The Complete Educational Guide to Panama
Other Major Cities:
– Colón (pop. 242,000)
-David (pop. 193,000)
-La Chorrera (pop.190,000)
Population: 4.25 million
Capital City: Panama City (pop. 1,756,000)
Geography
Panama is the southernmost country in Central America, located between Costa Rica on its northwest and Colombia on its southeast. To its direct south, the country is bordered by the Pacific Ocean and the Gulf of Panama, while it is bordered by the Caribbean Sea to its north.
Typical Climate
Panama is located close enough to the equator that it doesn’t have 4 seasons, but instead has a “Wet” season lasting roughly from May-November, and a “Dry” season lasting from December to April.
Temperatures stay fairly consistent throughout the year and are roughly between 78℉ and 88℉ at sea level. Higher altitude areas are generally between 10 and 15 degrees cooler.
Landscape
Panama is an isthmus connecting North and South America and is roughly 480 miles long, east to west. Overall, Panama only takes up about 29,119 square miles of land, about the size of the state of South Carolina.
For such a small country, Panama has a huge amount of variety in its landscape, with everything from tropical rainforests and beaches, to rugged mountains and even its own desert region, though that’s more so the result of deforestation than anything.
While it has a wide range of ecosystems, the larger part of Panama is overflowing with tropical rainforest. It has preserved a higher percentage of its forested land than any other country in the world, making up an astonishing 63.4% of the country!
There are two mountain ranges in Panama. The Cordillera Central is located in the west of the country and contains the country’s highest peak, Volcan Baru. Baru is considered to be a dormant volcano since it hasn’t erupted since 1550. The other range, the Cordillera de San Blas, is in the east of the country.
Panama’s most famous geologic feature is actually a man-made one. The Panama Canal allows water, and ships, to pass across the narrowest section of the country, a mere 50 miles across!
Common Natural Disasters
While most Central American countries tend to be prone to hurricanes, Panama is far enough south that it doesn’t have to worry about them. However, it does still get lots of rain, and its mountainous regions are prone to landslides and mudslides.
Panama also has frequent earthquakes, but they are typically small, and not usually noticeable.
Flora and Fauna
Panama is noted for the wide levels of biological diversity within its borders. All sorts of large mammals can be found here, including anteaters, jaguars, tapirs, sloths, and more! Rare birds such as the endangered Harpy Eagle also make Panama their homes, and the trail that holds the world record for most different species of birds seen within 24 hours is located just a short drive from Panama City itself, in Soberania National Park.
Panama also boasts over 10,000 different plant species, from its tropical lowlands to its sub-alpine forests. That’s a lot of trees.
Panama itself was named after the Panama tree, which grows throughout Central America!
National Bird – Harpy Eagle
National Animal – Panamanian Golden Frog
https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=7803560
National Tree – Panama Tree
https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=68367632
Economy and History
Major Languages
Panama only has one official language, Spanish, but it is also home to 8 indigenous languages, and many larger world languages can be heard in different areas. The second most common language spoken in Panama is English.
Currency
The official currency of Panama is the Panamanian Balboa, which can be divided into 100 cents and has an exact 1:1 exchange rate with the US Dollar. Since they are at valued at the same rate, dollars are considered to be legal tender in Panama, which is good because Panama doesn’t actually mint Balboas in denominations higher than the 1 Balboa coin, making the dollar the de facto currency throughout the country!
What this means that if you’re coming from the US you don’t have to exchange money. You can simply use your dollars. Just remember to exchange any Balboa coins you may have before heading back to the States.
Economy/Exports
Because the Panamanian currency is so closely tied to the US dollar, the economy benefits from the State’s financial stability. The country’s primary industry is the services sector, making up around 80% of Panama’s GDP. While this means that tourism is important to the country, the vast majority of income in the services sector is actually related to moving products through the Panama Canal.
A Brief History
Previous to the Spanish conquest, a number of smaller indigenous cultures held sway on the Panamanian isthmus. The first Europeans explored Panama in the year 1501, and in 1510 the first permanent settlement was founded at Santa María la Antigua del Darién. A few years later, in 1513, the Spaniard Vasco Nuñez de Balboa followed rumors of another coastline and became the first known European to see the Pacific Ocean.
Panama remained part of the Spanish Empire for over 300 years, until 1819.
That year, New Granada gained independence from Spain under the leadership of Simon Bolivar, freeing the land that now makes up Colombia, Ecuador, Venezuela, and Panama from Spanish rule. These areas became the country of Greater Colombia, which was one of the more powerful countries in the world at the time, though it remained partially unrecognized by Europe because it did not accept a European monarch. It remained a single country until 1831 when Greater Colombia broke apart due to political differences.
