Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
assured, in the canal treaty of 1977, could the capital, and the country, start to plan its own
path.
Modern times
The introduction of banking secrecy laws in the 1970s led to the rapid expansion of the finan-
cial services sector, including an influx of
narco-dollars
. Despite the tightening of banking
regulations, El Cangrejo remains a hive of intrigue and some of the luxury high-rise apart-
ments there and in Punta Paitilla stand empty, the astronomical rents paid by their fictitious
occupants providing a useful means of laundering money. With the handover of the last US
bases to Panamanian control at the end of 1999, huge amounts of real estate were made avail-
able, enabling the city to expand further, though its spread inland is still checked by the back-
drop of hills that form the protected Panama Canal Basin.
Casco Viejo
Most of Panama City's historical monuments and tourist attractions are concentrated in the
colonial city centre of
San Felipe
- more commonly called
Casco Viejo
(sometimes Casco
Antiguo) these days - which makes it the best place to start your tour of the capital. For cen-
turies the heart of Panama City's social and political life, and still home to the presidential
palace, Casco Viejo, after decades of neglect, was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site
in 1997 and is gradually being restored to its former glory. Now upmarket restaurants and
cafés sit alongside chic offices and apartments in renovated colonial buildings, but the poor
families talking on the doorsteps of crumbling, scarcely habitable houses are just as much
part of the neighbourhood. Ongoing restoration projects are making it a much more pleasant
place to visit and the increased police presence - including the highly visible tourist police,
often on bicycles - ensures greater safety. Note that caution should still be exercised when
walking around at night; stick to the well-lit streets.
