Medellin, Colombia

 Place: Medellin, Colombia

Weather: Scattered thunderstorms, 61/74F.

Route: From Santa Cruz de Mompox 646 km south on 78 and 45.

Population: 2,569,007 (2020)

Nicknames: City of the Eternal Spring, Capital of the Mountain, City of the Flowers.

Places to visit: Medellin Metrocable, Museum Pablo Escobar, El Castillo Museo y Jardines, Museo de Antioquia, Jardin Botanico de Medellin.

Images:

The valley city of Medellin (from strongcitiesnetwork.com)

Museo of Antioquia in the Plaza Botero (from theguardian.com)

Santa Cruz de Mompox, Colombia - UNESCO World Heritage Site

 Place: Santa Cruz de Mompox, Colombia

Weather: Mostly cloudy in the morning with scattered thunderstorms developing later in the day 74/88F.

Route: From Cartagena 301 km SE on 25 and 78.

Population: 44,124

Significance: Santa Cruz de Mompox was one of the first cities the Spanish established in the Northern South American inland, in 1540.  There are many buildings here still standing from the 16th-19th centuries.  The city is built on the Magdalena River.

Website: UNESCO World Heritage Site

Images:

Church of La Concepcion (from uncovercolombia.com)

The historic cemetery (from uhc.unesco.org)

Cartagena, Colombia - UNESCO World Heritage Site

 Place: Cartagena, Colombia

Weather: Mostly cloudy skies, 76/86F.

Route: The ferry service from Colon to Cartagena started in 2014. It isn't running during COVID times - but hopefully it will come back. It only takes 7 hours to cross from Colon to Cartagena.

Population: 914,552 (2020)

Significance: Along with Havana, Cuba and San Juan, Puerto Rico - Cartagena was one of the most important early Spanish colonial cities. It was founded in 1533. The earliest defensive fortifications were built in 1586 and were extended during the 17th and 18th centuries. Many of the these fortifications were built due to pirate attacks. Sir Francis Drake even overtook the city and didn't leave until he was paid a ransom.

Website: UNESCO World Heritage Site

Images: 

The Old town with modern city in the background (from whc.unesco.org)

Convento de Santo Domingo (from whc.unesco.org)

Colon, Panama

 Place: Colon, Panama

Weather: Thunderstorms, 76/85F.

Route: From Darien National Park 342 km WNW on 1 and 9.

Population: 78,000 (2016)

Significance: Actually founded by the United States in 1850 with the development of the Panama railway. Colon is the northern end of the Panama Canal. It is the home of a former U.S. Navy base when the canal and the land around it were owned by the United States. John McCain was actually born on the Navy base in Colon. The main reason I visit it today is that there is a car ferry service twice a week to Cartagena, Columbia - our first city in South America - where we will spend the next two months.

Image:

Colon free zone (from viator.com)

Darien National Park, Panama - UNESCO World Heritage Site

 Place: Darien National Park, Panama

Weather: Scattered thunderstorms, 75/85F

Route: From Panama City 282 km SE on route 1.

Significance: It is literally the end of the road.  One can drive from the Arctic Circle in Canada or Alaska all the way to just Yaviza, Panama - but there the road ends. Darien National Park has no roads that lead to neighboring Columbia. Its animals and native peoples are largely undisturbed. There are over 150 species of mammals including jaguars, spider monkeys, and giant anteaters. Over 530 species of birds, such as the great green macaw and harpy eagle.  The dense jungle takes over to form the southern border of the North American continent.

Website: UNESCO World Heritage Site

Images: 

The main way of transport in Darien National Park (from whc.unesco.org)

The endangered Harpy Eagle (from almatravelcentre.com.au)

Panama City, Panama - UNESCO World Heritage Site

 Place: Panama City, Panama

Weather: Variable clouds with scattered thunderstorms, 75/85F.

Route: From Portobelo 107 km south on Panama-Colon Expressway and Route 9.

Population: 880,691 (2013)

Significance: The city of Panama was founded in 1519 making it the oldest European city in the Americas on the Pacific Ocean.  In 1671 the original city was destroyed by a pirate attack and was rebuilt 5 miles away at the present site. The UNESCO World Heritage Site encompasses the old city, known as Panama Viejo, and the historic district of the present city.

Places to visit: Casco Viejo, Biomuseo, Metropolitan National Park, Museo del Canal Interoceanio de Panama, Salon Bolivar.

Website: UNESCO World Heritage Site

Images:

Panama City skyline (from liveandinvestoverseas.com)

Ruins of Panama Viejo (from whc.unesco.org)

Fortifications of Portobelo-San Lorenzo, Panama - UNESCO World Heritage Site

 Place: Fortifications of Portobelo-San Lorenzo, Panama

Weather: Thunderstorms, 76/86F.

Route: From Panama Canal 106 km NNE on route 9.

Significance: This string of fortifications on the Atlantic side of Panama were as important as the fortifications in Veracruz (Mexico), Cuba, and Cartenga (Columbia) in protecting Spanish trade routes in the 17th and 18th centuries. There was a large trade fair held in Portobelo during that time period that brought people from all over the Caribbean. 

