After some time without a new place to go, rock music lovers in Panama can come to the new Madame Blanche Rock Lounge.

This new haven for rockers is located in the popular bar and discotheque district of Panama City, Calle Uruguay. You will find it easily, because it’s located right above the Sahara bar and restaurant.

The interior of Madame Blanche Rock Lounge

Owners of Madame Blanche are determined to capture old as well as young clientele by providing service from early in the afternoon (5:00 p.m.) and gigs that start at the reasonable hour of 10:00 p.m. for the first set and midnight for the second set. No more falling asleep over drinks while you wait for some good music!

Tuesdays are destined for Blues gigs, and Wednesdays for Jazz. Classic Rock, Pop, Indie, Alternative, New Wave and others can be heard on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays.

Owners of Madame Blanche Rock Lounge are radio personality Manuel “Funket” De Leon and artist Alfredo Bocanegra. They rely on experienced bar tender and manager Benny Cedeño to tend to their customers.

The best local musicians play at Madame Blanche.

Panama citizens may recognize the name of this bar, because there’s an award winning magazine with the same name. Also, Funket and Alfredo have expanded this franchise to the radio, by hosting a homonym show on KYS Radio Station (104.3FM).

The company Ocean Embassy Panama (OEP) announced the purchase of 299 hectares in Playa Corona in the district of San Carlos which will be used to build one of the best aquariums in the world and where it will be possible to swim with dolphins. The resort and park with marine animals means an investment of more than $300 million dollars for Panama over a period of seven to ten years, according to a press release from the company. According to the company’s projections more than 400 Panamanians will work at the facility which will offer guests the opportunity to interact directly with marine animals. A resort that will serve as a hotel for tourists will also be built on the site.

Compran tierra para acuario

Wilfredo Jordán Serrano

wjordan@prensa.com

La empresa Ocean Embassy Panamá (OEP) anunció la compra de 299 hectáreas en playa Corona, distrito de San Carlos, para el establecimiento de uno de los mejores acuarios del mundo donde se podrá interactuar con delfines.

El resort y parque de vida marina de OEP representará para el país una inversión de 300 millones de dólares en un periodo de siete y diez años, informó un comunicado.

De acuerdo con las proyecciones de la empresa, más de 400 panameños serán parte del proyecto que brindará a sus huéspedes el contacto directo con animales marinos.

Como parte del proyecto se planea la construcción de un resort que servirá de hospedaje a los turistas.

SOURCE: Don Winner @ Panama-guide.com

 BY JIM LANDERS – The Dallas Morning News PANAMA CITY, Panama — Cement prices have doubled, and it’s hard to get a truck to come to your building site. The situation is similar for steel, glass, bricks and all the guts of a high-rise condominium. The real-estate business is having a party in Panama. As of July, 380 tower projects were under way or announced, representing more than 40,000 condos and apartments. A year ago, it was 11,000 units. The builders say Americans looking for the urban high life in retirement will snap up these buildings in a new Miami that’s half the price of the real Miami. ”The baby boomers, simply put,” wrote Roger Khafif, builder of the Trump Ocean Club in the Punta Pacifica shoreline neighborhood, in an e-mail about his target buyers. “Without them, Panama’s real-estate boom would bust.” (more)

Retirement properties have been considerably cheaper in Panama than in Florida, and the climate is as good or better. The local currency is the U.S. dollar. And although Medicare doesn’t reach Americans abroad, healthcare is much less expensive there than in the United States.

But speculators are the ones who have put down deposits on 70 percent to 90 percent of these units, said Paul McBride, chief executive of Prima Panama developers. There’s no beach on the bay, which is where the 1 million residents of this city pour their sewage. A seven-year, $300 million cleanup is underway.

And falling prices in Miami and elsewhere in the United States may make those Panama condos seem less cheap.

It’s hard to find evidence that white-haired North Americans are mounting an invasion of retirees, and you can almost hear the air escaping from the bubble.

The Ice Tower, a 104-story dream of blue and silver, has melted. Two other towers of 96 and 54 floors are not going to get off the ground, either. There are mutterings about whether some developers were simply looking for interest-free loans from the people putting down condo deposits. A Panamanian legislator is proposing to a law requiring developers to pay 6 percent interest on refunded deposits.

Khafif’s Trump Ocean Club, a venture with New York developer Donald Trump, is starting to rise. The skyscraper shaped like a sail, he hopes, will be completed in October 2010 with 500 condos and 500 hotel suites with a market value of $404 million.

”Of course we can build a 90- or 104-floor building in Panama,” Khafif wrote. “Almost anything can be done if the price is right!! And that was precisely the problem. Plain and simple, the developers sold toooooo cheap.”

