Elementor #5383

Traveling Insurance in an increasingly uncertain world.


For years, I’ve had the privilege of exploring captivating destinations around the world. Some of these trips took me to remote corners, while others were closer to home, yet the risk of flight cancellations, lost luggage, or disruptions due to COVID-19 was always a concern. After leading tours for over 20 years, I’ve encountered many challenging situations that underscore the vital role of travel insurance. In the following, I’ll share scenarios that highlight why spending a bit more on travel insurance can be highly beneficial, even for smaller tour operations. I’ll detail several cases where travel insurance could have significantly improved the outcome for the travelers.

Having health insurance in the US doesn’t automatically extend to coverage while traveling abroad. Some credit cards offer travel insurance, but it’s crucial to review the specifics of their coverage before you leave home. Often, this coverage is quite limited and may not include emergency hospitalization or medical evacuation. Additionally, most insurance policies do not cover cancellations due to a pandemic.

During the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, many countries required travelers to have health insurance that covered COVID-19 as a way to encourage tourism while easing the strain on their healthcare systems. Hospitals were struggling with shortages of beds, supplies, and staff. Nowadays, many travel insurance providers include COVID-19 coverage in their standard policies.

On average, basic travel insurance that covers COVID-19 cancellations, emergency transportation, hospitalization, lost luggage, and flight cancellations costs between 5-7% of the total trip cost. For example, a $500-$700 insurance policy would protect a $10,000 African safari. Given the current travel landscape, I highly recommend considering this type of coverage, especially for trips to remote locations. Be aware that insurance costs can vary depending on the country you’re visiting.

To illustrate the value of travel insurance, consider a recent case involving a disastrous trip to India. The travelers fell ill after a meal and required hospitalization, and their tour leader also spent three days in the hospital. This situation caused major disruptions and resulted in significant medical expenses for everybody in the group.

In another example, a friend traveled to Cuba and broke her femur. Due to the limited medical facilities there, she was given sedatives and had to wait three days before being airlifted to the U.S. in an air ambulance. Although non-profit organizations can assist with such transport for U.S. citizens, the process is complicated and time-consuming.

Even for domestic trips, purchasing basic travel insurance that covers flight and lodging is advisable. With the current unpredictability of airline schedules, flights are frequently canceled, leaving travelers stranded with few options. Many insurance policies cover flight changes and cancellations, along with luggage loss.

As for how tour operators are affected when a participant lacks insurance, it’s straightforward: tour prices are usually based on the number of participants. If someone has to cancel at the last minute due to illness or an accident, it can be challenging for companies to recover expenses for transportation and lodging. Transportation costs remain the same regardless of whether the full group is present, and lodging costs often aren’t refunded if canceled less than 30 days before arrival. This is why many tour operators now require participants to purchase travel insurance. Always read the fine print when buying insurance and ask specific questions to ensure it meets your needs.

Here are some companies I have used in the past.

https://www.allianztravelinsurance.com/

https://www.travelinsured.com/

Disclaimer: I am not a licensed insurance provider, so all opinions expressed are my own based on my experience over the years.  Travelers are responsible for reading the Description of Coverage for any travel insurance you wish to purchase and to read the definition of coverages/exclusions.  My examples here do not indicate guarantees of coverage for your specific situation each insurance company have specific coverage for your trip, so make sure to get all the details. 

leo.

The Essence of the Tropical Rainforest

While in the rainforest, your eyes will wander off over and over as your senses are being triggered by the sounds of unknown animals, the flashy colors of some bird and the smell of ripe fruits.  At times, one instinct is to ask “what is that?” while my suggestion is to “shoot it first, ask questions later”. The reason is simple, sometimes these encounters happen so fast that if you don’t shoot it, it may be gone by the time you get an answer.  At the end, that shot may be a winner or simply an evidential shot of what you saw. This type of photography may be considered a snapshot as the creative process was minimal.  You aimed your camera and composed the best you could under the pressing circumstances and pressed the shutter release. 

