Independence Day

05:45, and fireworks in the old city signal the start of Independence Day in Panama.  Or rather, the start of the first of five independence-related days.  This, the first, celebrates independence (or separation) from Colombia in 1903, tomorrow the secret manufacture of the country's first flag and the day after that the successful prevention of a fight back by Colombian soldiers.  Then we get a few days back at work, before next week we celebrate the first cry of the fight for independence from Spain, and then finally at the end of the month the actual independence from Spain in 1821.  I hope they don't all start off with a 'wake-up call' at 5:45 in the morning.

After the fireworks we had a flypast of three jets, then another of seven helicopters.  I was wondering how many people get up to watch this, but by the time it finished the sky was flushed pink with the first light of the morning so I didn't go back to bed but made myself an early breakfast.

With my boxes having arrived from Senegal just before my last trip, I had borrowed a drill for the weekend from a colleague, so prepared myself for a day of putting up hooks for pictures and masks.  Only - the first obstacle - the flex of the drill was not long enough, so I went out to the DIY store to buy an extension cable.

On the way back I could hear drumming coming from the streets behind my building, so the DIY had to wait as I went to take a look at the Independence Day parades.  To Panamanians all this is of huge significance.  Apparently a few years ago the government made some noises about reducing the number of independence-related public holidays and there was uproar all over the country - not because they didn't want to lose a public holiday but because they didn't want to lose opportunities to express their patriotic fervour.

On that basis you might expect a lot of pomp and ceremony, or at least a lot of cheering and celebration, but really the only demonstration of patriotism is the proliferation of Panamanian flags at this time: flying from all the buildings, sticking out of car windows, hanging from backpacks...  The parade itself was quite dull, I thought.  Lots of drumming, but not in the African way that makes you want to sway your hips and tap your feet, but rather columns of school and college students in uniform banging out military style rhythms.  Between the drummers were girls dressed like cheerleaders, twirling batons, and with each group at least one woman dressed in the frilly white national dress, the pollera.

A couple of Panamanian colleagues have told me how beautiful their national costume is, but I'm afraid frilly white dresses don't do it for me.  I'm also disappointed at how much it seems to draw on their Spanish colonial heritage, resembling to my inexpert eye a white version of a flamenco dress - they also wear peinetas in their hair and many were using Spanish-style fans.  & the marching bands and cheerleaders draw so heavily on US culture.  There was no hint of local instruments or rhythms, nor anything I could see in the dress that drew on the customs of the various indigenous groups in Panama.

So I went home again, and back to my DIY.  I must say the flat is starting to look much more homely!