Passage to Peru

Monday 3rd
Brilliant morning, surprised to see so many skyscrapers on the horizon.  We watched with interest the process of tying up the ship.  In Cobh it took 3 men to lift the rope, but in Cartagena just 1 man (oh, but 2 others to watch!). It was clear that it was going to be a hot day, which it was - mid 30s by midday.

Once again we had a ship's tour, which in hindsight was probably a mistake.  In one aspect, we didn't leave until 9.00, when we were all tied up at 7.00 and of course later in the day the traffic was chaotic. Anyway we went to the old city and then had a walking tour through the city.  The map & the guided tour made it seem that we'd been a long way, whereas we had actually gone around in a couple of small circles☺☺☺

After the tour part we had an hour and a half to fill in and there is nothing much else to see in the old city and there was no shopping apart from hundreds of street vendors.  We wanted a coffee, but no one could tell us where to find a cafe. 

Finally found an excellent cafe.... but didn't accept $US!  OK, put it on the plastic.  Rejected 3 times (turned out to be a communication problem).  Just on giving up when Danny, Vivian's bridge partner says that his private guide will pay with her local card and I can reimburse her.  Well her card was rejected, other cards were rejected, the queue got longer and longer.  Eventually the guide's card worked and I gave her $10. The coffee and cakes were delicious, so a happy ending after all.  Almost, 5 minutes later the power went out!!!

Actually pleased to get back to the air conditioned bus and back to the ship just after 12.30.  Shared a pizza again and back in the cabin for sail away just on 2.00.  A very short visit, but well worthwhile. There is a lot of the new CBD area etc we didn't visit and it was a pity in some way to only have time for the historic part.  Certainly the city was not what we'd envisaged.  We are now out of the harbour and once again heading west at full speed to reach our rendezvous outside the Panama Canal tomorrow morning (already it seems we are going to be about an hour behind schedule). 

Tuesday 4th
We knew that we'd be later than our 5.00am scheduled arrival at Panama Canal, however the noise outside just before 6.00 got us out of bed.  We were still some way away from the entrance and it was after 7.00 when the tugs came out and we started our approach.  The NZ flags are attached to the balcony, although somewhat overshadowed by the large Aussie flag of Lynne & Harold next door. 

The camera team had got ashore as we entered the first lock - anything for a photo!  Most intrigued at the process of aligning the ship and hooking it up to the Mules (certainly not the 4 legged variety, but high powered locomotives) which guide us through the 3 locks to raise us up 26 metres.  The power of the water and the speed at which we were raised was incredible - certainly quicker than the much smaller river boat ones on the Danube etc. After going through the first lock we went down for breakfast on deck 6 and it was an excellent move as we watched the side of the successive locks and appreciated the lateral movement as we carried on through to Lake Gatun (which covers the submerged town of the same name).  The weather is hot and humid but a breeze has sprung up. 

Most interesting landscape as we went on, particularly the upper reaches of Lake Gatun and following the old Chagres River (which Wyn & I have decided to record as the Amazon!). The river is pretty narrow for oceangoing vessels and all the jungle/trees on the side made it look even more exotic.  The funny thing was however than as we went through the only totally man-made part of the canal - the Culebra Cut, with all this impenetrable jungle, you could see the tops to the skyscrapers of Panama City in the distance! 

We had another couple of sets of locks to go through before eventually exiting the last lock about 5.00. Once again, the camera crew were in for anything for a photo opportunity - helicopter flypast, high-speed boat and back on the lock side.  We continued sailing past Panama city, which looks impressive, with lots and lots of high rise buildings and very exotic looking marina.

We have fully exited and are out in the Pacific, heading down to Ecuador on Thursday.  Just before sunset I was looking eastwards and noticed a whale jumping out of the water.  It was quite a distance away and initially looked like the sail on a small yatch, but the sighting was confirmed by other passengers. Tomorrow is thankfully yet another sea day, so we can get back to "normal".

Wednesday 5th
Another lovely morning with temperature around 30.  Breakfast, walk, coffee, talk, lunch, bridge (blog), afternoon tea (green), rest, dinner, sleep.  Just like at home!!!!!!  They had the " equator crossing " ceremony, which we did not bother with.  Apparently we didn't miss anything.  The Captain later announced however that we'd actually cross the equator early tomorrow morning, however our certificates were delivered after dinner anyway.

