February 3
The ship was fairly
steady when we got up about 7:30 a.m. The sky was cloudy about 25 C and a
little wind. The swimming pools were filled and people already in them at 8
this morning. For the morning we will be cruising along the north coast of Cuba
before turning north to Florida. We went for a walk on decks 12 & 14 and
logged about 31/4
km then showered, changed and went to the dining room for breakfast. We walked
with Brendene and Brian to the Celebrity Theater to hear Mike McPhetters’ last
presentation at 10 about a shootout where he was almost shot in Elgin, Oregon. After
the lecture we wandered up to deck11, the pool area and just after 11, there
was a light rain shower for five minutes, while we drank our mocha
coffees. We decided to check the watch
gift set sale on the Deck 7 atrium and we went to the Photo Gallery to select
any photos that we wanted to buy, from the assortment of photos taken around
the ship and at the ports. Then we went
back to deck 14 for another walk about 2.5 km and did some Tai Chi then went to
the dining room for lunch. The afternoon high was 30 C. At 2:30 there was an interesting presentation
by the cruise director of his days as a stuntman. We returned to the stateroom to get the
laptop then went to deck 11 for ice cream and then spent over an hour sorting
through over 800 pictures to decide which to add to the blog, hopefully in Fort
Lauderdale airport when we attempt to upload all the cruise blogs since the
Central America ports did not have strong internet signals or high speed
internet. We finished after 5 then got ready for dinner and danced for about 25
minutes to the Headlines in Rendez-vous Room. For appetizers we had roasted red
beet and feta salad, followed by wild mushroom soup, then either prime rib
roast or seared salmon for entrées. We both had a glass of Malbec wine with
dinner as well as a small glass of cabernet sauvignon wine. For dessert, we ordered banana and blueberry
crépe. After dinner we went back to the stateroom to pack our suitcases, secure
the coloured coded tag and place them outside our stateroom door by 11 p.m., so
that staff could have the luggage ready when we disembarked and go through U.S
Customs in Fort Lauderdale, on Tuesday.
The Celebrity Theatre entertainment this evening was the Farewell Variety
show featuring Seonid Aitken, John Bressler, production cast member, Brenden,
and the Celebrity Orchestra. It was over just after 10 and we returned to the
stateroom and checked the onboard account for accuracy and went to bed.
The ship was
still rocking when we got up about 8 a.m., Claire feels fine this morning.
Today is Brunch in the dining room from 10 to 1, so there are no breakfast
times or lunch times in the dining room. The sky was partly cloudy, temperature
about 25 C with a strong winds. The waves had white caps and shallow swells. We
went to Deck 11 to see how rough it was higher up. We chatted with some group members and walked
about 1 ½ km., the captain’s announcement said the 9:30 temperature was 27 C
with a high expected of 30 C, the winds were going to remain at easterly 30
knots for the next 24 hours. The swimming pools were empty for the day due to
the rough conditions. The seas have small swells. Next, we went to the
Celebrity Theatre for the 10 a.m. Mike McPheters lecture about his FBI career.
We checked in with our hosts at today’s hospitality table, before going to the
dining room for the Brunch. When we looked out the windows we saw a downpour of
rain, but some distant sunshine. At the Brunch there were ice sculptures and
different food stations, waffles/pancakes, sushi, omelets, salads, breads,
pastries, and desserts in the center area of the main level with the sides and
upper level used for seating. We sat with a couple from Arizona and two couples
from Canada. When we finished the sun was shining and there were a few clouds
around and the horizon was hazy. Then we stopped at our stateroom for a blog
update and to finish the last 200 ml of our second bottle of wine that we had
bought in San Diego. At 1 we went to the
Crystal Room on Deck 7, where five production cast members and the Production
manager, answered questions about life as a cast member and how to qualify for
the job. Then we went up Deck 12 and 14
to walk for 3 km, which was a challenge as the ship rocked and we could see
some white caps. Then as we walked forward, we were leaning into the strong
wind. It was a good 30 minute walk and
we rewarded ourselves with ice cream on Deck 11. We noticed one football fan
with a Seattle Seahawks T-shirt. Then
headed to the casino or went back the stateroom. The predicted high for today
was 30 C. As part of the group discounts, if we went on five or more excursions
we each received a $40 credit to our on board account, so we decided to use it
for wine with dinner this evening and see if there were any photos to buy
later. At 4:30 we joined Lavona and Roy
for Trivia and Brendene and Brian also joined the team. We had 11 1/2 points, but still needed a tie
breaker with the team that got 11 points. They guessed the closest amount for
Gene Simmons charity donation for his truck, and won T-shirts. Before dinner we
went Rendez-vous Square to dance, the sea was calmer as was the wind and
dancing was easier to keep balanced. Tonight from 5:30 to 11 p.m., the
Celebrity Theatre was set up for a Super Bowl party with tailgate party food in
the theatre, so there was no show. Our table only had us and Brendene; the
others were either at the game or eating at the Islands Café. The group members
at the other table were just Trudy, Zanny and Helen, so we joined them with our
coffee and tea while they ate their desserts. For appetizers we had a seafood
crépe or leek & potato vichyssoise, followed by Clam Chowder or Waldorf
Chicken Salad and either Pepper Steak or Chicken Kiev for entrées. We both had
a glass of Merlot wine with dinner. For dessert, we ordered either Apple
Blueberry turnover or Cheesecake Éclair.
