quinella, if you're flying COPA, you should have very nice flights. The only ugly thing will be the arrival/departure times in Santiago.....

Also, if you have elite status on CO, see if there are upgrades available. That will make the flights go a lot better.

As far as things to see and do in Panama, I was pretty much shepherded by Panamanian natives, but I remember there was one part of the city (French Quarter?) where there were older buildings, shops, and a walkway along the water. There's a park on a peninsula jutting out into the water with nice views of downtown. The Canal Zone is interestingand the museums had exhibits in English and Spanish, from what I remember. Plus, I did see one of the resorts in the rainforest, maybe 20 minutes from the canal locks, so it was pretty easily accessible by car. I think there was a one lane bridge across some stretch of water to access the resort.

The city is very modern with skyscrapers-- unlike the other cities in Central America. Because of foreign trade, Panama is well connected to the rest of the world, and I hear shopping is good although I'm not a good person to ask-- I have an aversion to shopping. ;-)

Hmm, what else..... There's an old, kind of historic recreation of what Panama used to look like-- they have a recreated square, houses, and a mini-rainforest, plus I remember some native dancers doing typical indigenous dances. They charge a few bucks admission to the site, and you can have lunch or ice cream on the grounds.

There's a canal administration building on a hill, and the building style looks interesting, but I'm not sure if the building is open to the public. We nevre stopped there.

So, that's my hazy memory of some highlights of Panama City. I hope it gets you off to a start.