Adventures in Central America: Panama Viejo & Amador Causeway, Panama

Once again I began the day earlier than my brother, and once again I spent the morning roaming Casco Viejo.  Today was Easter Sunday, and I got to spy on Easter mass through an open church door.

When my brother woke up we ate breakfast at Super Gourmet, an American owned and operated deli.  We paid $10 each, so it was not cheap, but it was delicious, and even healthy.  Certainly the most "North American" of our Panamian breakfasts.

After breakfast we caught the bus back to Panama Viejo.

Interestingly, a lot of places were closed Good Friday, but open Easter Sunday, including Panama Viejo.  Although it was open, nobody was at the ticket counter when we arrived, so our tour ended up being on the house.

Mostly the ruins are not all that interesting, other than the restored cathedral tower, which is both cool for its historic value, and because you can climb it and have great views in all directions, including the Pacific Ocean;

and the Panama City skyline.

Later in the afternoon, back in Casco, I rented a bike at Casco Bike Rentals ($4/hr) to bike the Amador causeway.

Biking from Casco to the causeway will no doubt be lovely one day soon, but it is not perfect yet, and required cycling on the road and some rather sketchy sidewalks.  I enjoyed the ride nonetheless, until the bike chain literally broke and fell to the pavement.  This was quite a surprise as I have never had that happen, and I cycle a lot.

I picked up the chain, threw it in the basket on the front of the bike, and walked the four kilometers or so back to Casco.