After dinner we wandered over to the Celebrity Theatre, to find that
Denver was not yet on the scoreboard at half time. Then we went back to the
Rendez-vous Square to dance for half an hour when the Celebrations band took a
break, we went back to watch the Seahawks score more points. Walking around the
ship was back to normal. Then we returned to the stateroom to complete our
luggage tags and the cruise experience questionnaire. We decided to go up to
Deck 11 to get some hot chocolate and met our hosts on the staircase returning
to the stateroom and had a short chat. After
reading a bit, light were out about 11.
February 1
The ship was
still rocking when we got up about 7 a.m.; there were white caps on the waves.
Claire still felt a slight bloating this morning. We went to the dining room for breakfast. At
the next table was a couple from Hamilton, Ontario and this morning the woman
had taken two Gravol and was feeling steady. The sky was sunny about 23 C and a bit of wind.
The ship was moving at a fast speed, perhaps making up time due to rough seas
overnight. Around 8, the ship slowed almost to a stop to allow the pilot to
board the ship. The ship was scheduled to dock around 8:30 this morning in
Cartagena, Columbia, but was still in the outer harbour at that time. Our excursion stickers were to be collected by
8:45 in the Celebrity Theatre, but we didn’t rush. We waited 55 minutes for the
excursions to start to be called and were on our bus, one of four for our
itinerary, by 10. Our guide’s name was Victoria and she gave everyone name tags
to wear so that she knew who was in her group. Sir Frances Drake also attacked
Cartagena in the 1580s and burned the town.
After that, a wall was built to surround the town and completed in 1630.
Our group of 24 had a 10 minute photo stop at the largest Spanish fort in the
New World, San Felipe Fortress, where there were many street vendors selling
necklaces, “silver” bracelets, rings and bracelets, hats, caps, leather pouches
and purses, Columbia coins or stamps and sodas or water. We continued on to the
La Popa Monastery, at 450 feet above sea level, the highest point in the city
and could see where our ship was docked.
The bus climbed the switch backs up the hill along with 23 other buses
and cars. When we were ½ km from the top,
the bus pulled over to let us off, to walk the remaining distance, up a
moderate slope. The view of the
Cartagena was panoramic from that height.
Victoria led us on a 15 minute tour of the monastery courtyard and
chapel, with 10 minutes to take photos and enjoy the view. The altar has a
statue of the Virgin Mary which is dressed in a gown that is changed for
festivals and in an annex we saw some of the wardrobe of gowns. We all followed
Victoria back down the hill to find our bus, and then we were driven back to
the city into the Walled City for a walk on the cobblestone streets, including
the Bolivar Plaza and the Pre-Columbian Gold Museum. We passed the San Pedro
Calver Cathedral which was named to honour Pedro Calver, who died in 1654,
after he was canonized by the Catholic Church in the mid 19th
century. We spent almost an hour walked
through the a few streets, including 20 minutes in the Gold Museum. There were street vendors here too. The Old Walled City is a UNESCO Heritage site
and if a building is purchased it has to be restored to its original exterior
and apartment costs start at $600,000 US.
