Panama City is a city of duality… New vs. old, $2.50 ceviche vs $14.00 fish tacos, very rich and very poor, hot days and freezing cold nights in the hostel dorm, nerding out and drawing and parting with new friends…. And I loved it all.
Upon landing in the airport, I was greeted with nothing but kindness. I had made some friends in the airport who insisted on buying me drinks while we waited for out delayed plane, and Aussie driver who took the long way to the hotel to show me the lay of the town, and messages from a college friend’s family about the sights I needed to see while traveling. I could tell I was going to like city….
Day one I wandered the streets of Casco Veijo- or the old city of Panama City. The architecture of the town is wonderful mixture of French, Spainsh and American colonial. Some of the buildings have been renovated to their former glory and others only the facades remain. The former were my favorites. The fish market- which was one of my favorite meals- was a food truck that sat in a former warehouse where all that remained were the exterior walls and columns. The contrast was wonderful. I daydreamed of buying one of the shell buildings and designing a nice lil modern glass box of a building inside.
the fish market
ok casco veijo you are beautiful!
After suffecently nerding out in the old town I took to the passeo for a walk along the ocean to the big fish market…. And I can totally say with out shame I pigged out on some ceviche- I mean at 2.50 for a cup why would you have breakfast lunch and dinner there? My favorite was the micro ceviche which had freshly caught fish, shrimp, octopus, and some mystery creature that tasted quite good.
ceviche for dayssssss
After I had had my fill of fish I headed to the biomuseo to learn about the biodiversity of Panama and geek out and draw. The building is a Gehry building and in true style resembles crumbled paper. The shifting planes are to be reminiscent of the canopies of the jungles, and the folding planes sandwiched between the two masses is symbolic of the forming of the land mass known as Panama. All I know is I want to see the construction set for that building! Talk about some cool details! The museum had an exhibit about the building that included images of the 3D model- naturally I spent most of my time there feeling for the poor intern who had to model it! I tried my hand at drawing the exterior as well and let’s just say I hope my sketching skills improve on this trip.
The next day I trekked out to see the engineering feet that is the Panama Canal. The slow passing of the boats, and the ingenuity of the lock system is oddly relaxing and memorizing. Fun fact I liked about the canal was an American once paid 35 cents to swim through the canal- must have been one crazy guy that’s a load of water rushing in on you! But hey what ever floats your boat—get it…little locks humor.
lovinglavidalaura 