Portobelo: Panama's neglected jewel

Arriving in Panama City in June 2002 after a four-day odyssey across Central America (albeit admittedly on very comfortable Tica Bus coach) I was immediately struck by the pervasive contrasts: a modern city of skyscrapers and shopping malls within sight of the narrow streets of the Casco Viejo; huge gleaming cargo ships alongside decrepit fishing boats; the bustling shopping avenues a stone's throw from streets where mugging is a near certainty (as I learned firsthand during the first week of my stay).

Still, as memorable as Panama City might be, it is a world away from Portobelo, a fishing village on the Caribbean coast which was once a trans-shipment point for the tonnes of gold and silver extracted from Spain's colonial possessions in South America. As soon as I arrived in Panama I was determined to pay a visit, as much to see the extensive colonial-era Spanish fortifications as to channel the likes of Henry Morgan, Francis Drake and other ne'er-do-wells who once stalked the Spanish treasure ships in the waters nearby. 

Getting from Panama City to Portobelo involves a bus journey across the isthmus, which is a unique experience in itself. Where else in the world can one travel - in less than two hours - from one ocean's shore to another? Mind you, arriving in Colón, Panama's principal Caribbean port, is not exactly uplifting. While none of Central America's port cities exudes savouriness, Colón is ahead of the pack in this regard, so much so that walking anywhere in town was not recommended at the time of my visit. Fortunately, the transfer from one bus to another does not necessitate leaving the station, and soon as I was on my way to Portobelo on a brightly painted bus that once brought children to and from school in North America.

The accounts I had read and the photos I had seen did not prepare me for the striking beauty of Portobelo. The village itself is pleasant enough, not dissimilar to dozens of other small settlements up and down the isthmus that subsist on fishing, farming and tourism. However, approaching the old port the view is unforgettable: the low hills coverage covered in a lush forest against the azure waters of Portobelo Bay, and everywhere one looks the lichen-streaked black stone of ruined 16th and 17th century fortifications, with cannons laying askew here and there on the parapets and in the grass.

On the days of my visit (for I returned a second time during my stay in Panama) there were no other visitors present, and clambering over the ruins was a highlight of my sojourn in Central America that year. It is therefore sad to think that since 2012 the site has featured since on UNESCO's list of world heritage sites in danger. Despite calls by UNESCO over more than a decade for the Panamanian authorities to take steps to preserve Portobelo's fortifications, action has not been forthcoming, with progressive deterioration of the ruins and continuing urban encroachment on the property.

Let's hope that Portobelo's amazing historical legacy receives the protection it needs for the sake of future generations of Panamanians, and indeed anyone who values our common history and heritage.