Now, there’s another type of photography that requires you to think the best way to present your subject. This type of photography is usually accompanied by extra time on site with your subject. Time that is used to figure out the best way to highlight its features, perhaps capture something comical or simply show your skills by using the light to your advantage. Below there are a series of images that were created by means of spending extra time to create a captivating one. Whether you are experimenting or know exactly what you’re looking for, having that extra time to compose the perfect shot can make a difference between a snapshot capture and a creative image.

A Different Perspective

Leaf Mantis (R. Munguía)

Shooting this leaf mantis from below was a bit of a challenge as the mantis would not cooperate by peaking the head over the leaf’s edge.  After some trial an error, the image was executed using a fill flash from below. The curves on the leaf were used to divide the composition into two even sections, one of which was out-of-focus due to DOF (Depth-of-field) and the other tack sharp on the subject.

Green -crowned Brilliant (John Lampkin)

Again, a magnificent close-up image of Hummingbird taken by workshop participant and friend John Lampkin while in Costa Rica in 2022. The unusual view of the bird makes it very interesting and attractive as it’s a different view of a very photographed species. Don’t hesitate to shoot weird angles, you may be pleasantly surprised.

A Different Perspective

Strawberry Poison Dart (John Lampkin)

For this shot, John and I spent over 10 minutes trying to figure out the most effective way to highlight the subject. Finally, I offered to hold a second flash from behind the frog to create an almost natural beam of light filtering through the rainforest canopy with the hope of defining the body of the frog inside the cup mushroom. It worked! One of the favorite photos of the 2023 photo expedition.

Red-eyed Treefrog silhouette (R. Munguía)

A similar effect was created for this photograph of a Red-eyed Treefrog backlit by the light of a flash.  This effect is really easy to recreate by simply shooting a flash slave above the subject. The difficulty comes from focusing in the darkness of the night while hand-holding the lens.  An extra pair of hands comes really handy on this situation.

A Different Perspective

Scarlet Macaw (Reinier Munguía)

After shooting over 200 photos of these Scarlet Macaws flying from left to right, it was time to do something different. Yes, we always aim to freeze actions and obtain tack sharp images, but if you want to be creative with moving subjects like this flying birds, try using a slow shutter speed  and pan your camera as you take the shot. The results are a bit impressionistic and while it may look like you don’t know anything about photography for obtaining a very blurred image, this in fact is you using your camera creatively. When it happens by mistake, it’s a different story.

 

A Different Perspective

Black-cowled Orioles (Reinier Munguía)

We all watch this adult feeding the fledgling on the branch, but the shots were boring and didn’t have a good point of focus to drive the viewer. Then the youngster decided to jump on the bromelia and the scene took a turn for the best. Now the image looked more dynamic and capturing the moment when the food was transfered made the shot a success. So the moral of the story….stay til’ the end.

 

Central American Bullfrog eating a Gladiator frog  (Reinier Munguía)

At this point we have been shooting frogs in the darkness of the night for an hour and under a light rain, when suddenly out of nowhere a frog falls from the trees and right in front of a hungry bullfrog. The action was quick, and without hesitation, I moved in the right position to capture the struggle. The gladiator put up a fight, but its size did not deter the bullfrog from making it a meal.

 

A Different Perspective

Leaf-cutter Ants (Reinier Munguía)

When shooting Leaf-cutter is not unusual to see scouts riding on the leaf being carried by the workers. These are unique images that demonstrate the hard to believe weight carrying capacity of these tiny insects. The next time you have an opportunity to capture how amazing nature can be, don’t hesitate to hit the trigger.  This show was really planned carefully by allowing the ant to climb on an endless stick, one that did not have any pheromones making the ants stay in the same stick for quite some time, enough for few chances to capture the piggyback activity.

Collared Aracari (Reinier Munguía)

This young aracari was simply drunk from eating too many ripe bananas.  Just kidding, it wasn’t drunk, it was just taking the early morning sun or basking.  

