Three
nights at sea took us from San Andreas
to
the lovely San Blas Islands (Panama) actual name “Guna Yula”
They
are made up of 340 islands, which are home to the Guna Indians.
There
are around 55000 Gunas
(about 10% of what they were before the invasion of the Spanish Conquistadors)
(about 10% of what they were before the invasion of the Spanish Conquistadors)
It
is a Matrilineal society – the women control the money
and
the husbands move into the womens family compound.
We
arrived 6 days before our guests from New Zealand were due.
Sarah
(a 2nd cousin of
Richards & her husband) Steven.
It
was lovely having them aboard Our Rose for just on 2 weeks
and Lynne and Eric from Amarula,
who
we first met in Petite Martinique.
Christmas
Day started with breakfast, bubbly and presents…
With Richard receiving all the way from Hils & Doug in NZ a toy chainsaw!
Along with lots of other very thoughtful gifts from Sarah & Steven
and of course our presents from Santa Claus!
Late
lunch begun with drinks and nibbles on the foredeck with Eileen, Peter and
their son from Canada Matt, Lynne & Eric and the four of us
We then moved onto our sitdown lunch
Smoked
Crayfish, Roast Turkey, Roast Pork, lots of Salads etc,
(delivery of live crayfish by a Kuna, we are not allowed to dive in San Blas)
followed by my homemade Christmas Mince Tarts and Christmas Cake.
(delivery of live crayfish by a Kuna, we are not allowed to dive in San Blas)
followed by my homemade Christmas Mince Tarts and Christmas Cake.
It
was a fun day with everyone!
New
Years eve took us to another anchorage
(where we started with Moet that Sarah and Steven had brought)
(where we started with Moet that Sarah and Steven had brought)
with Appleseeds, Amarula and Michelle, Alex, Noah & Fern from Jade
Plenty of alcohol refreshments that night
Finishing on Our Rose with (definitely not needed) Rum
The
women make money selling “molas”.
These beautiful appliqué are intricately made by sewing and cutting different layers of colorful cloth.
These beautiful appliqué are intricately made by sewing and cutting different layers of colorful cloth.
Heading
off with some other cruisers snorkeling
At a local village we saw this lovely Tucan...
At a local village we saw this lovely Tucan...
Having a drink ashore on Sarah and Stevens last night
Looks like you had a fabulous holiday season in the San Blas.
ReplyDeleteIt is lovely to see you, and other cruisers we know, having such a lovely time. We hope we can catch up to you all.