Paraiso is home of the cemetery which is the final resting place for thousands of French workers who gave their lives during the first endeavor to build the Panama Canal, it is a poignant reminder of the unsuccessful effort to build a canal through Panama. This cemetery had been reclaimed by the jungle and for many years no one knew of its existence. It wasn't until new housing was being built in the town of Paraiso in the 1950s that workers clearing land rediscovered it.
To see photos of the cemetery and of the first construction efforts Clickhere to go to French era photos website.
Along with 16 or 17 other members from the First Presbyterian Church of Manasquan NJ my wife and I went on a mission trip to Panama in February 2012, odd as it may sound many of the team had not heard of Geocaching so whenever we were not doing mission related work there was lengthy conversations about Geocaching. Happily we can report that possibly there was some muggle to cacher converts. While on this mission trip we were fortunate to stay at Casa Paraiso, Casa Paraiso exists to facilitate ministry and develop relationships by providing comfortable and affordable accommodations for mission groups traveling to Panama. The Cotton Family, owners/directors of Casa Paraiso all lovers of outdoor related activities were also very interested in Geocaching and have given us permission to place a cache on their property. So myself and one of the for mentioned converts created a cache container we hope you will find amusing, we placed it very near Casa Paraiso, it should be for the most part and easy find, it can be a park and grab too. Since I live so far from Panama Dan Cotton has agreed to be the local caretaker of the cache.
If you would like more info about Casa Paraiso or see some photos Click here to go to Casa Paraiso website.