Four-eyed  Frog (Reinier Munguía)

When I saw these two, straight in front of me, I figured a lower angle will capture the funky looking four-eyed frog effect.  Unusual and funny at the same time. 

North Shore Birding Festival

Thank you for joining my workshop at the North Shore Biding Festival. Below I will be going over some of the items we covered in the program for your reference.

Exposure Basics

One of the most important aspects of successful nature photography is understand how your gear works and performs under different situations. Metering in particular and how your camera deals with extreme highlights and shadows is very  important. I mentioned the use of Auto ISO in Manual exposure mode as the most effective way to ensure within range exposures, not perfect, but close enough that minimal post-processing may be required. Since this is a semi-automatic exposure more, I also mentioned when and how to use exposure compensation.  That little  +/- button on most cameras is there for a reason. Being able to override the metered exposure to protect highlight information or open up shadows is the key to better exposures with more latitude for post-processing. Don’t forget that you should be shooting in RAW format to really take advantage of the exposure latitude provided by your camera’s sensor.

Remember you can always predict how much compensation you’ll need by comparing the subject’s reflectivity to the rest of the frame. In the case of the Great Egret to the right the bird as surrounded by a close to middle tone background. If the background had been darker I would have used more compensation to avoid losing too much highlight information.  Remember is really important to recognize the subject tonal value in respect to the tonal value scale and how it relates to the background tonal value to adjust the metered exposure on the spot. Also don’t forget to remove any exposure compensation before moving to a different subject otherwise you’ll be exposing using the exposure compensation you just dialed in.  As long as the subject continues in the same light you should be able to keep your exposure compensation.  Also the above suggestions apply to metering mode like Matrix in the Nikon or Evaluative in Nikon any other camera systems will use something very similar 

The above shot of the Great Egret was taken using the metered exposure for my settings of 1/1000sec. @ f8, AUTO ISO. The result was a slight overexposure of the highlights as noted by the spike on the right side of the histogram.  The solution was as simple as dialing -2/3 stop compensation. The good thing is that little overexposures like this are easy to fix in your RAW editor by simply adjusting the exposure or the highlight and white values. 

AF Basics

We also discuss how to setup the AF system correctly in your camera to maximize its performance for birds in flight. First point was to setup your AF-Only back- button focus.  This is easily achieve through your camera’s menu.  Doing so allow your camera to continue to focus independently of whether you depress the shutter button. The main advantage is that you can always stop focusing while in continuos AF mode (AF-C) to recompose or when your subject simply stop moving or walks behind obstacles that will otherwise confuse the AF system

The AF-ON button allows you to focus when you need it and will help you track your even when the photo is being acquired by the sensor thanks to predictive AF. For this you must use Dynamic-Area AF in AF-C.  In this particular AF mode, you select one of the many AF sensors and the camera utilizes the additional surrounding sensors to track the subject if it leaves the area covered by your selected sensor. Understand that every camera manufacturer have a very similar AF modes as described above, but due to patents they may call it differently.  For example: Nikon AF-C is the same as Canon AI-servo. Dynamic AF-mode in the Nikon is called AF Point Expansion on the Canon. With that said, it’s very important that you read your camera manual to understand all the features your AF system can provide. 

Below are the AF-ON setup screens for Nikon, Canon and Sony respectively.

 

Below is  a chart with all the AF modes available in most Nikon Cameras and the best scenerario for their use.

 
ApplicationPinpoint AFSingle-Point AF(AF-S)Dynamic-Area AF (AF-C)Wide-Area (S)Wide-Area (L)Auto-Area AF
Candid Photography    ● *5
Portraits    ● *5
Weddings/Events   ● *5
Landscapes     
Nightscapes     
Architectures    
Concerts, live events    
Macro (food / flowers)    
Group Photos    
Trains, vehicles    
Wildlife / Birds *6     
Sports *6     

The sequence below was done using the Dynamic AF mode with 72 sensors and pressing the AF-ON button through the whole sequence. The sequence contained over 17 frames as I was shooting at 10fps.  Only 5 of them showed a bit of softness. This AF mode in combination with 1/2000 shutters speed improved the number of keepers.

