To fully admire the Casco Viejo’s defensive structure and to take a lovely walk while you’re at it, head to the approximately two-mile marine viaduct that encircles the Casco Viejo and forms part of the City’s famous coastal beltway, the Cinta Costera. The marine viaduct opened in April 2014 and has a bike path, walking/jogging path, water fountains, viewing areas, and a plethora of flowers! As you walk, you will enjoy fantastic views of the Casco’s walls (which were so expensive, the Spanish King was rumored to have looked west and expressed his expectation to see the walls from Spain), the mother of pearl laden spires of the Cathedral, and the old military barracks among many other points of interest. The marine viaduct was built primarily to help ease traffic in Panama City but has been quite controversial given that it interrupts the beautiful sea views from the Casco. Residents also feared it would impact the Casco’s World Heritage Site status (thankfully, it didn’t). To learn more about the controversy, see: http://archrecord.construction.com/news/2012/10/121022-Panama-City-Highway-Stirs-Controversy.asp Despite the initial controversy, the Engineering News-Record recently awarded the third phase of the Cinta Costera, which includes the marine viaduct, the 2015 Global Best Project in Roads and Highway Award. For more information, see: http://www.marketwatch.com/story/engineering-news-record-selects-panamas-cinta-costera-3-for-best-road-and-highway-project-honor-2015-08-2 How to get there: If you’re staying in the Casco Viejo, you can easily walk to the entrance. If you're driving, you can park your car in the lot right after the roundabout en route to the Casco Viejo (flagged on the map below). If you take a taxi, you could ask to be dropped off at the Mercado de Mariscos (which is just a short walk away from the start of the viaduct) or at the parking lot indicated below.
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The Aji Chombo, the black pepper, the famous Panamanian scotch bonnet! Ranging from 100,000 to 350,000 Scoville Heat Units (far outpacing the jalapeno's 2,500 to 8,000 units), this national sauce adds kick to any dish! The recipe for this smoking sauce is attributed to Antillean-Panamanians who largely traveled to Panama to work on the construction of the Panama Railroad and the Panama Canal.
Rio Abajo was originally home to Afro-Antillean canal workers, and the food reflects the neighborhood’s heritage. Between 13th and 14th streets on Via España, you’ll find a row of fondas (inexpensive restaurants that are usually family run) offering traditional Afro-Antillean Panamanian dishes. We chose to stop at Donde Francis, a sparsely decorated, open-air restaurant (tip: if it looks like it is going to rain, choose a seat in the center of the restaurant as the rain sometimes flies in!). A friend from Rio Abajo also highly recommended neighboring Donde Fanso. Don’t let the informal appearance dissuade you – this place has mouth-watering cuisine! We tested five-star bacalao (salted cod) with ackee, perfectly cooked arroz con coco y frijoles (coconut rice with beans) as well as the ever-famous saus (pigs feet soaked in vinegar and chile peppers – pigs feet ceviche, almost!). My Panamanian family tells me that I will not be fully Panamanian until I can devour a juicy pig’s foot, but I still have yet to find the stomach to consume one of these treats. My fellow diners, however, ranked the saus at Donde Francis as excellent. During the week many of these fondas offer just the basic staples, catering to day workers who stop in for a simple bite to eat. From Friday evening to Sunday, the menu expands and changes according to what’s fresh. Aim to arrive early for a weekend meal – the fondas are small and tend to fill up. Most of the fondas also offer carryout. Bring cash, as many of these fondas do not accept credit cards. Getting there: Donde Francis and Donde Fanso are located between Calle 13 and Calle 14 on Via España. There is parking available just behind the restaurants as well as nearby Metrobus stops. The all-time, well-priced classic? El Trapiche! With its principal branch along Via Argentina as well as an outpost at Albrook Mall, El Trapiche has all of the classics! Go here for sancocho (typical Panamanian chicken soup), corvina (sea bass) and fried yucca (a tuber typical in the region), limonada con raspadura (sugar-cane lemonade), tamal de olla (a tamale soup) among other classics. El Trapiche also serves the typical Panamanian breakfast: hojaldre (fried dough without the sugar – also referred to as a Panamanian pancake on some menus) and a thin beefsteak. Talk about a hearty start to the morning! The restaurant is typically filled with as many locals as tourists.
