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| San Blas Islands, Panama |
The Isthmus of Panama was formed about 3 million years ago
when the land bridge between North America and South America finally closed. While the origin of the name is disputed,
most Panamanians accept the theory that Panama means abundance of fish, trees, and butterflies. Panama has an area of 29,150 square miles
and an approximate population of 3.4 million people.
The southernmost country in Central America, the Republic of
Panama was inhabited by several indigenous tribes before arrival of the Spanish
in the 16th Century. After
breaking from Spain in 1821, Panama became part of the Republic of Gran
Colombia until 1903 when it seceded from the republic so that the US Army Corps
of Engineers could build the Panama Canal.
The canal was completed in 1914.
In 1977 an agreement was signed with the USA to transfer the ownership
of the canal to Panama by the end of the 20th Century. This transfer took place on the 31st
of December in 1999.
Panama has the second largest economy in Central America;
most of its GDP comes from canal tolls.
Although we had been through the Panama Canal in 2013 and
going through the canal again follows, we had never set foot on Panamanian
terrain so we were both looking forward to that. Especially Barb wanted to do so as it would be
her 100th destination – a real achievement among travelers. I achieved that goal late in the Grand
Mediterranean cruise last spring, but it would be one more to add to my
list.
The San Blas Islands are an archipelago of about 378
islands, of which 49 are inhabited and they are located north of the Isthmus of
Panama and east of the canal. The
islands are noted for tropical beauty and, interestingly, their lack of severe
hurricanes in a part of the world where they tend to be common. The indigenous people are the Kuna Indians
who had occupied the isthmus until the Spanish conquests when the native
peoples were driven away and moved to the nearby islands. Most of the men speak Spanish but some women
may not. Most earn living through
fishing and even hunting.
Our
arrival was scheduled for noon, so sea day activities continued during the
morning. About 10 AM, our cruise
director, Gene Young alerted us to the fact that very soon we would be passing
the Thor Heyerdahl barque on our port side going the opposite direction. Many of us ran to that side for the unusual
photo op.
When
we anchored off the island, we waited for those that were anxious to be among
the first off and then we headed down to the tender platform. We hit it right as a line was starting to
move to go down the steps to the tender.
However when Barb got there, she noticed that the tender was pitching
and rocking and slamming against the side of the ship. As her turn came, she looked and saw the tender
drop far below the platform and then come up with the wave. At that point, she refused the arm of the
helpful crew and said it was just too much of a risk after all she had been
through during the past year. When she
came back up to the loading area, she said Henk Mensink, Hotel Director and
Gene Young, Cruise Director were surprised and asked why she was back so
soon. She told them that after her
broken back one year ago and her recent aggravation of the tendonitis in the
knee, the attempt was just not worth it.
When she told them her reason, they concurred that it was the best
decision.
So
I boarded and took the approximately 15-minute journey to the island. When I arrived, people were already lined up
to make the return to the ship. I walked
along the pathway of hard dirt past rickety one story wooden building, many of
which served as homes that none of us could imagine occupying. Most were open to the air and the roofs were
likewise made of branches. Along the
main dirt street which was for pedestrian use only (cars are impractical since
the island is so tiny), women and children were seated outside with molas
(cloth handcrafts) with many bright tropical designs for sale and hanging on
buildings. There were also tee shirts,
many of which were hand made (and the lettering often proved they were
handmade) and other local trinkets which they were hawking. Women and children were wearing bright
traditional costumes including brightly colored socks, dresses, and tops which
often were mismatched. Many of the
women, including the elderly, had rings through their noses. Somehow I have never found that improved a
person’s looks but I must be way out of touch as it seemed to be quite the
fashion here!
I
walked to one end of the island, then came back and continued the main “road”
to the other end of the island where I could spy the Amsterdam at anchor. Along the walk, I spotted friends Bob and
Nancy with whom I had done the shore excursion yesterday and our friend Alice,
walking and, like everyone else, soaking up the local color. All along the way were people with pretty much
the same things for sale and all sitting outside waiting for the occasional
shopper. Once I ran into Jan and Dick,
friends from Naperville, and Jan commented, “I know what they do for a living
here!” When I asked what prompted her to
say she knew, she said “They make lots of babies!” As I walked, many people were snapping
photos. When anyone wanted a picture of
a specific person, the children would say “one dolla!” A main income was dollars for photos. Especially was the lady at a front door,
smoking her pipe. Lots of people wanted
that picture! There were the kids with
tropical birds on their heads wanting their “one dolla” as well as kids holding
a little kitten or bird and begging for money in return for a picture.
After
having had my fill of San Blas Islands, I returned to the tender and the
ship. I’ve been in Panama now though I
doubt that this is how most Panamanians earn their livings.
CT
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