Always remember to start focusing early and how your posture and panning technique has a big influence on your final product.  Always support your lens from the bottom using your open hand while bracing the arm against your body. Another note of caution always use a shutter speed no less than the reciprocal of the focal length being used(adjust for cropped sensors). If using a full frame camera while handholding a 500mm focal length, you should use no less than 1/500 sec. to prevent camera shake. On a cropped body that same lens will require a 1/750 sec. shutter speed. Now, remember this is only to prevent camera shake, but motion blur from your subject can only be fixed with a shutter speed faster than the subject’s motion, therefore I prefer to shoot birds in flight at no less than 1/2000 sec. Slower birds could be photographed at a slower shutter speed, think of a pelican in flight, you may be able to stop it with only 1/1000 sec., but a hummingbird’s wings beat too fast to be stopped with the same shutter speed.

Below are some other pics I captured while leading the field Workshop on Sunday. Again thank you for your participation and feel free to send me an email with any questions your may have.

 

Loving Nature To Death

Loving Nature to Death

More than 30 vehicles were encroaching on a leopard that was hiding in the bushes.

I was about fifteen years old when I was given a camera with which to explore the world. What began as a way to keep me out of trouble became my way to make a living. For years, I have worked as a commercial photographer shooting product advertising, food, architecture, events and even editorial. But my true passion is for the critters living around me. Later  in life, armed with enough knowledge about the natural world, I embarked on a long journey to document wildlife and educate people about the importance of all living things.  My photography became a medium to reach people and teach them something they didn’t know. This journey has taken me to some of the most amazing places in the world.  From hotspots of biodiversity in the Amazon and Central America, to the ever-changing Galapagos and the megafauna of Africa, each has provided me with multiple opportunities to understand life and the importance of each individual and its impact on the ecosystems they live in. That includes animals like us, humans.

 

Over the years I have seen many more people exploring the outdoors, kayaking, boating, camping and photographing wildlife. Some with very positive results; others, not so much.  Nature photography has become one of the most common outdoor hobbies, bringing people closer to nature. But sometimes these encounters may have detrimental effects on the wildlife we love so much.

 

As a naturalist and photography instructor, I try to teach the ethics of nature photography to my students in an effort to create nature-conscious individuals. Learning when your actions affect your subject or others in the ecosystem is very important. I have learned from my own mistakes.  There was a time in my life where documenting birds nesting was a priority, until I noticed the effect this could have on nesting birds. Having witnessed many nesting birds fail due to increased visitation from photographers and nature lovers made me realize the impacts are no different than any other anthropogenic causes. In our quest to get the best image possible, we fail to recognize the level of impact we imposed on our subjects. Recently, during the Covid-19 pandemic, the effect of our love for nature and the outdoors was seen across our national parks, where masses of people went in search of relief after lockdown.  The parks were littered with garbage and animal-human conflicts were on the rise. How can we love something so much to the point of hurting it? The answer may lie in our own selfishness. Take for example the case of a man that took a selfie too close to a large alligator.  Without hesitation, the photo is posted on social media and many more join the craze.  A few weeks later, the famed alligator was deemed too friendly and was removed from the reserve.  Its final destination was unknown, but most people assumed it was euthanized. The moral of the story is that without knowing, the selfishness of these individuals and their unethical behavior caused the loss of one famous alligator. 

 

Few years ago the strange sighting of a Snowy Owl on the beaches of Jacksonville drew the attention of many birders and photographers that tried their chances at seeing or photographing this northern species.  People from all over Florida were trampling the vegetation along the sand dunes, and their mere presence made the owl a bit antsy.  The constant chase prevented the owl from resting and hunting properly to the point that the owl died.  My question then, is do those people really care about the owl, or did they care more about their own selfishness of getting the shot. 

