Pedasí, a quiet, tucked-away corner of rural Panama, is quickly making its way to the forefront of the country's swelling tourism and development. With its pastoral charm, charming local culture, and a diversity of activities to suit the adventurous and leisurely alike, Pedasí (located on the tip of the Azuero peninsula, in the Los Santos province) is the name on everyone's lips.

Just four hours from Panama City and its Miami-modern glitter of condo towers, shopping and international trade, Pedasí of is the antithesis of big-city bustle. The road is impeccably smooth as you head down the peninsula, extending in gentle rises and falls.  There is little to no traffic on approach to Pedasí, except for the occasional groups of cattle being herded by local vaqueros (cowboys) on horseback. Now, in the rainy season, the hills are an incredible emerald green, and the fields are dotted with grazing horses and cows, newly fat from the rain-fed grasses.

Even so, Pedasí falls within what is known as the 'Arco Seco' -- literally, the dry arc -- a swath of land with less rainfall, on average, than the rest of the country. Pedasí's summer, between January and April, brings a dramatic change; grasses bleach beneath the brilliant sun, and the landscape becomes a canvas of golden hues.  Trees adapted to the four-month drought drop their leaves, and burst into brilliant bloom. This is the season of sun and sea, when the peninsula's myriad beaches fairly cry out for lounging bodies.

September, however, replenishes the dry earth, bringing overcast days, fitful showers and the occasional tropical downpour. This does not faze the local landowners, most of whom raise cattle or cultivate sugarcane and rice, who continue their work tending to fields and fenceposts and newborn calves. Many can be seen sporting the handwoven, handpainted straw hat particular to the region; a finer version, exquisitely crafted and detailed, is worn for carnivals and other big events.

Once in Pedasí, the town works its magic within seconds. It’s in the smell of the sea blown in on warm, gentle breezes, in the quiet punctuated by sounds of daily life; in the feel of the community, where schoolchildren stroll past neatly tended gardens, and the occasional car is driven with the respectful speed that says “this is my home”.  The town's layout is clean and simple.  There is no hurry, no stress, no sense that anyone is not exactly where they want to be.

The architecture, with its pastel colors, colonnaded verandas and tile roofs, combines Spanish colonial stylings with a flavor that's very much native to Azuero. Many of the towns on the peninsula were founded long before Panama broke away from Colombia. Las Tablas, a town just an hour north of Pedasí famous for its lavish carnival, was founded as early as 1671. Pedasí, according to José Lara D., a Pedasí native and former municipal judge, came into formal existence two centuries later.

"In 1864, when we belonged to Colombia, they created the district of Pedasí," explains Mr Lara, standing on the porch of his home, where a riot of tropical flowers keep the air fresh in the midday heat. "After 1903, when we became independent, we continued on as a district of the Republic of Panama."

While the town may have existed informally before 1864, local residents agree it was the devastating fires of Panama City in the 16th century that truly settled the region, as refugees fanned out in search of safer homesteads..

His wife, Dioselina, is hand-stitching a pollera for her granddaughter, an elaborately detailed, many-layered traditional dress worn by the women during the carnivals held in each town in summer (generally falling in February). Once complete, the women necks are draped with several heavy gold chains, and the nominated queens parade around town to see who will take the top title.

The dress takes nearly a year to complete, says Dioselina, beaming with pride. Her granddaughter is next year's Queen of 'Calle Bajo' - literally Lower Street - and will compete against the town's Queen of 'Calle Arriba', or Upper Street, for the carnival crown. This tradition suggests an old feud between families from the opposite sides of town, and has since become a reason for the town to divide itself into competing factions as to who can put on the most luxurious show, with the most lavish fireworks, polleras, and of course, the most beautiful queen.

There are many smaller festivals and celebrations interspersed throughout the year, but for those travelers who venture to this less-frequented neck of Panama's woods, there is no end of explorations and activities to entertain or soothe, as the case may be.

Several beaches lie within walking distance from the town, virtually deserted year-round. Here much of the beachfront land is up for sale, or under development, promising an explosion of tourists and part-time residents as vacation communities spring into being.

The peninsula's waters are known as the 'Tuna Coast', offering excellent, year-round fishing, with an abundance of yellow-fin tuna, red snapper, marlin and sailfish for the taking, and charter boats are available for sport and deep-sea fishing. Edible catches can be brought back to shore to be cooked up to taste at one of Pedasí's restaurants, paired with one of Panama's fine beers for less than a dollar.

Just half an hour from shore lies Isla Iguana, which despite its Pacific location, appears to be a perfect Caribbean island. An extensive coral reef surrounds the palm-dotted island, giving it a powdery, blinding, white-sand beach, and its crystal-clear, shallow waters offer the laziest snorkeling imaginable, as hawksbill turtles, cornetfish, and a myriad brightly-colored tropical fish nibble and dart about the coral branches. The island, named for its thriving colony of spotted lizards, is also the region's only nesting site for the Frigata magnifica, the magnificent frigate bird, which swoop in thick flocks overhead.

Surfers can take advantage of some excellent breaks, the most notable of which is in Playa Venao, just a half-hour drive west of Pedasí, and scuba divers can choose from a number of dive sites, including Isla Iguana and the Frailes Islands to the west. In addition to the many species of marine turtles, rays, eels and tropical fish that call the tropical Pacific home, lucky divers will spot hammerhead sharks school at certain times of year, and the whales and dolphins that haunt the coastal waters with their young.

Isla Cañas, just beyond Playa Venao and less than an hour from Pedasí, is also a major nesting site for several marine turtles. The mangrove-ringed island is home to about 700 residents, and boasts a 14-kilometer long beach where pregnant females lumber up during the night to dig holes in the soft sand, laying clutches of up to one hundred eggs. A little further afield, the Cerro Joya National Park offers hiking through pristine rainforest, with several waterfalls, monkeys and birds galore.

With so many activities, natural beauty, charm and culture, it is no surprise that Pedasí, once Panama's best-kept secret, is about to be its best-known ambassador.

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