Friday, October 1, 2010

David, Panama - Bus Terminal and surrounding area

The Bus Terminal in David, Panama

Because we mainly use public transportation to get around town (when we are not just walking) we spend a lot of time at the Terminal in David. When we first arrived we had no idea what was going on or where to go. Here are several pictures of the buses and the Terminal. We have basically 3 different types of buses depending on where you are going or coming from. The big blue bus runs from David to Panama City. The large yellow school bus is for going to Boquete. The little white bus goes everywhere around town and to other towns and cities, these are the ones we ride mostly. On the front window of the buses you can see the names of the town they each go to, thus you know what ones might be going your way.

This is the double decker version of the David-Panama bus. The view is awesome from the top in the front.
Here you can see several of the white buses and one of the Boquete buses in the back.

This is where the buses pull up to the terminal to pick up the passengers. Each route has a designated slot.
Inside the terminal where the buses are lined up. On the right are several shops and restaurants.
This is one of the women's bathrooms at the terminal.  I'm not sure where you have to pay to use this one, but as you can see bathrooms are not always free in Panama.
And neither is toilet paper.  The lady behind the desk (you can't see her well in this picture) is tearing off a few sheets from a roll of toilet paper and selling them for you to use in the bathroom down the stairs.  I have personally used this one, and I can say it is better than some others, and had soap the day I was there.  The bathroom, by the way, was free.

Some shops and stands around the Terminal

Some of the restaurants across from the terminal. Most restaurants have open air seating in David.
Another restaurant down the street with some other shops in the background.
There are a lot of street vendors. You can get your shoes shined or buy a new outfit. 
More street vendors and many also sell food. We are not sure why the car has cardboard on it.
Most of the lawyers and doctors keep their bared doors closed and locked, even during business hours.

This is one part of town we go to. Later we will show you some other areas. We have always felt safe and everyone is very friendly.

2 comments:

  1. OK. If I ever get to come there, I want to ride the double decker. As for the bathrooms, mmmm. you have to pay?

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  2. Everyone here says they think Barranquilla has the worst transportation system around...very disorganized. I don´t know about the world, but it´s the craziest I´ve seen.

    You bus system looks very nice. If you ever come here...like when you renew your visa it would be interesting to hear the comparisons.

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