ARUBA - FT. LAUDERDALE - THE END

ARUBA - Pop. Just over 100,000.  Only 20 miles long and 69 sq. miles.  Dutch

Windy, hot and humid.  We were joined in port by 2 Royal Caribbean ships so the town was busy.  Jewelry stores fill the streets and we walked through some to take advantage of their air conditioning.  Beaches, of course,  are the big attraction during the day and casinos are the draw for night.

There was a deck party on Thursday night but it got ruined by rain and wind.

The rest of the days were at sea so the usual went on.  There were matinee performances, the pop choir sang, boat builders showed off their creations, the drummers drummed at the pool, etc.

Pictures - our dedicated wait staff for dinner and breakfast

DAYS 54- 56 CARTAGENA & SEA DAYS

We had 2 days at sea including 1 for the Panama Canal transit.  They finally have the new lane open.  It's a faster transit if you use the new canal but we didn't hear how the lanes are determined.  It costs $437,000 for our ship to use the canal which works out to $134. per person.  They are also building a new bridge at the Eastern end of the canal but It's missing 3 sections and won't be finished for at least 2 years.

CARTAGENA - Pop. around 1 million.  Currency - Colombian peso but US $ widely accepted.  Spanish.  Due to it's proximity to the equator,  there are no seasons and the average temp is 82 with a few rainy months.

We did the hop on hop off bus for a tour of the city.  There was a 90 minute guided walking tour of the old city which we didn't do but we went around twice and got off part way around the second time.  There were a lot of people from the ship using this sightseeing transportation and they ended up using a boat to take us back to the ship.  From all accounts, Cartagena is a safe city.  It is also a major producer of emeralds.  They certainly have a lot of condos and they are almost always white.  Hotel rooms average $250/night but you can stay a month or more in a condo for around $1000/month.  Wages are in the area of $300/month.

Pictures - 1 the fortress at the old city Cartagena
                 2  beach condos in the new city

PUNTARENAS, COSTA RICA & SEA DAY - DAYS 52 & 53

FRIDAY - A quiet day at sea.  There was another "crossing the equator" ceremony.  What a difference the Captain makes!  The Captain and several of his upper staff all took part and jumped into the pool during the southern crossing. This time the top staff member taking part was the Entertainment Director.  We haven't even seen and seldom heard from this Captain and he's been on board for over 2 weeks.

PUNTARENAS  - Pop. 14,000.  Currency - Costa Rican Colon but US $ widely accepted.  Costa Rica was the first Central American country to export coffee and bananas.

Puntarenas has a collection of businesses, primarily for the locals. All the tours were long as the port is quite a distance from the rain forests, volcanoes, coffee plantations and the capital city of San Jose. We chose to walk down the pier and go to the beach.  It was not as clean a beach as we're used to and it was mostly locals. There was the usual setup of tents with souvenirs.

Holland America Westerdam was moored next to us.  It's about the same size as the Island Princess and is on a 15 day cruise from San Diego through the Panama Canal to Ft. Lauderdale.

Again, no pictures as we saw nothing remarkable and it will be dark as we sail away.

GUAYAQUIL & MANTA, ECUADOR

GUAYAQUIL - The port is situated on a tidal river and a decision was made to cancel this stop due to the depth of the port and the tides during the time we'd be visiting. As a result we'll spend overnight in Manta, our next stop and the only one we'll make in Ecuador.  Guayaquil is the gateway to the Galapagos  Islands so we've been here but only at the airport.

MANTA - 60 miles south of the equator. Pop. 218,000, climate - 90, US $.  Ecuador is about the size of the UK.  No one was allowed to walk on the port so shuttles took us to the port gate.

This is a fishing port -  shrimp, lobster, sea bass, tuna, oysters, crab.  Several tuna boats were in port when we arrived.  Not sure how long they spend at sea but it took most of the day to unload their catch using cranes and huge nets to move the fish to big trucks for delivery.

In the afternoon we walked left at the port gate along the waterfront until we came to an artisan market with a lot of local handicrafts.  I've been surprised at the heavy sweaters that are available.  Don't know if this is due to the abundance of llamas and alpacas in Peru and Ecuador or, despite being close to the equator, it gets chilly in their winter.

Montecristi, a short drive from Manta, is the home of the panama hat.  There are knock-offs which would cost around $25. but the real deal will run around $250.

