Day 7. Kuna Market/Farewell Dinner.

Shop for The Molas and visit Amador Causeway.

Today you will leave Playa Blanca and head back to Panama City.

Wear comfortable clothes and shoes (shorts-T-shirt, sandals will be ok)  since you will be shopping at the Kuna Market. You may want to have some cash available too.

As you travel back to the city, go across the famous BRIDGE OF THE AMERICAS, the link between two Continents, North America and South America!

You will arrive to one of the most popular indigenous markets in Panama: The Kuna Market.

The Kuna people live in three politically autonomous Comarcas of Panama: Kuna Yala, Madugandí and Wargandí. 

The Comarca de Kuna Yala comprises the San Blas Islands, an archipelago of over 360 islands along the coast. A big number  of the islands are inhabited by Kuna communities.

The Saila is the political and spiritual leader of each community.

The Kuna are famous for their colorful Molas,  an art form made with the techniques of appliqué and reverse appliqué.

Kuna women create Molas by stitching several layers of different bright colored cloth together, and then patterns are cut through the layers exposing the cloth underneath. Designs include geometrical illustrations of animals, plants and ritual objects. These panels are used to make the traditional blouses which are worn daily by the Kuna women, together with the  cotton skirts, the red and orange head scarves and glass bead strings on wrists and ankles.

Molas have their origin in the body painting. After the Spanish arrival, the Kuna started to transfer their traditional geometric designs on fabric, first by painting directly on the textiles and later by using the actual technique.

The Kuna represent the largest indigenous group in Panama. They are still engaged in agriculture and fishing. They grow bananas, plantain corn, tubers and avocados.

In modern days, tourism has become a very important income for this communities. By selling their Molas, the women are responsible for the main part of the family income.

After shopping you will drive to Amador Causeway for a delicious lunch. Fort Amador was a former USA base that protected the Pacific entrance to the Panama Canal.

During WW2 fortifications were constructed on the islands to protect the canal but were never used.

The causeway is as a huge breakwater that protects the entrance to the Canal and prevent sedimentation in the Port of Balboa. It was built with rock and material from the excavation of Culebra Cut during the construction of the Canal. This joined the four islands of Flamenco, Perico, Culebra and Naos.

The Causeway offers a fantastic views of Panama`s skyscraping and the Bridge of the Americas.

Throughout history, Amador has been considered an important protection setting for the Spanish Conquistadors, for pirates, during the First and Second World World, and for the modern days.

Today the Causeway  is a panamenian pride, a tourist destination where port facilities, marinas, shopping, restaurants and hotels are now being developed.

After lunch you will check in at your Hotel. Prepare for  an unforgettable Farewell Dinner.