It’s a mistake to overlook Panama when thinking about traveling to Central America. Most people still do.
Panama’s beaches, wildlife, fishing, surfing, and coffee all rival the more popular Costa Rica, and spending 24 hours in Panama City beats San Jose any day, anytime.
From a photographer’s perspective, I loved the country. Visiting the massive lock system at the mouth of the Panama Canal was cool. So was finding one of the elusive red frogs at Red Frog Beach in Bocas del Toro.
Several of my favorite photos on this trip were taken in Bocas del Toro, a tiny group of islands on the Caribbean side near the Costa Rica border. One was the red frog. Another is the picture of the baseball game taken through the rip in the fence. You can see airstrip in the background. What I love most about this photo is that it captures something that I saw when I was traveling that will stick with me forever. We’re talking 2011, and these guys were playing a regular baseball game inside the international airport’s perimeter. It was one of those “NEVER in America” moments that you see when traveling less developed countries.
I can say without a doubt that I enjoyed my two weeks in the country immensely. I hope you do too.
If I ever go back, I hear the San Blas Islands are special and the Darien Gap has intrigued me ever since reading the book about an orchid hunter who gets kidnapped and held for ransom by bandits hiding deep in the remote jungle.
But don’t worry, Panama is perfectly safe!
