December 19, 2012
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| A Panamanian 25 cent coin |
Remember Vasco Nunez de Balboa from junior high school
European history? He crossed the isthmus of Panama and was the first European
to see the Pacific Ocean in 1513. He also founded the settlement of Santa Maria
la Antigua del Darien (in present-day Panama) in 1510. This town was the first
permanent European mainland settlement in the Americas. For these achievements Balboa’s
name appears everywhere in Panama. First of all, the currency is called the “balboa.”
Interestingly, however, “the balboa” is actually the US dollar. Panama mints
its own coins that are interchangeable with US coins, but they bear Balboa’s
likeness. The one shown here is worth twenty five cents and is called called a “quarter of a balboa.”
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| Balboa beer, a local favorite |
One of the most popular beers
is named after Balboa, as well as a major avenue in Panama City. The port on
the Pacific side of the Panama Canal is also called…you guessed it…Balboa. All of
this is pretty good for someone who was eventually beheaded because he got into
a dispute with the man who founded Panama City, Pedro Aviles.
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