Map of New Granada, post political split
Panama remained part of the country of Colombia until November 6, 1903, after a 3-day long rebellion supported by the USA. In exchange for the United States’ support, the States were allowed to build and use the Panama Canal, as well as govern a 10-mile wide strip of land surrounding the canal zone.
Control of that 10-mile strip around the Panama Canal was officially handed over to Panama in 1979,with the promise that he Canal proper would be handed over before 2000.
In 1989, America briefly invaded Panama in order to overthrow and arrest the Panamian leader, Manuel Noriega so that he could be tried for racketeering and drug trafficking. While ultimately successful in capturing Noriega, the civilian casualties were far higher than the military ones.
Control of the Panama Canal itself was given to Panama on December 31, 1999. Panama has since doubled the size of the original canal, a project which was finished in 2016.
Culture
The Panamanian culture is a unique blend of Indigenous, Latinx, and African cultures, swirled together to make something uniquely Panamanian. From vibrant traditional arts to delicious modern eats, there’s a lot of culture to explore.
Art
Probably the best-known art style from Panama is the Molas, originating among the Indigenous women of the Kuna tribe. These brilliantly colored traditional art pieces are each hand-sewn scenes of different aspects of traditional life and are used as decorations on the women’s clothing.
Panama is also known for its excellent basket weavers and woodcarvers. Top-quality crafts are made throughout the country in traditional styles that go back centuries.
Clothing
Panama’s national costume is the pollera, which is composed of an intricate blouse and long skirt combination. Each dress is sewn by hand and can take up to 6 months to complete due to the sheer number of details included.
Men’s traditional dress is much simpler, consisting of dark pants, a white cotton shirt, and a woven straw hat.
Food
Panama’s national dish is a hearty chicken stew known as sancocho. Similar to chicken stew in much of Central America, the sancocho focuses on the flavors of the chicken in the broth and a popular seasoning called culantro.
A beef dish called ropa vieja, or ‘old clothes’ is also a staple in Panama, and consists of brilliantly seasoned beef cooked until it shreds easily. It is tender and delicious.
If you’re instead looking for something for breakfast, be sure to check out the hojaldras. It’s a particularly tasty sweet fry-bread that is a popular option for breakfasts and goes great with a cup of rich coffee. Yum.
Religion
Unsurprisingly for a Latin American country, roughly 80% of Panama is Roman Catholic, with a further 10% belonging to other Christian churches. Less than 10% of the country claims to be non-Christian, whether that’s another religion or atheist.
As such, Catholic holidays and festivals are celebrated throughout the year. One awesome example is the Carnaval de Las Tablas, taking place in Las Tablas, Panama each year. Apparently, the festival began as a rivalry between two of the town’s religious groups who wrote songs and performed dances with the intent of taunting each other in the days leading up to Lent. Since then, all has been forgiven, but the songs and dancing continue on each year as a symbol of harmony.
It is a Carnaval celebration, though, so there’s plenty of food and drink to go around as well, and the streets are filled with revelers and floats decorated in flamboyant patterns.
Government
Panama’s government is a representative democratic republic with executive, legislative, and judicial branches. They have multiple different political parties, which often must work together in order to win elections. Presidents are elected every 5 years, and they are not allowed to run for immediate re-election, though they may run again later.
The current president is Laurentino Cortizo, who was elected in 2019 and belongs to the Democratic Revolutionary Party.
Field Trips!
The moment that we’ve all been waiting for!
Here are some of my picks for places to visit on a trip to Panama!
UNESCO World Heritage Sites
UNESCO sites are often some of my favorite places to visit in a country, and they can give a wonderful glimpse into a place’s history, culture, and nature. There are 5 different UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Panama. 3 of them are Natural sites, and 2 are Cultural Sites.
Natural
Panama’s Natural World Heritage Sites are some of the most remote, pristine jungle locations on Earth! As such, they are also some of the most difficult places to visit. It would be amazing to get the chance to visit one of these three National Parks, but getting there is not for then faint of heart.
Coiba National Park and its Special Zone of Marine Protection
Isla Coiba was used as a prison colony for the area from 1919 until 2004, and as such access to the island was limited. This allowed the area to flourish, and today it is a lush, diverse tropical paradise. It is only accessible through ANAM tour operators as part of an effort to keep the area pristine and to protect the plants and animals found there.
Darien National Park is the largest of Panama’s national parks, as well as the largest protected area in all of Central America. It also consists almost entirely of untamed jungle, filled with a large variety of tropical and cloud forests, mangroves, and more.
The park is extremely remote, and is some of the most difficult to access terrain on Earth!
