Those Wonderful Men in Their Flying Machines

As you probably know, when I was kid we lived next to an airport and desperately wanted to become a pilot when I grew up. The proximity of our house was so near the strip, that when we were having lunch, we could hear the roar and the rushing of air when an airplane was overhead on its way to the landing strip.

My favorite spot was the airport terminal. I knew everybody there, and everybody there knew me. I talked to the pilots asking all sorts of questions and they tried to answer back. When a group of US pilots arrived at Changuinola to survey the area, I became their guide, and they took me on many rides on their choppers. The feeling of the air on my face and the motions of the helicopter are hard to forget after more than five decades later.

Alas, my father found out of my furtive trips on choppers and Piper Cubs, he spanked me hard and restricted me from ever riding choppers or small planes without his permission. Of course his permissions were never granted. So instead of a wonderful man on a flying machine, I became a wonderful man with an adding machine. Instead of a pilot, I turned out an accountant fixed to a desk. The only blue sky I could see, came from the small window of my office. And that my friends is my experience with choppers and planes.

This nostalgia for planes has been inside me, and every time I have to go to the airport or see an airplane flying high above my house in Panama City, I say to myself, “That pilot up there could have been me.”  It didn’t happen, so there no use crying over spilled milk.

This is the last post on a theme of airplanes and of the recent airshow at the former Panama Canal Zone.  We have reached the end of the road and tomorrow we will move on into new territory.  Meanwhile, lets feast our eyes with a couple of pictures of those wonderful flying machines.  Here we go.

Snapshot of a small plane on exhibition during a large air show in Panama City, Panama. Photo by ©Omar Upegui R.

Photo by ©Omar Upegui R.

Photo by ©Omar Upegui R.

Photo by ©Omar Upegui R.

Photo by ©Omar Upegui R.

Photo by ©Omar Upegui R.

That’s it guys.  The airshow is over.  I’ll keep my ear close to the ground to decide won hat our new subject will be and keep the ball rolling.  Enjoy this beautiful Saturday morning.  If you’re a flyer, have a good flight and savor the view.  Good Day.

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Lights…Camera…Action!

Snapshot of The Twisters pretending a Tinseltown scene for the camera. They were delighted to attend the airshow. There was action everywhere. Photo by ©Omar Upegui R.

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The Big Yellow Plane

The main attraction at the airshow in the former Canal Zone, was a huge cargo plane owned by DHL.  The well known delivery company decided to invite the Panamanian people to visit their plane.  There were long lines of parents with their children waiting to climb up a steep stairways and enter the pilot’s cockpit.  It was an exciting experience.

Below are several pictures of this large flying machine.  Here we go.

Snapshot of a big cargo plane being exhibited at the air show in the former Howard Air Force Base. It was visited by thousands of curious visitors. Photo by ©Omar Upegui R.

Photo by ©Omar Upegui R.

Photo by ©Omar Upegui R.

Photo by ©Omar Upegui R.

Photo by ©Omar Upegui R.

Photo by ©Omar Upegui R.

Snapshot of The Twisters carefully descending the steep stairway at the airport. Photo by ©Omar Upegui R.

Snapshot of a cavernous jet turbine of a DHL airplane in exhibition in Panama City, Panama. Photo by ©Omar Upegui R.

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Visiting a Military Troops Plane

One of the plane which was highly visited during the airshow at the former Howard Air Force Base, was a bulky military troops plane.  There were long lines of parents with their children waiting in line under a torrid tropical sun.  It was a pleasant sight to see the kids posing for their parents when they entered the plane.  I can’t emphasize enough the benefits of sharing experiences with your family. The children will never forget it, even when they grow up.  Usually they will follow the same pattern of sharing experiences with their own kids.

Below are several pictures of the people visiting a military aircraft and the swarm of people waiting in line to enter the plane.  Take a look.

Snapshot of a long line of people waiting to enter a military plane with the purpose of taking pictures of their siblings. As you can see, it was a sizzling summer day and the temperatures were reaching the top of the thermometer Photo by ©Omar Upegui R.

