Before recounting what we did today, I noticed that I left out some photographs from yesterday’s account that give a sense of life in the Silico Creek Gnäbe-Buglé community. Education is important to these people. There is a primary school located here. We learned that it has about 90 students. The education here is entirely in Spanish, though the community is concerned about the possible loss of their native language. Students continue to middle school in a nearby town, and then complete secondary education about 25 kilometers away. Some, like our guide, have even completed some university education.
We were often welcomed inside the homes of the people. The conditions no doubt seemed pretty primitive by our American notions, but what struck me was that everybody seemed to be living together in such a small space quite peacefully. The far superior living standards of Americans does not seem to have made us happier.
Animals are an important part of this community and the lives of the people. Some animals are clearly raised for food even if they are walking around quite freely as the chickens do. But there are definitely companion animals. There are many pet dogs, and some more unusual pets. This is Cula. She is one of the wild “rabbits" indigenous to northwest Panama. She is called Cula or “Tail” because she does not have one. The long nails make these animals adept at burrowing.
It rained during the night, and in the morning it was still cloudy. Our cabin was not only located at the top of the hill, but at the edge of protected forest. We had a stunning view. We were also able to see some beautiful birds in the morning. I really wished that we had a telephoto lens on the camera so that we could have taken pictures of them. At least we were smart enough to bring along our binoculars.
John brought a number of gifts for the children of the village, things like pencils, erasers, notebooks, postcards, and simple English books. It was not long before word was out and soon John many fans in Silico Creek.
He not only generously shared his “regalitos” with them, but allowed them to use the binoculars and the camera. They liked taking pictures of each other.
They particularly liked close ups.
We had another delicious breakfast, and after that we had a couple hours before the taxi came to pick us up to take us to Boquete. So we did a little exploring. But we were not always by ourselves. Our young friends came to show us coconuts
and more of their pets.
As we went through the village we looked at them
and they looked at us.
I found the poverty painful, but I had to also remember what Arnold had told me earlier - they do not think of themselves as poor. They have a strong sense of family and of their identity as a people. They feel connected to the land. I wondered if it would be possible to preserve these things even with a higher standard of living. I wish I knew.
We had one final delicious meal with our Silico Creek friends. This is not the best possible picture, but I did want to show Arnold’s mother who did all the cooking. She is seated between us. And his uncle, serving the chicken soup on the left, also did the beautiful flower arrangement.
We asked to take a final picture.
When our taxi finally arrived to take us to south into the mountains, I felt a little sad leaving.
Our trip to Boquete took a little over two hours. We had the same driver who took us from Almirante to Silico Creek. The weather was not the best. Not only was it raining, but at times the fog was so dense we could only see a few feet ahead of us. I was glad that our driver seemed to know this windy mountain road well. I could never have driven it in those conditions. The scenery varied as we ascended. Sometimes it was thickly wooded; at other times you could tell that it had been clear cut in the past for lumber. We saw some stunning flowering trees and an occasional waterfall. Along the way we also saw a couple hydroelectric projects. John was taken by the vaguely Soviet-style art at one of them.
As we climbed, we became more and more aware of Mount Baru, the volcano that dominates the landscape of western Panama. Not only were we more aware of the mountain, thickly covered with clouds, but we noticed the walls made of basalt boulders. We passed through valleys that must be in the rain shadow of the mountain because the forests were replaced by savannah.
The town of Boquete, like that of Cuernavaca in Mexico, is not only dominated by a volcano but claims to have a perfect climate of perpetual spring. This has made it popular with Americans seeking to retire more cheaply abroad, and apparently a few years ago lots were selling for near San Francisco prices here. The town itself is not particularly old or beautiful despite the dramatic setting.
The “palacio municipal” on the plaza is just an old railroad station. The narrow-gauge line that once connected Boquete with David has been abandoned, but there is still a car left on the square for the amusement of tourists like us.
There are obviously some indigenous communities around here because we noticed a number of people in traditional clothing.
We are staying about 7 kilometers out of town at the Hotel Tree Trek. The last three kilometers of this road are in just wretched condition, and taxis charge 15 dollars or more to come there just because of this. It is a rather odd place, and I am sure I will have more pictures of this alpine hideaway tomorrow. But they did try to make us feel welcome when we arrived. There was a bottle champagne on ice and this very odd bit with some towels. I wonder if this isn’t a honeymoon place for Central Americans.
John and I had some real drama right away. The moment we took our bags to the room he realized that he had left the camera in the cab. We called Amazing Panama Voyages, the local agency that had helped to arrange our travels here. They are in Panama City, but they called Cesar in Bocas del Toro and he in turn knew the name and phone number of the cab driver. The camera was handed off to us as we took the shuttle from the hotel into town. After exploring Boquete and learning where we can rent bicycles tomorrow, we stopped by a little cafeteria and had some Panamanian food “para llevar” - to go. It was not all that great, but who can complain about a complete meal of rice, beans, vegetables, and stewed chicken for only 3 dollars?
Tomorrow we will do some more exploration of the area.
