Colon

Day 7 of 15…. Colon Panama

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Thursday April 27, 2023

Day 7 of 15….Welcome to Colon Panama, the gateway to the Panama Canal on the Atlantic Ocean

Arrival 9am……Gangway Open 9:30am….All Aboard….5:30 pm

Yesterday, Cartegena Columbia…… Today, Colon Panama…….. Tomorrow, The Panama Canal….Its a very busy 3 days. Today our excursion will be the Imax Theater production of The History of the Panama Canal. We headed to the Aurora Theater again to check in and get our number and colored sticker. We waited to have our number called and then proceeded playing follow the leader again down to the 4th floor to get off the boat. We had docked this time at the dock. It was a very short distance to all the buses.

There is our dock, and all the buses lined up waiting for us.
The red bus in the middle will be ours.

We looked for the guy with a sign with our Tour Number. On the way we stopped and had that Quick picture taken again…..Ughhhh…..

OMG

Then followed the Guide to our Beautiful Red Bus. As we had come down the inlet to dock, we had seen all these warehousing looking buildings. We found out it is the Tax Free Zone. Colon is a Tax Free Port dedicated to re-exporting to Latin America and the Caribbean. It is the largest free port in the Americas and the 2nd largest in the world. Hong Kong is first. It covers approximately 130 acres. It is separated from Colon by a wall. As we drove by the many entrances, it looked like regular shopping streets inside. Each entrance is gated. Our guide said it is totally locked up every nite at closing.

The Gates of the TAX FREE ZONE

The guide we had this time was not the best. He had a very heavy accent and was difficult to understand. We also didn’t realize the Imax was clear on the other side of Panama, on the Pacific side. That was about 50 miles. We also didn’t realize until later that the back of the Imax was against the Canal. So, we now had about an hour drive across Panama from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean. It really was a very pretty country. Lots of Trees, hills, just like the states, some small mountains, Lake Gatun, the manmade lake they flooded to make the Canal. There were plenty of small homes, very poorly made, hidden in the landscape. The main highway was Route 9, a beautiful highway, 4 lanes in places that ran from Colon to Panama City.

Countryside and the Highway from Colon to Panama City
Lake Gatun….The man-made lake for operating the locks.

We arrived at the Imax to a very large modern building. There were many buses there, not only from our ship but many others. It is probably a main Tourist attraction coming out of Panama City also.

The Imax Theater 3 miles from Panama City

We entered and was given free popcorn and soda. It was a very well-made movie about the History of The Making of the Panama Canal. The Panama Canal was constructed at the Isthmus of Panama in order to save ships from going around Cape Horn in South America, saving 8,000 nautical miles. The canal is approximately 50 miles long from Atlantic Ocean deep water to Pacific Ocean deep water. The French first attempted to build the canal but gave up. So many men died of Malaria and Yellow Fever due to mosquitoes. Finally, the United States took over and acquired the Canal from France in 1904 and it was completed and opened in 1914. In total over 25,000 men died constructing the Canal, mostly French. Now what we did not know, was behind this Imax was the 3rd set of locks, Miraflores Locks. There was a stadium seating viewing area that they did not show us. The next day as we went through the canal, I seen the back side of the Imax. Now I sure don’t know why they didn’t take us there. We headed back to our BRIGHT RED BUS.

Our Bright Red Bus and Tour Guide
Drivers seat with his hanging monkey friends.

The tour guide drove us all through the area. The Canal was owned and run the United States from 1914 until a Treaty was sign in 1977. It stated that the Panama Canal would be officially handed over to Panama Dec. 31, 1999. During the United States time they owned it, they had constructed many buildings. Office buildings, homes for the officers and their families, as well as hospitals etc. All these were given to Panama.

The Style of all the American Buildings. They were all given to Panama

Our guide took us past many of these buildings that are successfully being used today. We drove by the Corozal American Cemetary. This land was designated for a permanent cemetery in 1914 when the US opened the Canal. Citizens of over 70 nations are buried here, among them over 5000 Americans, Veterans and Civilians.

Rolling Hills of tombstones, in Corozal American Cemetary. 5,000 Americans buried their since 1914.

Then we headed towards Panama City. We rode on the Official Highway 1 that connects the Americas. We saw the Bridge of the Americas through the trees and then passed some apartment areas with graffiti paintings.

Bridge of the Americas….Highway #1 in the distance near Panama City
Apartment Buildings overlooking Highway #1

We headed for a little strip of land that ended in an area called Flamingo Island. It was a beautiful drive to the point. The ocean was on either side. Panama City was in the distance. So impressive with its tall buildings.

Flamingo Island in the distance
The Skyline of Panama City….This is as close as we got.

We drove all the way out there to stop at a souvenir shop and a bathroom break. lol. But it really was a pretty area. At the Souvenir shop I bought this cute little purse. I bought this purse for a purpose. I will write all about that the next time. Its worth a laugh.

Cute little Panama Purse.

Time to head back to the ship. We were pushing it for time. I heard comments being mentioned about how late we were. But remember……..We purchased this tour through Royal Caribbean. They wait for any tours that come back late. So I wasn’t worried. So back across Panama we went to Colon and our ship, The Radiance of the Seas. Another pretty drive back through the trees, hills, some mountains, Lake Gatun to Colon.

