Getting ready for Pride in Panama

The LGBT  community is becoming a very important niche market for the travel industry.   The modern companies are investing more in this important consumer because is more eager to spend in high-quality hotels and services.

Panama is considered one of the most open-minded countries in Central America and EcoCircuitos as a company member IGLTA that offer unique travel programs for the LGBTI interested in discovering our Central America destination.

The nomadic Boys were in Panama and they wrote several articles about the Destination.  Click here for details.

 

We at EcoCircuitos embrace the combination of Luxury and Sustainability, offering to all our clients meaningful and authentic experiences in Panama.  “We combine quality service and expert advice with a premium selection in itineraries highlighting the best accommodations, unforgettable adventures and friendly local hosts“, says Annie Young Director and Partner.

This year PRIDE Panama will be featuring different events in Casco Viejo, the Old Quarters of Panama with unique activities to make visible the contributions of the LGBTI Population in Panama, the importance of guaranteeing their human rights and to join the World Commemoration of the disturbances caused by the abuse and homophobia in the Stonewall Discotheque in New York, in 1969.

I Love Panama Chocolate

 

The activities for the festival will start on Monday, June 25 and ends on Saturday, June 30, with the LGBTI Pride March from 4:00 pm in the V Centenario Park.

Join us for Pride in Panama and support diversity while discovering a unique and amazing destination.   Contact us for details at annie@ecocircuitos.com

 

 

Tropical Fruits in Panama

I love tropical fruits.  Some fruits as the Guanabana has a bitter-sweet flavor and other fruits are so sweet such as a good Mango or mangosteen.

Some of my favorite fruits that you should try in Panama are:

1.  Guanábana:  Is a large fruit whci can be up to 42cm long and weight up to 4kg.  Th shape is ovoid and curde at the lower end with thin, shiny, dark green skin that is covered with thorns.  The inside flesh is delicious, white, juice and bitter-sweet.  One of my favorite tropical juices is the Guanabana and you can eat if fresh fruit, juice or as a sorbet.
2. Mango:  definitely one of my favoritefruites.  Is aromatic, sweet and tasty.  There are so many different varieties of mangos and in Panama you have many different options.   The most common way to eat it is as a whole fresh fruit.  The pulp however is used for chutney, jellies, and juices.
3. Mangosteen:  this is also a delicious tropical fruit.  Is round, fleshy with a diameter between 6 and 7cm and smoth skin.  The flesh is white and sweet and very juicy.  It is a very delicate flavor and is eaten fresh.  This fruit has a lot of vitamin C, B1 and B2 and is exellent source of potassium and calcium.
4. Tamarindo:  this small, round fruit mainly brown in color can be made into jellies, sauces and juices.  This fruietaids digestion and helps gastritis and gastroenterities.  My grandmother used to made tamarind balls with sugar as a candy when we were kids.  Amazingly delicious.

Discover this and more tropical fruits when travel with us.  Panama will surprise you for our diversity.  Contact us info@ecocircuitos.com

 

Gastronomy experience in Panama

By Juliette Darmon

There is no culture without gastronomy!

But too often and unfortunately, people tend to think that a gastronomy tour vulgarly means eating all day…

But here is the mistake! Gastronomy fully takes part of a cultural journey!
It’s a real rich and unmissable experience for a complete trip!

Of course the main goal of a gastronomic tour is making you tasting the best, traditional and local products and specialties of the country, but it also means showing you a cultural area of the city and the best places and locations to discover this culture, some typical and hidden sites you wouldn’t have thought about.

A gastronomic tour is also learning more about the culture, and your passionate guide will follow you throughout the itinerary. It’s a real adventure unlike a lot of people can think!

More than just tasting in our Panama Gastronomy experience, you will learn about how traditional dishes and local products as chocolate, coffee or honey are made and their whole process, and you will even have the possibility to visit some factories!

You could admire the view on the extensive skyline of Panama City while trying a ceviche at the Mercado de mariscos or the famous “raspado” on the Cinta Costera.

