This is from the plane a few minutes before we landed. I can already see a few of the seven colors of blue that I was promised!

Admittedly, I am flying Copa Airlines for the first time. Our flight to the island was at 7:23. Got up very early and reached the airport by 5am. The first thing that hit me is this board.

I was stunned to find out that Copa Airlines has 23 flights leaving in 27 minutes. That is quite some frequency.

BTW, the checking in was smooth, the security was a breeze and the seats have really, really good leg space. We were up in the front and for a 50 minute flight, you could lift up your leg with the footrest and all that! Very impressed with the airlines.

Some of you probably know how crazy I am for islands – especially with beautiful blue colors. I was doing some research recently and located this small island called San Andres. You have to know where it is on the map to look for it. It is tiny. But the waters around it looked great.

Next stage was to start looking for how to get there. And what kind of hotels might be there. Was thinking about spending the anniversary day there. At about this time, I came across a New York Times article that proclaimed “You have not seen blue till you have seen San Andres!”. Apparently, you can see seven colors of blue there.

That is all I needed. Quickly bought COPA tickets to get there. It is very small (it cannot hold three runways end to end) and is off the coast of Nicaragua. But for some historical reasons, it actually belongs to Colombia.

Sounds like an adventure alright!

The womenfolk came out to say goodbye from the top of the hill

This is “cepo” – the method of punishment in the Embera villages. If you are found guilty of stealing or fighting, for example, you will have to lay down on the ground with your leg locked thru the hole. You will be laying there for four to nine hours for one to five days based on what the “noco” (leader decides).

This is placed right at the entrance of the village so every villager can see the person. The idea is to create shame. No food or bathroom when your leg is locked in. (You will go home at the end of the hours every day though).

The last time it was used in this village was six months back.

Reminded me of my dad’s village back in India a lot.

We learnt a lot from these two ladies about the local Embera culture.

The kids go to elementary and middle school in the next village (by the river). After that, if they want to study, they have to go to the city.

Elections are held every five years. All the local Emberas gather together and people suggest names for their leader (“noco”). As names are suggested, all those who agree stand behind that person. The longest line wins!

Interestingly, they do not eat red meat. That is because, by Panamian law, they cannot keep cows, goats, sheep, horses etc. In fact, we saw only dogs around. They are also not allowed to do agriculture (other than what they need to eat themselves). The law was put in to stop deforestation of the rainforest. Without which, rainfall would be less. Which would affect the water level in Gatun Lake. That would then affect the biggest economic lever of the country – the Panama Canal.

Interestingly, they make alcohol only for celebrating certain events. They do not drink alcohol otherwise. This was surprising to me. Most tribes imbibe some locally grown alcohol – often to smooth the edges of their hardships in life.

I did not see a single person smoking either!

You cannot live in the village if you are not an Embera. If an Embera marries a non-Embera, neither are allowed to live in the village. They can visit though.

The Emberas do not have a fixed place for worship.

The matriarch answered all our questions in Embera. The younger lady translated it to Spanish. And then our guide translated it to English!!

I am not a big fish fry kind of person. Much to the chagrin of every Bengali. But the ones the Emberas made reminded me of the fish fry my mom used to make. It just tasted very different. We were complementing on that. We were surprised to find out that it was the common tilapia from Chagres river. The tour guide explained that the difference in the taste is because it is absolutely fresh from the river and not farm grown.

All this time we were in the main covered area with festivities, two matriarchs were busy preparing our lunch. There were two large fire pits (you can see one of them). On the menu is fish fry, plantain fry and lots of fruits. They are served separately wrapped in a leaf packet tied together with small twigs.