Santa Marta, Columbia... a world apart

Our third stop on our cruise aboard the Norwegian Gem was in Santa Marta, Columbia. If our first two stops in Bonaire and Aruba were all about having fun in the sun, then Santa Marta proved to be a world apart giving us the chance to learn about and absorb some of the local culture and history.

We had a very windy arrival into the harbor as you'll see in the video below and you can get a sense of what its like on a smaller cruise ship when the wind's howling. Once ashore we headed for the Taironaka Archaeological Park that feature the ruins of a Tairona Indian city. One interesting thing about our shore excursion to the Park is that it mandated that folks over age 60 weren't allowed. I'm assuming that's because the trail through the Park could be considered challenging for folks who have difficulty walking over uneven terrain. Still, the age limit, which nobody followed, seemed crazy. And in fact, on our excursion, there were folks in their 60's and 70's who walked circles around those much, much younger. I'd never seen such a caveat on an excursion before and hopefully never will again!

Anyway, enjoy our visit to Santa Marta, founded in 1525.

Time to get happy...

I'd hazard a guess that a lot of you have been to the location featured in the video below. Its motto "One Happy Island" gives it away if you're at all familiar with this watersports paradise. I know folks who travel there every year to snorkel and dive its multitude of sites. I've been there twice now, both times via cruise ship and I keep thinking to myself that I need to come back for a week, or two, or three to take in all the fun activities this island boasts. Aruba is a special place, no question about it, and our time there this trip was way too short. Still, we left having had a blast and with memories that will slowly fade but hopefully not before we make a return to this special place! If by chance you haven't yet been to Aruba, put it on your bucket list. You'd be hard pressed to not have fun in a place like this...

Setting Sail from New York

I'm home now in beautiful, but cold (at least today) Colorado. The problem of taking a trip to the tropics in January is that, of course, you freeze when you get home. I guess that's the price of admission but I've got so many layers on I look like the Michelin Man, and quite candidly, its kinda hard typing on a keyboard wearing winter gloves. At least I'm not wearing mittens.

As I had mentioned in a blog during our trip from New York to San Francisco via the Panama Canal, onboard WIFI is expensive and problematic at best. I'm sure it will continue to improve but I wasn't able to use it to upload pictures or, heaven forbid, videos during the trip. So over the next few days I'll be sharing some short videos highlighting the different segments of our trip. Here are the first two. The first highlights our departure from the Big Apple (New York) and the second showcases our first port of call in Bonaire. So sit back, during these waning days of January, break out the sunscreen and tag along as we head for some exotic places.

Now if I can just get these darn gloves off...

Sailing out of New York

First stop: Bonaire

Almost home Part 2

Its been twenty days and 6,000 sea miles traveled to find me sitting in the San Francisco airport awaiting my flight home to Denver. Its only 1:30 p.m. and I've already had a long, long day. Got up at 4 a.m. to seek a good vantage spot from which to watch us sail into San Fran under the Golden Gate bridge. Its awfully dark at sea on a night without a moon but we could see the lights of San Francisco illuminating the clouds from a long ways out. The Golden Gate was somewhat subdued at 6 a.m. when we finally went under its glorious span but the San Francisco skyline more than made up for it. New York's is larger but the S.F. skyline is equally unique and distinctive in its own right.

There were lots of other early risers to keep me company. Temp was 52 degrees which is quite the switch (and wake up call all of its own...) from the 100 degree temps we experienced a week ago. As the sun came up it was clear but by the time we docked at pier 39 (I think) the ubiquitous San Francisco fog was rolling in and the Golden Gate was fading into a cloudbank.

We're looking forward to getting home and seeing our two pups who were on their own vacation at Canine Canyon up on Lookout Mountain outside of Denver. Our niece Samantha is nice enough to be picking us up from Union Station in downtown Denver after taking the train from DIA and it sounds like the weather at home is perhaps nicer than what we have here in San Francisco. Here's hoping!

Here's the skyline of San Fran as seen from the bay at 6 a.m.:

 and one of the Golden Gate as we passed through:

and one of my favorite travel buddy as she enjoys the joy of sub-60 degree temps for the first time in weeks (it wasn't hard getting into the hot tub but it sure was rough getting out!):

Can't wait for our next trip to who knows where!

Almost home...

