San Blas Islands

The San Blas Islands is an archipelago off the coast of Panama. Beyond that, I had no idea what to expect when our ship stopped here.

Since the ship listed no excursions for the day and it’s a tender port, many of us assumed it was a “technical stop,” meaning that the main purpose for our stop was for the ship to take on fuel.

It wasn’t until we attended a destination lecture that we realized how unique this destination is. Only then did we learn we’d be visiting Garti Island, home to an indigenous tribe called the Guna.

Although the island is, “the size of five soccer fields,” it is home to a village of 1300 people.

Since the island is sinking due to rising seas, the Gunas living here have decided to move. In the early 2000s, the government of Panama started building a village for them on the mainland, but construction is on hold, which means the date for their “big move” keeps being delayed.

They were originally going to move in 2015, then 2019, and now? Well, they remain in limbo.

After this last minute destination talk for Garti Island, some passengers were quite upset. The complaints fell along two basic categories; people were either disappointed we weren’t visiting a resort island with an established tourist infrastructure, or they worried about how we might effect an isolated tribe.

The islanders have no plumbing, so we were asked not to use the bathroom during our visit, since the results go straight into the sea.

“I wanted to go swimming,” a woman lamented, “but not after hearing that.”

“We’re gonna give them all coughs and Covid,” grumbled another, “It’s immoral.”

As a result, some passengers decided to stay onboard. While Larry and I weren’t quite sure what to expect, we decided to go ashore and see for ourselves.Read more