Panama Canal

Today we finally got to go through the Panama Canal. This is, as you know, one of the seven wonders of the world, and deservedly so.  The journey begins exactly the same way it did 110 years ago when a rowboat, with actual oars, meets the ship and picks up the line to go to shore. Today everything becomes different than 110 years ago where now we have electric locomotives guiding the ship instead of mules.  There are approximately 21 transits every day in both the old and new locks. It takes a nearly unimaginable 52,000,000 gallons of water to complete a single transit. Let’s see how much that is - try 2.184 to the ninth power.  That’s a lot of water, and so it’s good that it rains a lot in Panama.

At the Miraflores locks, there is a large building that houses an IMAX theater, museum, and a viewing deck. Hundreds of people congregate here to watch the ships go through the lock. And it’s almost like being a star. People on shore are waving to the people on the ships, and of course we are doing our best parade wave back. 

Hundreds of people waving the ships through 

The new locks accommodate ships much larger than those that can transit through the 110-year-old original locks. The largest container ship they can go through the original locks holds about 5,000 containers while the largest ship they can go through the new locks holds an astonishing 17,000 containers. It cost about $1 million for a transit of one of those ships but when you think about it and divide that by 17,000 containers with each container may be holding $1 million worth of merchandise it’s actually nothing. The canal is approximately 50 miles long. The transit begins with three locks on the Atlantic side and then a sail through Gatun Lake and then three more locks leading to the Pacific side and then it’s over. The whole experience takes about 8 to 10 hours. the alternative is to take the boat around the bottom of South America, which takes about two weeks — no contest which route shippers choose. 

I have some very cool videos, but I am unable to upload them at this time. The Internet is extremely slow so I will try and upload them when we have better service.

Electric mule

Entering the locks

I spent most of the day knitting 

Colón Panama

After my excursion from yesterday, I woke up in pain and feeling quite beaten up. I broke my little toe the second day on the ship as I tripped over a chase lounge by the pool.  After yesterday’s adventure, I banged it again so today it was feeling quite sore and swollen. So I decided to take the day off. I went down to the spa pool to just soak in the warm water and relax as I got sunburned yesterday and couldn’t go out to the big pool outside. 

After basking in the delightful water I had the long trek back to my room. The spa is in the bow and our room is in the stern.  I could barely drag myself down the long hallway. 

After a quick shower, and an even quicker lunch, I went to my usual knitting spot on deck seven.  And there I spent the afternoon knitting. When I am hosting and teaching in the mornings, I never get to knit on my own stuff, so this was my chance to really get something done.  

Michael’s new sweater

Michael went on another one of his marathons today. This one was an 8-1/2 hour tour of the Panama Canal’s Miraflores locks and the expansion observation center.  Other than spending an enormous, albeit unavoidable amount of time on the bus, he was very pleased with the excursion.

Things began with a 30 minute bus ride to the new observation platform. This is the brand new Agua Clara visitor center which overlooks one of the new locks. These locks are very different from the original ones that we had seen many times, and so quite interesting. Next was another one hour ride on the bus to the lunch venue. This was a very nice golf course country club where Michael said he enjoyed lunch.

Now, it was only a 30 minute ride to the Miraflores locks, which are on the Pacific side. These locks were on the original canal, and we’ve been here many times. However, things were changed drastically with the construction of an IMAX theater, a multi story building with gift shops, libraries, and so forth, and it was very crowded.  The original locks can only accommodate a container ship with approximately 5,000 containers; the new locks can accommodate container ships with up to 17,000 containers. Quite a difference. He saw a 3-D movie on the construction of the Panama Canal narrated by Morgan Freeman and said it was very interesting. 

The main event was an up close and personal tour of the locks themselves. Viking had purchased the VIP tour from the Panama Canal Authority which allowed the passengers to get right out on the lock platform right next to the locomotives. They watched an entire transit, and had a very good guide, who was knowledgeable, personable  and spoke good English.  The only problem here was now they had a one and a half hour bus ride back to the ship.

