly fireworks show called IllumiNations has been wowing visitors since 1999, a very long run, and will be replaced by what promises to be a new and even more spectacular fireworks extravaganza next year. The Disney organization, which has produced the 3 biggest movie hits of 2018–Black Panther, Incredibles 2, and Avengers:  Infinity War–promises other Epcot upgrades too. 

Lately Disney World and Disney’s other properties have been capitalizing on the successes of its purchases of such companies such as Pixar and Marvel as well as its own moneymakers like Frozen to create theme park attractions.  This will apparently continue.  Epcot’s new ride, which is scheduled for a 2021 opening, is being built around Ratatouille.   The world’s longest enclosed roller coaster based on the wildly popular Guardians of the Galaxy franchise is being planned and will also open by 2021 if all goes well.  It seems like a good time to wait to increase the fortunes of the Genius Company that Time says is “Leading the Magic Kingdom into Tomorrowland”, and we wouldn’t have eaten at Shakers American Cafe and learned about Florida’s swampy past if we had gone to Epcot as planned.     Hank

Exploring Copalita

Chiapas has the highest poverty rate in Mexico and is this country’s poorest state.  Oaxaca ranks 4th.  On our cruise down the Mexican coast from San Diego to the Panama Canal we stopped in 5 Mexican ports.  The 1st was unscheduled Cabo San Lucas, a prosperous Hollywood hangout.  The 2nd and 3rd were Puerto Vallarta, which used to be a Hollywood hangout, and safe Manzanillo, the sailfish capital of the world.  #6 was supposed to be Puerto Chiapas, but we didn’t go ashore because of bad weather.  That storm might have been fortunate.  #5 was Huatulco, where I went to Copalita and Ruth went for a scenic drive and then to an arts and crafts museum.

Huatulco is in Oaxaca.   This city was being groomed to become the Acapulco of the South in the 1980s but the concept never took off despite the continuing presence of several fine resorts and hotels.  Huatulco’s population is dropping drastically and is less than half of what it was when the Mexican government had faith in its development.  Copalita remains an excellent attraction for those interested in Mexican ruins despite the fact that the number of cruise ships coming to Huatulco’s dock has dwindled to 45 during the tourist season.

Opened to the public for less than 10 years, the Eco-Archaeological Park Copalita has ruins, rainforest, and fine views of both the Mexican Pacific coastline and the Sierra Madre Mountains if you climb up many uneven steps.  From this high point you can see where the Copalita River flows into the Pacific and understand why the Tututepec people settled here and built temples and places for human sacrifice in this low growth jungle full of insects and birds.

Anna was our guide and a genuine local character.  When I asked her if her people ever experienced a cool season she said they only had dry and wet.   At one point she paused for us to admire how athletic and energetic she was despite the fact that she was 67 years old.   Then she led us to the 1st of the 3 ruins we would see, The Pyramid of the Snakes.  At the 2nd and larger ruin she spoke without much detail about those sacrifices and showed us the place where the combatants entered with only one of them scheduled to exit.  Then she segued into her favorite ant recipe, raved about the taste of iguana, and told us that her people were Catholic but still believed in ancient, local traditions like the evil eye.

At the end of the tour Anna took us into Copalita’s new-looking museum/ visitor center and continued to tell us about what archaeologists have learned about the people who lived here more than a thousand years ago in this recently discovered place called Copalita.

Hank