 

The stories of unethical encounters with wildlife are more common that many of us want to admit. One time, while walking a preserve, I came across an individual placing his arm inside a gopher tortoise burrow in hopes of getting the tortoise out for a photo opportunity. Besides advising him on the illegality of his actions, I went into explaining the danger he was exposing himself to. It’s not unusual to find rattlesnakes living in the gopher tortoise burrows. While my actions were passive, my only hope was for him to learn about the big mistake he had just made.  You may have heard about a few cases of wild animals that have been removed from the environment because of people feeding them, or treating them as pets, etc. Sometimes we think we are doing them a favor by providing them water or food, when in reality we are just sentencing them to death. That’s the reason the signs read “A fed bear is a dead bear.” I guess that applies to gators, too. But while this expression may apply to certain situations, like campgrounds and parks, we can’t deny that feeding may be positive in a different situation. Take, for example, the scheduled feeding of California condors in locations where the birds were re-introduced. But these are specific situations that are carefully monitored for the benefit of the species, not for the benefit of the photographer.

More recently I have witnessed how our love for wildlife and getting the perfect shot may be affecting the migration of thousands of ungulates in Africa.  While visiting the Mara River in Kenya to document the Great Wildebeest Migration, I was appalled to see how many tour operators will park their vehicles right on the path of the migrating wildebeest to give their clients the ultimate view.  It was bad enough to prevent the wildebeest from crossing the river. Instead of allowing enough room for them to cut across, the vehicles on the opposite side of the river bank acted as a concrete wall preventing the animals from even attempting the crossing. This is the largest land migration on earth with more than 2 million animals crossing the Mara every year as they move from Tanzania to Kenya. I also learned about an apparent practice in Tanzania to set fires to delay the migration of the wildebeest in an effort to keep the business in the country. While Tanzania denies the practice, many tour operators in Kenya continue to blame Tanzania for the stalled migrations.

 

A few days later, we encountered a leopard that was surrounded by nearly 40 safari vehicles loaded with tourists with cellphones in hand.  The vehicles were inching against each other in hopes to get a clear view of the shaken cat. The story later repeated itself, this time with a lonely cheetah. Vehicles circled the exhausted animal, with the insensible occupants taking pictures with their phones at close distance. Both experiences were too much for me to bear and I asked our drivers to leave the area immediately. My conscience was telling me: “the shot is not more important than the welfare of the subject.” But for the tour operators, putting their clients in the best spot usually means more money in the form of tips. A hard habit to break when they need the money.

 

So, what can be done to avoid this type of wildlife encroachment? Perhaps the answer lies in each one of us and how we communicate with the people near us about the dangers that our actions pose to wildlife. National parks and preserves need to teach their operators about safe viewing distances, and proper wildlife-watching etiquette.  We need to make it illegal to approach the wildlife, and denounce those who commit the crime. We can never allow money to dictate our actions and we must always work for the safety of our wild animals and natural resources. At the end, we won’t have anything to photograph when it’s all gone. Do your part and learn what is too close or too much.

 

Visitors taking selfies with a white-faced capuchin on their shoulders at Manuel Antonio National Park, Costa Rica.
A cheetah poses for the thrilled visitors as they snap a group shot. Masai Mara , Kenya.
Sometimes we get closer than we need, just for the thrill, or to claim we were that close.
Several safari vehicles blocking the path used by the wildebeest to cross the Mara River.

Leaf Cutter Ants: The First Farmers

Leaf Cutter Ants: The First Farmers

Rainforests are among the most biodiverse places on Earth. Millions of years of evolution in these regions have resulted in some of the most amazing organisms ever known to man. Being able to survive in a harsh environment dominated by high temperatures and high humidity is a requirement more than a choice. These conditions promote plant growth and attract many arthropods. Insects are among the most diverse animals in the rainforest.  Butterflies are perhaps the most eye-catching of all with vivid colors and metallic shine, some using these colors to warn off their toxic nature.  Beetles, grasshoppers and leaf insects all munch on the exuberant vegetation with little remorse for the plants they are eating.

