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Panama is not necessarily that underdeveloped. It is a middle income country as is Colombia. Colombia due to its size and war is more uneven in the development

Panama is not necessarily that underdeveloped. It is a middle income country as is Colombia. Colombia due to its size and war is more uneven in the development of infrastructure. Having towns only accessible by boat is not necessarily a measure of the capacity for a country to build infrastructure. It isn't that uncommon for even a rich country to have areas accessible only by boat. Consider Jeanu, Alaska. Northern South America has some incredible challenges when in comes to terrain in general. The former columnist on Latin America at the Economist left it as his final thesis that this fact explains why the region is not more rich, despite a wealth of natural resources: https://www.economist.com/the-americas/2022/12/08/latin-america-is-in-a-mess-but-it-still-has-strengths https://www.economist.com/the-americas/2022/12/08/latin-amer... If one has ever been on the road between Villavicencio and Bogotá or passed through Tungurahua to Pastaza in Ecuador they can appreciate the difficulties that were overcome to build those roads. The rough terrain is one reason why less than 50 miles from modern cities in Ecuador there are still uncontacted native people. Given this northern South American baseline, if someone who knows the area says the terrain is unforgiving it is unforgiving.

onetokeoverthe 3y ago
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Beijinger 3y ago
"Colombia due to its size and war is more uneven in the development of infrastructure." Colombia has parts that remind you of Miami. I guess the drug money had to go somewhere :-) But Colombia IS an amazing place. Its culture, people, history, food and extremely diverse climate, it just overwhelms you. From the Caribbean, to the mountains to the Amazon, there are few places in the world with such a diverse climate. Medellin is the city of eternal spring. And Bogota, the district of Candelaria, I always found it a magical place. But I think nobody likes Bogota except of me. T-Shirts worn by the tourist information: "Colombia, the only risk is that you want to stay"
- ReptileMan 3y ago
  I adore Bogota. And when you are on top of Montserrat and see the other peaks - as if you are in the Tolkien's Misty Mountains
- ElongatedMusket 3y ago
  Every person I've spoken to who visited Colombia warned of two things: 1) There is a very large homeless/beggar population in the cities, who prey on tourists. 2) If you like to explore countries beyond typical tourism, it's safer to do this with a native Colombian that you trust, who knows the dangerous places. Oddly when I speak to Colombians, they refute both of these warnings every time. I'm not sure if it's a cultural thing to downplay danger or discomfort, but those are #1 on my travel priority list.
  - Beijinger 3y ago
    "1) There is a very large homeless/beggar population in the cities, who prey on tourists" They had this long time ago, they now have this again. This is mainly caused by poor Venezuelan immigrants. #1 on my travel priority list. Possibly. But I think we traveled in very different places. Forget Somalia, try to travel in Venezuela (hint: Dont!)
  - CPLX 3y ago
    Bogota is comparable to a large American city in terms of safety, visible homelessness, and so on. The rich neighborhoods feel like suburban California. Like most of Latin America the very poor areas are beyond anything you’re likely to see in the US but unless you’re the kind of person who’s also afraid of Miami or New York City you’d have nothing to worry about.
    - gfarah 3y ago
      Related: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_cities_by_homicide_rate https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_cities_by_homicide_r...
      - 3y ago
ethbr1 3y ago
> Northern South America has some incredible challenges when in comes to terrain in general. The Gotthard tunnel was completed in 1882, after 11 years of construction. And that was with the incentive of linking northern and southeastern Europe! Columbia declared independence in 1810. So it's not surprising that a project of complexity that economically required European levels of industrialization hasn't been successful. Hell, Venezuela's been struggling with the Puerto Cabello - Encrucijada link for how long now? And the Bárbula Tunnel is half the length of Gotthard and in a single country. https://tunnelbuilder.com/News/Puerto-Cabello-La-Encrucijada-Rail-Line-in-Venezuela-is-50-Complete.aspx https://tunnelbuilder.com/News/Puerto-Cabello-La-Encrucijada...
oceanplexian 3y ago
They CAN do it, they just don’t want to. Same reason that BART doesn’t go to from San Francisco to the North Bay. A road network connecting South America to Central America would be encourage the free flow of drugs, crime, and human trafficking.

onetokeoverthe 3y ago

[dead]

Beijinger 3y ago

"Colombia due to its size and war is more uneven in the development of infrastructure." Colombia has parts that remind you of Miami. I guess the drug money had to go somewhere :-) But Colombia IS an amazing place. Its culture, people, history, food and extremely diverse climate, it just overwhelms you. From the Caribbean, to the mountains to the Amazon, there are few places in the world with such a diverse climate. Medellin is the city of eternal spring. And Bogota, the district of Candelaria, I always found it a magical place. But I think nobody likes Bogota except of me. T-Shirts worn by the tourist information: "Colombia, the only risk is that you want to stay"

ReptileMan 3y ago
I adore Bogota. And when you are on top of Montserrat and see the other peaks - as if you are in the Tolkien's Misty Mountains
ElongatedMusket 3y ago
Every person I've spoken to who visited Colombia warned of two things: 1) There is a very large homeless/beggar population in the cities, who prey on tourists. 2) If you like to explore countries beyond typical tourism, it's safer to do this with a native Colombian that you trust, who knows the dangerous places. Oddly when I speak to Colombians, they refute both of these warnings every time. I'm not sure if it's a cultural thing to downplay danger or discomfort, but those are #1 on my travel priority list.
- Beijinger 3y ago
  "1) There is a very large homeless/beggar population in the cities, who prey on tourists" They had this long time ago, they now have this again. This is mainly caused by poor Venezuelan immigrants. #1 on my travel priority list. Possibly. But I think we traveled in very different places. Forget Somalia, try to travel in Venezuela (hint: Dont!)
- CPLX 3y ago
  Bogota is comparable to a large American city in terms of safety, visible homelessness, and so on. The rich neighborhoods feel like suburban California. Like most of Latin America the very poor areas are beyond anything you’re likely to see in the US but unless you’re the kind of person who’s also afraid of Miami or New York City you’d have nothing to worry about.
  - gfarah 3y ago
    Related: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_cities_by_homicide_rate https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_cities_by_homicide_r...
    - 3y ago

ethbr1 3y ago

> Northern South America has some incredible challenges when in comes to terrain in general. The Gotthard tunnel was completed in 1882, after 11 years of construction. And that was with the incentive of linking northern and southeastern Europe! Columbia declared independence in 1810. So it's not surprising that a project of complexity that economically required European levels of industrialization hasn't been successful. Hell, Venezuela's been struggling with the Puerto Cabello - Encrucijada link for how long now? And the Bárbula Tunnel is half the length of Gotthard and in a single country. https://tunnelbuilder.com/News/Puerto-Cabello-La-Encrucijada-Rail-Line-in-Venezuela-is-50-Complete.aspx https://tunnelbuilder.com/News/Puerto-Cabello-La-Encrucijada...

oceanplexian 3y ago

They CAN do it, they just don’t want to. Same reason that BART doesn’t go to from San Francisco to the North Bay. A road network connecting South America to Central America would be encourage the free flow of drugs, crime, and human trafficking.