The visitors entered the aircraft from the back and exited from the front.  There were cameras everywhere.  It was interesting to point out that many parents were taking pictures with their cellphones.  That’s a new trend in Panama.

Snapshot of visitors exiting the aircraft from the front on a continuous moving line. The waiting was painful due to the hot temperatures. But children always get their way when they want something bad enough. Photo by ©Omar Upegui R.

Take notice of the clear blue skies and the soft cotton-candy white clouds hovering over the airport. It was an enticing scenery. Photo by ©Omar Upegui R.

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Acrobatics in the Sky

“There was more sky than a man could think, curving deep and far and empty, except maybe for a hawk or an eagle sailing.”—The Big Sky by A.B. Guthrie

It was tropical stifling afternoon.  The sun was out and the sky was as serene and azure as it could be—vast and limitless.  As far as you  could see, there was only the blueness of the sky.  The day was perfect for flying.

The Twisters were home on time; jumping up and down, excited to go to the airshow at the former Howard Air Force Base.  We were early birds and had no problems finding a parking space for the car and watching the organizers carefully preparing the show.

At ten o’clock sharp, three small planes reached for the sky and started tumbling, twisting, diving, swirling, and a lot more of aerial acrobatics to the amazement and excitement of the crowd.  The Twisters dropped their jaws and opened their eyes.  There was magic in the sky and they knew it.

Below is what I mean by aerial acrobatics.  We loved every second of the spectacle going on in the wild blue yonder.  Take a look.

Snapshot of a solitary American daredevil performing a range of aerial acrobatics during an airshow in Panama City, Panama. The sight was awesome, in search of a better word. Photo by ©Omar Upegui R.

Photo by ©Omar Upegui R.

Photo by ©Omar Upegui R.

Photo by ©Omar Upegui R.

Photo by ©Omar Upegui R.

You can feel the vastness of the blue dome elegantly described by A.B. Guthrie. The door of a DHL cargo plane emerges in the middle of the picture like a whale’s fin.  Photo by ©Omar Upegui R.

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His Majesty, The King

Snapshot of a kid wearing a paper crown during an airshow in the former Howard Air Force Base. For their proud parents, he is The King of the family. No doubts about that. Photo by ©Omar Upegui R.

I’ll bet his parents have kvelled frequently about him, being so cute.  He certainly looks as cute as a button in this picture.  He has a demeanor of a Royal Highness with his McDonald’s paper crown and walking straight as an arrow.

I used the word “kvelled” on purpose for this blog post.  In my quest to learn the English language, I try to add as many words to my personal vocabulary as I possibly can.  At least one or two new words a day.  In order to remember them, I try to use new words in my own sentences.  That way they will belong to me if I use them often enough.  They have been internalized.  At least that’s what I think.

If you have not encountered this word before, let me share with you its meaning.  Kvell is an intransitive verb—it can be used without an object.  It’s definition is to be extraordinarily pleased, especially to be bursting with pride, as over one’s family.  For example: “Critics kvelled over the violinist’s triumphant return to the stage where she made her debut many years ago.”

The word “kvell” is derived from Yiddish “kveln,” meaning “to be delighted,” which, in turn, comes from the Middle High German word “quellen,” meaning “to well, gush, or swell.” Yiddish has been a wellspring of creativity for English, giving us such delightful words as “meister” (“one who is knowledgeable about something”), “maven” (“expert”), and “shtick” (“one’s special activity”), just to name a few.

The date for the appearance of “kvell” in the English language is tricky to pinpoint exactly. The earliest known printed evidence for the word in an English source, is found in a 1952 handbook of Jewish words and expressions, but actual usage evidence before that date remains unseen.

And now you know why a parent would kvell over a regal kiddo like the one in the picture.  I know I would.  Good Day.

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Tight Family Bonds

Snapshot of The Twisters, Abdiel and Karol, in a brotherly hug while visiting a military plane at an airshow in Panama City, Panama. Promoting family values at a young age creates lifetime ties of love. Photo by ©Omar Upegui R.

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