Panama City Parks |
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| Written by Editor |
| Wednesday, 06 September 2006 14:09 |
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I like to exercise. I like the feeling you get after you just finished a great workout, take a shower, and then are in a great mood for the rest of the day. Endorphins and I get along great.
I started running around my neighborhood ever since I arrived in Panama. Again, because I like to exercise. I would just find side streets to stomp my feet on, trying to avoid main streets because of the traffic and in an effort to explore new areas of the city. I would also run around in hopes of finding some sort of track, that is one big circle, so I can install some running security in this crazy life of uncertainty. Also, I figure if I am running in circles I can't get lost. Via Argentina is a side street right near my apartment where you can find anything from an Italian restaurant to a Mail Box Etc. Searching for a new place to eat a while ago, I noticed I was constantly passing a park. This park, El Parque Mirador, has several playgrounds, a basketball court, trees, walking/running paths, benches, and a police station all on the premises. It is also well shaded by trees and in a great neighborhood. I went running one morning around 6:30am, hoping it might be a little less humid, and decided that I was going to run around the paths at the park. Well, apparently I wasn't the first person to think of this fantastic idea. At 6:30am there were about 20 people out, maybe 90% walking the paths, and everyone loving life. I started off by doing my little stretches then started jogging at the higher end of the park, opposite of Via Argentina. I started to run to the left of this big tree that is enclosed by light blue tile, then to the right of 10 commandments statue, veering to the right, hitting a fork in the path and opting for the longer one, running uphill parallel to the apartments, following the path that is now starting to make a loop: at this point I am a little past the 10 commandments statue, and heading back up to where I started, which is now all uphill again. I am thinking to myself, OK, I can do this. One thing I was noticing though was that everyone was trying to make eye contact with me. And I have to admit, I was getting a little defensive. I wasn't sure if they wanted to make eye contact because of the fact that I was jogging while most people were walking, because I sweat profusely while I work out, because I am clearly a Gringa, or because they wanted to say good morning to me. After a couple of laps I decided that it was all of the above. I went back the next day and started to pick up the pace a little bit. I noticed that when I start to run faster I get tired quicker. Last week I went to the park in the afternoon, around 4pm. To my delight, I saw that the basketball court was filled with young boys and girls from--I would say--9-16 years old playing soccer. I'm going to toot my own horn here and say that I know a thing or two about soccer. I played for quite and number of years and in college. These kids amazed me in every way possible. Their ball skill and agility was impeccable. One thing that put the icing on my cake was that there was a girl, around 12 years old, playing just like she was one of the guys. Not only am I surprised that she was that good, but that they boys were letting her play. I can remember being in college at my prime and still fighting for guys to pass me the ball during pickup games. After my run that day I decided to sit in the park and just observe. I noticed that there were a lot of young children running around and playing on the playground. The moms and dads would sit and chat on the benches, just like at home. There were plenty of people in the park walking their dogs, pushing their strollers, or just sitting down on the bench and reading newspapers. Part of the park is currently being renovated with a sign in front saying, “We are working for the community.†Now, this police station that is attached to the park is quite an incentive to go. At first though, I didn't see any policemen there, and I was like 'what a crock, this is just on old police station'. One day I saw a policeman there which revoked my thoughts. He actually started talking to me as I was getting a sip of water. He was explaining to me, or I think he was explaining, that I had bad running form and that running on my heels and not on my toes is bad for my back. I told him, I knew I had bad running form. I wanted to tell him that soccer players have bad running form and we run with our arms out to the side because we need to fend off opponents when they try to push us, but, umm my Spanish isn't that good. Much like visiting ClaroCom, I feel like I am starting to develop a strong attraction to this park. Its facilities are so well maintained that I feel like I need use them.
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| Last Updated on Monday, 11 August 2008 21:57 |
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