fun with the kuna

i´m back from 3 days in the san blas islands.

the islands (in seemingly endless supply) are owned by the kuna. they dress funny and speak their own language (though they generally know spanish too). it is almost a separate country from panama, sort of like american indian nations, only they seem to have even more autonomy. being self sufficient and not subject to most panamanian law, they don´t give a rats ass about anyone. this can be very frustrating when you actually want a kuna to do something for you, or to honor a commitment he has already made.

the kuna do like extracting money from tourists, so they keep letting us in. i paid 6 dollars to enter their territory, yet one week ago the price was $2. an unannounced 300% increase, and no one knows why.

each island seems to be owned by a family. you sort of have to arrange with the family to stay there, and once there you are at their mercy, because they control whether you get to leave, and provide all meals. accomodation is in simple bamboo huts without electricity and all meals are included, assuming the kuna have gathered enough food that day. there is no running water. you might find some "fresh" water to pour over yourself, but it is best just to be content with being salty. the toilet consists of a hole at the end of a rickety pier on the other side of the island. not a place to try to reach at night.

every evening the island women get into a huge battle, yelling at and over each other for up to 2 hours nonstop. the men quietly go about their business, seemingly unconcerned.

having said all of that, the san blas islands are the closest i think i have come to that stereotypical postcard tropical paradise that tourists continually chase. and i don´t say that because of the cocaine that the kuna (legally, i think) provide to tourists courtesy of their columbian neighbors. i didn´t even try it. really.