International Mankini Challenge

The Internet is a great source of information, but when you ask it how many official countries there are in the world you get some very different answers. With this in mind, when I was told by my captain on the sail from Colombia to Panama that the San Blas Islands is in fact a sovereign state and not officially part of Panama, my shipmates were only to keen to see the Mankini broken out. How could I disappoint and miss the chance to add another ´country´to the list?

San Blas is a collection of 365 desert islands populated by the Kuna tribe and coconut trees. Usually one family per island is resident and it´s their job to look after the island, trading fish and coconuts with anyone in the vicinity. Despite the vast number of islands in the archipelago, they more or less all look the same however – paradise! So without an `iconic location´ to get the shot at, I decided to get the picture at the most unique island I could.

Measuring 10 metres by 30 metres with five coconut trees and no inhabitants, I managed to avoid the normal challenges of security and unwanted public attention. With a temperature of 30C it was also one of the most climatically friendly to the Mankini shot. However being an 8 hour sail from Panama and then a 15 minute row in shallow waters surrounded by dangerous reef, it was by no means a walk in the park!

See the photos here