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Del Los Azuero
Del Los Azuero Peninsula Panamas heartland
Del los Azuero Peninsula is looked at as Panamas heart and soul. It is made up of 3 Provinces Herrera, Los Santos and Veraguas. Del los Azuero is located in southwestern Panama, and protrudes south into the Pacific Ocean between the Gulf of Panama to the east and the Gulf of Montijo to the west. It measures 60 miles (100 km) from east to west and 55 miles (90 km) from north to south. The Peninsula attains a maximum elevation of 3,068 feet (935 m) at Mount Comayagua. The nearly landlocked Herrera province, Panama's smallest, is to the north; Los Santos to the southeast has an extensive coastline hugging the eastern and southern sides of the peninsula; and huge Veraguas, the only province with a Caribbean and Pacific coast, dips into Del los Azuero on its western side. The interior of the peninsula is taken up mostly by farmland, cattle pasture, and towns. Much of what was once dense rainforest is now farmland and cattle pasture as far as the eye can see. Slash-and-burn agriculture and logging have been more aggressive in the Azuero than in any other part of Panama. There is great contrast on the peninsula with it harboring some of the highest rainfall areas and also dessert wastelands with next no rainfall at all. Tourism has barely touched this region. There are few facilities for visitors, but visiting here is like stepping back in time. Visiting immaculately preserved Spanish-colonial town of Parita for example is like stepping through a time portal to the Azuero of a hundred years ago with bull roping fiestas and traditional red roofed Spanish style homes. Distinctive traditional clothing, handicrafts, jewelry, festival masks and ceramics based on pre-Colombian designs, are still made in Del los Azuero. The east-coast beaches resemble those within a couple of hours of Panama City, yet minus 30 years of development. Along these beaches for dozens of miles at a stretch there's little sign of human habitation. Much of what was once dense rainforest is now farmland and cattle pasture as far as the eye can see. Slash-and-burn agriculture and logging have been more aggressive in the Azuero than in any other part of Panama. There is great contrast on the peninsula with it harboring some of the highest rainfall areas and also dessert wastelands with next no rainfall at all. Visually the people of Azuero show very little Indian descent and instead reflect their strong European ancestry; common features include the fair complexions and hazel eyes of Spaniards. The Azueros are some of the nations friendliest but you better be fluent in Spanish because few speak English or any other foreign language here. Viewed as the soul of Panama and as such is the custodian of Panamas folklore, much of which originated in Spain. Known for its festivals, Azuero has the biggest and best in the country, from all-night bacchanals to traditional religious rituals. No Latin American country outside of Brazil is more passionate about Carnival than in Azuero. Even Panama's national drink, the sugarcane liquor known as seco, is made here.
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