Impressions of the San Blas
Shamal
Thu 28 Jan 2016 13:14
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09.33.2N 78.53.4W
Hi there,
We have finally checked in through customs and
immigration after a marathon effort. This was complicated by the fact that
another rally (the World ARC) have been running behind schedule and were still
clearing out when we arrived. So we were asked to hold back while they were all
processed by the one guy in the only office on the San Blas that handles this.
We are now done however and our Q flag has come down. For note to anyone
planning to come this way by boat, it is pretty expensive to sail in any Panama
territory, with all the various bits of paper that you need costing a total of
$465.
That said, the San Blas are lovely! They are a
collection of very small islands on which the native Guna indians still live
pretty much as they did before Columbus.
 They are a very small people and quite friendly.
They paddle out in rather leaky dug-out canoes and sell fish/lobster and
sometimes fruit/veg when the mail boat from the mainland has arrived. The women
also make decorative cloth mats called Molas which they sell for a few dollars.
The sea behind the reef is warm, crystal clear and great for snorkeling. So we
are looking forward to a "chill" period without long passages for a
while.
We plan to spend about 3 weeks here so will slowly
sail through the island chain in short hops. We met up with some old friends
(Bob & Judy) that we met originally in Cyprus and had excellent
BBQ lobster for dinner on their boat while we updated each other on recent
voyages.
The 19th Feb is our current intended date of
departure from the San Blas, when we will head along the coast towards
Colon at the end of the Panama Canal.
We will add the odd update to this blog before
then, when we have something interesting to report.
Take Care,
J&G
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