Website: UNESCO World Heritage Site

Images:

Some of the most intact fortifications (from whc.unesco.org)

Defenses at the mouth of the Chagres River (from whc.unesco.org)

Panama Canal, Panama

 Place: Panama Canal

Weather: Thunderstorms, 76/86F.

Route: From El Silencio 684 km ESE on 34, 2, and Interamericana.

Significance: Panama is a place of contradictions. Historically it was considered to be more a part of South America - after the Spanish Empire collapsed in the America's in the early 19th century it became part of Gran Columbia, a country that included what is now Columbia, Venezuela, and Ecuador.  Now it is considered part of the North American continent, at least in part because it is literally the end of the road.  One could drive all the way from Alaska to Panama, but the Darien wilderness is the end of the road. In order to get to South America from Panama you have to get on a boat or a plane. And yet it is also home to one of the greatest transportation advances in modern history.  

The Panama Canal isn't a UNESCO World Heritage Site - but it probably should be.  The first plans for a canal were voiced by the Spanish soon after they first came to the Americas in the 16th century. Before the canal was built the only way ships could go from the Atlantic to the Pacific oceans was to go around the southern tip of South America (or an even more treacherous northern trip through the Bering Sea).  There wasn't any serious attempts at taking advantage of the thin Panama isthmus until the mid 19th century, when the U.S. built the Panama railroad, which was opened in 1855. Goods coming from the west coast to New York would be sailed by ship from San Francisco to the west coast of Panama - then be unloaded on trains that traveled the 51 miles to the Atlantic coast - and then loaded back onto ships that would travel to New York.

The Suez Canal was built prior to the Panama Canal - and was twice as long. The French had built the Suez Canal and thought that they could do the same thing in Panama. From 1881 to 1894 they attempted to to build a sea level canal. The main difficulty with building a canal in Panama versus the middle east was the jungle.  The wet season lasted 8 months and quickly rusted their equipment. Diseases like yellow fever and malaria killed thousands of workers. Eventually the project simply ran out of money. It was a huge scandal in France - and several people in charge ended up in prison.

Enter the United States. The first issue was that Panama was still a part of the country of Columbia. Columbia's government had been dragging their feet on an agreement and so the US military actively supported a Panama rebellion.  Three days after Panama won their independence from Columbia in November 1903, the new ambassador to the U.S. signed an agreement that the U.S. government could build and control the Panama Canal zone - which was roughly the same area as the Panama railroad.

It took 10 years and over 5,000 workers lives - but the Panama Canal opened in 1914. It cut off 8,000 miles off the trip around the southern tip of South America. Although it certainly was a huge accomplishment - it raised many questions regarding U.S. power in Central and South America - as well as workers rights. But in the end, of course, the economic interests won out.

Image:

A large cruise ship passes through one of the locks - ships are lifted 85 feet in total (from cruisecritic.com)

Settlements of the Diquis, Costa Rica - UNESCO World Heritage Site

 Place: Settlements of the Diquis, Costa Rica

Weather: Thunderstorms 77/85F.

Route: From La Amistad International Park WSW on 243 and 34.

Significance: The Diquis was a civilization that existed from 500-1500 CE. One of the most distinctive parts of this culture is that they produced these large, almost perfect spheres - which were obviously important, but that we have almost no understanding of why they were meaningful.  Costa Ricans view these spheres of symbols of ancient heritage and wisdom. There are many modern versions found in San Jose and other cities in Costa Rica.

Website: UNESCO World Heritage Site

Image:

One of the larger spheres (from whc.unesco.org)

A group of spheres (from atlasobscura.com)

La Amistad International Park, Costa Rica and Panama - UNESCO World Heritage Site

 Place: La Amistad International Park, Costa Rica and Panama

Weather: Thunderstorms, 72/84F.

Route: From San Jose 115 km SSE on Route 2.

Significance: La Amistad National Park is on the border of Costa Rica and Panama. It includes the highest mountains in Central America, with some over 12,000 feet. There is even evidence that glaciers were present here at one time. The huge differences in elevation and microclimates have produced many species of plants and animals that are only found in the park.  There are over 10,000 types of flowering plants, >200 species of mammals, >600 species of birds, >200 species of reptiles and amphibians. 

Website: UNESCO World Heritage Site

Images:

A Rainforest tour (from entercostarica.com)

The mountains (from whc.unesco.org)

San Jose, Costa Rica

 Place: San Jose, Costa Rica

Weather: Thunderstorms likely, 64/75F.

Route: From Guanacaste 262 km SE on route 1.

Population: 342,188 (2018)

Places to visit: Teatro Nacional Costa Rica, Pre-Columbian Gold Museum, Jade Museum, Museo Nacional de Costa Rica, Parque Nacional Braulio Carrillo, Museo de Arte Costarricense.