 

But those who visit the rainforest will rarely do so without crossing the path of one of the most laborious species in the world –the leaf-cutter ants. There are 47 species leaf cutting ants. My first encounter with these ants came as no surprise in Costa Rica, where they seem to inhabit almost any land ecosystem except for high elevations above 6,500 feet. You may even find them carrying leaf pieces as you exit the airport terminal towards the parking lot where several trees make up the landscape.

 

The most interesting fact about leaf-cutters is their ability to farm their own produce- a fungus, to be exact. The pieces of leaves they collect are cut in smaller pieces before inoculating them with the fungus, the only source of food for the ants and their larvae. A well-established colony can contain over 5 million ants, of which most are females. The queen is about 2 inches in length and may live for over 20 years. During her lifespan, she can lay more than 200 million eggs.

 

These social arthropods are well known for their well-structured society divided into castes. The different castes are defined by size. The Mimims are the smaller workers helping to harvest the fungus and feed the larvae, while the Minors are found along the trails and are in charge of defending the workers from any intruders. The Mediae are larger and are responsible for collecting the leaves and bringing them inside the colony. Finally, the Majors are the largest of all, working as soldiers to protect the colony. They are also known for helping clear the paths used by the Mediae and getting rid of waste produced by the colony. Waste workers are usually left isolated from the fungus gardens to avoid contamination.

 

So, the next time you come across a trail of leaf-cutters, take your time to follow them, as you will be surprised at how far and large the colony may be. While these may be one of the toughest insects to shoot, you get plenty of opportunities as these guys will be on the move non-stop. Try them the next time to visit any country in Central or South America. There are two species that are found in the U.S. ; they can be found in Arizona, Texas and Southern California.

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Leaf Cutter Ant
A mediae carrying a large leaf fragment and a protecting minor.
Leaf-cutters follow pheromone trails on their way to and from the foraging tree
Leaf-cutters live in underground colonies holding millions of ants.
The author and his wife at one large leaf-cutter colony in Costa Rica.
In 2022 we came across a nest colony that was over 35 feet wide. Here's Carolina Villegas posing on top of these massive nest for size reference.

Documenting Ophaga pumilio in Bocas del Toro, Panama.

I have a true passion for amphibians, those creatures with moist skin and sticky toes that many people fear or dislike. They are jumpy and at times hard to find, yet that’s nothing more than a challenging proposition to a frog fan like me. This time the trip took me for the second time in less than 6 months to the Bocas del Toro district in Panama. There’s something magical happening in this area composed of the mainland and few surrounding islands to the point that scientist called them the Galapagos of the Caribbean. By now you should know the importance of the Galapagos Islands and if you don’t here’s a tip. The Galapagos are a living evolution laboratory, where we can observe the effects of adaptive radiation, a process in which organisms diversify rapidly from an ancestral species into a multitude of new forms. In the case of Bocas del Toro, a tiny frog has evolved many different phenotypes – a description of observable physical, physiological or behavioral characteristics that separate a group of individuals from the rest of the species. Different from genotypes which are the actual genetic identity, phenotypes are affected by both the genotype and the unique environmental conditions surrounding the individual. My subject is a tiny frog — Oophaga pumulio — a.k.a. the Strawberry Poison Dart Frog. In it’s most common form it looks like the one below.

A Strawberry Poison Dart Frog (Oophaga pumilio) carries her to tadpole to a water source, usually a bromelia.