For gourmet Panamanian cuisine, I love Riesen. Owned by a young Panamanian chef and operated on the first floor of his home, the menu offers inventive twists that give new life to Panamanian classics and local ingredients. I particularly enjoy the appetizers here - churros made from ñame root, hojaldres dressed with pork and guava barbeque sauce, daintly prepared torrejas de maiz (corn fritters) . . . and leave space for dessert! The Mama Lllena, literally the full mama, is a rum drenched, delicious Panamanian bread pudding creation. The menu changes monthly and the restaurant is small – I’d recommend making reservations beforehand. This is our go-to splurge restaurant when we have visitors in town. The weekend beach crowd often drives right past the turn for Punta Chame and heads straight to the stretch of beaches further along the Pan-American Highway, where high rises and throngs of people compete for open stretches of sand. For a pleasant surprise, turn left at the large Punta Chame sign (right after Quesos Chela, the ever-popular roadside stand that sells delicious chicheme (popular Panamanian sweet corn milk drink) and cheese empanadas among other snacks) and drive along the winding road for about 30 minutes to Punta Chame, a narrow peninsula with relatively untouched beaches. Punta Chame has one main road - if you prefer to stroll on the beach by yourself, park on your right-hand side and walk along the right side of the peninsula. If you like a bit more action on the beach and want to try out kite-surfing, head left! The water on the left-hand side is very calm and shallow. Undecided? I usually park close to the end of the road and walk around the tip of the peninsula to see both sides. Punta Chame is an excellent beach for a nice walk or long run given its expansive and relatively flat, well-packed stretches of sand. Depending on the season, you may see several jellyfish. Barro Colorado Island
A few weeks ago, I traveled to Barro Colorado Island with two friends that were visiting Panama. The Island had been on my ‘to-visit’ list for ages. It is home to one of the branches of the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute (STRI) and has one of the highest concentrations of flora and fauna in the world. The Island was formed during the construction of the Panama Canal - when the engineers flooded territory to create Lake Gatun the top section of a mountain (now Barro Colorado Island) remained above water. In 1923, the Island became a biological reserve and since has been a laboratory for various long-term ecological studies. STRI organizes day tours of the Island that include a hike with a nature guide and lunch at the STRI Center. We booked our trip online with several weeks of anticipation (it can be hard to secure a space because groups are limited to 10 or so people per day) and followed up with a phone call (the online reservation system seems to be a bit weak – if you don’t hear back from the center after submitting an online request, call!). On the morning of our tour, we drove from Panama City to STRI’s dock in Gamboa (approximately 40 minutes), boarded the ferry and arrived on the Island shortly thereafter. Our nature guide gave us background information on the island and we hit the trail. The walk itself was short and easy – there were several short sections that went uphill but the trail was well developed and not strenuous. Our guide had worked on a number of the research projects taking place on the island and stopped regularly to tell us the work being carried out and general information on the various flora and fauna. Be prepared to learn a lot about ants! We saw three types of monkeys along the way, an owl, various species of birds and a large number of insects. Our guide provided great information and we very much enjoyed the journey – it felt like we were in biology class with the very coolest of classrooms! For anyone interested in exploring and learning more about Panama’s biodiversity, this trip is a must! For information on the day trip, see: http://www.stri.si.edu/english/visit_us/index.php One of the most shocking experiences for newcomers may very well be a simple ride in a taxi. So, what’s different? What should you know before you jump in one of Panama’s speedy yellow cabs?
· Fares. Taxis in Panama do not have meters, and drivers often decide on the price at the spur of the moment. My recommendation is to establish a fare with the driver before you enter the cab. Fares oftentimes reflect the number of people in your party. As a rule of thumb, no fare in the center of Panama should be more than five to six dollars (even for a group). Exceptions include the Amador Causeway, which for some reason taxis charge approximately US$10 to get to (exorbitant for Panama!). Fares to and from the Casco Viejo can also reach US$10, especially on a Friday or Saturday night, although if you’re willing to search/negotiate you should be able to find a lower price. The Government has established a fare calculator, which you can access here (http://www.transito.gob.pa/tarifa-taxis), but drivers typically do not abide by these fares. · Taxis are collective affairs. Don’t be surprised if your cab driver picks up other clients along the way. This will not affect your fare, re: you receive no discount for sharing. Taxis are basically like mini-buses in this sense. Of course, if you take a taxi from your hotel you may receive a taxi just for you and, of course, a higher price tag. · Demand is higher than supply, the culture of “no voy.” Before you enter a cab, the driver will usually ask you where you’re going (re: the driver will roll down the window, and you shout “Paitilla,” or wherever it may be that you are traveling to). Taxi drivers will then pull over or drive on depending on whether they’re willing to drive there. Drivers oftentimes will not go (saying “no voy,” literally I’m not going) to places because of Panama’s famous “tranques” (traffic jams) or because they simply do not feel like driving to that part of the city (leading to my hypothesis that demand is probably still higher than supply). · Small bills. Travel with small bills, as cab drivers oftentimes do not have change. Also, do not get out of the taxi until you get your change. · Tips. In Panama, there is not a culture of tipping taxi cab drivers. · Honk, honk, honk. Drivers that have space will honk their horn repeatedly to let you know that they have space. If this sounds too chaotic, alternative private transit options include Uber and hotel taxis/transport. The airport taxis are also a different class of taxi and cost approximately US$30 from the airport to the center city. Still best to establish the fare before you jump in! The Glory of the Panamanian Snow Cone. Raspado! The perfect (albeit short term) remedy to conquering the heat as you walk around the Casco Viejo! As you stroll the streets, keep your eyes open for carts with huge blocks of ice on them and listen for vendors’ calls of “raspaooo, raspaooo, raspaooooo.” Choose a size, flavor, whether or not you want condensed milk and voilà! Icy, cold snow in 90-degree weather! This sweet Panamanian treat usually costs anywhere from US$1 to US$2 dollars. Buen provecho!
Your best friend in the Panamanian winter months (May to December) may be your umbrella! Downpours – or aguaceros as they are called here – can overtake a blue sky in seconds! The thunderous rain comes down as though buckets of water were falling on your head, and the speed at which you can dig into your pocket and extract your umbrella may determine whether or not you look like you’ve jumped in the Bay fully clothed (which I don’t recommend – the water is quite contaminated)! The rain can even be a bit too much for an umbrella. My recommendation is to hop in one of Casco Viejo’s lovely cafés, sit the storm out (the heavy rain usually does not last for more than an hour) and comfort yourself with the knowledge that you really are having a truly Panamanian experience.
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