We enjoyed our journey in Panama, especially as we had the very pleasant company of our son,
John, and his wife Judy. They both are very experienced international travelers and former
Peace Corps volunteers accustomed to occasional bumps on the road less traveled. Virginia
and I have been with them on previous trips to Fiji, Mexico, Nicaragua, and Costa Rica. All
of us speak at least some Spanish, thus adding to our enjoyment of Panama. For more about
John, see his website: www.outdoorplace.org.
Visiting the San Blas Islands was a rare experience. We liked the idyllic palm-fringed
tropical islands and crystal-clear warm waters. We had an unusual opportunity to observe
at close range a very traditional society largely unwilling to trade those traditions for
material benefits.
In the province of Bocas del Toro we enjoyed natural beauty and the convenience of a
tourist-oriented infrastructure. We also had interesting exposure to the banana industry.
In Boquete we saw how a comfortable climate, beautiful scenery, and low cost can spur a
real estate boom based on foreign retirees. We also learned much about the coffee industry.
Panama's top attraction is the Panama Canal. Nothing like it anywhere else in the world. It
was great cruising the Canal from end to end and learning much about this engineering
marvel. Getting close to so many different kinds of large ships was also interesting.
El Valle de Anton is a pleasant little town, very walkable, with several low-key attractions
giving us destinations for those walks. El Valle's bucolic atmosphere, pleasant climate, and
surrounding green hills make it an ideal weekend retreat for the Panama City metropolitan
area, just two hours away. We liked being where the Panamanians go for fun.
Although Panama is a small country but surprisingly diverse; each place at which we stayed
was substantially different from the others.
In Panama City we were in a large modern metropolis with many luxury buildings, contrasting
sharply with other parts of Panama.
The pleasure of our Panamanian journey was greatly enhanced by the opportunity to chat
with some interesting people we met, both Panamanians and foreigners.