Day 13

Friday, Oct. 7

I woke up about 6:00 this morning, got up and had my shower, and then went out on the deck to watch us enter the port of Cartegena, Columbia.  On our side of the ship, it didn’t look very spectacular until we were in fairly close.  Then we began to see some container cranes and what looked like some heavy industry.  The sky was fairly overcast, but I think it was from the moisture and humidity.  Then, we took a sharp left turn, and the city started coming into view from our side.  The skyline was quite spectacular, very much like Vancouver, except most of the high rises were white.

We docked at a pier, and watching that was very impressive.  The ship was heading straight in, and then they reversed and backed in.  I guess this is a lesson in how one parallel parks a 1000 foot long ship.  Once the gangways were in place, people started getting off the ship.  There were many tour buses lined up on the pier.  We could see our tour number among them, so I was a bit concerned that they had changed the time of our tour.  However, not to worry, we still didn’t get have to meet until 9:30 for a 10:00 tour.

I had again ordered room service and it showed up right on time at 7:30.  Unfortunately, I forgot to order the salt and pepper, so the egg “McMuffins” weren’t the best, but it did save us from having to go up to the buffet for breakfast.

Our tour was of the city, the old fort, the old city, and some artisan shopping.  We boarded the bus and met our tour guide, Niba, and our driver, Jose Jose.  Niba tried to speak to us in Spanish, but realized that none of us understood her, so she changed over to English.  She said she didn’t speak it well, but she was great – had a Spanish accent, but spoke very clear English.  She gave us lots of pointers and pointed out many sites of interest, giving us a great deal of the history of this large city (1.2 million).  Again, we took tons of pictures so there are lots to show when we get home.

It was very hot and humid, and everywhere we went, we were quite uncomfortable.  We did stop a couple times and the street vendors were terrible.  They were very pushy, and “in your face”.  We had to continually tell them “no thanks”.

This felt like the hottest day we had seen, but the temperature wasn’t as high as we have had.  It was 83 F, but with the humidity, it seemed quite a bit hotter.  By the time we returned to the ship, it was a blessing and we were happy to get into the air conditioning of our stateroom.

By 1:50, we cast off and headed back out to sea.  Again, the harbour provided spectacular views, and this time we were on the right side of the ship to take it all in.  We were able to get many more photos while leaving.  I hope they do justice to the place, which was quite beautiful.  However, it was the first place they warned us about drugs and the penalties for buying and/or bringing them on board.

Anyhow, we were off on our way to Aruba for tomorrow afternoon.  About an hour and a half after leaving Cartegena, we could see a squall off in the distance.  There was an amazing water spout coming down out of the clouds.  I noticed it after I had felt the ship turn, and now I wonder if we turned to ensure we didn’t go into it.  The spout was very large, clearly coming down from the clouds and it looked like it was hitting the water.  The funnel cloud was clearly defined, but I had taken the camera into the stateroom quite a bit earlier and due to the temperature difference inside and out, it fogs up for a long time with the condensation that forms on the lens.  To make a long story short, I didn’t get any photos, but if I had, and they had turned out, they would have been a spectacular sight.

About 15 minutes of the waterspout, and then it broke up.  At this time, we were about even with it.  We could see a rain squall coming, and when it hit, it was amazing.  Even from our level (deck 12), we could hear the rain hitting the ocean.  It just poured!!  The temperature went down a bit, but nothing too big.  Then it was almost dark and time for supper so off we went.

There was an announcement asking for some medical help.  Someone was in big trouble and they needed anyone with O type blood who had their medical card and who has donated blood recently and who would volunteer to donate to come to the main desk.  I have type O blood, but don’t have a record card showing it, and haven’t donated in a very long time, so I didn’t go.  I do feel somewhat guilty, but there isn’t much I can do about it.

After supper, we went to the theatre to watch a comedian.  He began about 8:20 and went until about 9:30.  He was pretty funny, and we did a lot of laughing.  They once again asked for blood donors.  I should go down and see if they still need it, but I likely won’t.

