Yesterday I received two Christmas presents, but will consider them Birthday presents as well.  They came from a place called Yoytec Computer which sells computer stuff, not the North Pole, mind you.

One present was a Web cam, which comes in handy for my Internet phone conversations with my friend Mireya, who recently moved to Chelsea, Maine.  We frequently switch from Yahoo Messenger to Skype for no reason at all.  The sound quality is flawless in both applications, and having a Web cam will make our conversations a lot more descriptive.

The Web cam is a Logitec Quick Cam Connect with a VGA resolution of 640 x 480 pixels.  It has an integrated microphone and a convenient clip to attach it to any flat monitor.  The price tag for this baby was $29.50.

The second present was a Kingston Data Traveler 101 4GB USB2 memory.  I plan to use it to store my favorite photographs, just in case my hard disk goes bananas. It happened to me once, and it can very well happen again.  I paid $11.99 for this gift.

Just to make sure I had a Christmas present or a Birthday present, since my birthday falls on December 16th., I purchased both articles yesterday morning, wrapped them up in nice Christmas paper, and addressed them To: Omar...From: Omar.  I did it for fun following a ritual I adopted last year with my Canon digital camera.

Both gifts are patiently sitting on my computer desk waiting until December 16th comes alone.  I know it sounds a little bit loco, but that’s a behavior some of us adopt as the aging process advances.  I think they call it “deferred gratification.” Anyway, I have experienced a Christmas/Birthday in November and it feels great, coming from a technology zealot.

After Christmas, my Internet phone calls will be a lot different and my photographs will be a lot safer.  Good Day.

Today is November 14, 2009.   We are in the middle of the Month of the Motherland—Mes de la Patria. A month in which the Panamanian people  honor their country.  Even through Panama is a young nation, it has a very promising future.  It only regained full control of its territory on December 31, 1999, when the United States turned over the Panama Canal Zone to the Republic of Panama.  That was only ten years ago.

Even as we speak, Panama is engaged in several mega projects in an effort to push itself into a full developed country.  It’s not going to be an easy task, but the determination is there.  So far its results have been more than satisfactory.  Let me explain.

Since Noriega was incarcerated in December 1989, Panama has returned to embrace Democracy.  There have been five president democratically elected in Panama, (e.g., Guillermo Endara Galimany, Ernesto Pérez Balladares, Mireya Moscoso, Martín Torrijos and Ricardo Alberto Martinelli).   In general terms, there is a separation of powers within the state:  Executive Branch, Legislative Branch and the Judicial Branch.  With some imperfections, they are separated and trying to coordinate their activities to fulfill the needs of the people.  More is needed to perfect this union, and President Martinelli has promised to modernize the Public Administration.

During the last two decades, Panama has had one of the highest economic growth in Latin America, even though there was a global recession going on.  Fortunately that economic meltdown has left this country almost unscathed.  Direct foreign investment has remained high, surpassing a billion dollars a year.  Below are major public investments to be finished during the next five to ten years:

• Expansion of the Panama Canal – $5.25 billion.
• Construction of the first phase of a Metropolitan metro:  $1 billion.
• Construction of the final phase of the Coastal Strip which will connect the South Corridor to the Bridge of the Americas.
• Expansion of Tocumen Airport to accommodate more planes at any given time.  Operating capacity will by enhanced by approximately fifty percent.

For a small country, these are very significant public investments.  It’s an economic endeavor in the right direction to plunge Panama into the Twenty-First Century.

When I saw those enthusiastic students marching last week, I saw a whole young country in motion.  Students are the fresh blood of any country.  They are the ones responsible to assume the responsibilities of the old generation who has accomplished its share.  One generation passes the baton to the other generation and the country keeps on moving towards a more promising  future.  Those parading kids represents our country in motion.

Below are the last photographs of the “November 3rd. Parade Series”. 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.)

(Omar Upegui R.)

As the sounds of bugles and drums die out, Panama is preparing for its next big day in November:  the Shout of Independence at La Villa de los Santos on November 10th.  In Spanish it’s called, “El Grito de la Independencia” by a humble  22-year-old woman called Rufina Alfaro. Shouting “Viva la Libertad”, together with a small group of local soldiers, she took a Spanish garrison at la Villa de Los Santos.  It was the beginning of the independence of Panama from Spain in 1821.

I went to the November 10th parade and shot several pictures.  That will be the theme for my next pictorial series.  It’s a total different perspective with a countryside touch.  I invite you to come to Lingua Franca for a new view of the Panama from the countryside.   Good Day.

When I was in high school, I remember having a passion for reading.  I read just everything that I could put my paws on.  Be it history, science, geography, English, literature, and comics books too.  Superman and Archie were my heroes.  I still read a lot.  A blogger needs to read constantly in order to write about different subjects.  That’s a habit I learned from my father when I was very young.  As a result for my attraction towards studying, I got excellent grades and had the privilege of marching in front of Instituto Pan Americano’s (IPA) delegation during three consecutive years.  That’s the number of years I spent at IPA.

