The Indigenous Embera Community

Ref. T-009

After breakfast, we will take a short 30-minute bus ride to Chagres National Park and then embark on a fascinating cultural trip. Upon arrival at the National Park, we will enjoy the breath-taking beauty of the rainforest while aboard small or motorized canoes that take us through Lake Alajuela and the Chagres River until we reach the friendly people of the Embera-Drua Community. We will enjoy learning about their culture and traditions and have lunch in their thatched huts. This will be most definitively an unforgettable experience.

You will also have the chance to take a tour with the “Medicine Man” who will explain the use of plants as natural medicines. You will have the opportunity to go for a refreshing swim before we return to the city at the village's beautiful tranquil natural pool or at a waterfall, which is approximately 20 minutes walking distance.

You will also be able to purchase some of their incredible crafts. The Embera Indians are master artisans, known for their trays, fine baskets and high quality woodcarvings. In addition to crafting objects for sale, skilled woodcarving has many traditional uses in the Embera culture, including fabricating hunting weapons, canoes, paddles, household furnishing and ceremonial objects. The Embera have recently expanded their carving skills to tagua, known as “vegetable ivory”, and have created a unique and imaginative art inspired by the plants and animals of the rainforest.

The Embera artisans carve the tagua with hand tools and polish the tagua with a series of fine abrasives; no varnishes or lacquers are used. The natural color of the tagua is ivory white with a dark brown skin with other natural shades of brown and gray. Others colors are produced by dying the tagua with natural extracts of plants and earth, using the traditional methods for dying basket fibers. Only high quality India inks are used on those pieces with inked “tagua“ details. Some of these carvings have won UNESCO prizes in native craft competitions.

Tour includes: Transportation on land and water, admission fee at Chagres National Park ,

refreshments, light lunch, Spanish/English speaking guides

What to Bring: Sandals or running shoes, short pants, T-shirt, swimsuit, towel, extra set of clothes,

hat or cap, sunglasses, camera and sunscreen. (We recommend you place your extra set of clothes in a plastic bag to keep them dry and the same for any photographic equipment you bring on the trip)

What Not to Bring: Shoes with heels, skirts, jewelry or other valuable objects.

  Duration: 8 hours

  Days of Operation: Mondays and Saturdays