There were beaches on both sides of the port.  We didn't stop at the beach but everyone said they were clean and the water was clear.  Pedestrians, as in other S. America countries, do not have the right of way and there didn't seem to be any traffic lights to cross the roads.

On our second day in port we wandered to the right of the port gate and found a huge shopping centre- there must have been 5 floors.  It was bright and very modern with the usual mix of stores including a large supermarket where we bought some local beer.  Those of you who really know Len will not be surprised at this but as we exited the mall what does he see but a $20. US bill on the ground and nobody around.

Picture - Manta

DAYS 47-49- SALAVERRY

SALAVERRY - Our last stop in Peru, sandwiched between 2 sea days.  The weather word of the day was FOG.  We arrived near Salaverry around 6:30 am and the ship was finally tied up and passengers started to disembark at 8:30 when the fog lifted enough to see the port.  By the time we left at 5 pm the fog was back in full force.

The town of Salaverry was just outside the port gates but there was a shuttle to the city of Trujillo, about a 40 minute drive depending on traffic.  It was pretty well built up all the way to Trujillo.  Until we got into the city the houses were really hovels.  They almost all had a substantial door but the roof was sometimes missing, sometimes a tarp, sometimes a thin tin. In the city the roof was almost always red tile.  There were tall walls (between 6 and 8 feet) surrounding almost everything- the old walls were made of brick, newer ones were cinder blocks.  Even the shopping centre we went by was surrounded by a tall wrought iron fence.  There was litter everywhere - not necessarily garbage but litter.  The cleanest places I saw were service stations - they were big and there was no litter to be seen.

The 2 days at sea were the usual mix of exercise, food and entertainment.  The lectures have not been very interesting and most of the movies have been old.  They did show The Shape of Water and I Tonya but both were late at night.  The ocean was very calm.

PICTURES - LIMA

1.  The main square
2.  The traffic

PICTURES - LIMA

1.  Len's favorite newsstand
2 & 3 -  Fountains
4.  Peruvian Folkloric show

LIMA - DAYS 44-45

LIMA - Pop. Almost 10 million, Callao (where we landed) just under 1 million.  Currency - Peruvian Nuevo Sol but US accepted everywhere.  Overnight in port.  Lima is in the desert but very humid.

Another container port so no walking on the pier except to the few tents set up close to the exit ramp.  A shuttle took you to the port exit where you could get a taxi or another shuttle which took you to a shopping  mall. This mall was a 45 minute drive from the port.

We had an evening tour that took us through the Old Town which is an UNESCO World Heritage site.  We've toured here before but it's a very interesting area - a beautiful square and the Government Palace where if you time it right you can see the changing of the guard.  The traffic was unbelievable.  On some streets 3 lanes became 4.  Vendors would walk through the cars attempting to sell water, popcorn, candies,etc.  Our destination was the Park of the Reserve and the Magic Water Circuit, verified by the Guinness Book of world records as the largest water fountain compound in the world.  Imagine the water show at Bellagio in Vegas but add colors, size, numerous fountains and a laser show. 

We arrived back at the ship in time to catch the late Peruvian Folkloric Show.  There was a cast of around 20 - musicians and dancers who worked very hard to entertain us.  Some of the dances were comedic, some showed off their athletic abilities and all the costumes were very colorful.

DAYS 41-43 - 2 SEA DAYS & PISCO

TUESDAY - WEDNESDAY  - 2 days at sea.  Just the usual sea days but it's now nice enough to walk on the deck without a jacket.  Wednesday was formal so the singers and dancers performed.  They are a talented group on board for all 60 days and perform 8 times (shows are only 30 mins.).  Unlike on many cruise ships, this team does not have to do any other jobs so they have quite an easy life.  A couple doing a tribute to The Beatles performed in the theatre one night and the Explorers Lounge the next day.

A man was found dead a few decks below us.  The room steward checked the room after the "do not disturb" sign was on for a couple days and found him.  Quite a shock for her.

SAN MARTIN - The middle of nowhere - the ocean on one side of us and brown, desert like landscape on the other.  We're about 20 minutes from Paracas and 40 minutes from Pisco so have to take a Princess shuttle to town as that's the only transportation.  A lot of passengers left the ship this morning for a 2 night excursion to Machu Pichu.  They will rejoin us in Lima. 

