Great Read.......Panama Canal

[abitjaded]

Originally posted by MrsPete
The cheapest fare ever through the canal would be ZERO. Paid (or not paid) by my father on manh occasions.

......
He must have been a really bad kid!

Mrs Pete, so funny. My mother grew up in the Canal Zone, Balboa HS class of 1934. She and her brothers and cousins had huge numbers of wild Panama Canal stories. Crocodiles in the bath tubs and spiders the size of Cadillacs everywhere. I would have loved to take her on one of the reposition cruises, but they are first and last weeks of my kids' school. Bummer.

Markmyboy, my great-grandfather also helped to build the canal. My grandfather was an engineer on the Panama Canal rail road. Were any of your relatives also members of the Panama Canal Zone Society? Great old magazines with amazing photos over the years of change.

Carla

 

[MrsPete]

Abitjaded -- My father was also a graduate of Balboa HS, though he was class of 1961. I don't know what schools my grandparents attended. And, yes, I've heard plenty of stories about crocodiles, etc. Another thing my father used to do was sneak boa constrictors into the house; my grandmother would inevitably find them during cleaning, and I understand it was never a pretty site.

Markmyboy -- My grandfather also helped build the canal, though he was certainly not an engineer. I think he was more like a construction foreman -- he was on the working end of the shovel. To hear him talk though, however, you'd think the whole thing had been his idea. And like your FIL, he also tended to take himself quite seriously. He had me cross-stitch a HUGE "The land divided, the world united" for him when I was just a little kid. I thought I'd never be finished, but it was very special to him. He kept it in his living room until the day he died.

 

[Juli]

Hope I didn't already post this.

Path Between The Seas : The Creation of the Panama Canal, 1870-1914 by David McCullough

I haven't read it, but bought a CD version of his book on John Adams for my FIL for Xmas last year. Both of my in-laws really enjoyed it. They are cruising with us on the 5/14 so now I have one of their presents for next Xmas! I have a copy on hold at the library for myself.

 

[wide awake]

Thank-you seaulater and Juli...both books are on my list...I will wait till after our October cruise though...this repo cruise has pushed our Eastern into the background, I need to focus, first things first, etc...have been thinking of reading Michener's "The Caribbean"...any comments or suggestions ?

 

[abitjaded]

The McCullough book is considered to be great. There is also a recent Nat'l Geo article those traversing the Canal might want to bag. Mrs. Pete, PM me with last names, lets see if anyone knew anyone. My mom waxes nostalgic about those days. Living in Colorado she finally has an appreciation for so many things she took for granted, such as bougainvillea and hearts of palm. "The Caribbean" was a bit of a slog for me, never did finish the dang thing. Sat next to my bed for a year after reading the first couple of chapters, covered in dust. Oh, well. I think, for anyone who loves/hates the Tropics, that "One Hundred Years of Solitude" by Gabriel Garcia Marquez is the most evocative of all the books about anywhere hot and humid that can grow bananas.

Carla

 

[MariettaC]

Just got my book last night from Barnes and Noble. It looks great and I can't wait to start it this weekend. The pull-out map is terrific. Thanks.

 

[jin diesel]

Hi Linda!

I am pulling my daughter out of school for this cruise, and her school will send along 2 weeks worth of work - I'm sure. But I also wanted her to do some journaling for HERSELF. So that she can always remember her 1st time thru the Canal. Thanks for your idea on the map/journal! What a neat way to track the trip! I'm definitely going to get this book!!!
-jindy