The crew of the ship comes to the village about 4 times a year. (More about our marvelous crew later). They always bring some sweets for the children so they are very popular with them. This is Hector and our Chef behind him. When the it came time to hand out the snacks, the children all lined up (very orderly) and got their snacks.
There is a school in the village. It is required through 6th grade. They study the usual subjects—Spanish, math, some English, etc. They have two teachers. One is an Embera; the other is from another native group. The people would like some instruction in their native language so it doesn't get extinct, but the government is insisting on teaching in Spanish only. To further their education it requires going to a village up the river a ways. That gets expensive because they have to buy uniforms and books. And, it isn't clear if they travel every day, or stay in the village.
The crew of the ship collects money each time they visit, and bring various items for the school. This trip they brought sports equipment which they presented to the children. They were quite happy to get it. The crew clearly have a heart for the people and love helping them.
As mentioned earlier, one of their sources of income is selling crafts to visitors. They were selling baskets, wood cravings, the material for their skirts, some jewelry, and other handmade items. If the rest of the group spent as much as we did, they brought in something close to a $1,000 from our visit. The community was also paid for helping us get there and hosting us as well.
We had a tour of the village showing us how they live. In the picture is what they use to get the rice out of the hulls. Two people use the club looking wood piece that Octavio is holding to pound the rice in rhythm. It would be hard work to do a bunch of rice. it is interesting that in Panama where there is abundant water, they grow a variety of rice on land (not in water). In California, on the other hand, where water is scarce, the rice is grown in water.
There were ducks and chickens wandering around. They are "branded" by plucking their feathers in patterns that identify their owners.
The children loved to be near us and walk with us. Here are some examples. On the left is Charlotte with a little girl. On the right is Pat with a small girl that glommed onto here. Pat tried to put her down so ease her burden and the little girl would have nothing to do with that.
Even Chuck (how do you like that hair?) and Jon attracted children.
We had an uneventful trip back to the islands (the tide was in so we sailed over the sand bars) and were grateful for showers, cold drinks, and air conditioning. For some of us, it was the best day of any vacation we had ever taken. It was certainly the most interesting in many ways.