"Monorails are ok for disneyworld, but not a real transport system"
I don't know if the above quote is due to a lack of knowledge regarding the Monorail alternative to light rail transport or is an understandable reaction to the person who proposed a monorail in the past.
Those days are past history now, and a fresh look at Panama's transport needs should be based on reality rather than soundbites.
However, it seems like Panama is going to have a light rail metro system inflicted on it whether it is practical or not.
Underground tunnels in a sea level city with inadequate drainage. Stations where the people don't go.
The cost of importing the iron rails for the permanent way, tunneling beneath existing developments, and purchasing land for the permanent way are going to cost billions.
Will it go where the people go?
For an existing city which is already overcrowded and developed, the monorail alternative is far more cost effective and practical as this 13 page photo tour from the monorail society will show.
The monorail shown in that study is in a city very similar to Panama, a mix of rich and poor neighborhoods, a tropical climate with the attendant heavy rains and already highly developed.
The monorail can fit into the existing infrastructure and traffic corridors, going where the people need to go, at a fraction of the cost of an LRT permanent way.
Monorails can handle the same grades or slopes as cars or buses as they use similar traction systems. Unlike LRT with it's steel wheels on steel rails and the consequent traction limitations. Another plus for a city like Panama which is not laid out on flat ground.
Another plus for Panama, no steel to be stolen as has happened already on the Costa Cintera. Thieves don't bother stealing concrete. Those rails would be a prime target for some of the gangs here. Worth a lot more than manhole covers.
Another study here shows a next generation alternative to using electric power with it's attendant cost of providing a power rail along the length of the permanent way. Using diesel-electric technology for the motive power reduces costs even further. A pdf file from the company that has developed this technology is available here or you can visit the Metrail Website for more information.
A system that can use some of the better quality displaced bus drivers, runs along existing traffic corridors, and complements the existing traffic rather than going to a limited number of stops.
Highly visible with the attendant advertising opportunities, a monorail would be a step into the 21st century for Panama.
Who will want to sit in the traffic jams when they can see others whizzing by in comfort over their heads?
With crush capacities of over 400 passengers in a 3 car unit, these modern monorail systems are the real answer to Panama's traffic problems.
Imagine such a system, not only in the city centre, but extending right out to the airport at Tocumen, bringing workers from those outlying areas into the city and their jobs. For a similar cost to tunneling a metro system, a monorail could even extend along the median of the highway right out through Arraijan to La Chorrera reducing the morning and evening congestion on the bridges over the canal.
That would really bring Panama into the 21st century. A plan for transport outside the city would be a real innovation compared to previous governments.
If your idea of beauty is rolling hills, waterfalls and a peaceful life then you will love Cocle. If you need a weekly dose of casinos, cinema, night clubs or similar forms of "culture" you will be sorely disappointed. They don't exist here.
Despite much of the hype written on the internet promoting overpriced real estate, the provinces of Panama do not consist of cities with all the facilities known to man. The provinces are where the real panamanian people live and work. The main towns are small, mostly market centers, and the other names you see regularly are really just villages, sometimes with an overpriced gringo enclave nearby.
Penonome is a good example that I'm very familiar with, being the home town of my wife's family. Penonome is the largest town in Cocle with a population of about 12,000. Penonome boasts two casinos, but they are barely more than slot arcades for bored housewives. There are several 'garden bars' which sometimes have live music at weekends. Most of the time they provide music via a DJ and the music is Panamanian style to cater for their clients. Many of these bars only open at weekends as the locals tend to keep drinking to a low level during the working week and make up for the drought at weekends. A few cantinas are open all week long but an expat stands out like a sore thumb and it takes time to become known to the inhabitants.
There are several decent restaurants, mostly attached to the towns hotels, and a variety of local eateries. Don't expect any 5 star establishments though, they would be bankrupt in a month as the locals would not be able to afford them and the number of expats here could not support them.