The tugs replace the mules in the new locks

Sliding gates in the new locks

Sliding gates while opening

The electric mule

 

Cartagena, Colombia

 Well, it was an absolutely gorgeous day in Cartagena, Columbia. Cartagena is 100 miles north of the equator, and so the weather today was a balmy 87°. We are in what they call the tropical dry season, as opposed to the only other season they have, which is called tropical wet.

As one would expect, Michael went off to a rum and chocolate tasting today, and had a great time. The tour bus took his group into the heart of the old city where they walked around some narrow, picturesque streets, and managed to lose two participants.  Michael has his ways, and managed to find them even when the tour guide couldn’t.

The rum tasting was just great. They tasted a total of five different rums.  The first was paired with sweet peppers, the second with cheese, and the third, fourth and fifth with different kinds of chocolate. Each was better than the last.   They  next went to the rum salesroom where  people had a chance to purchase their favorite. They even gave everybody a free bottle of rum.  

They From here they had a quick tour of the historic fortress, and then a ride back to the ship. Unfortunately, they don’t take you directly back to the ship here. They drop you off at an aviary, where you must walk through and visit all the birds (which were quite spectacular), and then walk about a mile to the ship.

Today I learned a very valuable lesson: read the tour description. Little did I know that the requested beach excursion was going to leave at 7 AM in the morning. That’s the middle of the night for me. So it’s 6 o’clock and I laid there wondering if I should do it or not. Since I’m not a quitter, I decided I had to go and so I went, and I was sorry I went.

The group boarded two small boats and getting onto the boat was the first clue that this was not going to be a good day. We had to take our shoes off and then climb on the gunnel and hang onto a railing and hope that we didn’t fall either out or in. Many of the people are elderly, and most of us have some sort of physical slowing. So off we went and drove by the fortress, which is pictured above, and then proceeded to have a one hour choppy ride out to a group of 27 islands that compromise the Rosario Islands marine preserve national park. As escort, I have a list of stops to be made, and in what order, and the people running the excursion observed none of it.

They took us to a place for snorkeling, and you could not see more than 5 feet down which means it’s not a good place to snorkel. A couple of people got in the water and said no way, so they moved the boat. I like to snorkel, but given a lack of a safe and efficient way of getting back onto the boat, I chose not to go, as most of the others chose not to go as well. Then we stopped by a shack for local treats. This shack had rotten floorboards and getting on and off the boat again was a real challenge. People were not happy and started to complain. When are we going to get to the beach?  After I encouraged the excursion people to leave we went to an another island to have brunch and then go to the beach. Brunch was local foods, lots of fruit and stuff I had no idea what that was. Since I hadn’t eaten anything all day, I ate quickly and headed down to the beach. That was the goal of the whole idea of the outing – – the beach. And what a disappointment it was — it was a really crummy beach and the water was real murky. But being so darn hot, I jumped in the water anyway.

We only had a short time at the beach and then we had to head back to Cartagena. And the water was even bumpier and the skipper had no idea how to drive a boat. Drawing upon my own experience as a boat owner and driver, I told him what to do so we could get a better ride. And to add insult to injury, I was going to wait for the shuttle back to the ship but it was so darn hot in the sun and I didn’t know how long it would take for the shuttle to show up and they said it was not a very far walk, I decided I would walk it. Oh, what a mistake that was. It was a lot farther than a short walk, and in the heat carrying bags and wet towels, I slowly ambled to the ship. And wouldn’t you know it, the shuttle arrived and dropped everyone off at the door while I’m still walking. 🤣🤪😢 In any event, we were beaten up pretty bad and tonight I am absolutely exhausted and can’t wait to get in bed and take some pain pills. 

Tomorrow, Michael has another nine hour long tour and I am going to stay on the boat and float in the pool.    