Our delegation had no band, so we had to keep the musical rhythm listening very closely to the nearest band in front or behind us.  I was a lousy marcher; always out of sync.  Since I was a member of IPA’s Honor Roll (Cuadro de Honor)  due to my high grades, I proudly wore a three-colored ribbon about two inches wide across my chest and carried a Latin American flag.  I remember one of those flags was from Paraguay.

I don’t have photographs of my participation on a Third of November Parade in Panama City.  My parents lived in Bocas del Toro, and it was too expensive for them to travel to Panama City just to see me march for one day, so no photographs were taken.  All the potential pictures are engraved in my head.  That’s one of the reasons, I want to capture my circumstances with every photograph I possibly I can.  It’s a way to freeze time.  It won’t go away, unless the Internet disappears killed by a new technology.  I don’t foresee that in the near future.  As a matter of fact, the Internet is getting bigger and bigger, like a giant cloud hovering above the globe.

Oops!  I digressed again.  Sorry about that.  Now let’s focus on the pictures of the November 3rd. parade.  Today is my third set of photographs from a total of four.  I would like to point out the multiple bright colors that stand out from the different delegations.  There was never a dull moment during the event, and that characteristic kept my fingers busy tripping the shutter of my loyal Birthday Canon camera.

Here we go again with another set of parade pictures for your enjoyment.

A Panama student wears a beautiful blue pollera, one of the most attractive national dresses in the world. (Credit: Omar Upegui R.)

A close-up photograph of the student wearing the Panamanian pollera. (Credit: Omar Upegui R.

Photograph of several participants wearing typical Panamanian dresses during the parade. (Credit: Omar Upegui R.)

Students in spotless uniforms march in sync during the November 3rd. parade in Panama City, Panama. (Credit: Omar Upegui R.)

Picture of several eye-catching baton twirlers march in Panama City's November parade. (Credit: Omar Upegui R.

A close-up picture of an attention-getting baton twirler in Panama City, Panama. As you can see, she gifted me with a nice warm smile. (Credit: Omar Upegui R.)

A graceful baton twirler leads her school's delegation during the November 3rd. parade. (Credit: Omar Upegui R.)

As I mentioned earlier, the parade was full of brightly colored uniforms and very attractive baton twirlers.  I enjoyed this photo session greatly.  I hope so have you.  Tomorrow will be our final set  of pictures on the November 3rd. parade.  Please come on down and enjoy another collection of photos about life in Panama.  Good Day.

November is a month loaded with parades, colorful school uniforms, drums and bugles.  Students practice for months to show off their skills during the November parades.  Thousands of dollars are spent buying uniforms and musical equipment for the bands.  Boatloads of digital cameras are used by proud parents during the parades to capture the moment of glory of their children.  November is a great month in Panama.  It’s the month of the Motherland; in Spanish Patria.

On November 3rd. I went out with my wife to Via España to take some pictures of one of the two parades organized by the Ministry of Education.  The other event was held at the Presidential Palace in the Old Shell of the city, also known as Casco Viejo.

It was a rainy, dark, and cloudy day.  But that didn’t stop the marching bands.   No Sir, it was business as usual.  However, I did hear from some street vendors complaining that sales were not as good as last year.  But still, they showed up with their “raspaos”, “carne en palitos”, ice cream cones, apples covered with honey, Chinese umbrellas, plastic hats and a lot of other interesting merchandise.  Street peddlers in Panama are very active during these days. As a matter of fact, they are active all year-round.

Below are some of the images captured during this damp day at Via España.  Even though it was not an ideal day to take pictures, in general I would say they came out quite satisfactory.  My Birthday camera did a good job.  Now here we go.

Photograph of the Aero-Naval Band with their spotless white uniform and flawless marching exercises. (Credit: Omar Upegui R.)

Photograph of a reporter from the popular humorist TV program "La Cáscara" interviewing a Panamanian girl who lives in New York and was filming the parade. She was having a marvelous time. (Credit: Omar Upegui R.)

Close-up picture of a beautiful student from the glorious Instituto Nacional. She gave me a mesmerizing smile. I'm still recovering from that feminine experience. (Credit: Omar Upegui R.)

Four attractive baton twirlers from the Instituto Nacional enjoying the parade. They were smiling all the way to the crowd. (Credit: Omar Upegui R.)

Photograph of a neat row of Panamanian beauties. Any one of them could very well be our next Miss Panama, or Miss Universe beauty pageant. (Credit: Omar Upegui R.

A beautiful collection of baton twirlers from the Instituto Nacional in a straight marching formation. (Credit: Omar Upegui R.)

Photograph of the musical band of the Instituto Nacional. I had Goose bumps all over my skin listening to their vibrant music. It feels so nice to be a Panamanian. (Credit: Omar Upegui R.)

That’s it guys.  It’s the end of the road for today.  Tomorrow there will be more picturesque images of Panama’s November parades.  Be here and be part of the fun.  Good Day.