Panama City

Panama City is a city of great contrasts - between old and new, rich and poor, humanity and nature.

Panama City was founded in 1519 by Spanish conquistador Pedro Arias Davila. It was the first permanent European settlement on the Pacific coast of the Americas. The city quickly became important as a starting point for Spanish expeditions to Peru, and then as an important transit point for gold and silver headed for Spain. Panama City grew from that point on, until 1671 when privateer Henry Morgan and 1,400 men attacked and looted the city, which was destroyed by fire. I toured the ruins of the city, now known as Panama Viejo. The tower of the old cathedral is an iconic symbol for the nation of Panama.

The city was then rebuilt to the west to a location that was more easily defended from attack by land or sea. The area is now known as Casco Viejo and contains many of the important buildings of early Panama City. Casco Viejo has seen a revival in recent years with many buildings renovated and turned into nice restaurants, boutique hotels, and shops, with some delapidated buildings still remaining. It's a beautiful corner of Panama City and a popular tourist destination.

Today Panama City is a major economic and financial center driven by banking, commerce, and tourism. The shipping industry associated with the Panama Canal contributes greatly to the economy, particularly with the recent expansion of the canal. The city is a profusion of tall, gleaming skyscrapers. Some of the modern architecture is quite impressive. After driving through Central America, I was shocked by the size and modernity of Panama City.

Mixed into all of that, however, are some of the poorest slums that I have ever seen. On the second day in the city, I went to find the police inspection station that I would later need to visit for shipping the truck. On the way I drove past some of the tall skyscrapers, through some nice downtown neighborhoods with beautiful homes, and then into a neighborhood that was shocking to me. Rundown buildings with piles of garbage everywhere and people hanging out in the streets. The buildings must be incredibly hot. One evening I was following Google maps from Casco Viejo to the causeway, and I went through I neighborhood, El Chorillo, that felt like something out of an apocalypic movie. I would turn down a street and at the end of the block would be piles of rubble and I would have to back up and try to turn around with many people on the street looking at me. It didn't really feel unsafe, but I did feel out of place. Despite the strong economy and wealth in Panama, the country has the second or third largest income inequality in Latin America.

Surrounding the mass of humanity of Panama City are some beautiful natural reserves teeming with wildlife. One afternoon I headed to Pipeline Road near Gamboa at Soberania National Park. I spent the night in the Jeep and got up early the next morning to look for birds. Pipeline Road follows a pipeline that was built in WWII as a back-up to the canal, but never used. It allows easy access into a diverse lowland rainforest that has one of the highest bird counts in the world. More than 450 species of birds have been found there. I did a nice long hike there, seeing some birds and hearing many, but not really successful at identifying many. Luckily I met a nice guy from Belgium, Jean, who was an avid birder and helped me find some birds. We also hiked together for a long time enjoying each other's company. He is a professor in Belgium doing research in social science and environmental conservation. Quite interesting person and knows his birds. We also met some scientists with the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute who were collecting data on antbirds. The Smithsonian has a huge presence in Panama.

Panama City was interesting, but I probably spent much more time there than I wanted. I was quite excited for Sheri to arrive on March 2nd, and spend a couple days in Panama City with me before heading to the Caribbean and getting ready to sail to Cartagena. She expected to take a taxi from the airport to the hotel, but was quite surprised and happy to see me at the exit after customs. We are looking forward to our next adventures and our next continent.