Scenic Drive and Walking tour of "Colonial Panama"

[mrell345]

We did this tour on Thursday the 28th of December when the Emerald Princess stopped there the day after our full transit of the Panama Canal Westbound.

Tour Description:

Celebrate the cultural and historic signifance of ancient Panama on a guided tour that highlights the country's glorius beginnings and tragic past.  La Viejo (Old Panama) is where the mnain city originally stood until destroyed by a band of pirates lead by Sir Henry Morgan in 1671.  An architechturall richness is still evident in many of the structures.  Then visit charming Casco Antiguo, an old colnial city founded in 1673.  Wander through hte French Plaza, photograph the monuments and climb the walkway for a superlative view of Panama City.  Stroll by Cathedral Square to adminre the cathedral's gleaming spires.

[mrell345]

We were picked up by the tour bus directly at the pier, as the new terminal was not opened to us and they used gangways directly to the dock.  We boarded the bus with our group and bumped our way out of the terminal area on the road still under construction.  Once we got to the cause way we were on regular paved roads.

 

We drove across the Amador causeway stopping in the middle at one of the observation points to get pictrures of Panama city and enjoy the view.  We also had a view back to the cruise port

 

[mrell345]

We then boarded the bus and continued on to drive past La Viejo and the new city, we didnt get off the bus but just slowed down a bit to see the sights at some points.  

[mrell345]

After driving around we finally stopped at the Colonial city where we got off and followed our guide around the city to see the sights while he gave us a running commentary all the while.  He was also giving us the commentary the entire time on the bus and cheerily answered any questions we asked during the whole tour.

 

[mrell345]

Not a bad day, this tour had us back to the ship by about 11:00, as it was very hot and muggy it was nice to hit the pool before drying off and grabbing some lunch.  There were some older people with us and one lady with a crutch that were lagging behind.  Its a tour with a moderate walk but we were able to wait for them and it did not slow down the tour too much.

Edited December 29, 2023 by mrell345

[Essiesmom]

Thank you very much for taking the time to report on this.  EM