Just before lunch, we were letting the unseen hands of the breeze push our hammocks, like a gentle parent giving a child her first ride on the swing. It was our second day in San Blas, the day we were really getting into the groove of island life. I was letting myself drift into that wonderful half-in/half-out dreamlike state, so it took a few moments to process the distant sound of an engine and to recognize that it was out of place.

Gradually the sound came closer and closer, until we ... (more)