Cozumel Mexico

Michael must’ve been out of his mind as he set out this morning for a nine hour excursion. He went to the Mayan ruins in Tulum, which is located about 40 miles outside of Playa Del Carmen. He first had to take a ferry from Cozumel, where the ship landed, to Playa Del Carmen, and then a bus trip to the ruins. However, it was well worth it as they were quite striking, and located along a beautiful section of beach.  They spent a couple of hours climbing over the ruins in the heat and the humidity.  Following the ruins, another bus took the group to lunch in the restaurant district of Playa Del Carmen. It was a truly excellent meal with empanadas, steak tacos, and as Michael proclaimed, the best Flan he ever had.  One more bus ride was required to the shopping district where a souvenir was acquired— a weird magnetic skull bottle opener???  This was followed by another hour long ferry ride back to the island of Cozumel, and the Viking Neptune.  He came back, looking like a drowned rat.

As you all know, I hate the heat and I hate the humidity. I had been to the ruins many years ago, so I didn’t feel any need to go. I needed a day off and that’s exactly what I took. With most of the people off the ship I had the swimming pool all to myself. I had my pool noodle and I just floated around letting my body relax in the nice warm water. When it got too hot and humid, I went in and got probably the worst lunch I’ve ever had. I asked for a grilled cheese sandwich at the grill and since all they have is hamburger buns and hotdog buns, I got a cheese sandwich that was mostly bun. It’s not their fault because that’s not what they make. So I guess I’m a little jealous that Michael had such a wonderful lunch. 

Today is Christmas day, and I wish everybody a wonderful day. However, on the ship, you would never know that it was Christmas or any holiday as the schedule goes on. Yes, there are decorations, but everybody’s going about excursions or what have you. After dinner there was a special Christmas show by the entertainment staff singing Christmas standards. 

All Aboard

Well, after almost a year of planning, today is the day that we boarded the Viking Neptune for our world cruise – – the last and final one. We had to pack and repack everything to fit all the bridge supplies plus all the other stuff we bought to last for the 4 1/2 months.  We have never figured out how to pack light.

 

We Ubered over to the cruise terminal and boarding was a snap. I don’t believe we’ve ever boarded as fast as we did. Our bags arrived slowly to the room so we were able to unpack without feeling overwhelmed. All I can say, is thank goodness for the magnets. Magnets have made what little storage we have possible.

We met our room steward, who brought us all the extra hangers, padded the bed, and assisted us in whatever we needed. By dinner time we had everything put away. We were absolutely exhausted. However, we met old friends for dinner and had a nice time renewing acquaintances.  

After dinner, we went to bed, and I think Michael made a new record by going to sleep in probably two seconds. I took a little bit longer, but had trouble sleeping because I was so sore from all the bending and lifting that we did.  It is important that you be organized in such a small space.

Our first sea day happened to be Christmas Eve. If there were no decorations and music, you would never know that it was the Christmas season. Michael and I both went to work today, both of us extremely exhausted and tired, but we got the work done. I have a very enthusiastic group of knitters and Michael got huge crowds for his bridge lessons. We had a duplicate game in the afternoon and I lucked out and got to play with somebody who actually knows how to play bridge and even got some master points.

We have run into so many people and crew that we have met on previous cruises. So it’s almost like old home week.  We were really surprised when a former cruise director that we knew on Seabourn showed up.  She has been with Viking for several years and now works in the office and is the one that brought us over to Viking. All the staff that we have made friends with over the years were glad to see us and gave us big hugs. Everything is so familiar.  

The worst part of a new cruise is where introductions of the enrichment lecturers and hosts are made to the entire passenger compliment. But in this case, not only did we have to do it once, but we had to do it twice. I’m not really shy, but I really do not like getting up in front of an auditorium full of people and stand there, wondering what to do with my hands and how to stand and where to look.  Fortunately, everyone was brief and so the pain only lasted for several minutes.

