Six Days in Panama--Part 1

We hadn't ever taken a vacation here in Central America--all of our traveling has been for mission trips.  So, we decided to celebrate Stephen's 65th birthday by visiting Panama City, Panama.  We booked the trip through Travelocity, got great prices on the flights and one free night for booking the hotel at the same time.  

We left the house at 4:00 a.m. Thursday morning.  (Those early morning flights sound like such a good idea until you realize what time you have to be at the airport.)  We landed in Panama about 10:00 a.m., though, and had almost the whole day ahead of us.  We had arranged for transporation from the airport to the hotel and they were waiting for us as we exited--might be the first time that someone was holding a sign with our names on it.  

We couldn't check in to the hotel (Trump Ocean Club) at 11:00 a.m., but they watched our luggage while we went off to explore.  There is a vast difference between Panama City and the other Central American capitols that we've visited.  It is extremely modern, very safe, very wealthy and full of foreigners.  We were told that the skyline is reminiscent of Miami.  (We've never been to Miami, so we can't confirm.)  

We made our way to MultiPlaza mall for lunch and weren't disappointed.  The first thing we saw was the Swarovski Christmas tree.  It was amazingly beautiful--later we heard that the value of all of the crystal ornaments is over one million dollars.

 We also found a wood-fire pizza restaurant--just what we needed for lunch.  

After lunch we went back to the hotel to check in.  The room and the view (29th floor) were awesome.

It's not easy to get used to the luxury!  There was even a piano in the lobby that Stephen was able to play.  Before dinner we checked out the five pools, two of them are infinite pools.  I took this picture on my phone and looking at it now I can hardly believe it is real.  You can see where the pool ends and the ocean starts--it's actually quite a drop.  

We finished the night at P. F. Changs--it was within walking distance--and we already knew we would like the food.