Greetings off the Coast of Panama!
The cruisers are delighted to see hot sunshine again! Yesterday (all day) we passed through the Panama Canal. It really was a fascinating experience, but we weren't overly fond of the absolute downpour we had ALL day. For rain, we could have stayed home. Admittedly, it was at least 30 degrees warmer than home, though, and that's a good thing. We all awoke early and were out watching the approach to the first set of locks by 6:30 am. After a while we decided the best approach would be to simply put on our swimsuits, with a light jacket, and just go for it, standing in the rain. That worked fine (until we froze when we came back inside in the air conditioning). Panama is a rain forest after all. They receive over 200 inches a year, and the rainy season has just begun. We enjoyed the passage, and entertained ourselves in other ways. The four of us girls played Yahtzee, after Jan R. coached us on the basics of the game.
Earlier in the week we enjoyed a beautiful sunny day on Palm Beach on Aruba. Fabulous Caribbean azure waters, gorgeous sand, and wonderful services. We had lunch outside, at the Hyatt. The burgers were immense. Even I, who is now the bottomless pit when it comes to eating, could not finish my hamburger. Maybe that was because I had onion rings as a first course. A perfect day, in all respects. I have gained another pound.... yay! Funny how everyone else is worried about gaining weight, and I'm focused on consumption.
Now we are cruising along the coast of Panama, heading to Costa Rica, which is a full day stop tomorrow. We hear fabulous things about Costa Rica, so we are very much looking forward to the events of the day.
We went to the hoity toity wine tasting session this afternoon, which was very well done. Beautiful canapes, which of course, I devoured, and then ate some of Al's and Jan's. I'm not eating Steve's because he and Gary E. have come down with colds, so we are all washing our hands frequently, and avoding close contact with those two boys. Maybe we should put them in their own separate stateroom, what do you think? Janet and Jan E. attended a computer class on photography this afternoon, and who knows what Ernie ended up doing. His own thing. That is the beauty of cruising -- everyone can do what they like most. For Jan R. and me, that is soaking up Vitamin D in the sunshine during sea days, and at the local beaches.
This smaller ship (1,500 passengers) is very nicely maintained, and a most comfortable size. Typically on the large ships you have to stake out your lounge chair, by the pool, early in the day. On this ship, there is room available at all times. It's a little bit older crowd, but a good mix. Very few children because they'd have to miss a lot of school. We adore our waiters, Damien from Poland and Ruben from the Phillipines. They are charming, attentive and lots of fun. Our room steward, Ralph (also from the Phillipines) is so efficient, and does a remarkable job of keeping everything spotless.
I'm feeling GREAT, with very little in the way of lingering side effects. My digestive system has largely returned to normal, although there are some past favorite foods which still don't appeal to me (e.g. brocolli, asparagus), but I did chow down on today's Mexican buffet at lunch. I don't think I've told you about my very strange side effect on the bottoms of my feet. During treatment the skin became hard (and tender in the early stages). Now that top layer of skin is peeling off. The sand on the beach in Aruba was a perfect exfoliant (sp?). Jan tells me to quit picking the skin off, but I cannot resist. I have the layer almost completely removed now.
I tried a Pina Colada (okay, but too sweet), and have had a couple of Margaritas. They're pretty good. Still not much into wine. I could definitely be the Designated Driver, IF we were driving somewhere, which isn't likely on the ship! Damien won't let us leave the table at night without ordering dessert. He's like that.
I better start thinking about signing off because I'm concerned that my time will run out (you prepay at the Purser's Office, and they'll only sell you an hour at a time), and I don't know how long it might take for this to post.
More later.
Earlier in the week we enjoyed a beautiful sunny day on Palm Beach on Aruba. Fabulous Caribbean azure waters, gorgeous sand, and wonderful services. We had lunch outside, at the Hyatt. The burgers were immense. Even I, who is now the bottomless pit when it comes to eating, could not finish my hamburger. Maybe that was because I had onion rings as a first course. A perfect day, in all respects. I have gained another pound.... yay! Funny how everyone else is worried about gaining weight, and I'm focused on consumption.
Now we are cruising along the coast of Panama, heading to Costa Rica, which is a full day stop tomorrow. We hear fabulous things about Costa Rica, so we are very much looking forward to the events of the day.
We went to the hoity toity wine tasting session this afternoon, which was very well done. Beautiful canapes, which of course, I devoured, and then ate some of Al's and Jan's. I'm not eating Steve's because he and Gary E. have come down with colds, so we are all washing our hands frequently, and avoding close contact with those two boys. Maybe we should put them in their own separate stateroom, what do you think? Janet and Jan E. attended a computer class on photography this afternoon, and who knows what Ernie ended up doing. His own thing. That is the beauty of cruising -- everyone can do what they like most. For Jan R. and me, that is soaking up Vitamin D in the sunshine during sea days, and at the local beaches.
This smaller ship (1,500 passengers) is very nicely maintained, and a most comfortable size. Typically on the large ships you have to stake out your lounge chair, by the pool, early in the day. On this ship, there is room available at all times. It's a little bit older crowd, but a good mix. Very few children because they'd have to miss a lot of school. We adore our waiters, Damien from Poland and Ruben from the Phillipines. They are charming, attentive and lots of fun. Our room steward, Ralph (also from the Phillipines) is so efficient, and does a remarkable job of keeping everything spotless.
I'm feeling GREAT, with very little in the way of lingering side effects. My digestive system has largely returned to normal, although there are some past favorite foods which still don't appeal to me (e.g. brocolli, asparagus), but I did chow down on today's Mexican buffet at lunch. I don't think I've told you about my very strange side effect on the bottoms of my feet. During treatment the skin became hard (and tender in the early stages). Now that top layer of skin is peeling off. The sand on the beach in Aruba was a perfect exfoliant (sp?). Jan tells me to quit picking the skin off, but I cannot resist. I have the layer almost completely removed now.
I tried a Pina Colada (okay, but too sweet), and have had a couple of Margaritas. They're pretty good. Still not much into wine. I could definitely be the Designated Driver, IF we were driving somewhere, which isn't likely on the ship! Damien won't let us leave the table at night without ordering dessert. He's like that.
I better start thinking about signing off because I'm concerned that my time will run out (you prepay at the Purser's Office, and they'll only sell you an hour at a time), and I don't know how long it might take for this to post.
More later.
posted by Sniglet's Mom @ 2:39 PM
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