It’s not looking good for Denver…

Or so we’ve just been told.

I thought I’d use a little time this evening to do a bit of a catch up on what’s been going on.  We’ve enjoyed a super quiet dinner this evening because almost all of the ship’s company is sitting in the theatre watching the SuperBowl.  Having not a clue about the game (?match?) we are mere onlookers.  But that’s not to say we don’t enjoy the emotion of it all!

As you’ll gather, we are really enjoying our cruise.  We had a great time in Cartagena and will take fond memories home of the time we spent there.  As we left on our tour that afternoon, the crew were moving furniture around and I referred to them clearing the decks for a party that evening.  Now, we’ve heard of such events but have always narrowly missed them, because we’ve been going home before they took place.  But this time, we were lucky!  An overnight stay in Cartagena was a great opportunity to have an outdoor event on the pool deck and whilst we were out in the afternoon the crew managed, somehow, to transform the whole place into a huge, elegantly dressed dining room.

 

There was a place for everyone to sit at a table and food enough for three times as many!  The buffet and grills were arranged around the pool and we couldn’t believe the range of food on offer.  Suffice to say, we were spoiled for choice.

But what was really impressive – and I apologise for the blurry photograph – was the speed with which it was all cleared away.  When the time came for the buffet to close, to make way for the band and the dancing, the way the whole crew came together to wheel away those grills, the serving tables and all the associated equipment was remarkable.  That it was all done with such fun and spirit was particularly special, because as we realised, most of these people had been working hard all day to get it all ready, too.

The Beatles show which followed was good fun too and well targeted to those of us who were there!  The dance floor was full and the party really would have gone on all night but for the fact that many of us had an early start the next morning, to continue our tours of Cartagena.  Never mind – but quite what the local inhabitants made of the rousing choruses of Penny Lane and She Loves You on such a still, quiet evening, who knows?

The other thing which I’ve not really mentioned here is the range of talks available to us when we have time to go and listen.  This morning, we were treated to two particularly memorable presentations: Firstly, David Pogue’s “Tech Update 2014”.  David is an influential writer and presenter on several media platforms and his talk this morning was not only thought provoking and informative, but was also very funny indeed.  We’ve added YahooTech to our bookmarks and will follow it with interest, the more so for the lack of irritating advertising!  He was followed by Terry Breen, who offered another of her insights to our next destination – Ecuador.  Now we know exactly what to look for when buying a Panama hat and will bear her advice in mind tomorrow when we’ll be in Manta and visiting Montecristi, the home of the original and best.

This evening’s theatre show was scheduled as a matinee today, because of the SuperBowl and once again we marvelled and Hana and Alex’s remarkable strength, balance and sheer courage!  Every time we see them, I think they perform more breathtaking routines and they are really the stars of every show they participate in. 

So, this evening, the ship was quiet.  Well, shall we say most of the ship was quiet – the theatre was anything but!  As we went to the bar for a pre dinner drink, we noticed the crowds waiting to get in to see the SuperBowl and wondered if there would be anyone left to join us in the dining room?

Well, not many, that’s for sure!

So, we had a quiet table for two by the window and enjoyed rather more time than usual chatting to those who are normally way too busy to spend very long standing around.  It was an interesting menu tonight too – I began with the intention of taking photographs of each course to share here but sadly was enjoying it so much, I forgot!  So, you’ll have to believe me that the gravlax was great, the monkfish moqueca was interesting if not quite as spicy as I expected and that the chocolate fondant hit the spot perfectly.  Oh, and the white frascati was pretty good, too.

When we’d finished, we couldn’t resist taking a look at what was going on in the theatre, where it was shortly after half time.  One lady wearing an orange, Denver Broncos shirt came to get another tub of popcorn and shared her disappointment that her team weren’t doing so well.  We commiserated and declined the offer to sit and watch the rest of the match in favour of returning to our quiet, comfortable suite and following the match on TV.

Sadly for the lady in the orange shirt, it’s still not looking good for Denver, but our friends supporting the Seahawks will be thrilled when we see them tomorrow!  (Not that the match is over yet…)

At 3am tomorrow, we’ll cross the equator and we are told that King Neptune will be dropping in for a drink in the evening.  Now, the last time we encountered him was a bit of fun but I guess there won’t be quite as much time for such an elaborate celebration on a day when most of us are going out all day.  Because, of course, we’ll be arriving in Ecuador first thing in the morning – yet another new country for us both and so there will be a loud “kerching!” when our feet touch the ground.

What fun!!

The far side

Having spent the day enjoying the Panama Canal transit, we’re now sailing in the Gulf of Panama, according to the map on our TV.  For those of us who enjoy watching the process of managing a huge ship like this one, the whole canal thing was a dream.  One process after another, all very watchable and involving a great number of people doing a wide variety of jobs which came together so well.

So, where were we?

