Yesterday morning was another early morning. I was up and out of the cabin by 6:30AM. This was my second trip through the locks of the Panama Canal. My first trip was back in late summer of 2008. We were on The Disney Magic at that time, going from Los Angeles to Port Canaveral. We got off of the ship on Labor Day. This cruise, we are going the opposite way…westbound to San Francisco, California.
I watched the first Locks from the upper decks of mid-ship. It truly is a marvel of engineering. I think it’s something that must be experienced in person. I’ve got pictures and videos…what hasn’t already been posted on Facebook pages will be posted once I return home.
Princess (as did Disney) had a narrator onboard all day, and told what was happening at each step, along with a bit of history, interesting facts, etc. you could hear him most everywhere outside. They also had the narration, along with pictures on the movie screen by the pool, and in the cabins on one of the television channels. After rising up into Gatun lake, I took even more pictures then went to the pool and had a relaxing morning. A bit after lunch (the lasagna was SO good!!!), I went to one of my friends’ cabin. They have an aft-facing suite on the upper deck with two balconies. They have a balcony facing aft and one facing on the starboard side. We went under a bridge and then into the Pedro Miguel Locks. It was a completely different perspective of the process. Again, I got some great pictures!
It wasn’t too long before we reached the last locks that led us to the Pacific Ocean. I watched from the front of the ship this time, and when the sun got too intense, moved over to the port side for a bit of shade. It was then about time for dinner, so I got ready and went back to the Wheelhouse Bar and had a mock-tail (which are included in my soda package). I got a No-Jito–which was a non-alcoholic version of a mojito. It was refreshing!
Dinner last night was ok. I opted for two entrees and no appetizer or soup/salad. For my first entree, I had spicy shrimp with fried rice, which was very good, but not spicy at all. For my second entree had the jerk chicken. The chicken was so spicy, I couldn’t eat it. They offered to bring me something else, but I really didn’t want anything else. Dessert last night was outstanding. On some nights, there is a special “Chocolate Journeys” dessert. Last night was the first I tried. Chocolate creme brûlée, with coconut mousse. OMG. I had two. (Had to make up for that jerk chicken, lol!)
After dinner, I went back to the pool, visited the sauna, back to the pool and then went to bed early and read a bit before falling asleep.
In Panama, I have a Discovery Channel tour of the “Panama Canal Railway & New Locks Canal Expansion”. I’m currently in the Explorer’s Lounge with my group about to be called for this tour…I gotta go! I’ll have another post about my first trip to Panama later! (On my first Panama Canal Cruise, we didn’t stop in Panama, which was a bit disappointing!).
Cleared For Take-Off! 