Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Pizzería Ebenezer
C Aminta Burgos de Amado, near Parque Unión 996 8831.
Reputedly
the town's best pizzas (mid-sized from $6), with a wide selection of toppings. Greek special-
ities, tacos, burritos and other comfort food available.
Mon-Sat 10am-10pm, Sun 4-10pm.
Restaurante El Mesón
Downstairs at the Hotel Rex 996 2408.
Eschew the a/c dining
room for the much nicer open-air café overlooking the park. Breakfasts under $5, while
lunch and dinner mains start at around $9, and include well-prepared snacks (toasted sand-
wiches, burritos), the usual Panamanian and international regulars and Spanish specialities
like paella, chorizo and tongue. Free wi-fi.
Daily 6am-11pm.
Restaurante y Refresquería El Aire Libre
Parque Unión, Av Obaldía 996 3639.
Pleasant
open-sided restaurant overlooking the park; packed at breakfast and lunch, offering a cheap
menú del día
- the customary plateful of rice, beans and chicken or fish.
Daily 6am-10pm.
La Arena
The only reason travellers stop off at
La Arena
, a suburb-like village 5km west of Chitré,
is to peruse the
ceramics
, for which it is famous. Get off the bus (from the bus terminal or
the centre of town) or abandon your taxi along the Carretera Nacional once you see roadside
displays of pottery.
ARRIVAL AND SHOPPING: LA ARENA
By bus
Regular buses from Chitré's terminal (every 15min, 6am-9pm) pass through town.
By taxi
A taxi from the town centre or bus station will cost around $3.
Cerámica Calderón
Just off the main road 974 4946.
This is one of the best-known places
to shop for ceramics in La Arena; while here, you can witness the pots being moulded and
fired in giant kilns on the premises.
Daily 7am-4pm.
Parita
Parita is a few hundred metres off the Carretera Nacional; take any bus bound for Santiago or Aguadulce from
Chitré (approx every 30min, 6am-8pm)
Founded in 1556,
PARITA
is one of the oldest, best-preserved and most picturesque villages
on the peninsula. The village is just 11km northwest of Chitré, and easily reachable by public
transport: arrive shortly after sunrise or just before dusk to catch the best light for photo-
graphs. Take in the sparkling white eighteenth-century
Iglesia Santo Domingo de Guzmán
,
with its attractive clay-tiled roof. Peek inside and you'll see some ornately carved wooden al-
tarpieces and a similarly elaborate pulpit. Surrounding the plaza, terraces of pastel-coloured
traditional adobe (
quincha
) cottages with tiled roofs take you back in time, though a line of
telegraph poles remind you that the village was not totally bypassed by the twentieth century.
Party time in Parita occurs in the days leading up to August 8, the celebration of the village's
foundation.