Well, I think we were floating along in the Gatun Lake, making our way towards the central point of the canal and from there, to begin our descent to the Pacific Ocean.

We came indoors – me to write my blog for yesterday, my hero to enjoy a few more chapters of his unputdownable book, but both to cool down a little.  But as we sat there, looking out of the patio doors, we simply couldn’t resist leaping up every time a ship sailed past. 

And believe me, that was pretty frequently!

Some were prettier than others, of course.

Some were noisier than others.  “Welcome to Panama!” shouted the man standing at the front of this little cruiser.  Well, thank you – we were loving being here!

But the whole way along, we enjoyed looking out over the rainforest and hoping to see what the Captain had pointed out on the other side: an alligator!  (We didn’t)

A little further along, beyond the lake and into the  Gaillard cut, the canal is being widened and we watched as a dredger was working.  We couldn’t believe how deep this digger was working

nor the size of the rocks it was hauling up from the bottom!  This is big stuff – and presumably, expensive work, too.

Around the corner, we could see a bridge appearing; the first bridge over the canal that we’d noticed so far.

The Centennial Bridge was the second permanent crossing and as we sat enjoying lunch with friends on the pool deck, we all agreed that it’s a very elegant design indeed.

We soon hot-footed it down to our suite again, though, because we spotted the next set of locks coming up.  The Pedro Miguel pier was right there and we’d already missed the old line-throwing business.  I smiled to myself when I saw this chap standing in the middle of a loop of rope though, being reminded of all kinds of cartoon mishaps when someone pulls on the other end   When I saw the expression of his hands in the photograph later, I was amused (I know, it doesn’t take much!)

Back to more serious business, alerted by the whistle of a train and the rumble on the tracks opposite.  I’d read that some shipping lines, including Maersk, had taken the decision to stop sailing through the canal and sure enough, this railway engine was hauling a number of Maersk branded containers from the Pacific Ocean terminal to the Atlantic.  My hero could offer all kinds of information about the railway operation but I was simply happy to have yet another thing to watch!

That included the ship alongside us in the neighbouring lock.  We’d seen the Astir Lady earlier, in the Gatun locks but now we got a closer look at the immaculate presentation.  Once again, the ipads came out and our favourite MarineTraffic app fired up so we could satisfy our curiosity.

Oh, and the usual friendly waves were exchanged, too.

Whilst we transited these locks, we got a look at what Terry had been talking about earlier, too.  See the target and what looks like a rugby goalpost there on the lawn?  That’s where the line throwers get their practice in!

Soon, we were out the other side of the locks and another couple of ships were following close behind.  Oh yes, one of them is the Hanjin Elizabeth!

Just a little further on, the Captain sounded the horn which appeared to alert two small tugs to hurry to our side.  We were approaching the Miraflores locks – the last ones before the ocean.  We glanced at our watches and hoped we’d make it through before the 4.30 Trivia time!

Now, these line throwers were a bit of a rum lot!

There was a bit of a commotion, a great deal of shouting and carrying on before they were in action.

At last, the ropes were secure and they looked back to check all was well.

But something didn’t seem quite right and one of the mules had to reattach something…and we were getting restless because it was now well past 4.10 and we were going to have to leave.

We heard a cheer go up from what appeared to be a visitors centre as the Astir Lady tooted her horn and went on her way.  Were we going to have the same reception?

We admired a pelican which flew and settled in the empty lock next to us and wondered if we could expect action soon?  Noting the time, we decided we’d just have to go down to the lounge, meet our Trivia team and watch the last bits from a different level.

Actually, it was quite interesting to see the mule at close quarters, to wave to the driver and to watch as we made our way out of the final lock sometime around 4.45pm.

Our friend the Hanjin Elizabeth was right on our tail as we sailed out into the Bay of Panama.

We stood, watched and counted as sixteen linesmen, pilots and assorted local crew disembarked the ship via the rope ladder and then, just when we thought all was done…

Another small boat came alongside and the last one left – minus a lifejacket we noted, which seemed a little foolhardy!

In the distance we could see the skyscrapers of Panama City.

And just as we were about to step inside, feeling we’d seen the last feature, the Bridge of the Americas came into view.  Our transit was complete.

Oh and yes, we were pleased we’d gone indoors to play Trivia, too

We spent the evening with friends in Signatures, one of the speciality restaurants and enjoyed the best combination of interesting conversation and excellent food.  I was going to add that at the end of the evening, all that was left were the three petits fours that none of us could manage (yes, really, even I managed to resist a raspberry macaron).  But actually, all that was left was a little trail of chocolate, leading to the one who snaffled the truly irresistible chocolate truffle almost as soon as it arrived.

He knows who he is

(Thank you for your comments, Wes and Lesley, I’m pleased you’ve enjoyed the journey!)

The early morning show

We woke at 5:50am this morning and turned on our TV straight away.  Though it was dark outside, the best show in town was about to begin and we didn’t want to miss a thing.

