January 9, 2011

Sunday January 9, 2011

Puerto Limon, Costa Rica

Went on shore after all. Barbara, one of the ladies at my dinner table wanted company, so we took a nice walk into the town. Since it was Sunday, all the shops were closed except the souvenir places. We wandered through a nice park, took a few pictures and then stopped for a beer before returning to the ship. It was a pleasant break.

Monday January 10, 2011

Today we went through the Panama Canal. Started through very early in the morning. I didn't get up for the beginning because I've been through there once before. Once I got up, I watched some of it while in the gym on the tread mill. The gym is at the front of the ship, so I had a wonderful view.

Tuesday January 11, 2011

To day was a sea day, so I partook of the usual activities on board -- gym, computer, dancing, reading, etc.

WednesdayJanuary 12, 2011

Manta, Ecuador

This morning around 2 a.m. We crossed the equator. Usually a big fuss is made of the occasion, but since most of us were in bed and asleep, we were only sent a certificate to remind us of this

Today, I went ashore with my niece Mary and her husband Jim. We did as lot of walking – visited the museum, and a beautiful church, walked along the beach, shopped at the market. It was very hot and I was glad to return to the ship and have an afternoon nap.

January 13, 2011

Sea Day

Today the second “Formal Night” of the trip was held. It was so exciting to see all the people dressed in their finery. After dinner, a “Dance With the Officers' Ball” was held. Unfortunately the room where it took place has a very small dance floor and as usual, there were a lot more women than men who were eager to dance.

Friday, January 14, 2011

Callau, Peru

We will be at this port for 2 days. It is the port closest to Lima. Some of the guests on board went to Machu Pichu. Because of its high altitude, I chose not to go – I have enough problems with my lungs to risk going there. Shuttle buses took us from the dock, either to Miraflores, the Indian Market or to Lima. I chose Miraflores, because tomorrow I have a tour of Lima. I went with Barbara again. We traveled along the beautiful coastline and enjoyed the lovely clean scenery. We were dropped off at a large mall and spent most of our time window shopping. The weather was warm but not overly hot – very pleasant. This part of the country is desert-like and receives very little rain. Because of the proximity of the Andes Mountains, the rivers coming therefrom provide sufficient water for the irrigation which keeps this cities many parks look so beautiful.

Saturday, January 15, 2011

Lima Peru

“Sol” the travel agency with whom I booked this trip, belongs to an organization called “Vacations.com”. Today they provided those of us who booked with their affiliates, a complimentary tour of Lima with a lovely lunch included. We left the ship by luxurious bus coach around 9 a.m. Again we drove on the road which follows along the coastline for about 30 – 40 minutes until we reached the city center. We were all so impressed at the cleanliness of the city. Lima is a very large and old city. We could see the Spanish influence in the architecture. A lot of the old buildings in the city center have lovely and ornately carved, closed in balconies made of wood.

We were taken to visit a beautiful old home which has been owned by the same family since it was built hundreds of years ago. The ceilings and walls are covered with beautifully carved wood and throughout there is tile work with tiles brought over from Spain at the time the house was built. The windows had no glass panes, just wooden shutters. Since there is little rain here and the temperatures are moderate, they can have open windows year round and no heating system. Some of the furniture as well as the candelabras are the originals imported from Spain or France many years ago. The owner is a woman in her late 90's. She lives alone in her apartment and a son and daughter live in their apartments with their families in another section of the house.

I particularly liked the open-air courtyard in the center of this building. It was filled with beautiful plants and looked very peaceful.

When we left here, we walked over to a monastery which is also very ancient. I believe it was built in honour of St. Francis of Assisi. In the ancient library, we saw some of the manuscripts that the monks had hand written hundreds of years ago. There are catacombs in this building, but the tour only showed us the entrance to them. I guess I'll have to wait until we reach Rome to see the catacombs. (That's one of the tours I have booked for Rome).

Sunday January 16 – Wednesday January 19, 2011

Sea Days

We have 4 sea days until we reach Easter Island, so I have time to enjoy the activities on the ship. A typical day for me is as follows:

8:00 a.m. Mass

8:35 Breakfast at the Lido Restaurant (Buffet Style)

9:00 Ballroom Dancing Class

10:00 Gym time

11:15 Beginning Bridge Lesson

12:30 p.m. Lunch

1:30 Computer Workshop

2:30 Free Time (I'd like to sunbathe but it's rather cloudy and it's very windy)

4:00 The Hal Chorale – yesterday we started up a choir and we will perform a couple of times for the remainder of the passengers.

7:00 Dancing with the dance hosts (gentlemen who have been hired to dance with the ladies who have no partners)

8:00 Dinner in the dining room

10:00 Live show in the theater

10:45 Dance to live music

There are many many other activities to choose from for those who have other interests.

I must post this now. You will probably all be wondering why nothing appears on my blog. My social life is interfering with my blog log.