I was weighing the pros and cons of different cameras for our monkey excursion right up until we left.  I finally decided that the zoom on the Sony was worth it and took it along.  We rode in an air-conditioned bus to the Gamboa Nature Preserve where we were transferred to a little a runabout that held about twenty tourists.

We set off in our little boat for the “high speed” trip up the Panama Canal.  High speed was about 14 knots and we enjoyed the wind at our backs going out.  I enjoyed thinking about how my grandfather had come through this very canal during his service in the U.S. Navy back when the completed canal must have still been a bit of a novelty.

Imagine my chagrin, having brought the big camera, at finding that the battery had fallen out and been left in the bag we had left on the bus.  Fortunately, I did have my point and shoot.  We poked into a few little coves looking for crocodiles but never did find one.

I was very frustrated because our boat sighted a howler monkey but I was never able to pick it out of the foliage.

After scooting down the Panama Canal, we did eventually reach Monkey Island in Gatun Lake.  That is when the Capuchins started putting on a show for us.  Another tour came up and their guide fed the monkeys so they were all over his boat.  We got to watch them for quite a while.  One of them even jumped down on our boat and stole a little disposable poncho in a pouch that was bright yellow.

Another one peeked down over the front of the canopy to see whether any of us had food to offer.  I absolutely love the picture I got of the little peeper.  Maybe it’s the rush of excitement, but I think we finally have experienced a tour we enjoyed even more than the Chicago Architectural Tour – and that is saying something.

My impressions of Panama were entirely favorable.  I would love to come back here and explore.  They seem to have some of the poverty of Columbia but one gets the sense that the majority of people fare well.   Everyone we met seemed relaxed and happy.