Today is Panama’s 102nd birthday. On November 3,1903,Panama was officially separated from Colombia and became an independent nation. The country celebrates with lots of parades and flags everywhere,along with a 4-day weekend.
The flag of the Republic of Panama is a red,white and blue quartered flag. The white in the flag represents peace,the blue star stands for purity and honesty (and the Conservative party),and the red star symbolizes authority and law (and the Liberal party). This flag was adopted on December 20,1903,and was designed by Panama’s revolutionary leader and first President,Manuel Amador Guerrero. (flag information taken from www.enchantedlearning.com)
We are thankful for this peaceful and free country we are living in as guests. It has its imperfections,of course,but we are free to do our work and worship as we please. There is no standing army,only a well-trained police force. The weather is fairly consistent and we are protected geographically from the force of hurricanes and other weather extremes. The physical landscape of Panama is lovely,as you can see from some of our gallery pictures. Any time you want to come and visit,let us know!
Speaking of visits,President Bush will be visiting here November 6 and 7. The president of Panama,Martin Torrijos,had visited the White House earlier this year and extended an invitation to President Bush to come to Panama. Since Bush is coming down this way for a summit,he’s making time to stop in. He will be visiting the Canal and the American cemetery (which is literally next door to the kids’school) and attending a local baseball training camp in a park just a mile from our house. We hope to be able to see some of the action,if only from a secure distance. We expect the security will be very tight. Monday the 7th has been declared a national holiday,due to Bush’s visit,so we actually have a 5-day weekend,just perfect for Danny’s birthday on Sunday.
