Here in the US, we have a lot of things

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Here in the US, we have a lot of things that most other people would love to have, yet we treat them as if they were daily things. We have rights that in other countries they may never have, a government that help its citizens out as much as it can. A military so strong that no one would even think of attacking us. But as we are accustomed to all of these wonderful things, we got to realize that in other countries there are people without a home, children dying at speeds that would sound phenomenal for a death rate. Some of these things apply to the wonderful country of Panama. Their national name? It's quite simple. República de Panamá. Panama gained independence from Columbia back in 1903. Immediately after they gained independence, they signed a treaty with the USA allowing for the construction of a canal on either side of Panama.

Panama is located in Central America. Down there they have intense weather. Weather that will be good one minute and bad the next. It's natural for them since they live so close to the equator and are used to all of the humid air around them With their population at 2,882,329, its quiet small compared to the USA. Their main religion is Roman Catholic with over 93% of the population. The other 7% is either Protestant or something else. What was really surprising was the literacy rate for Panama. Their literacy rate is 89%. That means that only 11% of their whole 2.8 million people do not know how to read or write. More then half of Panamas population is Mestizo which includes Indian and European ancestry. The rest include West Indian, or some other type of race. Their official language is Spanish but a large amount of Panamanians are bilingual in English since English is becoming less and less rarer in other countries.

Like all countries, Panama has celebrations of its own. They declared their independence from Columbia on November 3rd. 1903. On Independence Day, the Panamanians celebrate with fireworks and parades. Another national holiday that panama has is Flag Day. This is to celebrate the flag of Panama which is on November 4th. Each October 21st, they hold a special celebration called the Festival of the Black Christ which is held in Portobelo. They hold a religious ceremony with a life size Christ. After the festival is over, it is then decorated with flowers and candles. After that, eight men carry it on their back through town with and unusual way of walking. They take two steps forward then one back. After it has traveled throughout the city, it is then taken back to the church. Then there is dancing, celebrating, and food until dawn. The statue of Christ has been there since 1658 in Portobelo where some Spanish sailors thought that it was stopping the ship from traveling safely.