We are in Cozumel tomorrow and I am electing to stay on board and rest. Michael is escorting on an all day excursion that leaves at 8 AM. Glad he’s doing it and that I am not.

Fort Lauderdale Day 3

We got off to a late start. The weather was partly cloudy and around 70°. We headed out to the Everglades National Park to see alligators. It took us about an hour to get there, and then we had to wait in line for another hour in order to enter the park. We had a quick bite to eat, and then took our walk. Fortunately, the weather was absolutely perfect for walking, but not so great for the wildlife. Because of the recent rain and cool weather, the animals were not abundant.  But we had a pleasant walk and saw a few alligators and some beautiful birds.

After returning home, we spent time re-organizing all of our suitcases with our purchases.  In addition to what we purchased for personal use, we also had two boxes of bridge supplies.  I brought a huge duffel bag from home that we used to stuff with soft clothes in order to make room for all the supplies we purchased, plus the Bridge supplies. I think our bags probably weigh close to 80 pounds now. Thank goodness the ship doesn’t weigh them.

Fort Lauderdale Day 2

 It was a beautiful 74° day today and a bit windy. We spent the day shopping for supplies for a four month cruise. First stop was Costco – – and I have never seen a Costco that crowded. Fortunately, we didn’t have that much stuff to get and we were in and out pretty fast. Then we hit Walmart and Walgreens and managed to find two very nice pool noodles at Leslie’s Pool Supply as there are no pool noodles to be found this time of year except there.

This is the days haul!

If any of you have been here during “season,“ the traffic is unbelievable.  Five lanes of traffic on surface street going in each direction, bumper-to-bumper; traffic lights that take forever to turn, and while driving, it’s almost like an E ticket ride adventure.

Of course we had to eat and the kids have some favorite spots that they like.  We went to a Mexican restaurant for lunch and a really cool dive bar on the beach for dinner and were treated royally.  

It’s official: the final world cruise journey

 Deborah, our wonderful daughter, picked us up at 6:30am and we barely had enough room in the car for us after loading all the suitcases. No one has ever accused the Walker’s of traveling light. But then again, for 4 1/2 months you need all your stuff .

After arriving at the airport, we proceeded to claim our luggage tags at the kiosk. That went just fine. Then we had to go to the bag drop off and that’s where the fun started. Now we are experienced travelers and we know what 50 pounds means. We have our portable luggage scale, and every one of our suitcases weighed just below 50 pounds. So we’re good, right!  Not!  According to Alaska Airlines scales, we were over on every single suitcase by anywhere from 3 to 6 pounds. They wanted to charge $100 per overweight bag. So the prudent thing to do was to make three of the bags under 50 pounds and load the shit out of the other bag, and that’s exactly what we did. It is fun opening all your suitcases up in public and switching stuff all around, but we got it all done

And it’s off to security.  Portland Airport is under construction and has been for quite a while and in order to get to the gate where Alaska is we had to do a humongous detour. Going through security for most people is pretty straightforward, but not for yours truly. I cannot go through any of the magnetic machines because of my spinal stimulator so I have to wait and get a full body pat down each and every time. At least the TSA agent was pleasant. 

The worst part is now over. We had a quick breakfast and boarded the plane.  We had a totally uneventful flight and arrived about 20 minutes late. It’s always gratifying to see that your luggage made it on the plane, all of it. We had a porter take us out to the area where Uber picks passengers up and called to order an Uber. After waiting for half an hour or so the driver contacted us and said for us to come upstairs to be picked up. We told him no, not with four huge suitcases, two roll-a-boards, and two large carry-ons. So without telling us, he canceled.  So we have to start all over again and order another Uber.  All in all, it took close to an hour to get an Uber. Isn’t traveling fun?

Here is our ship.  All Viking ocean ships are the same.  There will be no learning curve on where things are as we have sailed on two previous world cruises with Viking.  Time to start packing. I hate this part.