Dream Trip 2009

Great Travel Moment

We were roused in the dark as the ship dropped anchor in the Gulf of San Miguel in Darien Province, Panama. As day broke we loaded into cayucos, motorized dugout canoes, and whisked across the Gulf and up the winding Mogue River through a mangrove forest. After about an hour we rounded a bend in the river and were greeted by the sounds of flute, drums, clapping and singing from a line-up of bare-breasted Embera beauties wearing colorful sarongs. The children took us by the hand and led us up a very muddy trail to the village proper. The Embera live in raised huts but have a school, a clinic and a pay-phone. They looked healthy and happy. A fellow passenger had bought a bubble-maker which was a huge hit with the children who chased the bubbles all over.