Panama Tourism Authority (ATP) Administrator Iván Eskildsen claimed that on the first day alone, about 50,000 tourists were registered arriving in the country to take part in these celebrations, which in about four days could represent revenue of about $300 million .
There is a lot of enthusiasm for the celebration in the capital, he said, and this weekend more than 70 national performers will liven up the celebrations on Cinta Costera, while an Afro-Caribbean gastronomic fair will be held at the Atlapa Convention Center, he said.
Amidst a crackdown on public security and health officials, families have been coming to the festival since the early hours to enjoy the water poured out by the tankers.
In the capital, more than 800 agents from the National Police and other public authority branches are responsible for security during checks and searches at the entrances to the carnival, Prensa Latina confirmed.
The traditional culecos, or “mojaderas” as they were called in the past, have been held since 1986 in public squares with tankers spraying river water during the day and sometimes in the afternoon, accompanied by popular music.
All this is the prelude to parades and parades with queens in their own costumes on board floats accompanied by comparsas and tuna, activities that take place in squares and avenues at night.
For these celebrations, according to the ATP, more than a million 500,000 people are expected to travel across the country to appreciate other attractions in provinces such as Chitré (Herrera), where the nocturnal culecos and the carnival of Pechugón are celebrated with the departure of the Queens of the Calle Arriba, Ana Victoria Quijada, and Calle Abajo, Blanca Rosa Boutet.
Also in the western province of Los Santos, where the celebrations begin with fireworks, and in the city of Las Tablas, one of the most popular and representative carnivals in the country, the coronation of their rulers stands out, as well as on Calle Arriba on Down Street.
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