For most families here, a get together at one of the family homes, with a few beers, gossip, home made music or a CD player and the TV on in the background is the normal evenings entertainment. The wives and mothers looking after the little kids and gossiping about the neighbours in one group, the menfolk in another group drinking and discussing important stuff like cars, horses and football. The teenagers create their own little clique to one side, with the girls discussing ways to get their favorite guy and the lads working on ways to help the mens' beer disappear without getting caught. :)
This article has probably cost me in terms of real estate advertisers. So be it!! This website is about reality, not hype. There are some quality developments underway in the area but the prices are similar to Panama city, yet without the amenities.
If what you are looking for is tranquility and a laid back life, then you will be welcome here in Cocle, although you will need to speak Spanish as very few locals speak any english. You will be happy here so long as you accept the way things are and don't try to force foreign values on the area. If you want modern 'culture' you will be better off staying in Panama City with all it's traffic chaos and 24 hour facilities. Or as a visitor, stay at one of the all inclusive beach resorts like the Royal Decameron which can provide for your entertainment needs. Penonome provides a decent day out from those resorts, but would be a boring place to spend 2 weeks vacation.
Finally, if you are a single guy looking for a good time with the beautiful young chicas, don't come out to the provinces looking for them. Those happy available girls in the city may come from the provinces, but while in the city they have freedom. Out here they are someones daughter or sister, and the males are very protective. The girl who will sell you a good time in the city is a sweet little church going angel when in sight of her family and won't give you a second glance.
Retire in Paradise, maybe for some, it is for me. Just remember that paradise can be boring before you buy into it. The hell (for me) of the city may be more to your taste.
Only in Panama could chicken soup qualify as the 'National Dish'
At first glance it seems crazy that this is the best Panama has to offer, but don't be fooled. To working people in the interior it provides a staple diet along with it's usual rice accompaniment. The herbs and spices provide flavour, the root vegetables like yucca, name and zanoria provide energy and it keeps well in a container out in the fields while still being flavorsome and filling even after it has cooled. Certainly healthier eating than the other common staple, fried chicken.
Over the years it has developed in many different ways as each families cook adds their own favorite ingredients, yet the end result always holds true to it's humble origins.
Sancocho also holds a place in my heart as the ultimate hangover cure. Easy to digest after a heavy nights partying, Sancocho is the best revival medicine I know, and will put life back into the most recalcitrant corpse. Definitely the original behind the expression, "chicken soup for the soul".
Here is my wifes' recipe, as handed down from her mother and grandmother, with her own variations added.
Sancocho (Chicken Soup)
1 stewing hen (2-3 lb), cut in serving pieces
1 large onion, chopped
4 - 5 fresh cilantro leaves, chopped
1 teaspoon dried oregano leaves, chopped finely
2 large green peppers, chopped
1 lb yucca root, peeled and chunked (potatoes can be substituted)
1 lb name, peeled and chunked
1/2 lb zanoria (carrot), thick sliced
2" section of corn on the cob for each serving (optional)
salt to taste
Put chicken pieces into a stock pot with 2 quarts of water. Add onion, cilantro, oregano and green pepper. Cook for 1 hour. Add salt to tasted. Add zanoria, name and yucca, cook until tender. Add corn last 15 minutes of cooking. Served with steamed rice on the side. Serves 5 to 6 people.
To an outsider, Controversia has got to be one of the weirdest forms of entertainment on the planet. 2 guys with accordions or guitars wearing sombreros and shouting each other down.
However, it has immense popularity here in the central provinces. Why??
Once you learn enough of the local Panamanian dialect of Spanish and start to understand the words, it becomes more interesting. The music only provides a background to the entertainment. The real art is in the way that the two protagionists fire the insults at each other. Each insult is a follow up to the one that went before, and demands a really rapid mind to both create the response, and then to make it flow poetically with the backing accompaniment. As the performance develops, the insults become more voracious and the speed of delivery intensifies until one or the other is beaten. The cheers and "oh's" of the audience add to the overall vitality of the show. The audience often identifies with the meaning behind the insults, either on a personal basis or through knowledge of / friendship with one or other of the players.
