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Today was the second day of our STEMSEAS experience, and our first and last full day in Panama City. The city is absolutely beautiful, with the skyline being one of its most distinguishing features. The skyscrapers even come in fun, interesting shapes like the Tornillo building, which, if you couldn’t tell by the name, looks like a screw!
For today’s activities, we had initially planned to tour the Panama Canal Museum, but, interestingly enough, the museum is closed on Mondays. Luckily, we have a flexible team ready to adapt to anything thrown our way. Instead, we visited the Panama Nature Center, where we saw sloths, anteaters, porcupines, tortoises, and snakes that had often been brought there after being found injured and rehabilitated for release.
One of my favorite parts of the day was taking a tender boat out to our research vessel. The waves feel much larger when you’re on a small boat like that, often giving us a fresh spray of ocean water. When we arrived at the RV Atlantis, we used ropes to lift our luggage, then put on life jackets to climb the ladder aboard.
After settling in, we got to meet some of the techs aboard, learn the rules, and take a tour of the boat. Talking to the 3rd mate was very fun, and it was interesting to learn about all the things they have encountered while working 22 years aboard this boat. I’ve learned that there is never a man left for dead out on the water. No matter who gives the distress signal, the effort will always be put in to save a life or even 92.
All in all, today was a wonderful day, getting to know this amazing cohort. I will provide one tip of advice: do not eat a butt load of papaya before boarding the boat. You may pay for it later.
