Index
Canal Zone
Some images were selected because they involve the things we saw from day to day as we went to school. Much of my social life occurred while waiting for the school bus, and riding to and from Balboa High School. It was always interesting; waiting for ships to lock through at Miraflores. Everything was across the canal for us or so it seemed. The Bridge of the Americas had not been completed; now Panama is building a badly needed second bridge! The Balboa area was quiet back then; I remember getting together at the "clubhouse" for lunches and having a huge RC in a big glass of ice; very refreshing! At night, it was cool and beautiful. Being a teenager in such a romantic place was very exciting!
In retrospect , it is perfectly obvious why we were in Panama. But back then, I felt it was because I was there with my dad and he was there to defend the canal and the United States interests in Central America. I never really thought, "It's the ships!" But that was the true bottom line, everything was for the ships. And they were in our daily life, as we traveled between Kobbe to Balboa High twice a day. It seems appropriate to remember the shipping...along with a little more Zonian flavor.
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