What probably started as a bar room arguement and would develop into a fight back home has been developed here into an art form, where speed of mind rather than stupidity of fists produces a winner, and the judging panel is the audience.
Panama is in many ways a 3rd world country, but Controversia is a great example of civilised behavior that many so called 1st world countries could learn a lot from.
Penonomé is the central market town of the Cocle province of Panama.
Penonomé is an inland town and is named after a local tribal chief, Nomé, who was executed by the Spanish colonial government. The town is approximately 150km or 94 miles west of Panama City on the Inter American Highway. Approximately one and a half hours driving from Panama City or two hours by bus from Allbrook terminal.
The town is the main economic hub of the province and is a popular day trip for visitors staying at the many beach resorts between Gorgona and Farrallon.
The climate is pleasant due the position of Penonomé on the edge of the 'Arco Seco' the driest part of Panama. A cooling breeze when the wind comes over the mountains to the north keeps humidity at a pleasant level, an added advantage for visiting Penonomé at any time of the year.
Panama's National Holidays are days when the whole country closes down and businesses and banks are closed. Carnaval varies each year since it is calculated from the date of Easter. Carnaval being the celebration before the start of the Lenten Fast.
Jan 1 - New Year's Day
Jan 9 - Martyr's Day
Feb 21 - 24 - Carnaval
April 10 - 12 Easter
May 1 - Labor Day
Nov 3 - Independence from Colombia
Nov 4 - Flag Day
Nov 5 - First Cry of Independence from Colombia
Nov 10 - First Cry of Independence from Spain
Nov 28 - Independence from Spain
Dec 8 - Mothers´ Day
Dec 25 - Christmas Day
Panama Provincial Fairs and Festivals 2009
The fairs and festivals in the interior are colorful and lively events. Panamanians in the interior are friendly and welcoming and these are great events for visitors to get involved in the real Panama at a local level. Many of them take place in the dry season (December through March) when the weather is fine and the schools are on holiday but there are also a number of events throughout the year.
Panama (prov)
Jan 15-18 Tanara Agricultural Fair
Jan 21- Feb 1 Chorrera International Fair
Cocle
Jan 15 Christo Esquipula, Anton
Jan 29- Feb 1 Orange Fair, Churuquita Grande
Feb 21 Aquatic Carnaval, Rio Zarati, Penonome
Feb 28- Mar 1 Carnavalito, La Pintada
Oct 14-18 Toro Guapo Festival, Antón
Nov 6 Founding Day Parade, Penonome
Veraguas
Jan 29- Feb 1 Santa Fé Fair
Feb 11-16 Veraguas Fair, Sona
March 13-15 La Chitra Fair, Calobre
Herrera
Jan 15-19 San Sebastian Fair, Ocú
Aug 13-16 Festival del Manito, Ocú
Aug 28-30 Flower of the Holy Spirit Fair, Las Minas
Los Santos
June 12-16 Corpus Cristi Festival, La Villa de Los Santos
July 16-21 Festival de la Pollera, Las Tablas
Sept 24-27 National Mejorana Festival, Guararé
Nov 10 First Cry of Independence from Spain, La Villa de Los Santos
Azuero
April 16-26 Azuero International Fair
Chiriqui
Jan 8-18 Flower & Coffee Fair, Boquete
Jan 30- Feb 8 La Candelaria, Bugaba
March 12-22 David International Fair
March 18-22 San José de Tolé Fair
April 8-12 Orchid Fair, Boquete
Oct 22 Coffee Festival, Río Sereno
Dec. 10-13 Highland Fair, Volcan
This list is far from complete, There are many small local events taking place in the various towns throughout the year. Please help our readers and promote your event by sending us information for inclusion in this calender.
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