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Casco Viejo – The Casco Viejo is "new Panama,"
the fortified city center, built after "old Panama" city burned
in 1671. This neighborhood has Spanish style buildings and plazas. Tip:
It's best to take a taxi to the Casco Viejo, and don't wander around the
streets at random. Huge sections of the neighborhood are unrestored slums. |
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 Plaza
de la Independencia – Start your explorations of the Casco Viejo
at the Plaza de la Independencia, which commemorates the independence of
Panama in 1903. It's a quiet plaza, surrounded by pastel colored buildings,
the Metropolitan Cathedral (it's worth taking a quick look inside the cathedral),
and the Panama Canal Museum. |
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Panama
Canal Museum (Museo del Canal Interoceanico de Panama) – This museum
is a good introduction to the Panama Canal, and the history of Panama. Exhibits
start with the earliest inhabitants of Panama, the Camino de Cruces, the
treasure trails across the isthmus (including re-creations of gold and silver
ingots, Spanish armor, cannon balls and muskets), posters and weapons from
the California gold rush. Other displays document the construction of the
Panama Canal, including excellent historical films, time lapse video of
boats zipping through the locks, and transfer of the Canal to Panama in
1999. The exhibits are labeled in Spanish, an English audio tour is available. |
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Palacio
de las Garzas – The president of Panama lives in this palacio,
nicknamed "La Casa Blanca" (the White House). Just walk a two
blocks east from the Plaza de la Independencia, ask permission of the guard
to walk further down the street, and you'll see the "white house,"
a lovely multi-story Spanish-style mansion, overlooking the bay. |
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Iglesia
de San Jose – Don't miss this impressive church with a huge golden
Baroque altar (Altar de Oro). When Henry Morgan sacked Panama City in 1671,
according to stories, a priest disguised the golden altar by painting it
black, so it was saved from the pirates. |
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Paseo
las Bovedas – Take a stroll on the promenade at the tip of the
Casco Viejo. You can see remnants of old Spanish dungeons, brown buildings
that are now art galleries and shops, and a statue dedicated to thousands
of workers who died building the Panama Canal. Walk along the promenade
for a view of the Bridge of the Americas, causeway islands to the west,
and city skyline to the east. At low tide, you'll see fingers of volcanic
rock, jutting out into the ocean (making this promontory seem even more
fortified). |
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Mi Pueblito – Mi Pueblito is a re-creation of
a typical Panama town at the turn of the 20th century – a Spanish style
church, a school, a house, museum with gorgeous hand-embroidered Panamanian
dresses, and cobblestone plaza, plus replicas of a Caribbean style village
with bright colored buildings, and Kuna Indian village from the San Blas
Islands, with thatched houses and exhibits of Kuna traditions. There are
folklore performances on the weekends, and shops to buy local arts and crafts. |
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Parks – |
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Parque
Andres Bello (Via Argentina, El Cangrejo) – If you're staying in
the Cangrejo district, this is a quiet neighborhood park on Via Argentina,
north of Calle 1ra B Norte, with swings, slides, climbing structures, teeter-totters,
a basketball court, benches and grass to run around. |
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Parque
Urraca (Balboa Ave., near Ave. Federico Boyd, Bella Vista) – A
wide, spacious park, right across from the bay on Balboa Ave, with large
grassy areas, swings and playground. |
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Amador Causeway – The Causeway is a real oasis
in Panama City, four tiny islands, Naos, Culebra, Perico and Flamenco, connected
by a road, lined with palm trees and wide walkways. Located at the entrance
to the Panama Canal, it's quiet, green and tropical, and the perfect place
to walk, bike or watch the ships lined up for the Canal. |
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Go
for a bike ride – Rent bikes and go for a ride on the wide sidewalks.
You can rent surreys to pedal the whole family around (this is great if
you have little ones), kids' bikes, full-size bikes, pedal karts from Tony
Bikes Rental on Culebra. |
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Centro
de Exhibiciones Marinas (Marine Exhibits Center, Punta Culebra) –
This small marine exhibits center, run by the Smithsonian, is a gem! Check
out exhibits of Panama Pacific Ocean fishes (including a model of a 13 meter
shark), tanks of live moray eels, hawksbill turtles, bright colored topical
fish, and a touch pool for little ones with sea anemones and sea urchins.
Touch tables have coral, turtle shells, marine animal skeletons and tropical
sea shells. Take the short trail through dry tropical forest, and keep your
keep eyes peeled for the gigantic green iguanas sunning themselves. At the
tip of the island is a telescope to watch boats, including labeled pictures
so kids can identify shrimp boats, cruise ships, tankers, tuna boats, Panamax
ships, yachts, container ships and tugs. Exhibits are in Spanish and English. |
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Ride the Panama Canal Railway (Corozal) – Take a trip on the Panama Canal Railway. Completed in 1855, it was
the first transcontinental railroad – the track crosses the isthmus
from the Pacific to Atlantic Ocean. Today, this historic train has been
refurbished, and it's a nice, somewhat pricey, trip back in time. The train
leaves Panama City at 7:15am, and goes along the Panama Canal, through the
Gaillard (Culebra) Cut, across Lake Gatun, to Colon. The train returns to
Panama City at 5:15pm. The ride lasts about an hour. |
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Panama Canal – Miraflores Locks, Gatun Locks, and trips on Gatun Lake are all a
day trip from Panama City |
