The Cleveland Symphony Orchestra was rehearsing Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony. There is an extensive section where the bass players don’t play for twenty minutes of so. One of them decided that, rather than stand around on stage looking bored and stupid, they’d all just file offstage during their tacit-time and hang out backstage, then return when they were about to play. It seemed like a good idea at the time.

On the night of the performance, the bass players filed off as planned. The last one had barely left the stage when the leader suggested, “Hey we’ve got twenty minutes, let’s fun across the street to the bar for a few!”

This idea was met with great approval, so off they went, tuxedos and all, to loosen up. Fifteen minutes and a few rounds later, one of the bass players said, “Shouldn’t we be heading back? It’s almost time.”

But the leader announced, “Oh don’t worry, we’ll have some extra time – I played a little joke on the conductor. Before the performance started, I tied string around each page of his score so that he’d have to untie each page to turn it. The piece will drag on a bit. We’ve got time for another round!”

So another round they did, and finally—sloshed and staggering—they made their way back across the street to finish Ludwig’s 9th.

Upon entering the stage, they immediately noticed the conductor’s haggard, drawn and livid expression.

—”Gee,” one player queried, “Why do you suppose he looks so tense?”

—“You’d be tense, too,” laughed the leader. “It’s the bottom of the ninth, the score is tied and the basses are loaded.”

As we turn the page of our calendar, the next month is December, one of the most beautiful months of the year.  All over the world, there is an atmosphere of peace, friendship and hope.  Reality is transformed into magic.  Homes are decorated with Christmas trees, snowmen, Santa Clauses, reindeer, hanging stockings, peppermint bars and what have you.

Christmas is also closely related to snow.  I remember a classical song by Bing Crosby called White Christmas. Another famous Christmas song is Jingle Bells which evokes the experience of riding a horse-driven sleigh through soft puffy snow.  Even though we don’t have snow in Panama, it is always present during Christmas.  Through the creativity of our artists, Christmas in Panama is not without the classical snow.  We even have penguins in Panama—and igloos too.  Believe me.

Yesterday I went to El Dorado Mall to see how it was decorated for the end of year holidays.  This mall is located a few miles from our home.  My wife was also curious, so away we went.  When we got there, we were received by Christmas trees, snowflakes, presents, igloos, penguins, children, and of course…snow.

This is how the mall looked like at 07:00 p.m. on November 23, 2009 as Christmas slowly creeps into the city.  Here we go.

Photograph of a giant artificial Christmas tree at El Dorado Mall in Panama City, Panama. (Credit: Omar Upegui R.

Photograph of a cafeteria at El Dorado Mall where Christmas has not reached yet. Eventually it will be here as well. (Credit: Omar Upegui R.)

You can't separate children from Christmas. Manuel, clasps hands with a penguin at El Dorado Mall in Panama City, Panama. The friendly penguin reciprocates. (Credit: Omar Upegui R.)

This is my wife Aura, playing with Chilly-Willy, the penguin at El Dorado Mall last evening. (Credit: Omar Upegui R.)

A happy family of three poses for the camera beneath the figure of a Christmas penguin. One youngster doesn't trust the camera, or the white-haired photographer. (Credit: Omar Upegui R.)

A happy Christmas penguin dances above a pile of snow at El Dorado Mall in Panama City, Panama. (Credit: Omar Upegui R.)

Photograph of a Christmas penguin surrounded with presents at the base of the huge Christmas tree covered with snow flakes. (Credit: Omar Upegui R.)

Photograph of a group of happy Christmas penguins playing near an arctic igloo at El Dorado Mall in Panama City, Panama. (Credit: Omar Upegui R.)

A close-up picture of the playful Christmas penguins and their cute little igloo. (Credit: Omar Upegui R.)

A happy Christmas penguin says "Hello" to the readers of Lingua Franca. (Credit: Omar Upegui R.)

With this friendly hello from an arctic penguin, I hereby close this post about the way Christmas looks like at a medium-sized mall in Panama City, Panama.  As Panama plunges into the frenzy of the end-of-year festivities, I will show you how we celebrate Christmas in Panama.  Good Day.