Day 12

Thursday, Oct. 6

What a great day through the canal.  We were up early, and went under the Bridge of the Americas at about 5:30.  Then we travelled north until we reached the Miraflores Locks where we entered the first lock at about 7:00 am.  This was really interesting.  We were in the left channel, and with our staterooms on the starboard (right) side of the ship, we could watch the operations of the large ship that was just ahead of us.

The Miraflores Locks raise the ship in two steps, about 54 feet in all, and then a short sail on Miraflores Lake to get to the third lock, Pedro Miguel Lock.  Here we were raised the final step to get to 85 feet above sea level.  After that we continued on and went under the Centennial Bridge, and then on into the Culebra Cut.  Ships can only go through this area one at a time due to the narrow channel.  It is here that the major work was done, and this area requires constant dredging as the land continues to slip down into the canal.

Once through the cut, we were on Gatun Lake, which is a man-made lake, at one time the largest in the world.  It is where the water for the locks comes from, and is replenished by all the rainfall.  Arthur, our guide from yesterday, said that Panama gets 26 feet of rainfall each year, so that is lots of water constantly being added to the lake.  The unfortunate thing is that they fill the locks with fresh water, and then dump it into the sea when they empty the locks.

They are building new sets of locks at both ends of the canal so they can take the bigger ships in use today.  These locks will recycle most of their water so that they won’t use much more than today.  These locks are to open in 2014 which will be the 100^th anniversary of the Panama Canal.

It was about a 3 hour sail through Gatun Lake, and then we came to the final set of locks at Colon on the Caribbean Sea.  The Gatun Locks have all three steps together, and we were lowered the 85 feet to sea level in a relatively short period of time.  From there, it was off to Columbia where we were to reach Cartegena by morning.

Very hot again, and there was a huge thunderstorm to the east as we reached Colon, but we didn’t get any rain.  It remains very humid, and it is almost uncomfortable unless we are inside our air conditioned cabin.

Day 11

Wednesday, Oct. 5

We were up just after 5:00. Outside, we were still moving so hadn’t arrived yet.  As the ship turned, large skyscrapers started to come into sight.  What a surprise.  The more it turned, the more we saw.  This was certainly not what we expected.

We had our coffee and some McMuffin type things on our deck, watching what was going on as the pilot came aboard, and we moved to our sight to anchor.  As the tenders were being put out, we headed down to the gathering spot for going on our tour.  As it turned out, we didn’t get off the boat until about 8:00, so it wasn’t nearly as early as we were expecting.

Dawn finally got to ride on a tender.  It was crowded, smelly, and hot (also fairly wavy, but that is to be expected in a small boat.  This part of the trip was no more than 10 minutes, and then we were at the port – a marina with some very fancy and large yachts.  They were really interesting and we would have liked to have been able to tour some of them.

We boarded our tour bus and met our guide, Arthur.  We have now lucked out twice in a row, having great tour guides to take us around their areas.  This one was to tour through the Miraflores Locks, and then a couple of the old American military bases, of which there are 17 in Panama.  We weren’t supposed to go to Panama City as part of this tour, but he took us there for a quick look.  Interestingly, the road we were on was like a dividing line between the American area and Panama.  The American area was very rich, nice apartments, well-kept yards, etc.  Across the highway was poor, slums, difficult places to look at and imagine what the living was like inside.

They took us to where all the high rises were, many being built at this time.  One of the fancy ones was being built by Donald Trump.  Many of them are built and are being built on reclaimed land.  Arthur told us that some of the land wasn’t there before and they have extended things out into the bay on the Pacific Ocean.

After that, we moved on to our tour of the Miraflores Locks.  These ones are 2 of the 3 steps that raise ships 54 feet above sea level.  The third lock is about 5 miles away, and raises the ships another 29 feet in order to get over the isthmus of Panama.  As we arrived at the locks, another Princess ship was going through.  Dawn thinks it is the one we could have been off if we wanted to take the 19 day cruise out of Vancouver.  We went inside and up to the 4^th floor of the area to watch a couple ships move through the locks.  They are generally very huge, and it is amazing to see them move in, the gates close, the water pour in, and then the gates open for them to move on.  They are guided by four “mule” engines, two at each end that maintain the ship’s position in the lock so that they don’t hit the sides.  The ships use their own power to move ahead to the next area.

