Clashing Prints / Casco Viejo

I finally wandered out of the apartment, which isn't to say that my cheeks aren't puffy anymore; it's more like cabin fever really, really gets to me. The photos above are of a Kuna Indian in Casco Viejo - the historical, Unesco-protected, area of Panama City, Panama.

I love the Kuna. I admire their courageous and loud colors, because while I practically wear a uniform of minimalist black and white, these women have no problem clashing prints and executing it with grace. My favorite thing about the Kuna style, however, is their beaded arm and leg bracelets. The women wear one, long, wrapped bracelet on each wrist and then wrap their legs up to the knee in the same beaded style. Apparently, they wear the beaded leg bracelets for nine months straight because the only way to remove them is to cut them off. I loved the bright beads so much that I asked them to wrap my left arm up to my elbow in an orange, green, black, red, and gold bracelet. Now to see if I can manage to stick with it for nine months...