Wrapping up another gringa adventure

Me, Athena, and Sarah at the ecological park

Our last few days in Panama were spent presenting our research on Latin American countries, visiting the American Embassy in Panama, learning about the flavors and cuisine of Panama, touring a Holiday Inn and visiting an ecological park. It was quite a whirlwind and was over before I knew it. So this post is a highlight reel of my last few days in the tropical heat!

Monkeys!

A train car playground at the ecological park

At the American Embassy you are not allowed to take any pictures so I sniped the one below from Google. We learned that the no camera policy is VERY strictly enforced as soon as my friend Stephanie began to take a picture of the sign out front and was quickly yelled at by a security guard. After that we were all on our best behavior. We had to file through the security line in small groups of 4 and be led up to the Embassy. There we were ushered into a room that had a metal door that was about 8 inches thick...I tried to hold it open and I almost fell over. Daniel Crocker, a representative of the U.S. Department of Commerce, spoke to us about doing business in Panama and working as a foreign service agent. During the presentation my classmate Sarah realized that she had been sitting next to Mr. Crocker and his wife on the plane to Panama from Miami! His wife had mentioned that her husband was a foreign service officer and Sarah saw him but thought nothing of it until she saw him in the Embassy. What a small world!

As we were waiting outside for the bus, my classmate Joe decided he was going to try to snipe a picture. Risky move. The security guards quickly converged and confiscated his phone. Then he was whisked back into the security area for 15 minutes and none of us knew what was happening. Finally he emerged. He had to file a report detailing the incident...we hope he didn't get flagged as a security threat on his flight home!

Our last night we all dressed up and headed to Las Tinajas, a traditional Panamanian dinner and show. It was nice to be with everyone for one last dinner before we all departed for the U.S. in the morning. The dances were fun to watch, the music was loud and the costumes were beautiful. I wish I could post more pictures from the show but most of mine were blocked by the bald man sitting in front of me. After the show a woman from the group next to us came and asked where our group was from. When we said Saint Louis University she looked shocked. Turns out she graduated from SLU in 1969! I guess you can't go anywhere without finding a Billiken!

Reunited with my roommates in St. Louis!

Now I am safely back in St. Louis and have already started my classes for the spring semester. Nothing like diving right back in! Although I miss the warm weather and the big yellow school bus, it is nice to be home and back in the swing of things. Hopefully I will resurrect this blog again sooner rather than later. Who knows what the next gringa adventure will bring!

¡Hasta la próxima!