Where Is This?

With the Spanish business signs, it could be from Mexico, Cuba, or the Philippines. The sign on the photographers studio is partly in English, so it was probably a city with a lot of American or British visitation. Does the "THE MARINE STUDIO" indicate U.S. Marines or merchant marines were welcome to come in and have a picture taken. Well, if anyone out there can tell me where it was taken, please leave a comment.

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Added 9/14/10. In her comment, Christine H. speculates that this could be Panama. What caught her eye was the streetcar tracks. She noted that Panama, and I assume she's referring to the city on the Pacific side of the canal, had single trolley tracks that were removed in 1941. Coincidentally I had come to the same thought, but for far different reasons. This photo was purchased in the United States, and what Spanish speaking country had more American visitation than Panama. The Canal Zone was a defacto American colony that bisected the country. There were American military bases to defend the zone, American technicians to keep the canal running, American business interests dominated the local economy, and even the Panamanian government had large numbers of Americans in administrative positions. Also, a good explanation for the English photo studio sign. With all those Americans wanting photos to send home...And what got me thinking along these lines. A screening of the John Huston/Humphrey Bogart film Across the Pacific, a 1942 film about a Japanese plot to destroy the Panama canal. Christine H's thoughts are a far more valid explanation than my thoughts, but between us, we may have solved the mystery of just where this photo was taken.