Thursday 6th
OK we are officially back in the southern hemisphere, so it must be winter!  Somewhat surprised at the size of Manta, Ecuador when we were woken about 5.30.  We'd been told that it was a major fishing port but were not expecting the number and size of tuna fishing boats.  Some go to sea for 3 months, others just 12 days as they don't have refrigeration and the very small ones are just overnight. Manta is second only to Thailand in processing tuna, and boats come from all around the world - the ones unloading next to us were from Spain. The big boats cost about €40m and are state of the art, including chase boat, observation tower and a helicopter in many cases.  

We had breakfast in our cabin and were off on our half day tour at 8.00. The first part was the Archeological Museum, which frankly was a waste of time as there was nothing there, just the guide talking to some murals on the walls.  It was very stuffy.

Then a 10k drive to Montecristi where the famous Panama Hats are made.  OK, we bought three at as total cost of $80, so we'll see how they last!!  They come crushed in balsa wood boxes, which probably won't make it through biosecurity.   It is certainly a very labour intensive industry as everything is done by hand.  Some of the *really good* ones sell in the $1,000s. After some free time we were back at the ship and later had yet another pizza with Maureen & Wyn. As a treat, and for the first time, we then went upstairs and had a snow freeze ice cream.  Could be habit forming.

Ecuador looks very poor, although they do have lots of natural resources - up in the jungle/mountains.  Certainly around Manta the ground is barren, lots of shacks although it seems that there has been a lot of land clearance with potential for industrial development. The Government seems to be doing as good job with rehousing and development.  The weather was pleasant at 28-30 degrees and a little overcast. Being just below the equator they get very little rain. Interesting to see, but don't see ourselves coming back again.

Unfortunately the "ship cold" is still going around,  but seems to mainly be the newer passengers, as those of us who have already had it hopefully have built up a resistance. Maureen has been unwell for a few days and even our Cruise Director who got on at Southampton was off sick.  We are being very careful, given we only have 3 days until we get off for Machu Picchu.  The Cruise Critic group of about 26 got off today as they have a 5 day excursion, whereas the Princess ones are just 3.  It will be interesting to compare notes when we are all back onboard.  Vivian's bridge partner, Danny has gone with the CCs so I have no doubts about a full report.

Friday 7th
Sea day.  What else can I say?  Vivian's bridge was at 10.00, so did my walk alone. We have just sailed through a fleet of yachts, not sure where to or from but they were heading east. At the same time a whale was spouting just 100 odd metres off the port side. This is apparently the area where whales are migrating. The weather is perfect and funnily it feels like home - just a few thousand miles away to the west. Having said that though, the temperature has dropped a bit down to 22 - which would be hot at home but feels decidedly cool here. Just before dusk we saw well over 200 fishing boats off the port side.  I have never seen such a fleet in such a relatively small area.  Obviously it is a great fishing spot!

Tonight our table decided to skip the MDR and have a pizza night instead. It was a great idea and the food was delicious, a change from the usual - most of us had the lasagne - yum. We had a hilarious night, with some great stories being told and it turned out to be a late night too.  However it is another sea day tomorrow, so no worries.

Saturday 8th
Last sea day as we head off to Machu Picchu first thing tomorrow.  The weather is overcast and a lot cooler, but pleasant enough to sit on deck (there are plenty of chairs today). We've had a pretty easy day, checked and double checked our little overnight bags to make certain we have everything we need.  I've gone back to my chocolate on chocolate on chocolate desert to build up my resistance to altitude sickness - that's my excuse! 

There have been numerous whale sightings, but you really have to be focused on looking for them, rather than random observations.  Just before lunch we sailed through a large pod of several hundred dolphin, putting on a magnificent display - many of them were just outside the bow wave and others were jumping fully out of the water.

As I have noted previously, the shop cold has been/is doing the rounds, but other than the odd accident, we've been a pretty healthy ship and I hope that this continues.  I mention this as there has been a distinct sewage smell, which is getting worse - today the smell on the aft port side of the Promenade deck was almost unbearable. Let's hope they have it (whatever it is) fixed before we leave Peru, as it is a long way until the next port.

The next post will be as we sail further into the Pacific on our way to Easter Island, in the meantime, some rest ahead of our 7.30 departure for Lima Airport.