Panama Trip Continued
As well as parrots and toucans, monkeys are also popular pets. I saw several on leashes sitting outside houses around the islands. More molas for sale outside of someone's house. The word mola is actually from the Kuna word for blouse. The kuna use two molas on their blouses, often of the same pattern, but with a slight difference to help ward off "evil spirits".
Most island communities have made room for some sort of basketball court. Basketball is the most popular sport on the islands. Despite the fact that the Kunas are very short. Many of the women are barely five feet tall and the men aren't much taller.
This is the community meeting hut on Nalunega and quite a bit larger than the average house.
Fishing boats.
The police station on Nalunega. You are "required" to check in at most of the islands with the "head man" who may or may not assess a "fee" of a couple of dollars for your visit. When you arrive at the El Proviner airport and before you can head out to another island by boat your name and passport information is laboriously written down in a ledger.
Another trading vessel.
I couldn't help but wonder how these harbor houses fared in a storm with high waves. Most of them fronted right on the beach.
When I arrived on Wichub-Huala my guide, Orlando, took me on a tour of the island and I bought quite a few molas. Later we went off to another island where I did some serious shopping. Apparently the local ladies got wind of this and insisted in setting up a "special" market for me on my second morning so that I could buy more molas from them. This is just a portion of my "special" market.
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