Panama City (Spanish: Ciudad de Panamá) is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Panama. It has a population of 708,738, with a total metro population of 1,063,000, and it is located at the Pacific entrance of the Panama Canal, Panama is the political and administrative center of the country. Juan Carlos Navarro is Panama’s current mayor.
Panama has been for 7 years in the top 5 places for retirement in the world according to International Living Magazine, Panama has a dense skyline, including mostly apartment buildings, but office complexes and hotels as well. Panama is an important hub for international banking and commerce.
It has an advanced communications service, Internet use is widespread; and Panama’s Tocumen International Airport offers daily flights to international destinations. Panama was chosen to be the American Capital of Culture for the year 2003 (jointly, with Curitiba, Brazil). Panama is a very multicultural place, with large populations from many different parts of the world. Spanish is spoken by most, and many speak some form of English.
Customer service is slowly improving, and surprisingly dismal in hotels. However, on the streets Panamanians are for the most part extremely friendly and helpful and would love to give you some advice. There’s great shopping, from high-end stores in the malls around Paitilla and in the banking district around Via Espana, to veritable bargains around La Central (Central Avenue, now turned into a pedestrian walkway) and the Los Pueblos outdoor mall. You can find many ethnic stores (mostly Chinese and Indian), in certain parts of the City.
One of the easiest ways to get around town is by taxi. Taxis do not have a meter. Fares are set by the authorities, and are determined based on what section of the city you are starting at and what section of the city you are going to, with a surcharge for every additional person. The cab driver should have a table (which may include a map) that will show the costs for the fare, and they are required to show it to you if you ask.
The city has numerous tourist attractions including world-class hotels and restaurants. Particularly interesting for tourists are various sites located in the old quarter (also commonly referred to as “Casco Viejo”, “Casco Antiguo” or “San Felipe”), including:
- Las Bóvedas, literally The Vaults, a waterfront promenade jutting out into the Pacific.
- The National Institute of Culture Building and across from it, the French Embassy;
- The Cathedral on Plaza de la Catedral
- Teatro Nacional, a recently renovated performance center, with outstanding natural acoustics; It provides an intimate performance environment and seating for about 800 guests.
- Museo del Canal Interoceánico (Interoceanic Canal Museum);
- Numerous restaurants located near the French embassy.
- Palacio de las Garzas (Heron’s Palace), the official name of the presidential palace.
The area immediately east of the Pacific entrance of the canal–known as the Amador Causeway is currently being developed as a major tourist center. Currently the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute operates a station and a small museum open to the public at Culebra Point on the island of Naos.
A new museum, The Bridge of Life Museum, is currently under construction on the causeway. The Bridge of Life Museum was designed by the American architect Frank Gehry famous for the Guggenheim Museum Bilbao and the Disney Concert Center in Los Angeles and it is scheduled to be completed in 2009.
Panama La Vieja (Old Panama) is the name used for the architectural vestiges of the Monumental Historic Complex of the first Spanish city founded on the Pacific coast of the Americas by Pedro Arias de Avila on 15 August 1519.
This city was the starting point of the expeditions that conquered the Inca Empire in Peru (1532). It also was a stopover point of one of the most important trade routes in the history of he American continent leading to the famous fairs of Nombre de Dios and Portobelo where most of the gold and Silver that Spain took from the Americas passed through.
The Committee decided to inscribe this property on the basis of cultural criteria (ii), (iv) and (vi), considering that Panamá was the first European settlement on the Pacific coast of the Americas, in 1519, and the Historic District preserves intact a street pattern, together with a substantial number of early domestic buildings, which are exceptional testimony to the nature of this early settlement.
The Salón Bolivar is of outstanding historical importance, as the venue for Simón Bolivar’s visionary attempt in 1826 to create a Pan-American congress, more than a century before such institutions became a reality.