Actually, it was just about getting light by the time I’d showered and dressed, so whilst my hero had gone out onto the deck, I simply poked my head out of the balcony door to see what was going on.

We’d reached the breakwater at the entrance to the Panama Canal and the commentary about to begin.

As my camera acclimatised itself to the warm, humid air outside, I decided to go and join what appeared to be the majority of people up on the top deck. 

I-Made was already out there with his drinks trolley serving hot drinks.  (Did I tell you how well we are taken care of here?!)

Inside, in the observation lounge, a more substantial breakfast was on offer but we decided to stay out in the open and make the most of the journey.  After all, this was one of the highlights we didn’t want to miss.  Considering it was only just past 7 am, the ship was buzzing!

By now, we were approaching the entrance to the canal proper and could see where the new locks are being constructed.  We’d heard about this from Terry Breen, the on board lecturer making her 80th transit today and who has shared so many interesting points about the canal with us during the last few days.

There’s a huge amount of work going on but sadly, the build is behind schedule and the new, enlarged locks won’t open in time for the centenary celebrations on August 15th this year.

We were heading for one of the two operational locks here, following one of the ships in there already.  We had a specific booking for our transit, we were told, because we have “precious cargo” on board.

As we approached, we passed by the site of a new bridge which is being built across the mouth of the canal

then, right by buoy 16, we could see “the French Cut”, the site of the first, failed attempt to build a canal.

Having ticked off these things we turned to our port side and made note of the new lock gates, brought from Italy to be fitted to the new locks.  Hard to get the scale of them, but the green box to the right is a standard sized shipping container, so they’re huge, right?

At this point, I-Made passed by with his tea trolley and I took advantage of his offer.  So, it was with a cup of Earl Grey tea that I stood and watched as we approached the first set of lock gates.

Actually, I was distracted, because there were things happening on the shore.  People were going to work and a brightly coloured bus was tootling along the road, possibly making the same trip as it does every day.

But I needed to concentrate on what was going on ahead.  Look, there’s the lock gates – before long we’ll be starting to go through there.  But just a minute, did I see a car drive along that “shelf” near the water?  Surely not…

Whoa!  Look what just crossed there, in front of my eyes!!

It is such fun to simply stand and watch.  There is so much happening, so many things to see and to work out how they work.  We love it!

At this point, we heard the news that we were going to take the right hand lane, and thinking that we’d have an equally good view from our own balcony, we stepped inside and came down one floor to watch the next stages.

Now, we’d been told to look out for the arrow sign which would indicate which lane we should take.  We spotted it there at the end of the jetty and became confused – surely, we were going to wrong way?

Well, no, because someone else was hard on our tail!  That arrow was intended for the Hanjin Elizabeth, who was going to sail through the neighbouring lock alongside us.

Just beneath us, though, action was happening as the rope men were rowing out to throw the line to our crew.  This was another thing we’d been advised to look out for – apparently all kinds of modern methods have been tried and tested, but the good old, low tech way remains the best.  So, these men row out to each ship, they throw the line by hand and practice their aim at targets along the canal side so they become pretty good shots!

Having checked that our crew member had caught it, they returned to the shore.

With a friendly wave of course! 

The line was going to attach our ship to one of these engines, known as “mules”.  The mules (we were attached to four on each side I think) don’t actually pull us through the canal but hold us steady in the middle of the lock.

We looked back and spotted the same procedure going on with the Hanjin Elizabeth.  My goodness, those chaps have to be able to throw pretty well, don’t they?

As the Hanjin Elizabeth sailed alongside us in the neighbouring lock, her crew were taking photos of us too!  Lots of waves, friendly greetings and interest on both sides.

We popped inside to see the view from the bridge.  We appeared to be making good progress.

Whilst standing outside we couldn’t help but feel curious about the contents of those containers!  Stacked twelve deep and five or six high, there was row upon row of them, the whole length of the ship.

The two small tugs were tucked in the locks behind us and as we went for a spot of breakfast, we took the chance to look around and see what was what behind us.

By the time we returned to our prime viewing spot, we were approaching the next lock, keeping pace with the Hanjin Elizabeth alongside.  As we are raised to the next level, the little mules travel up a steep incline to keep at the right height to continue with us.  Interesting, isn’t it?  

After a while, the Gatun Lakes were in sight.  These man-made lakes form part of the canal route and also form a holding place for shipping waiting for a passage through.

We watched as the Hanjin Elizabeth let go of the mule connections and sailed on past us, out of the locks.  Her crew waved bye to us as they passed.

Look what a tight squeeze it was!

But actually, she wasn’t going very far, for as she tied up alongside, we sailed out of the lock and right out into the lake, leaving her behind.

And that’s where we are now.  We’re sailing through the Gatun Lakes on our way to the next set of locks and taking the chance to catch up on blogging, journalling and cooling down.  It’s hot and sticky out there, believe me!