Panama City and Casco Viejo

I am a bit of a travel sissy. I feel perfectly comfortable in cities in Europe and most of the time in the US too. You can imagine that Panama City wasn't really on my bucket list. But my cruise happened to arrive in Panama and I had over a week left to spend. So I told myself to grow a pair and go for it.

At first, I had booked a hotel room in the financial area. I thought it was going to be amazing to have a room in one of the skyscrapers. But when I noticed that other people from the cruise were planning on staying in the historic bit of Panama, I changed my plans. Casco Viejo it was! For a few days, then...

Casco Viejo

While walking around town, I noticed that the historic part of Panama City could just as easily have been located in Europe. It was a bit too humid for my liking and I later found out that it was enclosed by areas that have a very high crime rate. So my sissy self told me to stay in Casco Viejo and my bored self told me to go for a walk towards the financial district. All my inner voices eventually got to an agreement. I'd go for a walk, but only following the promenade. But not before I had seen the beauty of the old town first!

Casco Viejo went through a bit of a revival. Decades ago, the streets were dominated by gangs and tourists wouldn't visit this area. Now it is very up-and-coming and the place to be, with many hipster bars and restaurants. You notice that it is only recent when you walk around. A lot of renovation is going on and the less busy alleys clearly have some fixing up to do. It kept me on my toes, you never knew what you would find around the corner. But I was very happy to see that they kept the pastel coloured houses!

My favourite part of Casco Viejo was the French Plaza. It is the elevated tip of the town, with a panoramic view over the ocean. They build a circular road around the town, which gives a weird effect. During the day it is filled with stalls selling handcrafted souvenirs that are just as colourful as the rest of Panama. And during the sunset, it is filled with people making selfies ;)

Like many old cities in Europe, the Casco Viejo was surrounded by a city wall. You can still find many remains of this wall when exploring the city, often slowly falling apart.

Low tide

At low tide, boats surrounding Panama are sitting there, stuck in the mud. It doesn't look too clean, but maybe that is for the best. It would be weird to have sunbathers on a beach here, somehow.

As soon as you walk towards the financial district, it becomes visible that Casco Viejo seems to be rising from the water. The backyards of the outer houses is a bit of sand during low tide or water. The risen city should have been better protected against invasions or pirate attacks. And the fact that it is still there shows that it worked.

Contrast between old and new

Panama City is just a city filled with contrasts, both on a small and large scale. You have a clear separation between rich and poor, locals and expats. And also the hypermodern financial area and the old Casco Viejo. In the end, it wasn't as scary as I thought it would be....

I had to say goodbye to my friend, I hope he is well