Sitting in the Spinnaker Lounge on the thirteenth floor of the Norwegian Gem. Its 25 past five and the sun has just dipped behind the hills to the west. We're docked at the Los Angeles World Cruise Terminal which is actually in El Segundo and by a quirk of topography we do in fact have land to our west and not the vast blue expanse of the Pacific. The ship's engines have just started up and we are slowly pulling out after spending a coolish southern California day on land. As we make our way out of the harbor we are passing the U.S. battleship Iowa which has been restored and turned into a wonderful floating museum. The Iowa was the sister ship to the battleship Missouri on who's massive decks Japan officially surrendered ending the war in the Pacific in 1945. We had a chance to take the tour of the Iowa today and it is really something to see. As they say, Freedom isn't free, and these ships pay tribute to some of the blood, sweat, and tears that seem to be such a large part of humankind's legacy.

Our cruise is almost over with a stop in Santa Barbara tomorrow before wrapping up the following day in San Francisco. I find the end of vacations in general and this cruise specifically to be bittersweet. It will be nice to go home but there's a lot of things I'll miss as well. The warmth of southern climes is one. While sometimes oppressive with 100 degrees and humidity almost as high it did get downright hot but it's still preferable in my book to the snow and cold of a January day in Denver. Strangely enough I'll also miss some of the street vendors trying to press their wares upon us. Most, though energetic in their efforts, were good natured enough to accept a "No, gracias" without becoming too belligerent. The Mayan ladies and gents selling their colorful shirts and blankets I would have loved to have spent more time truly getting to know and interact with. The Mayan cultural and historical legacy is far too magnificent to be simplified into vendors selling trinkets in the narrow streets of Antigua, Guatemala. So too will I miss the smiles of Nicaraguans when making eye contact or making the effort to wish them a simple "buenas dias". They are among the poorest in Central America and their country is slowly opening to visitors after a very violent recent past. During our visit there was still a hefty military presence everywhere we went but the people were nothing but friendly and welcoming, at least in the areas we visited.

I'll also miss seeing a humpback whale's fin rise out of the blue waters off of Puerto Vallarta and Cabo San Lucas and watching their fin slaps before their giant tail flukes gave notice of their dive back into the deep. And how can I forget the magical site of dolphins playfully chasing the ship's stern wake?

So too will I long remember the gorgeous sunrises and sunsets that are so amazing at sea and strolling the top deck of the ship in the cool of the evening holding my wife's hand while gazing at stars twinkling from one horizon to the other.

I've mentioned in prior blogs that the sea conditions made for a rolling trip that might not be everyone's cup of tea. For me, the roll and sway of the ship made the journey a communion with the sea and what better way to be lulled to sleep at night than with the rocking of a ship underneath? Even seeing the seas sometimes angry, with spume blowing off 10 foot swells in 60 knot winds creating 'sea smoke', is a sight I'll always treasure.

Suffice it to say that there are many great memories of a trip such as this and I hope to share some in video form once home in landlocked Colorado. But before that I still have yet to experience the magic of sailing into San Francisco bay under the arches of the Golden Gate bridge before bidding a final adieu to the Pacific. I can hardly wait!

Ports a calling

I'm sitting on the back of the ship in glorious 80 degree Mexican sunshine. To my left is Cabo San Lucas and to my right is the open Pacific, Land's End, El Arco (Cabos' famous Arch rock), and Lovers Beach where within a hundred yards or so you can walk between the Sea of Cortez and the Pacific. Cabo is a magnificent site, as have been all the ports of call we've made in the last couple of weeks. Sailing from New York past the Statue of Liberty seems ages ago.

Just yesterday we were whale watching from Zodiac speed boats off Puerto Vallarta. Before that we snorkeled in Zihuatanejo. We've walked suspended bridges in the tree canopy and watched crocodiles in Costa Rica, seen active volcanoes in Nicaragua and Guatemala, and visited mesoamerican ruins and Spanish forts in Columbia. We took this specific cruise because it went through the Panama Canal so all the other stops were icing on the cake and have been a great sampler, a teaser if you will, of much of what Central America has to offer.

Cabo is a great vacation destination but perhaps a little (or a lot) too crowded for my taste. Both Cabo and Puerto Vallarta boast Walmarts which for me pretty much disqualifies them as truly exotic places to go. As I write this there are two other cruise ships (the Carnival Panorama and the Royal Princess) also visiting Cabo which means more than 6,000 tourists were added to those that flew in or arrived via private yachts. George Clooney, Jennifer Aniston, and our illustrious President all have humble (not) abodes on the hillside in front of me. The locals boast that in Cabo we're on the fun side of Trump's Wall and were more than willing to sell me a shirt saying so for just $20. It's good to have a sense of humor about such things which is something us Norteamericanos have perhaps forgotten. I haven't watched the news since we left but I'd hazard a guess I'll be having the chance to get all serious soon enough. Better to sit here and watch the colorful parasails drift lazily by. I'd hazard a guess that most of your daily worries take a respite when one is suspended several hundred feet in the air.

