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Hello everybody! I have so many adventures to share with you! Stay tuned for upcoming blogs about the amazing experience of celebrating the 93rd Anniversary of the Guna Revolution, and a wonderful 4-day sea kayaking and snorkeling adventure to Isla Coiba on the Pacific side of Panama. First, I’d like to share my experience in a lovely mountain town called El Valle de Antón, where I recently spent two days adventuring with my friend, Kira.

Sunrise over El Valle

The hike: La India Dormida (The Sleeping Indian)

The Legend: Luba, who they called “Flor del Aire”, or “Air Flower” was the daughter of Urraca, the most successful Chief in Panama fighting against the Conquistadores. It was her misfortune to fall in love with one of the Spanish soldiers. Yavari, one of the strongest fighters of her tribe, vied for her affection. When she did not return his love, in despair, he jumped to his death from a mountain top before the Princess’ eyes. In sorrow Princess Flor del Aire left her home and never saw the Spaniard again.
She crossed mountains and valleys bitterly weeping over her fate. Above the beaches of the Caribbean she fell dead looking back at the beloved mountains where she had been born. The mountains were so touched by this sad love story they decided to form the shape of the Princess, and that is how the India Dormida arose.

Our sunrise view-point on the breast of La India Dormida. Can you see her?

El Valle de Antón is only a few hours away from Panama City by bus, which is how I got there. It’s inexpensive and easy to get to from the Albrook Transportation Terminal. This was my second visit to El Valle, and this time around I did one of the “quintessential” El Valle hikes, which is not to be missed if you like gorgeous views. Kira, who is one of my favorite adventure friends, is always up for anything! We had planned to do some hiking, so when I suggested that we wake up at 4:30 AM to watch the sunrise from the top of La India Dormida, she was super excited. I admit that one of the main reasons to wake up so early was to beat the heat of mid-day, which is pretty unbearable hiking weather if you ask me. I’ll let the photos speak for themselves. Morning bliss!

It was super windy from where we watched the glowing ball of orange rise above the mountains to spread a golden light over the town. To our delight, we ended up watching the sunrise from the breast of La India Dormida:) It was definitely one of the most beautifully inspiring sunrises that I’ve ever seen. It made me think how many opportunities we have to experience this amazing (and FREE!) natural phenomenon. Every single day of our lives the sun rises (I certainly do hope), and watching it no matter where you are is a special experience to take in by oneself, or to share with others.

Kira doing Sun Salutations to greet the day

I hope that you found some inspiration from this sunrise adventure. Please stay tuned for more from my recent travels in Panama. You don’t want to miss a reenactment of the bloody battle that the Guna fought to gain their autonomy in 1925, nor do you want to miss snorkeling with sea turtles and sharks in one of Panama’s most precious national parks, Isla Coiba. Gracias!