Panama Day One

So much seems to happen in a day. Maybe it is because the day is so long and the sun gets so high.
We enjoyed a breakfast buffet here with some american items but a few crazy fruits. I can't remember what I tried but one tasted like incredibly acidic baby puke. Bluh.
We then took a tour of the Panama International Hotel School with one of the recruiters, a woman that works with the director and a manager here at the hotel. It takes up the first two floors of the property and is heavily integrated with the property, as I think hotel schools should be. Surprisingly the recruiter has the same problem we do at our school back in the states - have a service degree. With this school it is merely an associate's certificate which heavily impacts parent's decisions to send them to the school. The largest class is 8 people. Yes, 8 people. She says parents want their kids to have bachelor's and Panama has a lot of schools to choose from so it is hard to recruit. She also noted that most of the graduates of the other schools have a hard time finding jobs since Panama is such a service oriented country - they are really lacking human resources to run this industry and manage it. They are a lot like Memphis - a huge hub with a lot of tourism and service.
The school is really nice and even has its own restaurant on the second floor that the students work. The pastry students create pastries to serve to the guests at the lobby coffee shop. The hotel stays full with business travelers, so the shop does well. They even have a wine class with tables that have little bowls built in and a light underneath to study the wines. A huge wine rack is at the back.
After the tour we enjoyed relaxing a bit before heading to the mall. I assumed that mall meant an outdoor market considering how little I had seen of Panama until today. However "mall" meant mega-mall (Albrook Mall) the length of at least several football fields. It was huge. I have never seen a mall so large in my life. We never saw it all or even the end of the long stretch of stores. It is so huge that they call it the transit as a hub for taxi's and such. It was culturally lacking so we decided to head down to Carnavales. Basically it was like Memphis in May, a festival where people throw water and paper confetti. The kids around 12 or so get a little vicious with it. They threw a ball of confetti while we were walking past them. One of our friends was talking and practically swallowed it all. Ha! While we were down there we noticed the class distinction.
Part of downtown has huge condo towers. They are absolutely beautiful. There is a lot of thought put into the design and architecture of the buildings.
However, little thought was put into the slums that back right up to the outside buildings. It breaks my heart to see people being able to buy second homes in another country that not only overlook beautiful Panama Bay, but the heartbroken slums of the locals. Many are getting jobs because of how quickly the economy is growing, but they are also getting displaced because developers are aware that most condo-purchasers don't want to feel guilty for buying their condo or have a disgusting view. Understandable.
Before we left we went through a beautiful park filled with a lot of stuff for the kiddos. Also, it had free wifi. I thought that was super neat. I mean, I don't think we would ever have free wifi at a park in America, but clearly the government is getting a lot of money from all these developments and want to share it with their people by providing new parks with great views and even free wifi. The network is called "free internet for all" except in spanish. Sorry I can't remember the name. And I'm too tired to Google right now.
As we caught a cab back to the mall to catch our shuttle we drove through the slums. We saw a lot of dog fighting going on. You see stuff like that all the time on t.v. and don't think anything of it. But it is so different seeing it for yourself. Especially if it already bothers you that people live like that.
When we got back I took a much needed Siesta and then got ready for dinner with Dr. Jackson. He discussed having emotional control and emotional detachment in business. Business is competitive and you cannot continue to get emotionally attached to succeed. "If you want to save the world," he said, "go work for Red Cross and do what you love, but you will not be successful in business with a Red Cross attitude."
I understand that to a point.
I used to be way too humble with the work I did. I would not make it known how hard I worked and felt like it was right and polite to be modest. As a result you get passed up for promotions. We get our feelings hurt and wonder why our bosses, who are clueless on what we are doing because we are just "being polite," promotes others before us. Emotional control is something business students are not taught enough.
But I also believe in the power of conviction.
If you feel called to do work related to Red Cross, but also feel inclined to business, there is a way. I mean, look at TOMS shoes. They make super cheap shoes, over price them so that they have money not only to make an additional pair, but hand deliver them. I believe hospitality can have a role in that. I spoke with a man about a month ago who works at a Hampton Inn in NY and one of his floors is dedicated only to women and profits from the floor go to breast cancer research or something. How hard is it to dedicate a portion of our rates to a non-profit every month. Especially something like Habitat for Humanity.
Now that is hospitality.
After dinner we headed to Columbian Hacienda. One of many bars along a route on an island just outside the bay of Panama. The views were wonderful at night. Especially with a Sangria in hand!
Well I am super tired and have to get up in a few, so ta ta for now!