Own work, CC BY-SA 1.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=23076149
By Supreet Sahoo – Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=58174162
La Amistad (Friendship) National Park sits on the border between Panama and Costa Rica and is protected by both countries. It is filled with an astonishing array of diverse biomes, from tropical lowlands to sub-alpine forests.
Three separate Indigenous people groups call La Amistad home, living traditionally right there in the center of the National Park.
There are also plenty of animals in the park, including 5(!) different large cat species!
Cultural
Panama has two Cultural UNESCO sites, one on the Caribbean and the other just outside of the capital. These sites are much easier to get to and represent some of the more significant ruins in the country. Both sets of ruins date back to the 1500s, during the period when Spain was colonizing the area.
By Garcia.dennis – Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=74995721 and
Portobelo Fortifications
By Tedder, CC BY 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=7491459
The fortifications at Portobelo and San Lorenzo are both in the province of Colón, not far from the capital. Portobelo is a small town on the Caribbean side of the country where Colonial Spanish ruins and fortifications can be seen. The fortifications were mainly used to protect the area from pirates while gold taken from Peru and Bolivia waited to be shipped across the ocean to Spain.
San Lorenzo is one of the Spanish Fortifications in the area that is in particularly good condition, but it is most definitely not the only one to see in the area. It is located about two hours from Portobelo, to the southwest.
Panamá Viejo and Historic District of Panamá
Panama City is the Spanish city on the Pacific coast, and Panama Viejo is the section of town where the city originally sat. It is filled with numerous ruins from that earlier era and is a great place to learn about the colony’s history. Old Panama suffered through fires, earthquakes, and attacks from pirates and local Indigenous peoples, but it was the attack from Henry Morgan in 1671 that ultimately destroyed Panama Viejo.
Casco Viejo is Panama’s historic district, where the Spanish rebuilt Panama City afterwards.
Other Great Places to Visit
The Panama Canal
The Panama Canal is one of the most iconic man-made structures in the world, and to this day is an important route for world trade. Definitely take some time to go see what all the fuss is about, and be sure to visit the Miraflores Visitor’s center to learn all about this outstanding feat of engineering.
Punta Culebra Nature Center
This nature center is located just outside the mouth of the canal in Panama City and focuses on educating visitors about the marine and coastal environments of Panama. It’s a great chance to see some beautiful animals that you may otherwise not see, and since it only takes an hour or two, there will be plenty of time to keep exploring after your visit!
BioMuseo
Not far from Punta Culebra, the BioMuseo is a museum entirely devoted to exploring the unique biodiversity found in Panama. The museum was designed by the famous architect Frank Gehry, and is filled to the brim with bright colors and fun experiences.
Chagres National Park
A national park filled to bursting with streams and waterfalls, Chagres is also the location of the 3,300ft tall Cerro Jefe mountain. At the top, on a clear day, it is possible to see both the Atlantic and the Pacific Oceans!
Soberania National Park
This is one of the most accessible national parks in Panama, located less than an hour from the city. It covers 55,000 acres of rainforest land and also hosts the Panama Rainforest Discovery Center, where you can climb a spiral staircase through the upper canopy of the rainforest.
The Panama Railway
The Panama Railway stretches from Atlantic to Pacific from the town of Colon all the way through to Panama City. While it is only 50 miles long, it was the very first transcontinental railway and was used for transporting goods across the country long before the Canal had been built. A train ride on the Panama railway takes you from one coast to the other in just around an hour, passing through Soberania National Park.
San Blas Islands
This Caribbean Archipelago is composed of 368 small islands and boasts of pristine beaches and waters. It is a popular destination for sailors and tourists alike, due to the mild weather and crystal clear seas. Definitely worth a visit.
Sarigua National Park
This national park is a stark example of man-made desertification. During the early 1900s, the entire area was cleared of trees to make use of the land. Without the tree coverage, the land quickly became a small, desert-like patch of land where little could grow.
Today, the area is making a bit of a comeback thanks to the efforts of both private and governmental organizations, but it is still a great place to check out if you want to consider the environmental impact that humans can have!
Volcan Baru
Baru is Panama’s tallest peak and one of only three volcanoes in the country. The peak hike is a bit too difficult to do with kids, but if you make it to the top, it’s another of the few places where it is possible to see both the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans at the same time. One of the more popular hikes, the Pipeline Trail, is only 2.8 miles and is filled with chances to marvel at Panama’s rich biodiversity.
Anton Valley
The Anton Valley is located in the crater of an extinct volcano and boasts a variety of great hikes through the surrounding hills. The entire area is absolutely gorgeous, with plenty of waterfalls, forests, and a small town inside the crater itself where you can find restaurants, hotels, and even a small zoo!
