Panama situated, south of Costa Rica and north of Columbia located on the Isthmus of Panama, a narrow bridge connecting North and South America is a tropical paradise known for its natural landscape, exotic beaches, diverse flora and fauna and for its vibrant culture and music. The culture of Panama is a mixture of South and Central America, the Caribbean, North America, Asia, and the Middle East influences. The Panama can be experienced through their ethnic art and crafts, music, sports, religion, architecture and cuisine. Handmade wood carvings, baskets, pottery and masks also reflect the traditional culture of Panama. Tamborito is a powerful national dance of Panama which has beautiful Panamanian woman looking gorgeous in their national dress “The Pollera” a frilled and intricately embroidered gown adorned with attractive gold jewelry and the Panamanian men looking handsome in “Montuno” the traditional, yet simple attire with straw hats enjoying swinging to the vibrations and authentic, sensuous beats of the “Caja” made up of hollow cylindrical wood pieces from local trees. The music of Panama is again a blend of styles like salsa, son, cumbia, tango, reggae and soca. Panama boasts of one of the best salsa singer and actor, Ruben Blades. Common instruments played here are mejoranas (a five stringed guitar like instrument), bells and castanets.
Panama is a richly blessed with tribe culture specializing in various art and crafts. The women from the embera and wounaan tribes specialize in traditional masks and elegant baskets which are made from fibers of the nahuala and chunga palms. Tagua carving is an art practiced on tagua nuts which is no bigger than an egg. The Kuna tribes from the comarca of San Blas are known for their intricately embroidered ‘mola’ panel blouses which display a mix of traditional Kuna and modern influences. The mola panels sold in pairs usually are figured out by the number of layers, zigzag borders, appliqué work and stitching finesse. The Ngobe-bugle tribes are one of the largest tribes of Panama specialize in the famous bags woven from the wild pineapple plant fiber, is a very famous part of the Panama art culture. All these handicrafts boast of the beautiful Panamanian culture and are appreciated by art collectors from all over the globe.
Food in Panama is blended like the Panamanian reflecting Panama’s cosmopolitan background. The basic staples here are corn, beans and rice. Culinary talent can be tasted through their dishes made of seafood and tropical vegetables. Two national favorite chicken dishes are Arroz con pollo and sancocho flavored by herbs. Other delicacies include ceviche, camarones (shrimps) and patacones (fried plantains).
