Atlapa Convention Center.

Panama’s Chamber of Commerce, Industry and Agriculture will host EXPOCAMARA 2005, a commercial trade fair scheduled for July 15-17 at Panama City’s Atlapa Convention Center.

Although conducted on a somewhat smaller scale than EXPOCOMER (Central America’s largest international trade fair, which takes place in Panama each March) EXPOCAMARA should by no means be ignored, as it enables international investors to establish relationships with local partners.

For details and more information, call: 212-8144 ó al 212-8051.

The Panamanian Associa-tion of Business Executives (APEDE) is organizing its Regional Management Congress, which will take place at Panama City’s Caesar Park Hotel July 21-23. The event, the main topic of which is "Competitive Management and Regional Business", will gather a large number of business executives from Central America and the Caribbean, who will have the opportunity to study the main indicators of competitiveness applicable to their strategies and operations.

For more information, call 227-3511, or visit the page: www.apede.org/congreso

Approximately 500 crafters from all parts of Panama will take part in the 28th annual National Handicraft Fair, at Atlapa Convention Center July 27-August 1. The event will include folklore performances, workshops and a number of exhibits.

Eighty-one teenagers and young adults from all regions of Panama recently participated in a tourism poster contest organized by the Panama Government Tourist Bureau (IPAT). There were two categories: ages 15-18, won by Jimmy Sánchez, 17, and ages 19-25, won by 19-year-old Jorge Isaac Pérez. Seen in the photograph are the winners of the 15-18 category. From left to right: Jorge Isaac Pérez, Brian Vergara and Josiel A. Rivas, accompanied by Guillermo Hall (IPAT’s Marketing and Advertising Advisor) and Panama City’s Deputy Mayor, Iván Arrocha.

In August:

The Theatre Guild of Ancon announces its upcoming play entitled "Black Comedy", by Peter Shaffer. This hilarious comedy is a favorite of all theatre goers. Find out what happens when a poor young artist, Brindsley Miller, and his debutante girlfriend Carol, are visited by Mr. Bamberger, a famous and influential art collector. In order to impress him, they borrow antique furniture, without permission, from their neighbor Harold. Then the light goes out and the fun begins when the electrician arrives and is mistaken for the famous collector.

The play will run August 4, 5, 6, 11, 12 and 13 (Thursday, Friday, Saturday) at 8:00 p.m. Tickets: $10.00. For reservations and more information, call: 212-0060.

The Pollera, considered by experts one of the most beautiful national folklore dresses in the world, will be exalted during its very own fiesta: the National Pollera Festival, which takes place July 22 in the town of Las Tablas, province of Los Santos.

The event, which features folklore dance performances, parades and a contest based on a category system, takes place during the festivities honoring Santa Librada, the patron saint of Las Tablas.

The "tropical" version of the Andalucian female attire of the 15th and 16th centuries, Panama's Polleras were first worn by the peasantry and the servant class of the Isthmus during the Spanish colonial period. Originally made with white linen, the dress slowly evolved throughout the centuries into a veritable hand-embroidered work of art, which presently costs between US$1,500 to US$10,000.

Las Talbas is approximately a four and-a-half hours drive from Panama City. Visitors can choose to take buses departing from the National Bus Terminal, located in Albrook, for fly into the nearby city of Chitré, departing from Marcos A. Gelabert airport, also located in Albrook. The largest accommodations in the region are also found in Chitré.