THE HAVES AND HAVE NOTS: This was a day of extreme contrast. We began it awash in luxury aboard a multi-million dollar cruise ship only to find ourselves touring dirt-floor huts just a few hours later. Our destination was Carti Island in the San Blas Archipelago, which consists of no less than 365 islands.
Strung along Panama’s Caribbean coast just east of Cristobal, the islands are the protected homeland for one of the nation’s most populous remaining Cuna tribes. The most advanced, self-sufficient, and culturally organized of Panama’s three indigenous groups, the Cuna people have a unique language and heritage. Females wear traditional clothing decorated with colourful handcrafted “molas” for which they are known. The mola is a delicately sewn art work made by arranging fabric in layers, cutting patterns, and then sticking the cut shapes to the material beneath.
The people of San Blas, especially the women with their nose rings and colourful costumes, look so genuine that our fellow passengers were suspicious that once the tourists leave the “native” people disrobe, change attire head back to the mainland and the comforts of 21st Century living. But we were assured they are indeed authentic.
One of those natives, an entrepreneurial boy who called himself Kevin, proudly toured us through his home which consists of a thatched roof, bamboo walls and a dirt floor. Appearing to be about 10 years old, he boasted about his home’s electricity…a single bare bulb hanging from a wire in the middle of the “living room” which also housed an ancient 15-inch black and white television wired to aerial atop the thatched roof. His bed, and those of his family, is a cloth hammock. He invited us to try it, but we declined. My back hurts just thinking about sleeping on it. The home’s washrooms, however, were a bit disturbing. They are simply “his” or “hers” platforms perched over the ocean through which a hole is cut and a North American style toilet seat affixed. If you saw the Academy Award winning movie, Slumdog Millionaire, you’ll get the picture. No wonder there is no snorkeling and swimming here!
Cuna people have thrived on the San Blas Islands for centuries. They greeted Columbus and still have an essentially self-ruling society. While their incessant hawking of wares can be a bit tedious, the stark contract between their lives and those of our passengers leaves you counting your blessings.