My wife spent months watching for a good deal on a cruise such as this. When she found it, it seemed too good to be true but too good to pass up. So kudos to my better half and her eagle eye for a great deal. She managed to get a 3 week cruise for what you might spend on a weeklong trip. If it wasn't for her I wouldn't be sitting in one of the world's prettiest ports reminiscing about a trip that will too soon be over but that will live on happily in our memories.

Land's End and Arch at
Cabo San Lucas

Thank you...

There are approximately 2,200 passengers on board our cruise ship and 1,070 staff and crew. That makes for a pretty pampered crew to guest ratio. Of course the paying guests only really interact with a very small proportion of the staff according to our individual priorities, be they bartenders, food servers, entertainers and spa/fitness center attendants. Most of the staff, as you might imagine, work behind the scenes and many never get up to the top 7 or 8 decks (out of 13) that cater to guests. If you've cruised before you're likely aware that most cruise ships are not American-registered and you may, if you've given it any thought, know that cruise ship workers are not governed by U.S. labor laws and standards. They are considered International workers governed by United Nations and other international maritime conventions. What this means is that these folks work pretty darn hard. From the staff we've talked to they work upward of 70 hour work weeks, 7 days straight, with no days off. They are also contract employees working anywhere from 4 to 9 month assignments. At one of the ship informational presentations one passenger (not me!) was brazen enough to inquire about wage rates and working conditions. The expected politically correct but innocuous response was that the wages were competitive with other cruise lines and high enough to obviously entice workers to leave family and friends behind in their home countries (staff on the Norwegian Gem seem to predominantly hail from Asia and India with very few from the good 'ole U.S. of A) for months, and even years, at a time.

I'm sure if I were from an impoverished town or city in the third world the opportunity to work on a cruise ship serving very wealthy (by comparison) guests is an opportunity too good to pass up. Still, similar to illegal immigrants working in the U..S., the reality is that most Americans wouldn't even consider doing the work these folks are doing day in and day out.

None of this is meant as a condemnation of Norewegian or the cruise industry. If it weren't for folks like me willing to sit back and enjoy the luxury that cruising offers the cruise employees would have very few comparable opportunities in their home countries. Still, the inequities do give one (at least me) pause as well as to motivate one to be as nice to, and respectful of, the hard working employees without who's efforts and sacrifice would see me stuck back in Denver shoveling snow. Now, where's that Employee Appreciation card?

The Canal

The Canal. For world travelers those two words conjure up only two alternatives. The Suez Canal was the earlier predecessor of this hemisphere's monumental engineering feat known as the Panama Canal. Started by the French and finally finished by the Americans, the Canal cut the 10,000 mile journey from the American east coast to California roughly in half. Costly in both lives and money to build the Canal is now run by Panamanians (imagine that) and sees ships from every corner of the globe make the trip through two sets of locks (one set, the Gatun locks on the Atlantic side and the Miraflores locks on the Pacific),.

Up to 60+ ships make the journey every day with fees assessed on either cargo capacity or weight. I'm not writing this blog to recite facts and figures but the lowest fee ever paid was 36 cents for a very ambitious swimmer who actually swam the length of the canal. Very large ships can easily pay several million dollars for the passage, and according to the guide on the loudspeaker at the Miraflores Visitor Center who we heard while on deck the Norwegian Gem, which we're on, paid $700,000.

We approached the Gatun locks (Atlantic side) before the sun was up. The ship's railings were standing room only and we were fortunate to snag a spot at the very prow of the ship. The locks raise ships about 85 feet into Gatun lake with locomotives guiding the ships through the tight quarters of the locks. We went through the old, original locks but there is a second set of locks that can accommodate what are called Panamax ships that are too wide to go through the original locks.

It took us about an hour to get through the first set of locks and then spent most of the day cruising a well marked channel through Gatun lake. There are crocodiles in the lake so swimming not really recommended! I've mentioned in a prior blog how hot it can get in these parts and Panama gives Columbia a run for their money where the heat index is concerned. The Gem's staff did a wonderful job of keeping us as comfortable as possible handing out ice cold face clothes, food, and fluid replenishment throughout the 6:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. session on deck. Still, by 3 p.m. many passengers were wilting in the heat but given this was our first, and perhaps only, transit of the Panama Canal my brave wife and I persevered until we passed under the Bridge of the Americas and sailed into the Pacific Ocean.

