ATLAPA and Panama Viejo

The coast to the east of Punta Paitilla has a growing supply of condominium towers, but just behind them lie residential neighborhoods where houses and smaller apartments are being mowed over in Panama City's waning construction boom. The area has only two spots of interest to travelers: ATLAPA, the city's original convention center, and the ruins of Panamá Viejo, which was the original city. That historic site consists of little more than a museum and a collection of stone walls, but it provides a vague idea of what the colonial city looked like and how its inhabitants lived.