Choice of a Lifetime...: Cerro Punta / Hot Springs

The highlands of Cerro Punta are incredible. In the pic below, the camera is actually held at horizontal, which gives a clear indication we're in the shadow of Volcán Baru. This is Panama´s breadbasket, and the area that hires many ngäby people. This whole area is worked by only two people. Wife and I are now making trips up to join the couple, Edil and Exilena.

Another view... Little houses dot the hills, making this territory fascinating - and heart-stopping.

One of the well maintained bridges, haha.

Our friend Antonio speaking to a Ngäby family.

In this area, our group hiked over to the hotsprings, which can be found in the highlands 8 kms off the main road. They were waiting their turn to cross the 'bridge'.

I didn't even try this one. Better to just take your shoes off, roll up your pants and cross.
The group at the end of the hike listened carefully, and once again we emphasized proper hygiene, as four children in this area recently died. They usually blame demons, but the culprit ends up almost always being either contaminated water or malnourishment.

Our society has been working with several ngäbere issues when it comes to writing. Because there never was a ngäby written language, the Panamanian government provided one for future use in their schools. However, not all organizations follow their guidelines (we do). On top of this, the lack of written language has caused variations in Ngäbere which make things even more difficult.
We have literature in the Ngäbere language which we use, and fortunately we have a partial ngäbere bible which was helped us learn the language. Because the bible doesn't follow the Panamanian government´s guideline on the Ngäby written language, some ngäbere have trouble reading it. However, the writing is consistent and with a simple explanation they quickly adapt.