Changuinola Excursion
24 February 2007
About noon we  took a boat trip from Bocas Town with about a dozen other people (US$5
per person each way) to Changuinola, a large town on the mainland.  That town is shown on our
map (but not circled) on our "Introduction to Panama" page.  During the first half hour we
went up the bay to near the beach at Boca del Drago, at the northern end of Colon Island.  
For the rest of the way we cruised up the Changuinola Canal (a.k.a. "Canal de Soropta"). The
canal was dug about 1900 to transport bananas by barge from Changuinola to the
deep-water ocean port of Almirante;  bananas are now transported between those two towns
by rail and the canal is now used mainly for local passenger traffic.
A motorized canoe on the Changuinola Canal.
The Changuinola Canal, Panama
Man on dock waiting to be picked up by
our boat on the Changuinola Canal.
The boat landing was a ten minute taxi-ride from downtown Changuinola.  On the way there
and again on the way back we stopped for a look at a huge "Chiquita" banana plantation and
packing plant.  
Banana trees.  The
bananas are in bags for
protection from
temperature extremes
and from insects.
Bananas on conveyor for transportation to the packing plant.
Packing plant where bananas are packed in cartons, the
cartons placed on pallets, the pallets placed in 40-foot
containers and transported by rail to the port of
Almirante and loaded on ocean vessels for export.
We explored Changuinola's main street, a busy commercial center selling mainly cheap
goods.   Changuinola is a mid-sized trading town with little with touristic interest.  
However, it is popular with travelers preparing to take a bus to the Costa Rican border.
In front of a restaurant where we had lunch in Changuinola we met several men playing chess
and watched them for a few minutes.  Our son, John, accepted an invitation to play a game.  
It was a close game which he won.
Our son John, on the
right, playing chess in
Changuinola.
In the late afternoon we returned to Bocas Town by boat.  The end of an enjoyable day.