We took many pictures including a yellow stucco former convert that is
now an exclusive hotel costing over $1,000 US per night. We ushered back to the
bus, where we each given a bottle of cold water, for our final stop a shopping
center where Larry had a Columbian beer, Aguila, and Claire had cappuccino,
made with Columbian coffee. While we drank them in the shade, we photographed
each other with two ladies in traditional costume for $2 for each photo. On the
way back we stopped by a pink two story house that was the oldest house in the
new city, anything outside the walls. The
bus dropped us right by the ship, where there was a long lineup to get back
onboard, since most of the tours were returning over 1,000 people within 45
minutes. We appreciated the cool face
cloths that were handed out to the returning passengers. It is a welcome gesture, along with the
choice of cold water or cold fruit punch available that has awaited at every
port as you wait to board the ship returning from shore. By 2:15 we had dropped the backpack and
passports in the stateroom and went to the Island Café on deck 11 for lunch then
to practice some Tai Chi and to walk around the pool deck to see if anyone from
our group was there. A crew member was
secured the deck chairs on Deck 14, since the ship would be encountering strong
winds once back in the Caribbean Sea. The temperature was over 30 and the wind
was about 20 km blowing from Cartagena. The
ship sailed from Cartagena about 3:30 to cruise for two and half days to Fort
Lauderdale. The waves were rolling a bit as it reached the Caribbean Sea. The
captain made an announcement to expect rough seas due to 35 to 40 knot winds.
We got ready for dinner and updated the blog before going to the 5 p.m. second
Cocktail Party for our group. We chatted
with some people from Anola and heard about their tours. At 6 we went to the
dining room for dinner. Anita, Marilyn,
Bertha and Joan chose a horse drawn carriage ride in a four person carriage. They
were disappointed since originally all four were crammed into a carriage for
two, but there was a change part way through there ride when two of them were
transferred to a carriage for four with two other people. The ladies enjoyed
the ride, but were not happy with the disregard for their safety. All ten of our table arrived for the last
formal night of the cruise. For appetizers we had a fruit plate or shrimp cocktail,
followed by French Onion soup or Kale Salad and either Haddock or Beef
Wellington for entrées, although Lobster Tails were also on the menu. For
dessert, we ordered either Baked Alaska or New York Cheesecake. After dinner,
the exterior doors onto decks were blocked and the ship was rolling. We tried to dance a rumba and it was a
challenge to keep our balance, so we decided not to dance this evening. We went to the Celebrity Theatre to watch
John Bressler, a singer and pianist. It was an entertaining show, although you
could feel the ship rolling. The walk
back to the stateroom was slow and zigzag and we are glad we are located low,
inside and in the centre of the ship which minimizes the ship’s movement. After reading a bit, light were out about 11.
January 31
The ship was
to have docked before 6 a.m., this morning in Colon, Panama. I am sure people
were glad that the ship was not rocking. Claire felt a bit gassy this morning. We
got up about 6:40 a.m. and went for breakfast on deck 11 to the Islands Café,
since the dining room breakfast was not open until by 7:30, and we needed to
get our excursion stickers by 7:45 in the Celebrity Theatre. The sky was partly
cloudy, the temperature was about 22 C and there was not much wind. Our
excursion left on time at 8 to visit village of Portobela. Our guide was Luc (short
for Lucille) and the driver was Marcos. One of the couples on the bus was from
the Japanese group of 15. The drive took 1 ½ hours due to some road
construction. Along the way, it was explained that the old city of Colon, is in
the process of persuading its residents, many of whom have a common bathroom in
the old buildings, to relocate to the outskirts so that the port area can
expand with more warehouses for the increased business expected when the third
set of Panama Canal locks are completed. There is resistance to move and the
buildings are not being maintained. If the people move, they cannot walk to
their jobs and need to take the bus and contend with the rush hour traffic and
road construction. Colon is the third largest Duty Free Zone in the world. The
fruit grown in Panama are pineapple, watermelon, papayas, avocadoes, mangoes
and coconut, as well as cashews and coffee. There is photo of the cashew tree with its orange
coloured blossoms. The cashew oil is used in motor oil, so the nuts are always
roasted and its fruit is good to eat. Some kinds of trees were imported from
the West Indies and Barbados with the Panama Canal workers from those islands.
