In Panama, a paddle-up greeting

A cruise ship provided an interesting vantage point for Mike Curran of Manhattan Beach as he passed through the San Blas Islands, off Panama’s northern coast. The two-week Holland America cruise, taken to mark New Year’s in 2000, took him through the Caribbean and along the Mexican Riviera, with a Panama Canal passage in between. As the ship passed the San Blas Archipelago, the indigenous Kuna rowed up alongside the ship as crew and passengers tossed gifts -- fruit, even sneakers -- to the floating crowd below.