PANAMA
(Republic of Panama)

Capital: Panama City

Flag: national flag is divided into quarters. The top quarter near personnel of white color with a blue star; top external quarter of red color; the lower quarter near personnel - blue; and the lower external quarter of white color with a red star.

Gimp: Himno Nacional, beginning "Alcanzamos por fin la la victoria" ("We at last reach a victory").

Currency: the balboa (b) of 100 centesimos is the national account. Panama doesn't issue paper money, and notes of the USA are lawful means of payment. The Panama mints of a coin of 0,05, 0,10, 0,25, 0,50, 1 and 5 balboas which are interchanged with coins of the USA. b1 = $1.00000 (or $1 = b1) as of 2005.

WEIGHT AND MEASURES: the metric system is official, but also the British, American and old Spanish units are used.

HOLIDAYS: New year, on January 1; Day of martyrs, on January 9; Labor Day, on May 1; Day of the national revolution, on October 11; Day of the national anthem, on November 1; All Souls' Day, on November 2; Independence of Colombia, on November 3; Day of a flag, on November 4; Independence Day (only Colon), on November 5; The First appeal to independence, on November 10; Independence of Spain, on November 28; Mother's Day and Immaculate conception, on December 8; Christmas, on December 25. Moveable religious feasts are Maslenitsa and Good Friday.

TIME: 7th mornings = midday of GMT.

ARRANGEMENT, SIZE AND ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

The Republic of Panama located on Isthmus of Panama has the area of 78 200 sq.km (30 193 quarter. Miles). Rather, the space occupied by Panama is a little less, than in the State of South Carolina. The zone of the channel (1 432 sq.km / 553 sq. miles) over which the United States carried out sovereignty earlier, was included on October 1, 1979 in Panama, at the same time the United States saved responsibility for operation of the Panama Canal and use of the earth in zones for maintenance of the channel till 2000.

Panama 772 km long (480 miles) and 185 km (115 miles) of nanosecond. On border with the Caribbean Sea, on Colombia, in the south of the Pacific Ocean and also on Costa Rica, Panama has the general border of 555 km (345 miles) from which 2 490 km (1,547 km) of miles) is the coastline.
The city of Panama, Panama City, is located where the Panama Canal meets the Gulf of Panama.

TOPOGRAPHY

Panama - the country of strongly forest hills and ridges. Two main ranges are in east and western parts of the country, and the third, small range stretches for the South along the coast of the Pacific Ocean to Colombia. East Kordilyera - San Blas is parallel to the coastline of the Caribbean Sea, and Serraniya-de-Tabasara rises by the West which culmination is the volcano Bara (3475 m / 11,401 feet), earlier known as Chiriki. Between these ranges the earth breaks into high plateaus, ridges and valleys. The Panama Canal uses a gap in these ranges which stretches for the northwest to the southeast and makes only 87 m (285 feet) at height.