Images: 

Aerial view of San Jose (from govisitcostarica.com)

Teatro Nacional (from wanderlust.co.uk)

Guanacaste National Park, Costa Rica - UNESCO World Heritage Site

 Place: Guanacaste National Park, Costa Rica

Weather: Thunderstorms, 74/86F.

Route: From Managua 183 km SSE CA-1, NIC-1, NIC-2.

Significance: The park contains rare tropical dry forest, as it is on the western side of the mountains - away from the humid air of the Caribbean.  There are monkeys, jaguars, mountain lions, huge numbers of birds etc. 

Websites: UNESCO World Heritage Site, Costa Rica guide.

Video: 

Images:

The dry side of the mountain (from whc.unesco.org)

Howler monkeys (from costa-rica-guide.com)

Managua, Nicaragua

 Place: Managua, Nicaragua

Weather: Isolated thunderstorms, 74/89F.

Route: From Leon 94 km SE on route 12 and CA-3.

Population: 1,042,641

Places to visit: Antigua Catedral de Managua, The National Palace of Culture, Parque Japon Nicaragua, Parque Central.

Images:

Downtown Managua with Lake Managua behind (from theculturetrip.com)

The Old Cathedral (from atlasobscura.com)

Leon, Nicaragua - UNESCO World Heritage Site

 Place: Leon, Nicaragua

Weather: Partly cloudy with afternoon showers, 75/88F.

Route: From Tegucigalpa 293 km south on CA-5, CA-1, CA-3.

Population: 387,900 (2010)

Founded: original city 1524 - current city 1610

Motto: Downcast, But Never Defeated!

Significance: The UNESCO World Heritage Site is specific to the Leon Cathedral, a Baroque/Neoclassical building built in the late 18th-early 19th century.  However there are many other buildings from even earlier. The original city, founded in 1524, is actually 30 km away from the present city. It was buried by an eruption of the Momotombo volcano in 1610 and the city was moved to its current location. The ruins of the old city are also a World Heritage Site due to it being a rare example of a 16th century colonial city that has remained undisturbed for 400 years.

Website: Leon Cathedral UNESCO World Heritage Site, Old Leon Ruins UNESCO World Heritage Site

Images:

 

Leon Cathedral (from whc.unesco.org)

Iglesia La Recoleccion (from visitleon.info)

Tegucigalpa, Honduras

 Place: Tegucigalpa, Honduras

Weather: Scattered thunderstorms, 65/82F.

Route: From San Salvador 368 km ENE on CA-2 and CA-1.

Population: 1,259,646 (2019)

Nickname: Silver Mountain

Places to visit: Parque Nacional La Tigra, Museo para la Identidad Nacional, Basilica de Suyapa, Catedral de San Miguel, Iglesia Los Dolores, Honduras National Gallery of Art.

Images:

Downtown Tegucigalpa (from goconsultores.com)

Iglesia Los Dolores (from britannica.com)

San Salvador, El Salvador

 Place: San Salvador, El Salvador

Weather: Thunderstorms, 66/82F.

Route: From Antigua 268 km ESE on 14, CA 2, 8.

Population: 2,406,709 (2018)

Places to visit: Iglesia El Rosario, Jardin Botanico La Laguna, Museo de Arte de El Salvador, Catedral Metropolitana, Museo Nacional de Antropologia.

Images:

Plaza Libertad (from spanishelzonte.com)

Downtown with volcano in the background (from lonelyplanet.com)

Antigua, Guatemala - UNESCO World Heritage Site

 Place: Antigua, Guatemala

Weather: Scattered thunderstorms, 58/76F.

Route: From Copan 268 km west on CA 11, CA 10, CA 9.

Population: 46,054 (2016)

Significance: Literally means "Old Guatemala" - this was the site of the capital of Guatemala from 1543 until 1773. The city is located in a very earthquake prone area - not to mention flood prone and has a nearby volcano.  After the Santa Marta earthquakes destroyed most of the town in 1773 the Spanish government decided to move the capital to a safer area and the current capital of Guatemala City was founded.  What is left behind is a relatively small urban center and ruins of the many of the original buildings.

Website: UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Images:

Santa Catalina arch (from whc.unesco.org)

Ruins of El Carmen church (from whc.unesco.org)

Copan, Honduras - UNESCO World Heritage Site

 Place: Copan, Honduras

Weather: Thunderstorms, 61/75F.

Route: From Quirigua 162 km South on CA 9, CA 10, CA 11.

Significance: This is one of the last Mayan ruins that we will visit.  It is worth reflecting on the incredible number of large sites (Aztec, Olmec, Mayan etc) that run from north of Mexico City to Honduras (and beyond). This part of the world had as impressive of civilization as anything in Europe - especially at the time that these civilizations were at their height. Copan specifically had many advances in mathematics and astronomy.  Its hieroglyphic stairway plaza has over 1,800 individual glyphs making it one of the most impressive in the Mayan world.

Website: UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Video:

Images:

Stalae with hieroglyphic stairway behind (from whc.unesco.org)

Life size replica of Rosalia Temple at Copan Museum (from atlasobscura.com)