To end your culinary tour in the capital you may get on a guided tour through the microbrewery and taste some of their beer specialties. Also if time permits you could visit a Rum factory to try the artisanal Panamanian rum.

One day or one week, a culinary journey can be fascinating and so rewarding!

Out of the city, in the Azuero Peninsula you could so visit a local Rum factory, learning about the complete process of rum production – from harvesting the sugarcane until tasting the golden liquid. Then enjoy discovering the manufacturing processes of the traditional products of the Herrera Province: sugarcane, salt, clay and bread. In addition, you will have the chance to lodge in an eco coffee farm in the Boquete province.

The day after you will visit the coffee plantations and learn about the complete process of making coffee before tasting it at the end of the tour while enjoying an extensive view on the surrounding highlands.

Once the coffee tour ended, you will go on a local honey plant located on a small farm in the highlands of Boquete to end with a world-class honey tasting.

And what’s better than ending by a tour in the jungle to visit the Embera community and trying their fresh fish lunch?
In case you were skeptical, you are now aware of what does a gastronomic tour mean, and that is not just “stuffing” yourself with food…

So book a culinary tour now with EcoCircuitos to get into the Panamanian culture!

Escape to Veracruz Beach

At only 30 minutes away from Panama city, this little hidden beach named Playa Venado at Veracruz is a really nice place to relax a Saturday or Sunday.

Located in an area known for its several bars and restaurants, you will be immersed in a reggae, relaxed and casual atmosphere.  Fried fish and ceviche is a must and some local cocktails will be refreshing you while overlooking the views.

You can take paddling tours or classes with Paddle Paradise  or with Panama Stand Up Paddle Boarding Association, taking a fresh and traditional maracuya smoothie on the beach to relax while you are getting tanned, having lunch in a local restaurant with delicious grilled and fresh fish or any type of seafood, and ending your day with a lovely and yummy cocktail in the reggae bar at the sunset time.

Bring your camera and your good mood, and go to enjoy some free time in this original place, so close from the city!

New Coffee Farm: Finca Ceriana

Strategically located between the highlands and lowlands of Chiriquí, Finca Ceriana forms part of a privately protected area for the conservation of flora and fauna in the region.

One of Finca Ceriana’s unique characteristics is the number of bird species and other animals from the upper and lower mountain areas. The property is part of the biological corridor that hosts the famous volcano lagoons and a large variety of animal and plant species. Apart from being an important migration zone for birds, the biological corridor of the lagoons and Finca Ceriana is vital for the wellbeing of the protected areas of La Amistad International Park and Baru Volcano National Park. 

The farm offers its visitors easy nature trails for outdoor activities and particularly bird watching, a unique canopy tower, gourmet picnic, sugar cane mill and much more. The total area counts 10 hectares of protected land and nearly 3 kilometers of nature trails, in addition to one of the most beautiful views to Costa Rica’s Golfo Dulce and Osa peninsula as well as to Punta Burica in Panama.

 

Menú Panamá en el Biomuseo

Este sábado 20 de Marzo, 2015-  el Biomuseo presenta “Menú Panamá” un encuentro gastronómico para los amantes del buen comer.  Con la comida de fonda como tema, reconocidos chefs locales como Chombolín (Íntimo, que se estará inaugurando próximamente), María de los Ángeles (Humo BBQ), Alberto Perrino (Azafrán), Enrique Hendricks (Oink House) y José Olmedo (Donde José) estarán versionando platos tradicionales de fonda.

Además participarán chefs internacionales que forman parte de la conocida lista de la versión Latino América de “The World’s 50 Best” :   la chef Kamila Seidler, del restaurante Gustu (Bolivia), Gonzalo Aramburu, del restaurante Aramburu (Argentina) y José Antonio González, de Al Mercat (Costa Rica).

El evento tendrá lugar en el Museo de la Biodiversidad – BIOMUSEO, ubicado en el Causeway a partir de las 5:00 pm y los participantes podrán degustar 5 platos, además de open bar, y actuaciones musicales. Un espacio en el que podrá compartir con los chefs y artista.  No se lo pierda!!