Our ship did not dock in Panama but not to worry. At 6:30 a.m. the ship's staff unpacked boxes of shirts and trinkets available for sail proudly heralding the Canal passage. Tip - at 2 shirts ( and very nice shirts at that) for $20 this was one of the better souvenir deals of the trip.

Not having any first hand knowledge of Panama our impression is that it is a very beautiful country. Gazing at the shore from the deck Gatun lake is as pretty in it's own way as many of the scenic lakes we've seen in the U.S. and Canada. Just never mind the crocodiles, 100+ degree heat index, and the fact that thousands of workers succumbed to Malaria and other tropical diseases during the Canal's construction.

Once on the west side you're treated to gorgeous views of Panama City's skyline which was as beautiful as any we've seen this trip. We bunkered (another nautical term for parking at sea) to be refueled as they had kept the ship as light as possible when transiting the Canal to avoid the ship from bottoming out during the passage. Fuel is heavy, 6-8 lbs. a gallon, and this ship swallows a lot of fuel. One of the most impressive sites, once in the open approaches to the Canal, was seeing dozens and dozens of ships bobbing in the Pacific swells awaiting their turn to transit. As the sun set to the west the ships turned on their lights creating a miniature city at sea.

Normally I'd have been attaching pics and videos with the blogs but the shipboard internet doesn't seem able to handle that. Rest assured that I'll add them once home. We'll be heading on up to Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Guatemala, and Mexico before heading up to San Francisco and home but for today I'll just sign off with Viva Panama!

Points South

In my first blog I mentioned some of the ports we're visiting. I had really no clue on some of these. Santa Marta and Cartagena for example, both in Columbia, are truly beautiful cities and look worthy of return visits. One thing we've noticed is that the skylines feature mostly skyscrapers of white that are stunning set against the dazzling blue of the sea and sky. One thing else they all seem to have in common is heat. What's that song - "hot, hot, hot!"? I know, I know - what part of visiting South and Central America doesn't include hot in the description but I foolishly assumed that in the middle of January the heat would have moderated. And maybe, by local standards, it has. If so, I can only imagine the toasty index in the summertime. Oh, and lest I forget, there's this thing called humidity that let's you wash your wardrobe five or six times a day. I'm heading to Spring Training in Arizona in a month and am looking forward to the desert heat but down here they take hot to a whole new level. Thankfully on the ship there's usually a sea breeze to help but once on shore all bets are off. Even the locals look like an advertisement for a sauna or steam room company and they live here. God bless them, and I swear, I'll never complain about a 'hot' July day in Colorado again, at least for another 6 months.

There is so much to see and do in every port we can only scratch the surface. We're doing guided shore excursions since my Spanish, to my chagrin, is right up there with my Mandarin or Russian. In many Caribbean islands the locals speak English almost better than we do but that wasn't the case in Columbia. Even in the museums and other tourist spots the signs were primarily Spanish-only and our guides spoke English in a very colorful manner. My only complaint, if I have one at all, is that we can't spend enough time doing and seeing everything we want. Somewhat sadly, many of our fellow Americans seem to have short attention spans when it comes to absorbing the tour guides information, but to give them credit that may be in part to their being slowly broiled under the not-quite-equatorial sun. Most give a token effort at paying attention before seeking the solace of the air conditioned bus.

I'd peg the average age of the passengers on board in the late 60's to early 70's. We think that's due in part to the length of the cruise (20 days) as many folks still working for a living couldn't afford that much time off. With just two cruises under our belt my wife and I are definitely cruising novices with a lot of these folks counting their cruises in double digits. That's a lot of time spent trying to get your sea legs under you and perusing the fabulous buffet fare. I like this thing called cruising but how much time can you spend sitting on your luxury cabin's balcony or shopping for emeralds or rolexes in the duty free shop?

Sea legs. An interesting phenomenon. Our ship, the Norwegian Gem, being moderate in size compared to some of the cruise line behemoths out there, tends to sway back and forth, to and fro, with the motion of the sea quite a bit. We have some friends, Melody and Tim, up in Seattle, who we have tried to talk into taking a cruise. This would not have been the cruise for them. Given that its January in the Atlantic and Pacific OCEANS the wind has been blowing at anywhere from 30 to 50 knots which can get this boat rockin' and rollin' pretty good. And that's before alchohol. We like the up and down, side to side, motion of the ocean swells but if the first item you tend to pack is dramamine this wouldn't be the time of year to be setting sail in these waters.

