Like many countries of South and Central America Panama shows a metropolitan face, the city itself is large and modern with many high rise apartment blocks, modern roads, restaurants and shopping malls.

Then there is the Canal itself the great shipping route, dividing the isthmus and the Caribbean sea from the Pacific Ocean.  The countryside is dotted with small and pleasant towns, linked by good roads and infrastructure. What though is not often seen by the average visitor is the wild interior,   a good portion of the landmass is made up of indigenous reserves,  the Guayami, Gnabe, the Bugle, the Guna Yala of the San Blas,  The Embera-Wounaan,  Talamanca and Teribe. For the most part these people speak different languages than that of Spanish and have lived on the lands for thousands of years, to travel into their territories is to visit another world. Then there are the mountainous regions which get few visitors such as the Darien on the Frontier with Colombia, also the Palo Seco National Park which is shared with Costa Rica. The rivers of the country are little visited unless you can get there by road, most people seeing only the swimming holes close to bridges.                                                                                                                                       Traveling on foot into the interior or making a descent of some of the wild rivers has shown me another world which is not so easy to experience but has been rewarding in many ways.

here is a great whitewater and exploration film made in the uplands of panama. Exploring the upper Rio Chiriqui and the Rio Los Valles.  Kayaking at its best.