The Panamericana, which connects Panama City with the rest of the country, is completely fixed. There are blockades in several places, Roy tells De Telegraaf: “It is chaos here. We’ve been standing still for almost 24 hours and nobody is doing anything. We did not see this coming.” According to La Prensa Latina, students, workers and others have also joined the strikes and demonstrations.
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The view from the bus.
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stark contrast
The couple was told by the bus driver that this blockade can continue for a while. And the situation is not very comfortable. They make a journey that normally takes three hours. They have water with them, and a pack of biscuits: “But we are now on rations, because we cannot eat the biscuits too quickly.” The bus ride is in stark contrast to their wedding exactly a week earlier.
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Roy: „It is now starting to take a really long time. Especially because you don’t know how long this ride will last, you feel hostage. You can’t go anywhere.” Because where Roy and his wife are, it is mainly green: “Everything is green. It is absolutely beautiful, but there is no hotel or restaurant in sight.”
exhaustion
The bus that Roy and his wife travel with are also elderly people and young children: “This is of course also terrible for them.” Earlier in the journey, the screeching of horses in distress could be heard: “There was a wagon full of horses next to us. They were now so restless and panicked that they started screaming and biting each other. They hadn’t had water for far too long.”
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The restless horses on the road.
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Sounds about a possible acceleration of the ride are mainly in Spanish: “We don’t speak Spanish, but from what I understand the problem was solved on Monday. There is always talk about removing blockages, but we don’t notice anything.”
Still, the two have courage: “We are not afraid, it will be fine. Fortunately, there is no fearful situation, it is mainly boring and irritating.”