For the first time since we began traveling together, a destination chose us. In February, Jesse’s Afro-Cuban band Malamanya was invited to play at Panama’s 2015 International Boquete Jazz and Blues Festival. No way was Jonah going to miss out on that fun! Jonah traveled to Panama a few days before the band arrived to explore Panama City and collect sounds for our ongoing project, The Touch of Sound. It was a brief trip with much focus on the festival itself, yet we found time to experience a country filled with unique sounds.

Panama City is a growing metropolis. Rapid development in the last 20 years has resulted in an impressive skyline and an increase in cosmopolitan lifestyles. But alongside the modern buildings stand examples of historic colonial architecture that date back hundreds of years. Panama City was the first European settlement on the Pacific coast of the new world. The wonders of the Panama Canal and the natural environments surrounding the city make Panama a remarkable place to explore (Bay of Panama Gulls).

The most charming part of Panama City is Casco Viejo, the colonial center. The area is filled with gorgeous buildings and is quickly becoming the center of tourism and nightlife. While wandering the historic streets, Jonah discovered a traditional Panamanian music performance (Folk Music). Despite the growing number of visitors to the area, people are still outnumbered by Casco Viejo’s local bird population (Plaza Francia Birds).

The growth of the city has attracted an increasing amount of visitors and expats, but a window into the life of local Panamanians can still be found at the main seafood market, (Mercado de Mariscos) as well as on the new mass transit railway (Metro de Panama).

Extremely windy conditions prevented any quality sound recordings during a visit to the canal, but that didn’t diminish our awe of the incredible engineering project. It is a testament to human ingenuity to see the locks that were built over 100 years ago still in action today, transporting supertankers through the canal.

The final morning before Malamanya’s arrival, Jonah went on an adventure further up the canal to Gamboa and the surrounding rainforest. The immense beauty was a welcome change from the concrete jungle of the city. He was greeted by a host of animals, including the howler monkeys (Howler Monkeys).

With the arrival of Jesse and the band, the trip moved to the western highlands and the town of Boquete. The 9th annual Jazz and Blues festival was just getting started, and we were greeted warmly by the community. The festival obligations and nightly jam sessions kept us busy, but we did manage to sneak out of the city one morning into the cloud forest for a hike (Pipeline Trail). Along the way, we passed by a local farm (Farm Geese).

A true highlight of the trip was when we drove down the mountain to the city of David. Luis Ortega Castrellon, a member of the band, has family from David and we celebrated a surprise 60th birthday party for his mother Ana. The extremely festive party included a local brass band (Brass Band). The following night, the family came up to Boquete for the music festival and serenaded us with a folk song (Anna Victoria Song).

Malamanya performed the closing set at the festival on Sunday afternoon to an enthusiastic crowd (YouTube Video). We are deeply appreciative of all the organizers, volunteers and drivers who made us feel welcome in Boquete. It was an honor for Jesse and his band members to be included, and the connections we made were truly priceless.

The final morning, Jonah ascended Baru Volcano one last time to record the morning birds (Baru Morning Birds). He hiked to the (Three Waterfalls Trail) to get one last glimpse of rainforest scenery before returning to the cold and snowy winter of Minnesota.

Our time in Panama was short, but there was much to enjoy. The mix of city life, culture, history, food, friendly people and natural beauty will keep a return trip on our minds for quite some time.

For all published sounds from Panama click here.

Marks Bros., Jonah and Jesse, Malamanya and the Castrellon family – Boquete, Panama – February 2015