Today was our second full day in Panama. We packed our bags and left the hotel for our first destination: The Panama Canal. We arrived at the Miraflores Locks Visitor Center just in time to see a boat go through. The large gates powered by a hydrolic system opened to allow the enormous ship to pass through. Crowds of people gathered to see this slow process and wave to the people on the boat. In the mean time, we enjoyed drinks from the cafe and watched a 10 minute movie educationing us on the complicated history of the canal, complete with the more recent construction of a wider set of locks to accommodate the much larger Panamax ships. /you also got to appreciate the feat of engineering that the canal is! Additionally, we were able to visit the museum that spanned through several floors of the building. Just as the boat finished passing through the locks, it was time for us to head to our next destination. The bus drove us over long, winding roads until finally we arrived at the Santa Clara beach. We had the beach all to ourselves besides the fishermen swimming a way’s away. As soon as we arrived, everyone jumped into the ocean to swim in the warm water until it was time for lunch. We had the option to eat fried chicken or shrimp with French fries, pantecones, or rice. After lunch, we had a little bit of time to relax on the beach or swim before it was time to get ready to leave. On the bus to Santiago, many of us were nervous to meet our host families for the first time. One by one, we were called to meet our new family. It was a very fun day!
