Panama Canal Cruise, Day 9, Monday, Grand Cayman, October 28, 2013

We got into Grand Cayman around sunrise. Once again we were blessed with a beautiful day.

No one signed up for any excursions here, opting instead to just walk around town. We had a leisurely breakfast in the dining room in order to let the lines to board the tenders clear. Like the Panama Canal excursions, passengers going ashore must also be tendered here because there is no docking area.

Tendering passengers

When Babs and I were done wandering around, we returned to the ship for a late lunch.  John, Sharron, Nino, Michelle, Frank and Kitty decided to have lunch in town and enjoyed $51 per couple lunch tabs for hamburger.

 

 

After everyone returned, we finished up our Canasta tournament we started at the beginning of the cruise. I'm not exactly sure who the grand winners were.

 



Dinner that night was one of the formal nights so we all had to dress in our finest. It was lobster night and I had Beef Wellington which was perfectly cooked.



Babs and I

Beef Wellington

Lobster tail and Prawns

Frank and Kitty

John and Sharron

Nino and Michelle

Bib for a sloppy eater

 Leaving Grand Cayman we were treated to this great sunset.

Tomorrow we are at sea all day, and will be in FT. Lauderdale Wednesday morning. It was a great trip. Thanks to my cousins for making this a special trip!

Babs Says: White sand and turquoise water = beautiful.

Panama Canal Cruise, Day 7, Saturday, Limon, Costa Rica, October 26, 2013

We arrived at Limon, Costa Rica before dawn. The sky was blue with white puffy clouds and the temperature around 75 degrees.

View from our balcony

Once again I was the slacker and stayed onboard the ship while everyone else went on an excursion. I would have joined Babs on the zip line but, like the horse back excursion, I was beyond the weight restrictions. I enjoyed the pool and forgetting our proximity to the equator, got a nice sunburn in less than two hours.

Babs opted for a zip line adventure that sent her scooting through the jungle canopy high above the ground. The zip line course was a series of long rides and lasted over two hours. She had a blast but was not able to take photos of her experience. When she finally returned to the ship she was beaming and looked like a kid in a candy store.

Nino, Michelle, John, and Sharon enjoyed a "Banana Train" ride to a banana plantation and took these photos of local scenery and the banana plantation.

Old and new collide

Bananas in the bag

Bananas as far as you could see

Frank and Kitty went to a Sloth Rescue Preserve and shared these photos.

Ms. Kitty looking tropical

Sloth

Isn't he lovely

Tonight and tomorrow we will be at sea on our way to Grand Cayman. Another opportunity to eat, and eat. I thought that I would never say it but I'm actually tired of eating.

Babs Says: Wee, zipping through the rain forest is awesome.

Panama Canal Cruise, Day 6, Friday, Panama Canal, October 25, 2013

Leaving Cartagena we cruised toward the Panama Canal where we arrived at around 8:50 a.m. We took a pilot to take us through the canal and eventually entered the locks. There are three locks that you traverse from the Caribbean sea to Gatun Lake.

Once through the locks, we anchored to tender those persons taking excursions to the port and await our clearance to reenter the canal locks to proceed to the port of Colon.

 Four diesel/ electric locomotives called mules are attached to the bow of the ship and two to the stern. They operate on cog rail track and pull the ship .  There is less than three feet clearance on each side of the ship.

You can see the tow lines from the mules to the ship.

There is less than 2 ft. of clearance on either side of the container ship.

 

Entering the lock.

 

It takes 40 minutes to an hour to move through each lock. Once you’ve seen the ship move through the first lock, monitoring your progress is much akon to watching grass grow. 

Panamanians should kiss President Carters butt in the middle of rush hour. The cost to use the canal is in proportion to the size of the ship. According to The Shipping Law Blog ships pay: Yachts and Other Small Vessels: USD 1,300 to USD 2,500; Loaded Containerships: USD 50,000 to USD 250,000; Cruise Ships: USD 80,000 to USD 300,000. That probably explains why Panama City is a booming modern metropolis.

Panama City

 Only Nino & Michelle took an excursion which was a train trip which highlighted the locks. (Nino's photos)

 

Comfortable coach car

 

 

 

 

Rural homes

 

View from the observation platform.

From the locks we sailed to Colon, Panama where we will pick up the folks who went on excursions and set sail for Limon, Costa Rica where we will arrive in the morning.

Babs Says: Do the Panamanians know how thankful they should be to Jimmy Carter?

Panama Canal Cruise, Day 4, Aruba, October 23, 2013

We docked in Aruba around 7:30 a.m. Wednesday morning. 

Aruba from the ship

Down town Aruba

After eating a good breakfast, we all went our separate ways to enjoy our chosen excursions. My cousin Nino and his wife Michele opted to explore the town on foot and do some shopping.

Michelle in downtown

Cousin Nino chilling out

Babs and my cousin John's wife chose horseback riding. Babs said that she had a blast because it wasn't a typical trail ride. The horses trotted, cantered and were actually under the riders control. She was surprised that the terrain is much like the American west with desert plants and cacti. The highlight of the ride was riding on the beach.

Babs and Sharron

Desert meets the ocean in Aruba

My cousins John, Frank and his wife Kitty, and I went on a catamaran snorkeling cruise. The catamaran was around 40' long and at least half as wide. There were over 30 of us onboard the sail and diesel powered boat. The trip to the reefs where we would snorkel was about a 45 minute ride. The water was calm and the weather a perfect 78 degrees. The group snorkeled in two spots, the first on a reef and the second over a 400 foot long wreck. I did the first one but not the one over the wreck because the current was a bit strong for me. The water here is crystal clear. There were colorful fish everywhere. Thankfully both Frank and John had waterproof cameras and got great shots.

Whale Ho!

Cousin John

Marine life (photos courtesy of John & Frank)

As it was, my cousins shadowed me the entire time and kept me from drowning! So, I stayed aboard and consumed some rum punch went almost everyone snorkeled over the wreck. It turned out that it was a good plan because my cousins had to help several persons with a life ring.

Frank holding onto wreck 15' from surface

All these folks snorkeling over the wreck

Cousin Frank

Cousin John

John, Frank & Kitty enjoy rum punch

 On the ride back to our ship enjoyed many rum punch drinks. We passed by several resort hotels with beautiful beaches. I would definitely consider returning here again. Finally we reached our ship and walk back to the boat. I'm sure that it wasn't the rum punch that caused me to forget my bag with my towel, sun glasses, and camera on the boat!

Babs Says: Poor Charo (my horse) who had to carry all that weight over such rough terrain.