Multiple Group Project 2018

On Tuesday, during the project, the group will take a day to visit Isla Gómez, a small island off the Pacific coast of Panama. The island is in a national park and is rather “untouched” but beautiful. The group will bus approximately an hour and 45 minutes to Boca Chica, where they will board 12-passenger boats that will take them an additional 30 minutes out to the island.

Once on the island, volunteers can relax on the beach, swim in the calm water, snorkel, and explore the island. Since the island is a national park, there are no chairs or permanent fixtures on the beach. If you have portable chairs or hammocks that you want to bring, they would be useful on the excursion day. We will spend a few hours on the island before heading back to the mainland.

At the end of the project, volunteers will return to Panama City where they’ll have the chance to see an important part of Panamanian and American history when they visit the Panama Canal. Completed in 1914, the canal, which cuts across the Isthmus of Panama, enabled cargo ships to take a more direct route from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific (and vice versa), instead of traversing the dangerous waters of Cape Horn. The Panama Canal is considered one of the seven wonders of the modern world. This short excursion includes a stop at the Miraflores lookout tower, which gives a view of the working canal locks, and a visit to the visitor’s center which includes a three-level museum, 10-minute informative movie, and gift shop.

After visiting the canal, the group will stop by artisan markets for souvenir shopping before heading to the airport for late afternoon and evening departures.