We watched one ship come in and stop, another fairly large tug boat come in behind him, the gates close and the water come in.  It took about 15 – 20 minutes to fill up the lock.  One can see the ships getting taller by the minute.  No sooner is one ship in, than another is lining up to come in after it is finished.  There are 2 rows of locks, and all the ships go one way for part of the day, and the other way for the other part of the day.

After watching that, we went downstairs to watch a short video about how the canals work. It was very interesting, and was over before we wanted it to be.  There was also a tour of the museum, but we decided not to go in.

We re-boarded our bus and Arthur took us on another special extra.  He took us to the third lock so we could drive across the bridge that spanned the shores.  We could see where they were building the additional locks that are bigger and wider than the current ones, so they can take the bigger ships that currently cannot go through the canal.  These locks are scheduled to be completed in 2014, which will also be the 100^th anniversary of the opening of the Panama Canal.

After that, it was on to tour a couple old military bases – one and army base and the other an air force base.  The quarters where the offices lived were quite something so see.  They are now sold and re-sold by people trying to make a lot of money.  Arthur talked about the sales progression after the Americans left.  A place would sell for $40 thousand, and then be flipped for $80 thousand.  Now, he says, they couldn’t be purchased for less than $200-$300 thousand.

Then it was back to the ship.  We spent a bit of time at the duty free shops, but they were very busy so we didn’t spend a lot of time.  Besides, it was hot and humid and we wanted to get back to our cabin.  We sat up top on the way back, which allowed us to see the things around.  However, the tenders are so full of people it is difficult to move around.  We were able to get some photos of the ships in the port, and of the city.

Then about 6:00, we lifted anchor and moved 11 miles around the bay into the area for ships lined up to enter the canal.  Anchor was dropped again, and this is where we will spend the night.  A pilot should board the ship at about 4:00 am, and once things are ready, we will start off on our trip through the canal, which should last 8 – 10 hours.

Day 10

Tuesday, Oct. 4

Well, another lazy and rainy day.  It rained much of the day and was much cooler than it has been.  Our deck was under cover so we could sit outside most of the day and be quite comfortable.  Part way through the day we passed a ship that was heading the same direction as us.  It was really burning black smoke, and looked to be not moving at all.  We suspect that it was having engine trouble of some sort, and it appeared to be pumping water out of its anchor hole at the bow.  There wasn’t much of a breeze blowing, and the smoke was pretty much going straight up.

After that, there wasn’t much to see, and things were pretty quiet.  Mom made reservations in the restaurant, so we went down to eat at 5:30.  It was very nice and we didn’t gorge ourselves like we feel we have been doing for most suppers.

After that, it was back to the room to get ready for bed.  We were travelling to Panama and would arrive in Fuerte Amador about 5:30.  We were touring tomorrow and had to be ready to get off the ship by 7:45.

Day 9

Monday, Oct. 3

Arrived in Puntarenas at about 6:00 am.  We were scheduled to get up at that time because we were heading off on an excursion, but Dawn was up early (about 5:15) and got some photos while our ship was manoeuvring around the bay before docking at the pier.  As it was we were finally docked about 7:00 and passengers started getting off at about 7:45.  We had to meet in a lounge at 8:30 for our tour, so we went down about 8:10.

We finally got on the bus at about 8:45 and left for the tour.  Drove for about 1 ½ hours to where the ECO river tour was to take place.  It was on a river in a mangrove swamp.  The boat was a catamaran, with double seats and twin 115 horse Suzuki outboards.  There was quite a current in the river and we went downstream for a long ways until we reached where this river and a couple others met the Pacific.

