Arriving in Panama was quite exciting. I never dreamed I would have the opportunity! Flying in was amazing and I could clearly see the 3 km Amador Causeway with the four connecting islands: Naos, Culebra, Perico & Flamenco. It was built by the Americans with rocks dug from the canal, for the purpose of stopping silt entering the canal. Naos houses the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute. The others have many restaurants, marinas, jogging and cycling paths. It is a wonderful night spot, and to think the Americans kept it gated until they handed over Panama in 1999.
Arriving at the airport, I was so surprised to see these little fellas on sale! Hilarious!
I stayed in a basic hostel near to Camilla’s fathers place. He lives on the 44th floor of an apartment block with a view over the Pacific Ocean, with his two beautiful children; Camilla’s half sister and brother. Alejandro’s wife, Claudia, is an artist and the apartment has her artistic touch as well as being decorated with her paintings of fruits.
One thing I really marvelled at was the way Claudia had transformed an old wardrobe by painting it silver and making it into a great looking drinks cabinet.
Later that first night we went to a restaurant in the old colonial part of Panama City, called Casco Viejo, which is being gradually renovated and turned into boutique hotels, restaurants and night clubs. The particular restaurant we visited on this evening had an interesting lighting set up. It is also part of a hotel that has each room decorated by a different Panamaranian artist. We were fortunate to get a tour.
Perhaps the most interesting part of the hotel tour was going out onto the balcony of one of the rooms and looking across into a building still in its original state with family life going on as you could imagine it had for hundreds of years. 
The following evening, after a city tour, we went to another wonderful restaurant, this time across the Calzador Armador (the causeway) on onto one of the islands. Here I was treated to delicious Arabian food, a shisha pipe and a belly dancer plus of course truly wonderful company – I was really being spoilt!
Now here is a sweet picture! The famous Colombian Aguardiente: “fiery water”. I was amused to find out from Alejandro that he could buy it cheaper here in Panama than in Colombia!
But then I found these little Ozzie beauties at the supermarket across from my hostel at $7.30 per bottle!
These photos were taken with my little red camera that got ruined with the humidity in The Lost City, so they are not so great.
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