8:00— Casco Viejo is like a city from a different time, with its romantic, Spanish and French influenced buildings. Recently it has become a trendy neighborhood, partly because of the major restorations that are taking place, and now new stylish bars, restaurants, and cafes are springing up. Although patrolled by the friendly Policía de Turismo, Casco Viejo isn’t the safest place for a tourist, so don’t wander around at night with your fanny-pack on.

Atlas Beer- A Panamanian Brew

Buzios is in the old French section of Casco Viejo. It has a romantic atmosphere, best for dinner or a few drinks, with outdoor seating at round tables and trees with white lights. I hadn’t seen that many gringos since NY Bagel Café on Saturday morning. The Altas’ were so cold they were deliciously icy.

10:00—El Pescadito is a casual, local, outdoor hang out, with a lively atmosphere. The beer was brought to us in icy buckets, which is always fun.

12:00—People Bar has outdoor seating and diligent service which probably didn’t help with the number of beers we consumed. The only problem with sitting outdoors is the process in it took to visit the bathroom. I had to insist that I didn’t want to get inside without paying; I just needed the bathroom, over and over. We finally gave in after a little while and bought the pink wrist bands to “dance” inside. In fact, there was no dancing at all, just people loitering on the dance floor, which we would have utilized to extreme measures. Besides this complaint it was a dynamic scene and loud Latin music played.

2:00—Calle Uruguay for tacos. Delectable and cheap, these helped with my drunkenness situation.

2:15—We drank on the porch of Unplugged, also on Calle Uruguay, around the corner from the tacos, which is important. This bar is a dark and dingy dive with low ceilings and a funky vibe, where on some nights there is apparently a happening music scene.

All in all, a perfect balance of class, dive, and culture, the Panama Travels Mini Pub- Crawl might be just right for you on your first night out in Panama… it was for me.

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Filed under: Reviews on January 17th, 2008