Day 1: We arrived at Omar Torrijos airport via American Airlines early in the a fternoon.

We purchased our required tourist cards (3 balboas, as US dollars are called in Panama) at the airport, then caught a taxi for the 18 mile ride to our downtown hotel. The ride in the battered, un-airconditioned car was rather exp ensive (30 balboas), but the driver spoke English and was very friendly. We arr ived at the hotel and checked in. While my dad was checking in I bought a guide book in the hotel lobby and read up on the history of Panama City. The original city was founded in 1519 by Pedro Arias Davila, known as Pedrarias the Cruel, b ecause of his eradication of all but three of the local Indian tribes during his tenure in Panama. Davila used the city as a place to store Incan gold before it was shipped to Spain. The original city was sacked and burned in 1671 by a g roup of buccaneers led by Henry Morgan. The city was rebuilt within a year, th is time on a peninsula 18 miles away and surrounded by a strong wall. This old Spanish city is now the in the middle downtown Panama City. Panama City is an international melting pot and its eating choices range from American fast food to excellent internationall cuisine. Eager to begin ou r sightseeing, we grabbed lunch at a nearby McDonald's after checking in then ca ught a bus. The buses in Panama are a tourist attraction in themselves. They a re brightly painted, hung with fringe, and have constantly blaring Salsa and Ca racas music playing. They are cheap (50 cents a ride). but are very crowded. A fter asking several drivers "Donde va este autobus?" we finally found one going to the Plaza Independencia. This plaza is the main square of the colonial town and is bordered on one side by a cathedral with twin mother of pearl towers that took 108 years to complete. On two other sides it is bordered by the Archbisho p's Palace, now a university and the Central Post Office. While in the old part of Panama City we also visited the Iglesia de San Jose and saw the Golden Aalta r. This altar was in the original Panama City and was saved from Henry Morgan's pirates by a monk who painted it black to disguise it. When we finished tourin g we returned to our hotel and then ate dinner at El Pez de Ora, one of the city ' famous seafood restaurants. Day 2: We woke early and headed out for a morning of shopping at the Mercado Pu blico. I bought some jewelry and some small wooden figurines as souvenirs, but when I asked "Donde esta los sombreros de Panama?", the vendor told me Panama ha ts were made in Ecuador. The hat most commonly worn in Panama is the "pita", a narrow brimmed straw hat with black and white stripes. The most important phra ses to remember when shopping in Panama are " Cuanto cuesta esta?" and " Accepta s tarjetas de credita?" After shopping we had Chinese food in one of the local restaurants. After eating we went to visit Panama's most famous attraction, the Panam a Canal. The Canal was completed in 1914, and is considered one of the greatest engineering feats in the world. We took a shuttle from our hotel to the canal and then went on a 90 minute train ride all the way across the isthmus along the canal. The railroad we were traveling on was built in 1855 to transport '49ers who were on their way to the California gold rush and was the first "trans-cont inental" rail link. At one of the train stations we got off and walked to the M iraflores Locks, sat on bleachers, and watched the ships go through the canal. After our tour of the Panama Canal we returned to our hotel to get ready for a n ight of dinner and theater. We ate dinner at an Italian restaurant then went to the Teatro National for a performance of the Folkloric Ballet. The Folkloric B allet features native folk dances and costumes and was very entertaining. Day 3: We rented a car and left Panama City headed southwest along the Pan Amer

ican Highway. First we visited the Parque Natural Metropolitana, a zoo on the o utskirts of Panama with monkeys, deer, sloths, and iguanas. We then drove towar d El Valle, about 75 miles away. El Valle is located in the center of a dormant volcano. There we saw hot springs, botanical gardens (with square trees which scientists have been unable to explain!), and golden frogs found nowhere else on earth. We continued down the highway passing through the towns of Penonome, th e geographic center of Panama, and Nata, on of the oldest towns in Latin America . The Interior of Panama is mostly farmland and grazing land for cattle. We ev en saw some cowboys! At night we arrived at Baquette, a village on the side of the dormant Baru Volcano, where we spent the night. Day 4: We began our day by visiting Volcan Baru National Park and taking a shor t hike to see the beautiful plants and birds. The volcano is the highest point in Panama at 3475 meters. After our hike we ate lunch and then drove to Chiriqu i Grande where we dropped off our car. We then caught a ferry to Bocas del Toro where we visited Bastimentos National Park. The park has pristine white sand be aches where sea turtles nest. The coral reefs off the coast are home to more th an 200 species of tropical fish. While there we also got to visit caves contain ing the largest population of fruit eating bats in the world! Later we went sno rkeling of the coast of Almirante Island where we spent the night.