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Written by Matt Landau
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Wednesday, October 22 2008 |
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So I'm eating at a touristy steak restaurant, the kind of place I wouldn't be caught dead in if it wasn't elected by my client as a meeting point, and the guy next to me is rambling on about his health or lack thereof. "You remember that kidney stone last year, Nancy?" he said while chewing on a t-bone. "That thing was so painful, must've been the size of a chesnut wouldn't ya say?"
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Written by Yanuly Sanson
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Tuesday, September 30 2008 |
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The Inter-American Development Bank and Casco Viejo Panama Authority joint initiative to revamp San Felipe as a cultural showcase is a double-edged sword; under a positive light such move would attract business, restaurants, artisan workshops and galleries, increasing tourism and general development.
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Last Updated ( Tuesday, September 30 2008 )
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Written by Adam Scragg
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Wednesday, April 02 2008 |
If you spend any amount of time traveling around Panama City, you'll almost certainly spot Ancon hill. It's a distinctive geographical landmark in the city made more distinctive still by the large Panamanian flag flying from its summit.
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Last Updated ( Monday, August 11 2008 )
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Written by Ari Vanook
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Monday, November 19 2007 |
Gab and I arrived in Panama much the way other tourists do, at Tocumen International Airport where a newly-renovated terminal and immigration area seems increasingly first-world. Having done this a few times, we then wandered up to the second floor drop-off area where we caught an unofficial airport cab into the city for a cool twelve bucks. Yehaw!
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Last Updated ( Monday, August 11 2008 )
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Written by Matt Landau
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Wednesday, October 24 2007 |
Upon first finding out I was moving to Panama, many friends and relatives, having no idea what or where exactly Panama was, took to using exaggeration as a remedy for their bewilderment. "So do they have running water where you're going?" one of them asked. "Will you live on, like, a dirt floor with pigs and cows running in and out?"
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Last Updated ( Monday, August 11 2008 )
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Written by Matt Landau
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Wednesday, October 17 2007 |
It was the first time in a while I felt like I was back in Costa Rica again. Jagged-toothed coves, islands of deep dark volcanic rock, and dolphins breaking in the wake. Our worn out panga cut through the sea as the Pacific morning sun shone down and we looked back at the rustic coast of Panama, spotting from afar the fair sandy beaches of Chiriqui.
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Last Updated ( Friday, September 05 2008 )
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Written by Matt Landau
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Tuesday, September 25 2007 |
There's a dangerous phenomenon going on in Panama and that is the creation of what we'll call tourism zones, or various pocket destinations meant exclusively for the visiting tourist. What's risky about these zones is that by focusing solely on outsiders (thus turning your back on locals) there is the tendency for a vulgar underbelly to arise. A process I refer to as Cancunization.
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Last Updated ( Monday, August 11 2008 )
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Written by Matt Landau
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Monday, July 30 2007 |
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It was a lazy Sunday morning when I decided to drive out to the Chagres National Park and explore bat-infested caves with my friend Ivan, adrenaline junkie and learner of 'the English'. “You are to bring your helmet and gloves and machete with you?” Ivan asked. Seeing as though I didn’t own a helmet or gloves or a machete, I grabbed the closest thing I could find: a small keychain made by Swiss Army.
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Last Updated ( Monday, August 11 2008 )
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Written by Robert E. Baker
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Friday, May 11 2007 |
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For Xmas I got two martini glasses and a couple of shirts. Once in a while I like a good martini and would always use a wine glass since we did not have martini glasses. They are nice looking and I christened them a bit too enthusiastically one night. Boo gave me a bar of soap with a cartoon character moose figure inside that of course he got when the soap was finished. We celebrated Christmas in El Valle but first went to the beach for several days. Pika, our dog, loves the beach and chases sand pipers and seagulls, jet skis, horses, etc. She played with other dogs too but, we think she is gay. I guess for dogs that's OK.
