Panama Canal - Jarabe Tapatío

The kids dressed in Jarabe Tapatío danced for money at the quayside in Colon, Panama Canal. Cute :)

Panama Canal - Rushing River

Finally, our tour took 2 hours. It was worth it! I am glad we met the Indian tribe once in our life.

A man who was in charge was very good at navigating and handling the canoe across the rushing water and passing by the rocks. The ride was sort of scary but fun!

Panama Canal - Turtle Shell

Here is the other handicraft made by the tribe: A turtle shell. Can it be a real shell or a handicraft? I had no idea why they use this shell, but I thought it is a nice souvenir.

Panama Canal -Lifestyle

I've never thought of the tire and trunk stairs. It is unnecessary to build the man-made stairs out of iron; Indians use common sense. There were a few bungalows with the trunk stairs where Indians sleep in. They have their own exterior kitchen.

Panama Canal - Toilet

You don't need to flush at all cause there is no flush handle unlike the Philippine Islands and U.S. In the Philippine Islands, I used a full bucket of water to flush. In the U.S., you know how it works. Inside the toilet, I would say it is about 5 feet deep. Peeing and pooping simply go down the toilet.

Panama Canal - Indians Dance

The Indians demonstrated us some of their typical celebration and traditional dances such as the Flower Dance.

I learned that many young girls at least 14 years old can become mothers early if they are very responsible and know how to do chores.

This tribe allows us to visit them and take pictures unlike other native tribes don't.

Panama Canal - Handicrafts

The most popular handicrafts are "molas," reverse embroidery sewn by the tribe. Other handicrafts include the hand-woven baskets of the Embera Indian. Tagua nut sculptures are tiny figures skillfully carved from the tropical tagua nut. Impressive!

Panama Canal - Meeting the Indian Embera Tribe

Indians built a nest at the top of a tree. Indeed incredibly!

Shop for souvenirs and native handicrafts. Don't leave Panama without an authentic souvenir most made by Panama's Indian Tribe.

It was fun to see the toilet signs around the world like this.

Panama Canal - Locals Walked Across The Ford

We enjoyed the beauty areas of scenic forests for an hour. I saw a local man, a horse and his dog walking across the ford. I didn't know how deep the water is, but his dog paddled well.

Panama Canal - Riding a Motorized Canoe

Let's ride in a motorized canoe! It was incredible to meet the real Indians. They have talents in canoeing. Before boarding the canoe, I was worried about a fat lady. She awkwardly hopped in and the canoe ended up lifting down a few inches. In that canoe, water leveled a few inches below the lip of the canoe because that fat lady was too heavy. I thought positive! It took about an hour to arrive. The first one already left. My husband and I rode with other tourists in our second canoe. The third canoe would come a bit later to pick up the last tourists. We were lucky to get in the canoe early to see the Indian performance on time.

Panama Canal - Crazy Cars

On our way to meet the Indian Embera tribe, I saw some taxi cabs and local drivers going crazy everywhere. There were no traffic lights and stop signs! How scary it is. My tour guide wanted to test the tourists how much we know about the US history and facts while riding on the bus. He was surprised that most of us did not know some facts, lol. We should not make good excuses because we are American citizens.

This town reminds me of the chinatown or remote town in the Philippine Islands.

He pointed at a weird bus with the fins. He asked if we have seen it before, and the answer was no. He was totally shocked, lol.

We finally arrived by the river, waiting for the signal call from the tribe within 30 minutes. I wondered how they got in touch. I asked the bus driver how he contacted the tribe since they don't have advanced technology. He explained that someone made a call using his mobile phone atop the mountain. Interesting.

Panama Canal - Entering a harbor from the open sea

Our ship entered a harbor from the open sea in Colon, Panama Canal, passing between the huge stone forts. There were a lot of cargo ships parking and entering in and out.

The security guards often ask the people to reveal their IDs and cruise card before entering the cruise. And many taxi drivers asked us if we needed a ride and we moved on. This port has casinos, supermarkets and retail stores. We waited in a line for our bus tour to arrive. As our bus was here, the kids performed for money. Let's go and meet the Indian Embera Tribe!