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Last year, when Mayor Juan Carlos Navarro's political fate may have depended on a good show during the Christmas parade, Mother Nature was uncooperative. Just as the festivities got underway, the metro area was hit by a tropical cloudburst. It was such a heavy rain, in fact, that it brought tragedy to nearby San Miguelito.

It turned out that Panama City voters were not so fickle as to oust a mayor on the basis of mid-December weather, and Navarro went on to a resounding victory in this past May's elections.

This year Mother Nature was much kinder to hizzoner. It was a mostly sunny afternoon, and even when the clouds moved in, they refrained from soaking the parade. People came from all over the country --- and in one band's case, from Costa Rica. A lot of toys were distributed to kids who otherwise might not have received anything for Christmas. The bombero and police and high school marching bands provided the music. There were some fairly impressive floats. The scouts deployed along the parade route to help anyone in distress. It was a great time, and when the marching was over and the sun went down, Mother Nature continued her cooperation and left the sky dry and clear enough for a very good fireworks display.

Also in this section:
Christmas parade
American Fair
Investigative journalism prize

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