womanonabicycle .....: La Chunga

8am we set off to La Chunga, a village nestled alongside a river branch, which is named after the palms leaves the ladies use to weave beautiful baskets.

Marco, the guide (aged 5) scouts ahead.

45 minutes later.

The path to the Emberaa village.
If you think it looks as if they mow it its because they do...

Ricardo took me to his home village with his son, Marco. We stayed at the house of his mother. We got the chance to look around some of the houses, which were built in a traditional style.

Cooking

Pot storage.

Home sweet home.

Really home life is very simple. I asked about the living conditions and everyone sleeps in the same one or two rooms. This includes newly married couples who share not only a house but also a bedroom with their parents and siblings....

Rice store.

Rice, harvested annually.

Ugly chickens.

Beautiful children. Bad teeth.
Over-eating sugar products is a real problem here.

Then they wanted to use my camera.

Ricardo displays the BEST FRUIT IN TOWN. I love this stuff!
Don't know what its called but the name sounds like the word for shoes.

A hostile resident.

Don't stray from the paaatthhh

We went on a jungle walk. It was very good and Ricardo was very knowledgeable. He showed me all sorts of plants and stuff. I did laugh out loud when he cut this large stick (below) and said it was their method of birth control, but he wasn't joking. The women eat this once a month and don't get pregnant.

Obviously, no one had mentioned this to the woman with whom I was living - she has 14 children.

Birth control - the Emberaa way.

Women here earn about $200 per year. This is from selling small handmade items to tourists (few) and from doing small jobs or selling food items.

Having a paddy.

Most of the rice they grow is for own consumption. One they grow and harvest it the store it in a granary, which just keeps it off the ground. The women have to de-husk the rice in a pestle and mortar by hand before they can cook it.

Man models flowers.

I was a bit nervous when we took two guides into the jungle. What could be out there? Then I discovered the second guide was back up in case the first guide got lost. Which he did.

Woman eats non magic mushroom.

Child reconstructs pig pen which he accidentally breaks.

Actually the visit was really good. The village was relaxing and natural - if I'd have know I would have stayed for longer. There was a guy there from the States who is with the Peace Corps (think VSO) and he told me a lot, like how he is trying to help them expand their agricultural crop to coffee and cocoa so they can generate more income and how they want more tourists to come.

Then, all too quickly, it was time to go home.