Coming Events

Wealth managers meet in Panama

Panama will host the 10th Annual Society of Trusts & Estates Practitioners (STEP) Caribbean Conference at the Sheraton Hotel and Convention Center from May 5 to 7. The conference will unite 300 fiduciary bankers, wealth managers, and lawyers from the immediate region as well as the U.S., Canada and Europe. The event recently sold out.

According to Dayra Rojas of Morgan and Morgan Group and Chairwoman of the STEP conference, Panama has experienced a sustained 15% - 20% growth in the establishment of trusts in the last five years.

Attendees will be kept up to date with changes in the trust industry, the effects trusts have on the global economy and basic trust law. They will also delve into subjects like the limits and realities of confidentiality in an increasingly transparent global economy as well as carry out a comparison of the English and the U.S. trust.

For more information visit www.stepcaribbeanconference.com

Boxing at Atlapa

Roberto "La Araña" Vásquez

The Atlapa Convention Center will host a boxing match on Wednesday, May 7, featuring 9 fights.

The main fight will be between Panamanian Roberto “La Araña” Vasquez against Cesar Suango of Ecuador in a lightweight battle. The other big fight is Nanara Martinez versus Leopoldo Arrocha.

The fights begin at 7:30 p.m. and tickets range from $5 to $20. All tickets can be purchased at the convention center on the night of the fight.

Paramotorists will set a new
trans-oceanic world record

On May 3, eight adventure sportsmen will set a world record for a new sport called “paramotoring” to benefit children with cancer in Panama. The paramotorists will catch an upwind with their parachutes in the Carribbean and glide over to the Pacific side of Panama, propelled by a singular fan-like propeller. “Vuelo por la vida” or “Flight for life” is the name of the event which should get Panama some airtime on the Discovery Channel.

The International Aeronautical Federation of Switzerland, which regulates airborne sports, is interested in establishing the flight as a world record for traveling from the Atlantic to the Pacific by paramotor.

The paramotorists are scheduled to take off from Fort Sherman in Colon at 7:00 a.m. and glide over the Panama Canal propelled by a motor placed directly behind the seated pilot, which looks like a big fan on his back. They should land on the west side of the Canal, probably at Howard, by 9:00 a.m.

Remy Swaab is the only Panamanian who will participate in the event as a pilot. He explained that for a short period between April and May, a “wind window” exists which provides the perfect conditions for the sport. When the southern and northern winds meet over Panama around these dates, wind is reduced to a minimum.

The event has received all the necessary clearances from Panama’s Civil Aeronautics and the Canal Authority.

Visit www.vueloporlavida.org.

Tour a Spanish
military ship

A Spanish military ship will be docked near Panama City in early May and the public is invited to board the ship for a tour. From May 1 to 5, the military academy ship will be at the Vasco Nuñez de Balboa dock which was formerly the U.S. Rodman Naval Base. The ship will then cross the Canal on its way back to Spain with naval military students and future armed forces officials aboard.

SKAL tourism congress in Panama

SKAL International, an International tourism organization, will hold its Latin American Congress in Panama from May 1-15. Over 500 tourism professionals from across the region will network and attend workshops.

Events will take place all over the city including Coronado Hotel and Golf Resort and the Multiplaza mall and participants in the congress will receive lodging for four nights and five days, breakfasts and complete transportation.

Copa Airlines has offered a 75 percent discount and TACA will deduct $100 for members traveling here for the congress.

SKAL was founded in 1934, currently has 22,000 members in 90 countries. They established in Panama in 1955.

SKAL can put a destination on the map, said Enrique Pesantez, SKAL Panama’s president.

Visit www.skalinternacionalpanama.com

A cultural treat: Peter and the Wolf

It is the great honour of the Spanish Embassy, the Spanish Agency for International Cooperation for Development and that of the National Orchestra of Panama under the direction of Jorge Ledezma Bradley to present the musical tale “Peter and the Wolf” by Sergei Prokofiev in Panama. Per Poc, a Spanish company, will present the classic piece as a puppet show at Teatro Balboa on Thursday, May 15 at 7:00 p.m. The show promises to be a delight for children who will enjoy the theatrical presentation of the puppet characters and the narration of the events by the actors who guide the puppets while the orchestra plays. Complimentary tickets are available at the Spanish embassy. Call 227-5122 for more information. The show will be in Spanish.

Amber Trio Jerusalem
at National Theater

Israeli musicians will perform to commemorate the
60th anniversary of the foundation of the Jewish State

The Amber Trio Jerusalem will perform at the National Theater on Monday, May 12 at 7:00 p.m. to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the foundation of the State of Israel. Founded in 1991, the group is made up of violinist Uri Dror, pianist Lior Kretzer and cellist Ira Givot. They are the official musical group for the Jewish Museum of Vienna and continuously perform on radio and television as well as produce albums at the Israeli Broadcasting Authority Music Radio Station.

The concert will be just one of many celebrations carried out in Panama to conmemorate the foundation of the Israeli state. Menashe Bar On, the Israeli ambassador in Panama, informed that an exclusive reception will be held on the evening of May 7 at the Hebrew Cultural Center of Panama.

Make reservations to see the Amber Trio Jerusalem by calling 208-4702 or 208-4705.

Religous Festivals

Saint festivals are a lovely way to experience local Panamanian Culture in the interior provinces throughout the year.

May 8: Nuestro Señor de los Milagros, La Mesa, Veraguas province
May 13: San Isidro in various provinces
May 16: Religious Festival of Cativa, Colón province
May 22: Santa Rita in various provinces