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Last Updated ( Monday, August 11 2008 )
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Written by Casey Halloran
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Tuesday, May 08 2007 |
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Last Updated ( Monday, August 11 2008 )
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Written by Administrator
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Thursday, March 01 2007 |
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During Carnival 2007 in Panama, two of my close friends from California were traveling all the way from the “first world” to visit me in “I know it has a canal” country. Therefore, I felt as though I had to plan something worthy of a possible once-in-a-lifetime trip to Panama. I decided to escape the madness of Panama City and Las Tablas (imagine blasting regaetton mixed with lots of water), and instead visit Bocas del Toro. Over my 19 some odd months of living in Panama, I have managed to visit Bocas del Toro about five times. Obviously, I thoroughly enjoy my stay in “Bocas” each time.
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Last Updated ( Monday, August 11 2008 )
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Written by Administrator
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Wednesday, November 08 2006 |
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They call it “Fiestas Patrias” here in Panama, or “Nation Party” in English, but it's meaning gets lost in translation. This last weekend I attended a parade that was held on November 3rd and 4th that consisted of regional bands, universities, schools, public protection groups, and clubs parading through the streets of Calle 50 and Via Espana, respectively.
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Last Updated ( Monday, August 11 2008 )
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Written by Administrator
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Monday, August 28 2006 |
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When I was introduced to Dr. Stanely Heckadon, I didn´t know if I'd be disecting critters or just taking a tour or what. I got a phone call at 8:30 in the morning asking if I wanted to go to the The Laboratorio Marino on Isla Galeta and although not knowing what to expect I agreed. Because thats the type of person I am. I didn't have much time, so I hopped in a cab to the Smithsonian and off into a different world I went. When I arrived at The Smithsonian I found a beautiful piece of land that sort of reminds me of a pretty college campus. As you walk from the outdoor corridor you enter a manicured courtyard which has a giant tree in the middle that has crawling all over it.
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Last Updated ( Monday, August 11 2008 )
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Written by Matt Landau
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Saturday, July 08 2006 |
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Maid service and comfy beds are fine for a while, but it's like living with your parents: cozy, easy, and mindlessly humdrum. Balboa and I were looking for something a little different. We wanted to find someplace new and beautiful and exciting—and we didn't want to travel too far. So we started off cruising along the Pacific coast, where the mountains and the forests and the sea are sexy.
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Last Updated ( Monday, August 11 2008 )
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Written by Matt Landau
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Thursday, June 22 2006 |
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When Dr. Stanley Heckadon-Moreno—director at The Smithsonian Institute—invited me to go with him for a day of research to Isla Galeta—a marine science center on Panama's Caribbean coast—I looked around my apartment for anything that might conceal my scientific incompetence. I wanted something that would say I was experienced; that I had done this sort of thing before. I searched my drawers but all I could come up with was a broken compass and one of those oversized pencils with pictures of ninja turtles on it—they would have to do. This Smithsonian journey was on like Donkey Kong.
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Last Updated ( Monday, August 11 2008 )
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Written by Matt Landau
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Sunday, May 14 2006 |
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For the most part, I have tried only to write blogs about interesting topics. I have intentionally (and I think, for the most part, successfully) written about meaningful things like traveling around Panama and culinary feats I've found to be impressive. I've tried not to write, what we've now termed as 'the cheese sandwich blog': the boring account that emanates from long periods of time holed up in ones own apartment or jail cell, and that inevitably includes phrases like “today I ate a cheese sandwich.” For one, I don't eat cheese because I am allergic to it. And two, I just don't think cheese is all that interesting.
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Last Updated ( Monday, August 11 2008 )
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Written by Administrator
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Tuesday, February 14 2006 |
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One of my goals when knowing I was going to move to Panama was to make sure I made it in time for Carnival. I ended up arriving much earlier than anticipated and spent many months looking forward to the annual festivities. I had been told by a number of my Panamanian friends that the interior is the best place to partake in the four day celebration.
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Last Updated ( Monday, August 11 2008 )
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Written by Matt Landau
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Friday, February 03 2006 |
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I try stress in my blogs that Panama City is a schizophrenic city and for me, this enchanting schizophrenia is what makes it such an interesting place to live. After all, where else in the world can a $1 cab ride transport you from a 600 ft. high rise to a 300 year old city in less than five minutes?
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Last Updated ( Monday, August 11 2008 )
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