Free insurance for all tourists visiting Panama

Starting January 15, 2011, all visitors arriving at Tocumen International Airport in Panama will be covered by a state-appointed health insurance policy for 30 days. This measure is expected to increase Panama's competitiveness as a destination.

Each visitor will be given a pamphlet containing an identification card for beneficiaries. This card needs to be presented together with a passport in order to get medical care. If the visitor is injured while consuming drugs or under the influence of alcohol then the coverage is voided.

The benefits will cover accidental diseases within 30 days of your stay in Panama, hospitalization and medical expenses arising as a result of injuries from an accident, medical transportation (including rental or air ambulance if required), hotel expenses (maximum 10 days), pharmaceutical costs, accidental death and repatriation of the body to the country of origin, legal and administrative assistance after an accident, including documented loss of documents, translations, etc.

The policy covers medical expenditures up to $7,000 and if the visitor needs to be transferred to another medical center, overseas transportation up to $40,000 will be provided. The insurance also contains $20,000 in coverage if a visitor dies while in Panama.

Mountain living.....

Thinking of the past, looking toward the future is what this man is doing. As you are deep in the mountains of the continental divide you have to walk or take a horse to get there, your 4x4 is useless. This pensive gentleman is a farmer looking down on some of his land. This is a tough place to make living and he has sold his land to a gringo who will develop it. He is getting a good price for his land. He says his children will go to the university with the money. His teenage daughter is especially bright and she plans to go to medical school. As for him, he will buy a better piece of land and continue farming, but his children come first. Like so many of us, we make sacrifices so that our children will move forward and succeed.

Before people arrive and look around for themselves, they think only of palm trees when they think of Panama. We have plenty of palm trees, but they are only one variety of many. The photo on the left was taken near La Pintada in Cocle province in central Panama and provides two examples, plus a very nice view of one of our many mountains.

Trees.....

Not just pretty. It is flamboyant! Our birds and flowers are colorful but our trees can be very impressive too. The photo can only give a hint of its beauty in real life.








This is a mango tree. Yes, the tree that produces those under-ripe, over-priced fruits you see in the supermarket in the US and Europe. In Panama they are very cheap, or they can be free if you have a tree in your back yard. This one is not unusually large but you will never go hungry during mango season with a tree like this one!

Panama Viejo

Panama Viejo, or Old Panama, is the ruins of the first settlement in Panama City. It was destroyed by the Pirate Henry Morgan in the late 1600's. Morgan decided on Panama instead of Cartagena de Indias or Veracruz (which was also considered for pillaging) because of its riches from being a commercial center between the oceans. Most of the city was destroyed during a pirate raid in 1671, but the ruins remain today. Definitely a good place to stop by during your visit.

Today, visitors can stop in Panama Viejo to see the museum and tour the remains of the "first" Panama City. The museum includes a viewing of the archaeological collection which has been recovered at this site. The pieces record the presence of Europeans, Indians and the first Panamanians all living together in the city.

A couple of Panamanian women pose and take pictures wearing their 'polleras,' Panama's typical or traditional dress which can be seen throughout the country at various celebrations during the year. These dresses can cost anywhere from a few hundred dollars to a few thousand, and can take up to a year or more to make. These young ladies are pictured in front of the old ruins.