Panama+(Cheyenne+W)

Panama:

General Information
**Capital City** = Panama City (1,050,500 Population) **Religions** = Roman Catholic, Protestant. There are other religions that were to small to be counted such as: **Mormon**, **Bahai**, **Seventh-Day Advendist**, **Jehovah's Witness**, and **Episcopalians**.
 * Population **= 3,410,676. Growth rate is 1.4%
 * Demographics **= 0-14 Years-28.6% (Male-504,726, Female- 484,291) 15-64 Years- 64.2 (Male-1,123,777, Female-1,098,661) 65 and Over- 7.2% (Male-115,425, Female-133,582). **Birthrate**-19/1000. **Deathrate**- 5/1000. **Life Expectancy**- Male-75 Years, Female- 80 Years. **Hiv/Aids**- 20,000. **Hiv/Aids Death**-1500. **Nationality**- (Noun)Panamanian's. (Adjective) Panamanian. **Religions**- Roman Catholic- 85%, Protestant- 15%. **Language**-Spanish (Official), English 14%. **MANY PANAMANIAN'S ARE BILINGUAL**. **Literacy**- Total Population- 92%. Male- 92.5%, Female- 92%. **Major Disease/Ailment**- Bacterial Diarrhea. **Vectorborne Diseases**- Dengue Fever, and Malaria. **Ethnic Groups**- Mestizo- 70%, West Indian- 14%, White- 10%, Amerindian-6%.

**Official Language(s)-** Spanish is the official language of Panama. There are other traditional languages of Panama. The people mix the language of ethnic groups and they end up with a traditional language. Some of these languages include:**Buglere**, **Yue**, **Hakka**, **Embera**, **Northern Embera.** **Monetary System** = The monetary system in panama is similar to America's. They use the dollar as currency but only in paper form. In hard coin they use what they call a balboa. Since there is no need to protect the the paper currency, a central bank was never formed. The National Bank of Panama was responsible for central banking.
 * Major Exports\Industries =Bananas, Shrimp, Sugar, Clothing, Coffee.** Some major industries of Panama include: **Banking**, **Services**, **Construction**, **Brewing**, **Tourism**, and **Sugar Milling**.

** Geography **

 * Located on the lowest and narrowest part of the Isthmus.
 * Encompasses about 77,082 Kilometers.
 * Main part of the land includes the spines of mountains, and hills.
 * Surrounded by water and has many bays. One major port is known as Balboa.
 * Climate is about a mild tropical.
 * Climate and weather are different depending on where you go.
 * More dry away from the oceans, but moist near the ocean.
 * Humidity is high all year around.
 * 2 seasons, Wet and dry.
 * Heavy rainfall can visit the dry season as heat can visit the wet season.

**Brief History**
Panama was once inhabited by the tribes like Cuevas and Cocole. The tribes that settled here were known for there pottery and burial sites. Panama was once part of Colombia, but after the revolt they became there own country. President Theodore Roosevelt wanted to build the Panama Canal, but Panama did not want him to. When Roosevelt offered 10 million dollars to build the canal, the panamanians became interested. The U.S made a treaty called the Hay-Bunau-Varilla Treaty, which stated if the U.S would help Panama revolt, the U.S could build a canal. After the revolt and the canal was built, many riots have happened over the canal. Many call it a problem, but some say it is necessary.

**Government/Current Political Situation**
In current news a group of indians have blockaded a road in panama which has caused the government a great deal of trouble. When the police arrived on the road, they cleared it out by tear gas. The group of indians have agreed to quit blockading the road in exchange for their demonstrators.
 * Country has a republic, constitutional democracy.
 * Current political leader is Ricardo Martinelli.
 * Current military leader is Manuel Noriega.

**Culture**

 * Food**- Deep-fried Corn Tortillas, Fresh Fruit, Eggs, Toast, Fried Meat, Cocunut Rice. **Meals-** Sancocho- Stew that consits of chicken, and vegetables. Empanadas- Savory Corn, filled with meat, cheese, and potatoes.
 * Clothing**- The pollera is considered a national clothing for woman. The panama hat is the same for a man. The pollera is worn with much jewlery and hair accessories. The hats are made from palm straw or paja toquilla.
 * Sports**- Football (American Soccer), Golf, Tennis, Rugby.
 * Holidays**- Martyrs' Day (Jan. 9th)- Right for Panama flag to be beside the U.S flag.Separation Day (Nov. 3rd)- When Panama separated from colombia. Colon Day (November 5th)- Panama's version of columbus day.
 * Music and Art**- Has a famous museum named Museo Del Hombre Panameno. The country has many writers writing an array of short stories, anecdotes, novels and poetry. The Kuna Indians are very famous for their Molas (Applique Textile Panels). They also make wood carvings. Some examples of music are Reggae, Pop, and Salsa.



Tourism
One of the best places to tour in Panama is the Bastimentos Sky Canopy Tour. They will attatch you to a zipline and it will go through the top layer of the forest in panama, 30 minutes away from Costa Rica. It will also include a tarzan swing, a swaying suspended log bridge, and a canopy net! I would definitely reccommend this to anyone who will want to visit panama or Costa Rica! It looks very fun!

Another wonderful place to visit in Panama is the beaches. They are very sandy with lots of green trees and beautiful sunsets. The waters are a beautiful and they reflect the sun magnificently! This would also be a wonderful place to visit in Panama!

Current Events
Indians block road in Panama! A group of Native Indians have blocked a very important road in Panama due to the effect that Panama captured and held captive their demonstrators. The indians are very upset about that so they decided to "protest." The police have gained control of the situation and the indians are try to negotiate the return of their demonstrators for the reduction of road blockades. 44 people were arrested and 40 were injured. []

Fines for fire hydrants! Many people have been fined for using a fire hydrant for "fun." The Distinguished Fire Brigade of the Republic of Panama has set a fine to anyone who decides to open a fire hydrant even for an emergency on the day of Carnival. Panam is keeping this clear in case there was a real fire emergency. The only people who have authorization to open a fire hydrant are the firefighters. []

**Sources**
Yahoo.com/answers Countrystudies.com Tripadvisor.com Everyculture.com Google.Images.com Wikipedia.com (Confirmation) Yahoo.com (Confirmation) Panama (Book)

[]