The challenging part was finding these tiny frogs no more than one inch in length while dodging the weather. For starters, these guys don’t like bad weather. In order to find them I needed to hear them first. Too much rain and they go mute, making them nearly impossible to find on the leaf litter of the forest floor. Even when the conditions were optimal, they will choose impossible places from where to call, making them inaccessible or difficult to photograph. Walking through muddied trails, slipping down the hill sides or landing on large puddles of water made the adventure more exciting at times. Once found then I had to battle the elements and the gear. Constant drizzle and high humidity sabotaged the gear more than once. The copious sweat getting in the eyes and all over the cameras added to the miserable ground conditions. To visit some of the sites where these frogs can be found we had to take boats. One of the interesting things about these frogs is the fact that several phenotypes can be found in one same island. In the case of Isla Bastimentos there are at least three different forms of the frog. Isla Colon also have their share. Every large island in the Bocas del Toro archipelago offers at least two phenotypes. But the mainland offer a unique set of conditions that produced even more phenotypes. Geographical isolation by either rivers or mountains provided enough separation for the establishment of various morphs, occasionally only separated by a river and in places where two distinct population exist, you can even find some individuals sharing characteristics of both populations. Insane to think that such a small area produced so much color evolution, but considering these frogs have a tiny range and small number of offspring.  Below are some of the phenotypes I found during a three day expedition. 

But there’s more to these tiny frogs. Their aposematic coloration announcing their toxicity is just one of the traits that allow them to survive in the wild. Their reproduction is extremely complicated for a frog and I even show a high degree of parental care. The males attract the females by means of their calls. Once they find each other, they mate by means of a “cloacal kiss”. Soon after the female lays up to five eggs on a small puddle of water, usually collected on leaves on the forest floor. During this period the male urinates on the eggs to keep them moist if the water evaporates, and rotates the eggs before they turn into tadpoles. Ten to fourteen days later the tadpoles emerge from the eggs. At this point the female takes full care of the tadpoles. As the water dries out, she will carefully move the tadpoles to water filled vegetation usually bromeliads.  To prevent cannibalism among the tadpoles, the female deposits a single tadpole per section of the plant. The collected water is low in nutrient, so the female deposit unfertilized eggs to feed the tadpoles until they are ready to leave the water phase fifty days later.

Nothing more exciting than being able to document this species and its many phenotypes. But the work is not complete. There are many more phenotypes still to be documented. The adventure continues on a follow up expedition in 2022.

A Unique Way To School

Traveling through Central and South America, it’s hard to miss kids walking to school. Some walk for miles even before the sun rises to make sure they arrive on time. In most of these countries, schools have separate morning and afternoon sessions in order to accommodate all the grade levels on limited resources that include small buildings, no budget to provide lunch and the lack of teachers. In the afternoon, the younger kids are going back home while the older students come to session.  In remote areas the daily migration is even more common. School buses are limited or non-existent, so it’s not unusual to see seven year-old kids walking long ways along the roads or picking up a ride on public transportation.

But nothing more challenging than going to school by water. Yes, in many remote areas of Panama, I have encountered kids traveling by water in dugout canoes. This time I was in the southern range of the Bocas del Toro archipelago. For a moment you feel in another world as you are surrounded by emerald waters hugged by mangroves tall enough to touch the sky. As idyllic as it sounds it is a dangerous risk that many kids take on a daily basis.  I can only assume that classes are dismissed if bad weather approaches, but then…how would they know when far from the reach of technology? For days I lived without the cellphone lifeline I’m so used to. I was so far away from civilization that any accident could have been devastating and venomous snakes are commonly seen along the forest floor here. The waters are also patrolled by sharks. In fact, I glanced at a hammerhead just a few minutes before snapping some pictures of three kids paddling their ancient dugout canoe to school. But despite all the dangers, students and teachers make the treacherous trip from and back to school.

But the students are not the only ones on a challenging trek. One day, while driving on the main land, I came across a teacher that was in need of a ride home. She teaches at a remote school that requires a one hour hike each way through a dirt road crossing three bridgeless rivers and up to two hours by bus to the city where she lives. Every day she makes this journey for the kids in this rural community of Panama composed mainly of indigenous people of the Ngöbe-Buglé tribe.

While the purpose of my trip was to document frogs, watching the kids paddling to school was an eye-opening experience that will last a lifetime. The pictures are just there to remind me of the things I take for granted and how easy life is on my corner of the world.