A builder needs to sell condos during the construction phase at prices high enough to cover inflation in materials and other construction costs, Khafif argued. ”We . . . launched our modest 66-floor building at three times the market value,” he wrote, and thus he expects no problems.

There are real-estate booms like this in a dozen Chinese cities and in the Persian Gulf emirate of Dubai.

Whenever the discussion turns to where all of the money comes from, people look over Panama’s shoulder and see Colombia, where cocaine has built fortunes looking to be laundered.

Such whisperings have not stopped other investors from coming. Condos priced at a total of $5.7 billion are on the market in a nation with a $16.5 billion economy. The expansion of the Panama Canal, hopes for big energy investments and happy days in the banking industry all point to rapid economic growth.

In the first five months of this year, Panamanian banks reported profits of $444.1 million, up 19.4 percent from the same period in 2006. The banks say credit is expanding 15 percent a month.

McBride of Prima Panama said the average Panama City condo is selling for more than the average single-family home in the United States. This doesn’t hurt the luxury market so much, but it may make a difference for North Americans hoping to stretch their nest eggs by retiring abroad.

”Two or three years ago, the price of a luxury condo was $120 a square foot. Now it’s $250 to $300 a square foot,” McBride said.

Casco Viejo is located at the mouth of the Panama Canal and it is the oldest city on the Pacific Coast of the America: it was there long before the Canal was built. In fairness to history, the original Panama City (now known as Old Panama or Panama La Vieja) was founded in 1519, about two miles from the center of Panama City as we know it today. From here, expeditions were mounted to conquer the Inca Empire of South America and all of the wealth pillaged from Peru, Chile and California flowed to Spain through Old Panama. It is no surprise that this booty attracted pirates like Henry Morgan, who looted the city in 1671.

During Morgan’s attack, this original Panama City was burned to the ground. Two years later, in 1673, the capital was moved two miles to the west and present-day Panama City was founded. This is the area now known as Casco Viejo. As the city was being rebuilt by the Spanish settlers, they decided to build a massive surrounding wall and a stronger fortress for its protection and to ensure that the enormous wealth in gold and silver that passed through it would never again be susceptible to the likes of Henry Morgan.

The new city boasted a cross-sectioned design of 38 blocks, with three main streets running from east to west and seven streets running from north to south. Unfortunately, this urban development was interrupted by various fires that devastated its streets. In 1737, the “big fire” destroyed two thirds of the city and the “small fire” of 1756 destroyed more than 90 houses. These and other catastrophic fires help explain why so few true examples of Spanish colonial architecture exist today.

The fortress still survives, though and today houses several important, cultural and historic buildings and monuments. But it is the architecture of Casco Viejo that makes it so special. The old Spanish colonial style is overlaid with French balconies and architecture, remnants of the French inhabitants who made the initial attempt to build the Panama Canal in 1881. Over the years, a Caribbean influence also took hold and, today, Casco Viejo is a melting pot of architectural inspiration and style, with some buildings dating as far back as 300 years.

Up until the early parts of this century, Casco Viejo remained a thriving cultural center. But as Panama City modernized and as the automotive age made transportation easier, it spread outward, leaving Casco Viejo behind. The old city’s narrow labyrinth streets were difficult for cars to maneuver and its buildings were obsolete in comparison to modern skyscrapers being built. By the mid 1900s, Casco Viejo had gone the way of most city centers of that century. No longer the center of Panama City, it was too oppressed for the upper class and quickly became a poor area of tenement-style housing.

In 1997, UNESCO declared Casco Viejo a Patrimony of Humanity, a World Heritage site. Today, it is revered as the historic center of Panama City. Two- and three-story houses with flower-adorned balconies overlook narrow streets. At its tip is French Park, where you will find the French Embassy and a monument to the hardy French builders who began the Panama Canal. On one side is an historical Spanish building called Las Bovedas, now housing an art gallery and French restaurant.

Close by is the Museum of National History and across the way is the National Cathedral. Nearby is a small museum dedicated to religious art, found in the old Santo Domingo monastery. This is where you will find the famous Flat Arch, which reportedly helped convince engineers that Panama was earthquake-proof and a geologically stable area for building the Canal. A few blocks away is the old San Jose Cathedral, with gleaming spires inlaid with mother-of-pearl and its beautiful gold altar, intricately carved of wood and gilded with gold. This is a must-see when you visit Casco Viejo.

To finish off your day in Panama in style, make your way to The Bristol Hotel, just a short taxi journey from Casco Viejo. Dining at the Barandas Restaurant at The Bristol Hotel is an event to savor. The Panamanian-inspired gourmet cuisine, restful ambiance, stunning presentation, elegant settings and attentive service combine to create an unforgettable dining experience. Make sure to finish off the day with a drink in the elegant dark wood bar.Michael RussellYour Independent guide to TravelArticle Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Michael_Russel