The Very First Time I Experienced Panamá:
(My Photographic Impressions...And Some Prose!)

I had never previously felt inclined to seriously consider living in Latin America.  Perhaps, I just didn't think we could find happiness in a locale so presumably "off the mainstream" of modern American life.  Some internet articles, however, challenged my curiosities about Panamá!   These rather positive personal accounts of travel to Panamá convinced me (eventually) to book an American Airlines flight, in August, 2002, to "the isthmus between the Americas!"  When I finally, reflected on Panamá, as a possible candidate as a home base for our "second half of life", three key determining factors were essential: a tropical climate with much natural precipitation (a rainforest?); freedom from hurricanes (South Florida living, due to hurricane threats, makes one very neurotic yearly, from June through October!); and a big "plus" would be an easy-to-get-to environment (Panamá is only about 2.5 hours via air from Miami, so it IS convenient!)

My own particular Panamanian adventure began with Flight 975's arrival into Panamá City's Tocumen International Airport.  I was not fully prepared for the sensory surprises awaiting me in this Hong Kong of the Americas!  Panamá City distinctly reminded me of the city from which I had debarked only a few hours ago : Miami, Florida, but with a green backdrop of mountains, and of course, that world famous canal.  I stayed overnight in P.C. and explored just a bit of the area around my hotel.  The pulse of this city is remarkable, indeed.  Being the "crossroads of the world", Panamá City offers every amenity for the traveler, i.e. food, shopping, banking and culture.  It is a physically beautiful environment, too, with a multitude of parks, grand oceanfront boulevards, and serene residential neighbourhoods.  The word: cosmopolitan, certainly describes Panamá City.  I felt safe here, and I felt like I COULD enjoy this environment.  This first visit was to be a brief encounter, however, (to refresh my body & mind for the next portion of this discovery trip); tomorrow, I would fly to Bocas del Toro.  Panamá is the "big city"; the Panamá I was looking for would have a more garden-type environment.  I had read on the internet that Bocas del Toro Province was lush with tropical jungle vegetation, teeming with primates, birds, and other wildlife, had a wonderful mangrove & coral reef system, and was still in a pristine state of nature.  I would discover it for myself, tomorrow!  

Panama City's 21st Century Skyline...the Hong Kong of the Americas!

Bocas (as it is referred to by frequent visitors) would be another very different (and delightful!) discovery for me.   Panamá City, it is not; instead, Bocas possesses a strongly Caribbean atmosphere.   The province's citizens are the descendants of African immigrants, expatriated to the West Indies who, then came to Bocas del Toro, to work in the American-owned banana fields.  Therefore, Its overall local flavour tends to remind one more of Jamaica or Trinidad, than of Spain.  Its regional architecture is Colonial Antillean; its foods are spiced as one would expect in the Bahamas or the Caymans, and its language is dominantly English (with a Caribbean lilt!)

As opposed to the frenetic pace I had just experienced in Panamá's modern metropolis of 1.9 million residents, Bocas del Toro seemed wetter (and is!), very much more languid in pace, dominantly wood constructed, and...quiet.  I was aware of its' "out-of-the-wayness" immediately upon arrival.  And, although there was a distinctly "shabby" feel to the local environment (a bit disconcerting, at first), it was "comfortably" shabby!  Bocas looked like the way the Florida Keys, I imagined, must have looked in the early part of the 1900's...quirky, "laid back" and easy to enjoy! 

Colonial Goveror's Mansion in Bocas town.  It will be a true architectural gem when it's restored!

The accompanying photographs will clearly reveal what my words are attempting to convey: the unique Bocas "atmosphere"!   During this initial "discovery" trip, I toured the islands (they are beautiful), and the mainland area, too.  Since I was looking for enough land to plant an abundance of tropical fruiting trees, hardwoods and rainforest-originated palms, it was an important consideration that the land be relatively inexpensive (so we could afford a larger property.)  I turned away from the tourist domain that is the islands' part of the province, and instead, gravitated to the mainland portion of Bocas del Toro Province because it wasn't too "discovered" yet by ex-patriated North Americans and Europeans, and therefore still had a more genuine Panamanian "flavour" to it; and did feature large tracts of so-called "finca", or plantation lands that were becoming available for sale.

The new IPAT Tourism Centre in Bocas town

Looking north towards Costa Rica!  Beautiful, cool, and spacious!

Whether you are inclined to seek the company of, and build new friendships with, people from "back home", or you decide that you'd rather immerse yourself into the Panamanian culture à la carte Bocas-style, in the province's mainland area, this Caribbean gem of an area offers many appealing opportunities for discovery.  Perhaps, you'll find that Bocas will stay in your mind; call you back, again...and you will want to call Bocas del Toro Province your home, for always.  Unlock the possibility; discover another you, in Bocas!

 


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