San Blas Islands

Our stay in the San Blas islands was very enjoyable. The Kuna Indians, the shortest people second only to the pigmy, were very hospitable. They live under independent rule but are part of Panama. They would paddle, or sail their dugout, called a ulu, to sell their mollas are decorative squares made from colorful material. We were mostly unimpressed until a master molla maker came by our boat. His art work was quite exquisite. The Kunas were also selling lobster and fish, but we still had some frozen lobster from home so we didn't buy the still kicking lobster. Maybe next time.

A visit to a Kuna village was what you would expect of a people living as they have for hundred of years. Community houses built from sugar cane and palm frond with large family groups living in a single structure. Some buildings had tin roofs and were made of wood and were for community gatherings.

The islands were strewn with coconut palms with even the smallest spit of land supporting a single coconut palm, as if out of a cartoon or movie of someone stranded on and desert island. Coconuts are a major source of income for the Kuna Indians.