Redefined Timeline

Panama City (as in Panama the country, not the seaside town in Florida) is the capital of the country, and it impressed the husband and I far more than we’d imagined it would. Both of us tend to prefer smaller towns and cities, and a little more privacy. Panama City consists of an Old Town with traditional buildings and narrow streets, and a starkly contrasting downtown with glass encased high-rises and expensive storefronts. The city is perched on the coast along the Panama Bay. It was also cleaner than expected, full of bunches of friendly locals, and much of the stores offer modern conveniences. 

We were informed the hostel we would be staying in had multi-share rooms. We’re married adults in our 30s (and 40s for him). I am NOT sharing a room with who knows how many strangers. We quickly decided that AirBnB would be consulted and suitable accommodation would be secured. Our very affordable condo overlooking the Plaza Santa Ana had a full kitchen, living room, large bed, and it was QUIET. Turned out the hostel the rest of the crew was staying in was a party all night long. The noise apparently died down around 4AM (Panama City does have a hell of a bustling nightlife). No thank you from these two old people. We dined with the group the last night at the restaurant/bar at their hostel, and high-fived each other when we realized the reality of the bullet we had dodged. It did have quite the nice rooftop view, though.

Much of our time in Panama City involved wandering the narrow alleys of the Casco Viejo, the old town area. Shops lined many of the streets, their doors thrown open to welcome people inside to peruse their goods. Given the time we were there, the World Cup was in full swing, and most store owners had it streaming over their wall-mounted televisions. Nearing the end of the final match, we stood with a couple store owners and watched the tense finale unfold as Argentina took the cup. 

We walked along the Cinta Costera, the causeway that connects the old town with the new town and runs along the water. It meandered passed the Mercado de Marisco, the huge fish market that we would have taken advantage of had we been staying in the city more than a couple of days. Our stroll culminated at the Pacific Lookout, a small park overlooking the Bahía de Panamá and the Pacific Ocean beyond that. 

The Plaza de Francia, or France Square, was the original town square and was now dedicated to France’s role in the construction of the Panama Canal. It was now lined with vendors selling touristy gifts and goods.

I know I mentioned the Panama Canal in the last post, but it seems only fitting that I mention it again in the post for the city where the channel is located. The engineering marvel can be seen from the other side of a high chain-link fence as the ships crawl through the locks. The cost to actually traverse the canal starts at $10,500 for vessels ninety-one feet or shorter. The trek from one coast to the other takes eight to ten hours. 

Had we had more time in the metropolis, we would have visited several other sites. Metropolitan Nature Park is an urban wildlife refuge with trails, picnicking spots and overlooks. Panamá Viejo is where the archaeological ruins of old Panama are located. The ruins are of the first European settlement on the American Pacific coast, as well as the vestiges of the first inhabitants of the isthmus. Other ruins are scattered throughout Casco Viejo, as evidenced in some of my photos.

Once again, we hunted down a police station in order to swap out patches. This resulted in conversations with many officers at the site, as well as several photographs. 

And thus, our tour came to an end, and we sadly had to fly home. I had a less than intelligent aisle mate, but he did provide me with some entertainment. The non-English speaking gent selected ‘English’ on the seat back screen and turned on Spanish subtitles, but proceeded to search for music, not the movies that the Spanish subtitles would be useful for. After awhile, he discovered he could not find any music he could understand and/or “read.” That failed pursuit caused him to start watching what was on my screen. Later, I watched him pluck his earbuds out to listen to the announcement by the stewardess that was also playing over said earbuds. What a head scratcher.

And with that, I have finally finished detailing 2022 travels. It only took me a year.