(Credit: Google Inc.)

If you like to follow technology trends, you are well familiar with the ferocious battle going between Google and Microsoft. It’s so fierce, that Steve Ballmer’s face turns red when he hears the word Google.  For the first time, Microsoft has found an adversary his same size and weight, and for the first time also, Microsoft is slowly losing ground.

In Microsoft, I see a company that’s deathly afraid of Google and even more scared of being cornered out of the online space. And so in its desire to capture more search market share and gain a foothold in the advertising market, it forgot about Windows and more importantly, forgot about Apple, Linux and the open source movement.

In a little more than ten years, Google has become the king of the search engine domain.  It’s doing very well with online applications like Google Earth, Google e-Mail, Google Docs, Google Android, Google Translate and many others.  All of them are free of charge.  No extra cost for the user.  That is in direct contrast with Microsoft’s policy, that charges for everything.

The latest salvo rounds fired by Google against Microsoft’s armor,  is Chrome operating system for online applications.  Google recently announced Chrome operating system will hit the streets next year’s holiday shopping season.  Chrome’s main purpose is to make low-cost computers run faster.  Android operating system for mobile phones is already doing that and Microsoft is feeling the heat.

Google set the late 2010 target date last Thursday during its first preview of a much-anticipated operating system that eventually may mount a challenge to Microsoft Corp.’s Windows—the foundation for most personal computers since the 1990s.

Chrome OS is initially expected to be limited to people looking for inexpensive, lightweight computers designed for Web surfing. None of the so-called “netbooks” running Google’s operating system will have a hard drive, and they will need Internet access to run applications.

That could limit interest among users who need their machines on the go and might find pockets of time without Internet service on planes or trains.

Still, Google views the Chrome OS netbooks as a supplement to fully loaded computers that run applications on a hard drive. Google believes the Chrome OS could get heavy usage, given that most people spend most of their computer time connected to the Internet anyway.  The computer manufacturers that have expressed an interest in using the Chrome OS include Acer Inc. and Hewlett-Packard Co.

The Chrome OS also is an important step in Google’s crusade to get people more comfortable with “cloud computing,” the idea of keeping their applications and data on remote computers operated by a third party such as Google.  Microsoft, on the other hand, depends on applications that run on the hard disk.

Underscoring Google’s commitment to cloud computing, the Chrome OS machines won’t even have a hard drive. By leaving out that and other components, Google is promising the Chrome OS machines will seem more like a television than a computer because they will be ready to use within a few seconds of turning on the power button. Even the sleekest of Windows-powered machines typically require 30 seconds to 1 minute before applications can be opened.

Google’s foray into computer operating systems represents one of the most daring challenges yet in its escalating duel with Microsoft.

Watching these 800-pound gorillas fight each other promises to be very exciting.  I know who will be the winner, but I won’t tell.  (Smile).  Enjoy your week end—you’ve earned it.  Good Day.

A man studied the menu long and hard, and finally turned to the waiter for help.

—”Well,” said the waiter, “today our special is chicken on a bed of wild rice with green beans almandine and a nice side salad.”

—”That sounds great. How is your chicken prepared?”

—“We break it to him very gently and tell him it’s nothing personal.”

As part of the November independence festivities, the Santeño communities organized colorful oxcarts parades in several towns and cities of the country.  I attended one at Juan Díaz.  I’m glad I did, because the scenes were awesome, in search of a better word.

As usual, I took some pictures to share with you today.  I included some of them in yesterday’s post too.  In order to appreciate the photos better, I encourage you to click on the images to enlarge them.

Having said that, now let’s take a look at the pictures.  Here we go.

(Credit: Omar Upegui R.)

(Credit: Omar Upegui R.)

(Credit: Omar Upegui R.)

(Credit: Omar Upegui R.)

(Credit: Omar Upegui R.)

(Credit: Omar Upegui R.)

(Credit: Omar Upegui R.)

(Credit: Omar Upegui R.)

(Credit: Omar Upegui R.)

(Credit: Omar Upegui R.)

