Emberá Province was formed in 1922 from the Panama Province in eastern Panama consisting mostly of jungle and sparsely populated areas.  To this day there is no road through the dense Darién jungle to connect Panama with neighboring Colombia.  The Emberá and Wounaan Indians of Panama there are accomplished artisans and produce elaborate and detailed tagus carvings from seeds of the Tagua tree.  These gentle and timid people look and dress as they did when Columbus arrived in the 1500s.  Emberá Territory, was created in 1998 from a portion of Darién Province

We swung our legs over the edge of the rubber boats, lowered ourselves into the shallow surf, and waded to the beach not far from the Emberá's thatched native buildings -- a typical "wet" landing.  Inside the huts, young women with layers of colorful necklaces (partly) covering their breasts were weaving baskets.  The men gathered in the largest palapa (the community building) to prepare for some festive music and dancing to celebrate our arrival.  The February climate is quite pleasant due to the cold Humboldt Current that moderates the coastline temperatures.

The Emberá lifestyle is primitive but remarkably easy for a forest-bound people.  Before the Panamanian government declared the Rio Chagres area a national park, the subsistence-level Emberá hunted and farmed and struggled for their rights to continue to live in their customary peaceful lifestyle.  These people are generally quite small and sinewy, but the younger generation will, in time, most likely add an inch or two to the tribe's overall average height.  With the National Park Declaration, they had to find an alternative life style.  The Emberá instead had a Renaissance.  They went into business to sell, well, ...themselves!

• The village lies at the foot of a small mountain range.
• The main palapa and meeting room.
• Its people live in a collection of neat thatched huts on stilts to protect them from the tides.

• First we meet some of their beautiful children -all dressed up for company!
• Naturalist Rudy Zamora talks to some mothers with their babies -watched over by the chief.
• The men tune up their native instruments for a festive dance prepared for their guests.

• These fellows make pretty good music.
•  The children dance to the beat of a drum played by a young girl.
•  And around they go in varied dance patterns.

• Eventually the guests are invited to dance with the children.
• Programs Coordinator, Karine Rosvold, gets "tattooed" with the Emberá's concoction of herbal paint.
• Now Gary Ratzlaff wants to try it out!  It takes several days for the paint to wear off.

• Here a man demonstrates how he makes his waterproof bowls from reeds.
• A typical family dwelling.
• At the end of the visit, the natives bring out their wares to sell.