You eventually do get used to the ship's motion and can actually walk a semi-straight line without visiting both the port and starboard railings. The crew, more sea seasoned than the passengers, surely must get a chuckle out of seeing passengers wobbling to and fro like penguins on sea ice. The disadvantage of course of getting your sea legs is when you once again set foot on terra firma where the motion of the sea seems to persist even though you're on solid land. I'm not much of a drinker but you'd think I was after seeing me stagger from one tourist site to the next under the influence of said sea legs.

Well, there you have it from another day sailing over the ocean blue. The winds in my hair, the suns in my eye, and the lunch buffet is calling my name. For the cruise aficionados out there you'll know what I mean when I sign off with "Washy washy!"

Where in the world

My, how time flies... Yesterday we transited ( listen to me being all nautical) the Panama Canal from east to west. Going through the Canal for us was the point of this trip. Lots of cruises visit one side of the Canal or the other but relatively few go all the way through.

We've been at sea ten days now and are halfway through our cruise. My apologies for not having blogged before this but shipboard internet is a wee bit pricey. We bought the cheap plan at $100 for 250 minutes and picked today to have it start. Of course if we had bought a more expensive cabin package internet would have been 'free' but that cabin would have cost thousands more.

So far we've made port at Bonaire, Aruba, Santa Marta (Columbia), and Cartagena (Columbia) before making our way through the Canal. We're heading next to Puntarenas, Costa Rica and then on to Nicaragua, Guatemala, Mexico, and north to the U.S. We're onboarding the Norwegian Cruise Lines Gem which is one of their medium-sized ships. It doesn't have the fancy ziplines, wavepools, and go carts of their larger ships but it's still very luxurious for this Colorado boy who'd prefer being in a tent in the high country as being put up at a Four Seasons. That said, we're being pampered and coddled like royalty and the crew and staff of the Gem are more than attentive to our every need.

From my limited experience cruising, this being only our second cruise, the bane of being shipbound is the potential lack of meaningful exercise compounded by food buffets just begging to add pounds and pounds to one's waistline. Thankfully my beautiful wife makes sure I'm up at O-dark thirty every day participating in stretching, yoga, spinning, TRX, and Pilates classes supplemented by poolside Zumba and aerobic-dance classes. And then it's time for breakfast... Just kidding, these classes and more are offered throughout the day (and night) wrapping up with 10 p.m. poolside dancing guaranteed to make you sleep like a baby. Please take note of the number of dance-oriented classes (aerobic, Zumba, Latin, country western, and many more). If this poor boy gets any more chances to swivel my hips or shake my booty somebody's going to have to rescue me. I'm moving parts and 'thangs' (as the instructors call them) I didn't know I had. And now that I've discovered I have them I'm not so glad I do. I'm sorta looking forward to going home just so I can stop shaking things that IMHO don't need to be shaking in the first place.

Of course there's all sorts of other entertainment from Broadway shows, piano bars, karaoke (if you've ever heard whale songs from the depths you have some idea of me doing karaoke), to casinos, craft classes and the opportunity to spend what little money I have left on some very nice, but very expensive, artwork.

Well, this has turned into a rather long blog, so I'll sign off for now. Besides, I've gotta head up to deck 12... the poolside barbecue just opened for lunch...

Here we go again...

So my last post was basically a Christmas card wishing everyone Seasons Greetings. Now it’s  barely the second day of 2020 and I’m already itching to get out of town and hit the road, or in this case, the sea lanes. My better half and I, just a wee bit tired of the snow and cold, are heading out towards sunnier climes courtesy of our diminishing pocketbook and one of Norwegian Cruise Lines floating resorts (AKA cruise ship). We’re departing from the Big Apple, New York City, and then steaming in all good haste due South through the Caribbean (with a couple of stops along the way) then transiting the Panama Canal before sailing north along the Pacific coast where we’ll finish up passing under the Golden Gate Bridge and into San Francisco. It’s no around-the-world jaunt but between NYC, Central America, and California it’s certainly still covering some extremes in terms of location, cultures, and temperament.

This being only our second cruise and our first time with Norwegian Cruise Lines (our first was with Royal Caribbean) we’re curious to see how we like the way they host a seafaring adventure. One things for sure, a little sun and heat in January can’t be beat.

They now offer shipboard internet access and while we’re planning on disconnecting from technology as much as modern man and woman-kind can I’m planning on blogging and putting up some video a couple of times so invite you to come along as we set sail on the high seas. Heck, I’ll even spring for the first fruity umbrella drink at the bar! Now, where’s that Dramamine...?