Panama City, Panama

The morning after our Panama Canal Transit we anchored off shore in Panama City.  We boarded a crowded tender for the trip to the marina dock. The bumpy ride was hot and uncomfortable. We were happy to get off the tender and board the large bus that would take us on our tour to the Old City.  Our first stop was the Miraflores Locks where we toured the Panama Canal Museum and took photos from the observation deck.  We watched a short video about the Locks and then boarded our bus once more for our next stop near the Old City.  Patricia, our tour guide, led us on a walking tour through the crowded narrow cobblestone streets making several stops along the way at interesting landmarks pointing out the churches destroyed by fire and the Spanish colonial and French architecture.  We visited the beautiful old St. Joseph’s church to view its ornate golden altar.  We gathered in Cathedral Square at the end of our free shopping time and followed Patricia back to the bus to begin our return trip to the Ship.  We boarded the tender for another bumpy ride to the ship.  We had a bit of heart-stopping excitement when our tender driver had difficulty trying to dock with the ship.  We were glad to finally be safely back on board the ship!