3rd November: Panama Independence Day

Panama  gained independence from Colombia on 3 November 1903. 10 things you might not know about Panama:

1. The name Panama could have come from a common species of tree in the area, or it could mean "many butterflies" as early settlers noticed lots of the insects there in late summer; or it could have come from a fishing village, "Panamá" which means "an abundance of fish". Yet another theory is that the word Panama comes from the Kuna word "bannaba" which means "far away".
2. The capital is Panama City.
3. The country is located on the isthmus that separates North and South America, so it is narrow - only 80 kilometres across at its narrowest point.
4. Hence, Panama is the only place in the world where you can see the sun rise on the Pacific and set on the Atlantic.
5. The Panamanian currency is officially the balboa, fixed at parity with the United States dollar since independence in 1903.
6. A third of the country's economy is generated by the Panama Canal. Ships wishing to take the short cut between the two oceans have to pay a toll based on their size and cargo. Tolls for the largest ships can reach up to $450,000. About $1.8 billion in tolls are collected every year.
7. The smallest toll ever paid was 36 cents, in 1928 by Richard Halliburton, who swam through.
8. The oldest continually operating railway is in Panama. It travels from Panama City to Colon and back.
9. Panama has over 500 rivers, but most are unnavigable.
10. The Panama Hat is really made in Ecuador. They became called Panamas because they were shipped from Ecuador to Panama before being sent to their destinations worldwide, so people believed that they were actually from Panama.

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