Panama City

Shopping on line can be easy, simple and save you lots of money. It can also take a lot of your time, frustrate you, and result in unwanted purchases. Now the same can be said for regular high street shopping, but with the vast opportunity presented by the Internet it will pay you to spend a few minutes reading this and understanding how to better optimize your Panama City shopping experience:

1. Compare - without doubt the biggest advantage that the Panama City offers shoppers today is the ability to compare thousands of Panama City at a time. This is a great thing, but not necessarily all the time! Too much can be daunting at times so take advantage of the great comparison sites and where possible let them do the hard work for you.

2. Research - if it has been said it will be on the internet. Ignorance is no longer a justifiable reason for buying the wrong thing. Take the time to research in detail everything that you could possible want to know about

3. Testimonials - don't know anybody that has bought a Panama City? Wrong! If the Panama City is good the internet will let you know. Use the Internet as a friend and get testimonials before you buy.

4. Questions - Got a question about Panama City then search the Forums, FAQ's, Blogs etc. Don't be afraid to ask .....

5. Reputation - Never heard of the company selling Panama City? Don't worry, no reason why you should know every company in the world, but you know someone that does! Use the internet to find out what people are saying about Panama City and build up a picture of their reputation for sales, returns, customer service, delivery etc.

6. Returns - still worried that even after all of the above your Panama City wont be what you want? Check out the returns policy. There is so much competition now that someone, somewhere is bound to offer the terms that you are comfortable with.

7. Feedback - happy with your Panama City then let people know, after all you are depending on others people input in your buying decision, so why not give a little back.

8. Security - check for the yellow padlock on the Panama City site before you buy, and the s after http:/ /i.e. https:// = a secure site

9. Contact - got a question about Panama City, or want to leave a comment then check out the sites contact page. Reputable companies have them and respond.

10. Payment - ready to pay for your Panama City, then use your credit card or PayPal! Be aware of companies that don't accept them, there may be genuine reasons but given the huge amount of choice you have when buying online there is no reason at all not to buy via credit card or PayPal.

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{{Infobox World Heritage Site| WHS = Archaeological Site of Panamá Viejo and Historic District of Panamá| Image = | State Party = | Type = Touristic, Cultural| Criteria = II, IV, VI| ID = 790| Region = List of World Heritage Sites in the Americas| Year = 1997| Session = 21st| Extension = 2003| Link = http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/790-->

Panama City (Spanish language: Ciudad de Panamá) is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Panama. It has a population of 708,738, with a total metro population of 1,063,000, and it is located at the Pacific entrance of the Panama Canal, at . Panama City is the political and administrative center of the country. Juan Carlos Navarro is the current mayor of the city.

Panama City was chosen to be the American Capital of Culture for the year 2003 (jointly, with Curitiba, Brazil).

History The city was founded on August 15, 1519, by Pedrarias Davila. Within years of its founding, the city became a launching point for the exploration and conquest of Peru and a transit point for gold and silver headed towards Spain through the Isthmus. In 1671, the English pirate Henry Morgan, with the help of a band of 1400 men, attacked and looted the city, which was subsequently destroyed by fire. The ruins of the old city still remain and are a popular tourist attraction known as Panamá la Vieja (Old Panama). It was rebuilt in 1673 in a new location approximately 5 miles southwest of the original city. This location is now known as the Casco Viejo (Old Quarter) of the city.

One year before the start of the California Gold Rush, the Panama Railroad Company was formed, The Panama Railroad from Trainweb but the railroad did not begin operation until 1855. Harper's New Monthly Magazine March 1855, Volume 10, Issue 58, p.543 Between 1848 and 1869, the year the first transcontinental railroad was completed in the United States, about 375,000 persons crossed the isthmus from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean, and 225,000 in the opposite direction. That traffic greatly increased the prosperity of the city during that period.

The construction of the Panama Canal was of great benefit to the infrastructure and economy. Of particular note are the improvements in health and sanitation brought about by the American presence in the Panama Canal Zone. These include the eradication of yellow fever and malaria and the introduction of a first-rate water purification system. However, most of the laborers for the construction of the canal were brought in from the Caribbean, which created unprecedented racial and social tensions in the city.

During World War II, construction of military bases and the presence of larger numbers of United States military and civilian personnel brought about unprecedented levels of prosperity to the city. Panamanians had limited access, or no access at all, to many areas in the Canal Zone neighboring the Panama City metropolitan area. Some of these areas were military bases accessible only to United States personnel. Some tensions arose between the people of Panama and the U.S. citizens living in the Panama Canal Zone. This erupted in the January 9, 1964 events, known as Martyrs' Day.

center, bringing a lot of undesirable attention as an international money-laundering center. In 1989 after nearly a year of tension between the United States and Panama, George Herbert Walker Bush ordered the United States invasion of Panama to depose the leader of Panama, General Manuel Noriega. As a result of the action a portion of the El Chorrillo neighborhood, which consisted mostly of old wood-framed buildings dating back to the 1900s (though still a large slum area), was destroyed by fire. Eventually, the U.S. helped finance the construction of large cinderblock apartment buildings to replace the destroyed structures. Panama City remains a banking center, although with very visible controls in the flow of cash. Shipping is handled through port facilities in the area of Balboa, Panama operated by the Hutchison Whampoa Company of Hong Kong and through several ports on the Caribbean side of the isthmus. Balboa, which is located within the greater Panama City metropolitan area, was formerly part of the Panama Canal Zone, and in fact the administration of the former Panama Canal Zone was headquartered there.