This will be the end of the Independence series which meant so much to me.  It’s time to move on to another subject.  As I mentioned yesterday, I’ll focus on the Panama Canal, specifically at the Miraflores Locks and its immediate surroundings.  I’ll meet you there.  Good Day.

Many folklore experts agree that the Panama Gala Pollera is the most beautiful national dress in the world.  After all these years, it continues to dazzle audiences everywhere it’s proudly displayed by Panamanian women.

The Pollera is the most beautiful and admired national costume of the Americas and the world.  There are many tales related about its origin, but the popular opinion is that it was adapted from a gypsy dress worn in Spain at the time of the conquest of Peru—XVI Century—and brought to Panama by the servants of the colonial families.  It normally consists of a blouse or shirt and a two-tiered full skirt.

The lavish satins and brocades that made up the dress of society at that time were not suited to the tropical climate and the servants’ garb was appropriated by the mistress and enhanced with lace and embroidery.  It was not worn outside of the home, but gradually the ladies added more lace and ribbons, ornaments for the hair (tembleques) and jewelry for the neck and eventually it made its way into the public eye.

Polleras are made of wool or cotton and are very colorful. The large gathered skirt is generally white with two or three ruffles which have a floral design or embroidery. The top has several ruffles as well on the shoulders and has inlaid yarn. There is a large pompom matching the yarn in the front and back of the top. The yarn also matches several large ribbons at the waist and the slippers that go with the outfit.

The clothing includes a headdress called a tembleque (or tembeleque) which is made of beads attached to a spring so that they tremble when the wearer dances.

In Panama and Colombia, hand-made polleras evolved during time to a very elaborate piece of clothing. Currently it is the National Costume of Panama. Girls and women would generally own two polleras during their life: one before age 16 and one at adulthood.

A single pollera can cost from several hundred to several thousands of dollars and take up to a year to create. The gold and pearl mosquetas and tembleques that accompany a pollera are generally passed down as heirlooms through generations.

During the November 10th. parade  at Juan Diaz, the Santeño community selected a bouquet of attractive young women exquisitely dressed in polleras to participate in the event.  The singular part of the parade were oxen-driven floats decorated with Santeño’s motives; and of course, the national dress of Panama—the pollera.  It was the icing on the cake of this traditional parade.  I recall having seen similar oxcarts parades in the town of Escazú in Costa Rica while I was living there.

Enjoy a Santeño independence parade at Juan Díaz in Panama City, Panama on November 10, 2009.  Here we go.

Preamble of an oxcart parade in Panama. Notice the typical dresses worn by the Santeño children. (Credit: Omar Upegui R.)

An attractive young lady proudly displays a gala pollera in Panama City, Panama. (Credit: Omar Upegui R.)

Photograph of oxcart participating in the Independence Day parade on November 10, 2009. Notice the bright tropical red flowers. (Credit: Omar Upegui R.)

Photograph of a colorful float donated by a local member of the Panama Congress. (Omar Upegui R.)

Photograph of a float with two huge toucan birds participating in the Independence Parade of November 10, 2009 held in Panama City, Panama. (Credit: Omar Upegui R.)

Photograph of an oxcart with a beautiful young Santeño woman proudly wearing a pollera and tembleques. (Credit: Omar Upegui R.)

Photograph of an oxcart with a young woman wearing a splendid gala pollera. (Credit: Omar Upegui R.)

Photograph of Alejandro, the oxcart driver, participating in the Independence Day parade at Juan Díaz. (Credit: Omar Upegui R.)

Photograph of one of the oxcarts that participated in the Independence Day parade of November 10, 2009. (Credit: Omar Upegui R.)

A spectacular float carrying a beautiful specimen of the Santeño woman wearing an awesome pollera. (Credit: Omar Upegui R.)

This was the tail of the parade.  It was reserved to be the final big surprise of the event which was heavily applauded by the bystanders, including my wife and myself.  A tropical cloudburst was forming, so we hurried back home before St. Peter opened the faucets.

This post will end the coverage of the patriotic events which took place during November in Panama.  As stated previously, I plan to travel to the Miraflores Locks in the Panama Canal,  to shoot pictures of that historic landmark, only surpassed by the great pyramids of Egypt.  Good Day.