Our second stop in the Archipelago was in the Dutch Cays, at anchor in a bay between two islands. One of them was lush with coconut palms and uninhabited. The other had a small Kuna Indian village with three houses and out structures. The water was calm and clear, and the only sound was wind in the trees.
We rowed the dinghy to the hull of a shipwrecked sailboat that was sitting on a reef its port side, almost completely out of the water. It was an eerie reminder about what can happen after a simple navigation or piloting mistake or uncontrollable weather phenomenon.
Near the wreck was a group of shallow coral heads that made for incredible snorkeling. I had never seen such a variety of colorful fish! We swam around until we were a little cold, and then got back in the dinghy to row around the Kuna island. We were not sure about the etiquette or customs, or even if these Kuna spoke Spanish, so we approached slowly until we saw a group of people gathered outside a palm frond thatched hut with a smoking fire. A couple of men approached the shore, and greeted us in good Spanish, asking us what had happened to the motor for our dinghy (we don't have one).
They invited us ashore and we exchanged some pleasantries. I saw a bucket of fresh red Pardo fish, and asked if they would be willing to trade for some tasty edible items we brought from Florida. They tossed three fish into the bottom of the dinghy and waved us goodbye. I had dinner in mind before we even got back to the boat; we would inaugurate our recently-purchased charcoal grill!
We attached the grill to the stern pulpit, gave it a quick cleaning, and lit the coals. I put diced eggplant, green pepper, and onions on the grill on a folded tin foil barge and then added some Caesar dressing. Then I rinsed the fish, basted them with olive oil and some seasoned salt, seared the outside until crispy, then put them on top of the vegetables to steam. We were using hardwood charcoal, although harder to start than the briquettes sold in the U.S., it is more pure and burns for longer. So after dinner we still had plenty of hot coals. Alan's aunt had sent him a s'mores kit for Christmas, so we roasted the marshmallows and enjoyed a classic American treat. Then we sliced up and grilled a pineapple. Why not?
It was easy to adjust to the simple and relaxing lifestyle of the San Blas Islands. We hope you enjoyed the photos and posts!