Casco Viejo or Casco Antiguo, Panama, Casco Antiguo was designated a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1998. After the first settlement was destroyed by diseases and the attacks of pirates, being the last one and most remembered one Henry Morgan, the city moved into a rocky peninsula that was both healthier and easier to defend. In 1673 they founded what today is called officially Casco Antiguo, but is also known as San Felipe, Catedral and more commonly, Casco Viejo.
Currently under a revitalization process, Casco Antiguo is a mix of different architectural styles, which reflects the cultural diversity of the country. Caribbean, Republican, Art Deco, French and Colonial mix in a site of less than 800 buildings. Most of Panama´s City´s main monuments are located in Casco Antiguo: The Salón Bolivar, the main Cathedral (Catedral Metropolitana), the National Theatre (founded in 1908), Las Bovedas Monument, La Iglesia de La Merced, La Iglesia San Felipe Neri, Iglesia San José with its distinctive Golden Altar, which was saved from Panama La Vieja and transported into the new city.
The only example of true urban revitalization in the Panama, Casco Antiguo is already the second touristic destination in Panama City, second only to the Panama Canal. Both government and private sectors are actively participating not only in the restoration of the architectural patrimony but also of the human patrimony, investing in cultural industries and local entrepreneurship.
Panama is located between the Pacific Ocean and many tropical rain forests. The Parque Natural Metropolitano (Metropolitan Nature Park), stretching from Panama along the Panama Canal, has several unique bird species and other animals such as tapir, puma, alligators, etc. At the Pacific entrance of the canal is the Centro de Exhibiciones Marinas (Marine Exhibitions Center), a research center for those interested in tropical marine life and ecology. Centro de Exhibiciones Marinas is managed by the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute.
Tropical forests around Panama are vital for the functioning of the Panama Canal. These forests provide the canal with the watershed required for its operation (a rare example of a vast engineering project in the middle of the forest which actually helped preserve that very nature). Due to the importance of the Canal to the Panamanian economy, tropical forests around the canal have been kept in an almost pristine state. Along the western side of the Canal is the Parque Nacional Soberania (Sovereignty National Park) which includes Summit botanical gardens and a zoo. In this national park, the best known trail is the Pipeline Road, very popular among birdwatchers
Panama’s international airport, Tocumen International Airport has two runways and is located on the eastern outskirts of the city, is easily accessible. There are direct flights between Tocumen and New York, Newark, Washington D.C., Los Angeles, Houston, Dallas, Orlando, Miami, Fort Lauderdale, Atlanta, Amsterdam, Madrid, and all major cities in the Caribbean area, Central America and South America. Panama City also has a regional airport Marcos A. Gelabert, located in an area once occupied by Albrook Air Force Base. Marcos A. Gelabert Airport is the main hub for regional flights within Panama and the Pearl Islands in the Pacific.
Panama Canal. The easiest and cheapest is to go to the Miraflores locks, and just watch boats go by. You can also take a train along the canal, or obviously take a boat! A cab to Miraflores locks, or less if your Spanish is good. Casco Viejo. Casco Viejo is the historic part of town, where you will find many colonial style government buildings, cathedrals and museums including a Canal Museum.
Panama Viejo. The site of the ruins of the old city, with an interesting museum. Amador Causeway. The Amador Causeway connects the three islands to the mainland. From the causeway, there is a lovely view of Panama City, and the Puente de las Americas.
Many Panamanians like to spend their weekends jogging, riding a bicycle or roller-blading down the causeway, or having a meal or drinks in one of the many restaurants and bars on the islands. Mi Pueblitos. The pretty deserted museum (entrance free) on the slopes of Cerro Ancon showcases the different ethnicities of Panama. There are several artisans producing curios.
Panama has an extensive and efficient, yet confusing to tourists, form of public transportation consisting of colorful painted buses colloquially known as diablo rojo. A diablo rojo is usually “customized” or painted with bright colors, usually depicting famous actors, politicians or singers. It is now popular all over the city (and also in neighboring towns) for bus drivers to personally customize the interior and exterior of their diablo rojo. There is also a bus terminal near the Marcos A. Gelabert airport which together with the airport serves as the main transport hub for the rest of the country.
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