The bamboo in Panama was brought from Japan. There was a couple from Japan on
the tour; they passed to others a packet of Japanese crackers, which were
tasty. They told me that hello in Japanese was ko-NEE-chee-wa, or something
close. Panama’s currency is the US dollar. The 25 cent piece has the head of
the explorer Balboa rather than a US president. The Panama Railway was
completed in 1855 and transported goods from ships in the Pacific to ships in
the Caribbean Sea and vice versa. It takes about 90 minutes for a container
train to travel between oceans and about 4 hours to off load onto to a waiting
ship. It is a lot cheaper than going
through the Panama Canal, which takes about 8 to 11 hours to transit. The
Panama Railway is mainly used for container trains but at 7 a.m. on work days a
train leaves Panama City for Colon since many workers live in Panama City, then
at 5 p.m. on work days a train leaves Colon for Panama City and the commuters
do not have to contend with the rush hour traffic delays. The local buses, old
American school buses, are colourful and called Red Devils, even though they
are many different colours and patterns. They remind us of the Guatemalan local
“chicken” buses. On our way out of Colon, we passed the new housing apartments
and housing developments, which have at
least one bathroom in every unit and cost is based on the person’s income. The
lots are small and the mostly single storey houses are made from concrete
blocks since terminates would eat the wood over time. The roofs are either red
tile or corrugated metal. As we got closer to Portobela, we saw ½ acre and one
acre properties with beautiful country homes of the residents of Panama or
other countries. There is road construction near Portobela to repair damage
from a 2010 landslide. In Portobela,
which was founded in 1597, we saw the ruins of two of the old Spanish forts, and
walked around the village and the fort ruins, the church and the tradition of
the Black Christ was explained, and learned a bit of the area history. The
Customs House held gold and silver for transport to Spain and for commerce. Portobela
was attacked by pirates in the 16th & 17th centuries,
one of the pirates was Sir Francis Drake of England who died before another
planned attack. His body was placed in
coffin and thrown overboard outside Portobela harbour by Drake’s island. After just more than an hour the group of 25
returned to the bus for a light snack of water and a banana muffin, before
driving to the Gatun Locks and its observation area. The Gatun Locks have three
chambers to pass through to change from the Caribbean Sea level to the Gatun
Lake level and vice versa. We were
reminded that the new locks have holding pools for chamber waters since at
present 52 million gallons of water are used in the operation of the locks for
each ship. The Panama Canal Zone consisted of land from the canal to five miles
away on both sides and was returned to the Panamanians in 1999. We passed Fort Davis, which will soon be
housing and we saw the construction of the new locks. The group spent an hour looking at the ship
movement in the locks and the old locomotive mules that guide the ship. We
watched one ship leave the north side going to the Caribbean Sea, followed by
another ship, Silver Lining, in the center chamber which was draining to lower
the ship to the final lock to release it to the Caribbean Sea side. Then we watched the Pacific Ocean bound
Malakand Karachi in the south bound locks. We then
returned to the bus for the 20 minute ride back to the ship. The sky was just
partly cloudy and the temperature was hovering about 30 C. We looked around the shopping area by the
ship and found a café with WiFi Internet and emailed home. We looked through
some shops and purchased a shirt for Larry and a dress for Claire. Just to
check we went back to the café and had a reply to our email that all was well
at home. Then we returned to ship about 3 and went for ice cream since we had
skipped lunch. Then wandered the pool
deck and chatted with members of our group.
We got ready for dinner, wrote more of the blog and took some pictures
of the ship leaving Colon for the cruise to Cartagena.
The ship was
rolling a bit but did not affect our dancing for 25 minutes before dinner. Pat and Pat did not join our table this
evening. Our table had a battery flamed candle again this evening, but no Canada
maple leaf cover. None of our group was
aware that Celebrity had called today Canada Day since there were over 400
Canadian on the ship (over 20%) and just one our three group tables had the
Canadian acknowledgement. Pat & Paddy were not there, Pat was not feeling
well. Anita said that the rocking during
the night bothered Marilyn. We had Mushroom & Chicken Terrine or seafood
salad with scallops and shrimp as appetizers, followed by Hungarian Goulash
soup or Tuna Nicoise and either honey glazed Pork Chop or Coq au Vin for
entrées. For dessert, we ordered either White Chocolate macadamia mousse or
Ricotta Cheesecake. After dinner, we danced to the Headlines in Rendez-vous
Square for 35 minutes. Then we went to the Celebrity Theatre at 9 to watch the
production show of Dance Around the World, featuring the Celebrity singers,
dancers and the aerial artists. Again tonight, the ship was rolling after the
show, more than the previous evening. People were steadying themselves as they
walked uphill exiting the theatre and held on to railings or the wall as they
waited for the elevators. We could not walk a straight line down the hall due
to the rolling of the ship. We are glad
that we have our low in the ship inside stateroom since we could feel a gentle
sway sometimes right to left and other times the roll was from front to back. We
were in bed about 11 p.m.
