Each lock chamber is 110 feet wide and 1,000 feet long, and each gate weighs 700 tons. When Panama Canal was completed in 1914, locks were large enough for largest vessel in world to pass through. And since then, most marine architects have been careful to design hulls with canal's measurements in mind. That changed in 1934 when Queen Mary was launched. She was 118.5 feet wide, but it didn't matter: she was built for transatlantic service, like Queen Elizabeth, launched a little later.

But shipping economics call for ever larger loads. There has been talk for a number of years about widening canal, one possibility being construction of wider parallel locks beside existing ones. One limiting factor could be availability of water in greater volume. Other options that have been discussed, including building a canal at sea level that would need no locks. One problem with this is current that would be created because oceans are at different levels.

Another option that Panamanians don't even want to think about is original idea: to build a canal through Nicaragua.

All naval vessels except aircraft carriers can squeeze through Panama Canal, and do so without damage, though occasional battleship loses some paint. The flight deck on aircraft carriers is angled to give greater runway length, and they cannot clear canal. The world's largest oil tankers cannot make it, either, and have to offload their cargoes to smaller vessels at terminals on either end.

Apart from being crossroads of world's shipping, Panama Canal is a great attraction for tourists. There are daily cruises that ply either whole length or part of it. It's an excellent way to view part of Panama's history, past and present.

To learn more about some of interesting places to see in Panama, visit http://www.yourpanama.com/travel-to-panama.html

Sydney Tremayne publishes http://www.yourpanama.com, a leading website for tourists and for potential ex-pat retirees in Panama. His team of experts gives regular Q&A teleseminars that can save costly mistakes. To find out more, go to http://www.yourpanama.com/fear.html

Panama is tales of pirates, of Spanish treasure and forts that tried to protect it; it is jungle and monkeys and parrots. It has more birds than all of North America put together, some 960 different species. There is even a jungle preserve right inside city limits. And Darien National Park on Colombian border is a jungle of monstrous size and one of world’s richest wildlife habitats.

Panama, that thin strip of land joining northern and southern halves of Americas (yet running east to west) provides a 50-mile wide divide between worlds two largest oceans. And its narrowness has provided ingredients for much of its history. The Spanish used it as a land bridge to transship Inca treasure en route to Spain. This attracted pirates whose exploits here made them household names. The rest, as they say, is history.

The French tried to build a canal, and went broke. The Americans, who proved value of isthmus during Gold Rush, succeeded where French had failed. And today, Panama Canal, now run by Panamanians, produces much of country’s wealth. More shipping is registered in Panama than in anywhere else on earth.

Panama is a land of diversity. Its people are friendly. If your car breaks down, runs out of gas, or gets a flat, within a few minutes someone will stop to help. Try that in Manhattan! The language is Spanish, but in major hotels and many places in capital, people who serve you speak English. And if they don’t, there’s sure to be a helpful English-speaking person within earshot who will offer assistance. Currency: U.S. dollar since 1904. What could be easier?

Sydney Tremayne publishes http://www.yourpanama.com, a leading website for tourists and for potential ex-pat retirees in Panama. His team of experts gives regular Q&A teleseminars that can save costly mistakes. To find out more, go to http://www.yourpanama.com/fear.html