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Not ten miles from Tocumen, the major airport hub in Latin America, is Chagres National Park. In Chagres, around five in the afternoon Julio and I are waiting with Mr. Madrid for the toucans. Mr. Madrid is a subsistence farmer who moved in about thirty years ago looking for a better life. The families in this area of the central Panama Mountains cultivate the valleys and hillsides maintaining a living and preserving nature. The land that they keep cleared, with a machete, is theirs to use up to the borders of the park. When Panama formed Chagres National Park in 1985 the local residents who had not obtained title to their land remained with a "right to use" or Derecho Usario. A note for potential property buyers and investors: one should only purchase titled land in Panama.

I found the little yellow fruit a little bitter but Mr. Madrid said that any of the five species of toucan who visit the tree in his front yard love the fruit and eat until almost dark. I asked about other birds, like loros (parrots).

"They don't roost right here (No se posan aqui mismo), but you can see the flocks flying overhead from the ridge behind the house," he answered. "They mostly live deeper into the park."

What a place Panama is, a first world economy in the cities and flocks of parrots flying overhead only a few miles away. Preservation of nature in Panama is a fact.

Mr. Madrid's family has prospered. He owns two taxis and a tour bus in Tocumen but he and his brothers still farm the ridgelines and valleys adjacent to the park. Walking the borders of his property with a machete he keeps the property line clear every month or so. (This is the tropics.) When he can get free from his business he enjoys the visits of the toucans each evening and tends his 35 hectares (about 80 acres). Mr. Madrid is part of the preservation of nature in Panama. It is not just the government that goes out of its way to preserve ways of life all but gone in other parts of the world.

Eco Tourism in Panama

Panama has lots of undeveloped land, lots of excellent locations for eco tourism. National Parks such as Chagres and Coiba National Park in Veraguas Province are examples of preservation of nature in Panama. The comarcas, autonomous regions, in Panama promote eco tourism and its component of cultural preservation with the San Blas islands of Kuna Yala as the prime example.

Panama has dozens of tour operators willing to take you around the country and into the wild. Panama has two sea coasts, a central mountain range, five indigenous autonomous regions and areas of great natural beauty throughout. There is no lack of things to see and experience. Surf the web; find a spot you like; come and enjoy nature in Panama. The comarcas especially allow for a more pure Panama eco tourism experience. The Kuna especially are about preserving their land and culture.

One of the problems of eco tourism in Panama and elsewhere is allowing people to see "unspoiled" nature and "unchanged" culture while keeping nature unspoiled and cultures unchanged. This is a logical impossibility in both cases. However, Panama does a pretty good job of preserving nature and the possibility of eco tourism with its National Parks. The five autonomous areas are adamant about preserving their cultures and land for future generations and are probably the best, pure eco tourism opportunities. For eco tourism is Panama in the comarcas you can come and see, take pictures, buy from a local artisan, and leave only your foot prints, maybe a little money too.

An excellent example of eco and cultural tourism in Panama is Emberá Comarca. Emberá comarca in Chagres National Park provides a glimpse of village life "up river." The Emberá turned to tourism as a revenue source when the government turned their land into a park. Take a boat trip to the Chagres and witness examples of rural, tropical village life. Then leave the unspoiled village behind and return to your hotel in Panama City.

Other popular Panama eco tourism destinations include the areas in and around Volcan and el Valle. However, these are areas where you can come to visit and also return to live. Consult ABPanama for information on living and investing in unspoiled beauty close to nature.

If you are interested in promoting eco tourism in Panama, keeping nature unspoiled while allowing others to enjoy it, read about Panama Law 8 and the investment opportunities involved.

Come to Panama for an eco tourism encounter with nature and indigenous culture and don't forget to look for the toucans.