We were here a few years ago so most of the shore excursions are to places we've already seen so it was a day on the ship.  There were about 20 vendors set up in tents on the pier offering the usual t-shirts, magnets, etc.  Thd most popular tent was the one offering samples of the local liquor Pisco.

PICTURES

Coquimbo and La Serena

DAYS 37-40 - 2 DAYS AT SEA, SAN ANTONIO (SANTIAGO) & COQUIMBO

FRIDAY & SATURDAY - It's getting a bit warmer, wind has died down.  The usual is going on.  There were 2 matinees by comedians we saw earlier in the segment - both were good.  All the entertainers have done at least 2 shows  - not sure if it's tough to get entertainers to some of the small ports we've stopped at or if it's just cheaper for Princess to bring on 5 or 6 people and have them do more shows.  We'll see what the next segment brings.  The good thing about having the same entertainers around for a lengthy time is that you run into impromptu concerts at the various lounges during the evening.  The Princess guest pop choir performed.  Quite surprisingly, there are almost as many men as there are women in the group.  Another Pub lunch.

The Captain who joined us in Punta Arenas is a big change from Captain Michele.  We never get interesting little updates during the day and we haven't seen him out and about.

Saw whales again.

SAN ANTONIO - This is a substitute port for Valparaiso which was the original stop.  Both are gateways to Santiago which is around 70 miles away.  The port info handed out by Princess was for Valparaiso so we don't even have a map of the area.  This is a busy cargo port and we must take a shuttle to the terminal as we're not allowed to walk on the pier.  We ended up just staying on the ship as everyone we talked to who did not have a tour booked said there was nothing to do.  It's Sunday so most shops are closed.  There were some handicraft tents set up but they were quite a walk and it was the same sort of goods we saw at the last stop.

This is the first day of our 3rd and final segment.  There are 2126 on board from 30 countries - US 1246 (59%), Canadian 482 (23%), Argentin 102, followed by Aussies and Brits.

It was Oscar night and the ship had a live feed in the Explorers Lounge and at Movies Under the Stars starting with the Red Carpet.  As we're 2 hours ahead of N.Y. we only saw about half of the show before hitting the bed just after midnight.

COQUIMBO - This is our last stop in Chile. Chile is the longest country in the world but very narrow.  Coquimbo is a picturesque city with small, colorful houses dotting the hillsides.  Some appear precarious as most of the house is sitting on stilt like supports.  The area seems quite poor but it is the gateway to La Serena which is a popular holiday resort located across the bay and a 40 minute drive from Coquimbo.

We wandered the streets.  Most of the shops are tiny , dark spaces with the same leather and wooden handicrafts.  Banks seem to be on every corner and dogs are sleeping on the uneven sidewalks.  School is back in session after their summer break.  Students we saw all wear uniforms.

PICTURES

1.  With the Captain
2 & 3 - Chacabuco

PUERTO MONTT & CHACABUCO - DAYS 34 & 35

PUERTO MONTT - Pop. 212,000, Chilean peso.

Another tender port and another rarely sunny day.  Puerto Montt receives over 200 days of rainfall annually so we are lucky that rarely sunny becomes a reality in the afternoon.  It's warmer today but we head south tonight so it eill be cooler.  The tender pier is about a half hour walk from city center but there is a craft market along with a veggie and fish market closer.  There are wool, leather and wooden goods for sale. 

The city was settled by Germans.  There are 2 active, although dormant, volcanoes in the area.  Tourism is the big industry but salmon farming has become important to the economy.

Our popular Captain leaves us today.  He does a great job of PR for Princess.  We see him all over the ship and he takes part in a lot of the activities. All the passengers will miss his cheerful updates every day at noon. 

CHACABUCO -  Pop.1,243, Chilean peso

Another tender port but the last in this segment.  Still in the Chilean fjords. We're sitting in a bay surrounded by beautiful scenery.  This port was opened in 1991 after the eruption of the Mount Hudson volcano forced the closure of the main port 10 miles away.  They receive between 9 land 10 feet of rain annually which accounts for the green mountains.  It's a gray day but we're hoping the low clouds will rise so we can get some pictures.  There is nothing close to the tender pier and it takes the tender, a shuttle and then a bus to get to the nearest town so we decided to spend the day on board.

Wine dinner tonight.  One white and 5 reds paired with dishes like seared ahi tuna.