If our entire two weeks consisted only of transiting the Panama Canal, it would have been fascinating and worth it. As is, we saw many other sights.
“Footnote”: Luanne chipped a bone in her foot 6 weeks prior to our departure. Originally she was told it would take about 6 weeks to heal, but a subsequent x-ray showed it had not and that really 8-12 weeks was normal healing. She wore a walking boot for the first 5 days or so of our trip and after that was able to get around and do everything very comfortably in walking shoes.
Our ship, the Celebrity Century, was on the smaller size (1800 passengers) for a cruise ship and our upscale suite reflected this. Spacious but not huge with a very nice aft-facing veranda that afforded us 200° views around the horizon. Except for one morning when it rained, we ate breakfast out there every morning. The service onboard was excellent and all our food allergies were comfortably met. The food in general was quite good, better than expected.
We set sail from San Diego heading to Cabo San Lucas, Mexico. The weather and the seas were calm for most of the trip; a few days of 3-5 meter swells and high winds. Of the 16 days, 7 were at sea. In Cabo and Puerto Vallarta (our second stop) we took excursions and saw most of the city and a lot of the surrounding areas. Both places seem to be overwhelmed with condos, hotels and timeshares, yet everywhere seemed unoccupied. Not too many people other than tourists in the immediate vicinities.
Guatemala, our third stop, was a place that both of our children and their spouses have spent time, so we were interested to share what we could of their experiences. Clearly our short time was nowhere near enough, but again we rode for a couple hours through the countryside on our way to Lake Atitlán, a beautiful lake surrounded by three volcanoes. The day we were there was a rare clear one that afforded simultaneous views of all three of the peaks. Honestly though, if you have seen Lake Tahoe you have seen beautiful mountain lakes.
On to Costa Rica. This was a much anticipated stop. We planned to go horseback riding, zip lining and river boat sailing; and we did, but it was not quite the jungle experience that I thought we would have. It was very beautiful, a lot of fun but again, how much of any place can you see and experience in such a short time. No regrets mind you, since cruising provided a lot of other benefits that still made it all well worth it.
A couple more days at sea (Luanne was taking the seasick prevention pills; so far I’m OK) and then we begin the passage through the canal. 100 years old and everything still works as well today as it did the first day. Most of the parts are the original ones, too. The concept and design are mind-boggling and the ease with which it all happens only makes it more amazing and belies the difficulties that existed in the Canal’s creation. The transit takes about 8 hours and we could clearly see it all from our veranda. This was probably the hottest weather we had the whole trip—in the 90’s and being outside was like being in an outdoor sauna.
We stopped in Colón, Panama once we were through and we toured this city as well. We also went to the Gatun Locks and saw a cargo ship going through. To see it from that perspective only emphasizes more how phenomenal the process is. We also took a boat tour of the backwaters of Lake Gatun and visited a village of one of the half dozen indigenous people. Great basket weavers and wood carvers.
On to Cartagéna, Colombia. The Atlantic even got too choppy for me and I used the pills, which were effective. Mostly though, the bouncing in bed at night kept waking me every couple of hours. Anyhow, Cartagéna has the look and feel of a Latin American city, old and new everywhere. We saw a very interesting fortress, the old city, the Inquisition Museum (if you didn’t know, you might still not know even after seeing the museum) and of course stores for emerald jewelry.
We docked finally in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida and a good time was had by all! Great vegan restaurant there—Green Bar & Kitchen—and fun tours of the inter-coastal waterways by water taxi.