Panama City as a tourist destination The city has numerous tourist attractions including world-class hotels and restaurants. Particularly interesting for tourists are various sites located in the old quarter (also commonly referred to as "Casco Viejo", "Casco Antiguo" or "San Felipe"), including

Las Bóvedas, Las Bovedas: Casco Viejo Bar literally The Vaults, a waterfront promenade jutting out into the Pacific;
The National Institute of Culture Building and across from it, the France Embassy;
The Cathedral on Plaza de la Catedral;
Teatro Nacional, a recently renovated performance center, with outstanding natural acoustics; It provides an intimate performance environment and seating for about 800 guests.
Museo del Canal Interoceánico (Interoceanic Canal Museum);
Numerous restaurants located near the French embassy.
Palacio de las Garzas (Heron's Palace), the official name of the presidential palace. There are real herons in the compound.

Further southwest one can climb Ancon Hill and get an overview of the city (see photograph at the end of the article) with the well-known Bridge of the Americas spanning over the Panama Canal. There is only one other bridge over the Panama Canal, the Centennial Bridge, Panama, which was completed in 2003 and is now becoming an attraction.

Recently relocated to the entrance of Curundu Heights in the former Panama Canal Zone is the Museo Antropológico Reina Torres de Araúz (Reina Torres de Arauz Anthropological Museum) — better known by its Spanish acronym MARTA — with precious metal artifacts from pre-Columbian Panama.

The area immediately east of the Pacific entrance of the canal--known as the Amador Causeway Jogging in Paradise...but where is everbody? The Panama Report-- is currently being developed as a major tourist center with many North American style malls, hotels, nightclubs, and restaurants. Currently the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute operates a station and a small museum open to the public on Culebra Island, just off the island of Naos (See inset). A new museum, The Bridge of Life Museum, is currently under construction on the causeway. The Bridge of Life Museum was designed by the American architect Frank Gehry famous for the Guggenheim Museum Bilbao and the Disney Concert Center in Los Angeles and it is scheduled to be completed in 2007. Panama:Bridge of Life] are being to built as condos to supply the number of people entering the city.

Photographs of the city Image:DirkvdM panama roofs.jpg|The belltower of the St. John Bosco Basilica.Image:DirkvdM panama blue.jpg|View from the University of Panama grounds.Image:040418 9408.jpg|In Casco Viejo.Image:Street in Casco Vijeo jquarns.jpg|A Casco Viejo street paralleling the water, near to the Hospedaje Casco Viejo.Image:DirkvdM panama harbour.jpg|A view of the high rise of modern Panamá City, across the Bahía de Panamá, from the old harbour near the Mercado Publico in San Felipe (Casco Viejo).Image:IMG_NAOS.JPG|Causeway connecting Naos, Perico and Flamengo Islands to the mainland. A bicycle path parallels the roadway.Image:PanamaCityFromNaos.jpg|Panama City at dusk as seen from the Bay of Panama.Image:Casco Viejo Church jquarns.jpg|Casco Antiguo's cathedral near the central square in Casco Viejo, Panama CityImage:Bridge_of_the_Americas_night.JPG|The entrance to the Panama Canal from the Pacific Ocean, the Bridge of the Americas at night.Image:Panama from Isla Flamenco.JPG].Image:Plaza de Francia jquarns.jpg|Plaza of France in Casco Vijeo. A monument erected in the Plaza of France in honor of the workers and French engineers that participated in the construction of the channel.

Nature Panama City is located between the Pacific Ocean and many tropical rain forests. The Parque Natural Metropolitano (Metropolitan Nature Park), stretching from Panama city along the Panama Canal, has several unique bird species and other animals such as tapir, puma, alligators, etc. At the Pacific entrance of the canal is the Centro de Exhibiciones Marinas (Marine Exhibitions Center), a research center for those interested in tropical marine life and ecology. Centro de Exhibiciones Marinas is managed by the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute.

Tropical forests around Panama City are vital for the functioning of the Panama Canal. These forests provide the canal with the watershed required for its operation (a rare example of a vast engineering project in the middle of the forest which actually helped preserve that very nature). Due to the importance of the Canal to the Panamanian economy, tropical forests around the canal have been kept in an almost pristine state. Along the western side of the Canal is the Parque Nacional Soberania (Sovereignty National Park) which includes Summit botanical gardens and a zoo. In this national park, the best known trail is the Pipeline Road, very popular among birdwatchers. Canopy Tower, a famous birdwatchers hotel

Transportation Panama City's international airport, Tocumen International Airport, located on the eastern outskirts of the city, is easily accessible. There are direct flights between Tocumen and New York City, Newark, New Jersey, Washington D.C., Los Angeles, Houston, Orlando, Florida, Miami, Atlanta, Madrid and all major cities in the Caribbean area, Central America and South America. Panama City also has a regional airport Marcos A. Gelabert, located in an area once occupied by Albrook Air Force Base. Marcos A. Gelabert Airport is the main hub for regional flights within Panama and the Pearl Islands in the Pacific.

Panama City has an extensive and efficient, yet confusing to tourists, form of public transportation consisting of colorful painted buses colloquially known as . A is usually "customized" or painted with bright colors, usually depicting famous actors, politicians or singers. It is now popular all over the city (and also in neighboring towns) for bus drivers to personally customize the interior and exterior of their . There is also a bus terminal near the Marcos A. Gelabert airport which together with the airport serves as the main transport hub for the rest of the country.

Panama City is in the process of implementing a more modern bus system (bus rapid transit) that will roughly cost US$100 million. Construction works (additional bus lanes, bus stops) are now progressing and should be completed in the first quarter of 2009 according to "La Prensa" newspaper.

Sports

Association Football

Panama City is home to three professional teams in the country's top football league, ANAPROF:

CD Policía Nacional
Plaza Amador
Tauro F.C.

Panama City is also home to two professional teams in the country's second level league, Primera A (Segunda Division):

Deportivo Italia
Rio Abajo F.C.