Along the way, we saw lots of bird life, some insects, and some crocodiles.  With the long lens on my camera, I was able to get some pretty good shots of most of them, although not great shots because the boat was moving around a lot and with that lens, stillness is important.

All in all, we were on the river for about 2 hours.  Then we were given some light refreshments (fruit and drinks) before boarding the bus to return to the ship.  Our tour guide was Jose, and he was great.  Very personable and cheerful.  He had lots of personality, and a great sense of humour.  He clearly enjoyed his job and his country.  I asked him to stop at a school we had passed so we did.  It was a small, 1-room school.  The kids all came out to wave and “show off” for us while we took pictures.  School is mandatory for 11 years in Costa Rica and this was an elementary school.

After returning to the ship, we walked into the town to view some of the vendors who were lined along the beach.  Lots of the same thing for various prices.  We bought a few things, but nothing too major.

By then, we were tired and returned to the ship.  We spend the next hour on our balcony watching people return and the crew get things ready for cast off.  Next it’s on to Fuente Amador in Panama.  We will be at sea again tomorrow and arrive for our next excursion on Oct. 5.

Day 8

Sunday, Oct. 2

Another very lazy day.  Started with coffee delivered to our room, and then we went for breakfast.  We sat outside on the deck to eat.  It wasn’t overly hot, nor too humid, but there was a bit or rain while we were eating.  After that, we sat around and just talked for about an hour.  Stopped in at the Library so I could pick up another book before it closed for the morning, and then we returned to our room.

I sat out on the deck to read for much of the day, and Dawn sat inside, watching the football game, reading, and playing solitaire.  As I said, another lazy day.

Saw a few turtles today, along with what I think were a bunch of porpoises jumping and playing about 40 metres off the side of the ship.  From our deck, we can see the turtles we sail by fairly easily.  Hard to tell how big they are because we are so high up, but they appear to be about dinner plate size.  They just kind of float along and get pushed around by the wash from the ship.

The GPS shows us as travelling about 41 km per hour which is faster than he has gone up to today.  The water has been very calm so that is likely why he can go this fast.  At one point, it was so calm that the water looked like it does on Shuswap during a calm day.

Day 7

Saturday, Oct. 1

Got up about 7:00.  The sky was pretty clear, the water was fairly calm, and one wouldn’t know that there had been a thunderstorm.

When we finally went for breakfast (about 10:00), we sat at the front of the dining room, looking out over the bow.  As short ways in front of us there were some pretty black clouds so we thought we might be another thunderstorm.  It looked like there was a waterspout trying to work its way down from the clouds – there was definitely a black funnel reaching down from the dark clouds above.  It did start to rain (quite hard for a while) but then the funnel disappeared before we saw anything touch the water.  Lots of people around where we were sitting were watching this.

Once again, it was a fairly uneventful day.  It was hot and humid, relatively calm for much of the day, and pretty relaxed.  I finished my last book about 2:00, so we went to the library to look for another.  Found one I was interested in and after finding the Librarian, I signed it out.  Spent a fair amount of time in the stateroom reading this afternoon.

Just before we went to dinner, the sea started to become a little rougher.  The ship was rocking and rolling a bit, and every once in a while it was like we had run into something a little harder and it would shudder and shake, as well.

Had another nice dinner – veal roast was one of the dishes.  There is certainly lots of selection in the buffet.

After dinner, Dawn and I went to the theatre to watch the illusionist.  We got there about 7:30 for a show that starts at 8:15.  The place was already ¼ full.  By the time the show began, the place was full.  There must have been 400 people in there.  He was great – the illusions were really good.  He was from Brooklyn and his assistant from Victoria.  Of course he had a DVD for sale after the show that explained all the illusions and the magic behind them.  We didn’t buy one.

Dawn wasn’t feeling well, so we went back to the stateroom.  Usually we go outside to walk down to the next elevator, but not tonight.  They had closed off exit to the outside due to the wind.  When back at our room, I opened our balcony door, and it was hot and rough, so I stayed inside.  We watched TV and then went to sleep.