…..The POLICIA PASSED US BY….
Pretty red curtains on our bus. You don’t find that in the USA
There she is “Radiance of the Seas” “Home Sweet Home”

We finally got back, again tired and hungry. So off to the Windjammer for Dinner. We looked for Conmelia and Shane. As usual there they were. It is so good seeing them every day. Like seeing long lost friends. It was so good to sit down and relax in front of the windows and see the magnificent scenery that lays before you. Here we sit after a full day tour and are eating a wonderful meal before us, while looking out of the wall of windows from the 11th floor. Your looking at this magnificent view and think. WOW, Is this real? How Amazing life can be. We left port and are now traveling to Limon Bay near by. It is the entrance to the Panama Canal. We have to head out and wait for our turn to enter the canal in the morning.

Ships waiting in Limon Bay to head across the Canal.

Tomorrow, we will be entering the Canal and riding through 3 sets of locks to the Pacific side. It will take all day. This will surely be the highlight of the trip.

This is a map of the Panama City side of the Canal. The red flag is where the Imax was and the last of the 3 locks, Miraflores Locks. The long strip of land called the Punta Nature Center is where the driver took us. Panama City is on the right upper side of this photo. So tomorrow we get to stay on board, but it will be the Purpose for taking this Cruise. Our Passage all the way through the Panama Canal to the Pacific. It’s a once in a lifetime trip for us.

This was an actual license plate that we purchased.
“PANAMA CANAL……..HERE WE COME”

It’s Been 2 Years. Time for a Blog….Bucket List Time…….

w2bergen 1 Comment

I’ve been planning on writing our cruise blogs all summer.  It’s been nonstop 100-degree days.  It’s really getting old.  It’s a furnace outside.  Ironically, as I look at the last blog, it was over 2 1/2 years ago when we just had a very cold week.  It was down in the 20’s for a week.  We were all freezing.  Can we ever be happy?  lol

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We finally did our cruise last April 2023 that we had been planning since early 2020.    This cruise was taken from our Bucket List.  Our 50th Anniversary was January 14th, 2022.  We started planning a Cruise through the Panama Canal.  But as we all know, life was interrupted with the arrival of Covid.  Life as we know it shut down all over the world.   We were going to do it sometime between 2021and 2022.  It seemed 2022 still was not a good time to Cruise.  The ships were just starting to sail again and to many regulations were still in force.  We wanted this to be a nice relaxing time and not worry about testing and any Covid scares that might rear its angry head again.  We finally scheduled a 15-day Cruise, April 20-May 6 2023.  We chose Royal Caribbean as Ron; our good friend and Park Manager is a Travel Agent.  The ship was the Radiance of the Seas leaving from Galveston Island, arriving in LA California.   We would have to then fly home. 

RADIANCE OF THE SEAS

The Radiance of the Seas is an older smaller ship than the new ones they build today. This series of ships built at this time were known for all the glass. The elevators were all glass capsules, and the outside walls from the elevators were walls of glass. Its maiden voyage was in April of 2001, built at a cost 350 million. It is 960 feet long and cruises at 25 knots. It has 13 decks with a capacity of 2501 passengers and 859 crew. It was refurbished in 2016 and went through routine Maintenace in 2021. This ship did not have all the fun things for kids like the bigger ships of today. They did have mini golf, basketball court, and a small pool and water slide for the little kids. On our cruise there were only around 20 kids and babies on board. Also, it was during school time. So, it was nice not having many kids on board.

Our itinerary was designed to stop at 5 Ports, not including Galveston or LA.  1. George Town, Grand Cayman in the British West Indies 2. Cartagena, Columbia 3. Colon, Panama, travel through the Panama Canal 4. San Juan Del Sur, Nicaragua, and 5. Puerto Vallarta, Mexico.  What an exciting itinerary.  At each Port, we booked excursions through Royal Carribean.  Before we left, they gave us a change.  San Juan Del Sur, Nicaragua, was removed.  We were excited about that one.  We had booked a trip to a Hacienda by Lake Nicaragua.  We would have been served lunch by the owners.  It looked like a beautiful setting with mountains in the background.  It was replaced by Huatulco Mexico.   We asked later and was told it was a political issue. 

As time went by, we picked our excursions online.  Royal Carribean creates an online site for your individual account.  You can see and book all the excursions with descriptions and costs.  You check the times you arrive and depart, the costs that you incur by your ability to purchase souvenirs, special meals, and drinks and anything else.  The ship takes no cash or credit cards.  Everything runs through your account.  On board they also have their own special ship internet.  It is the daily itinerary of activities on board.  Believe me, there is no dull moment.  Plenty to do.  We decided to pack as light as possible.  We didn’t want to pay to check bags.  It is also so much easier to check in on board and also easier to get off and through Customs when the trip is over.  So we each had 1 carry on size roller bag.  Also 1 beach type bag, qualifying as a purse. 

Finally the day came to leave.  We had friends take us to Galveston.  We left around 6am and arrived around 1pm.  We missed most of the crowd boarding the ship that late. It was a breeze getting through.  We checked in, showed our passports, received our Sea Pass cards (Ships Credit and ID Cards).  You need these anytime you buy on board, and always when you exit the boat.  We purchased lanyards to wear onboard.  Now the pictures begin. 

They had a photo op set up in the boarding terminal.  They took lots of pictures through out the cruise. They post them daily, and you picked them out later during the trip at the photo lab.  All 8x10s….so hard to choose.  The rooms weren’t ready for another hour or two, so we went to the Windjammer Buffet. 

Food Islands of the Windjammer
Breads and Pastrys…yummmm
Formal Dinning Room, 2 levels

This will be our most favorite place on board for the next 15 days.  Islands and Islands of food.  Main dishes, Side dishes, all kinds of breads, a whole island of fruit and desserts.  Just amazing.  …….ALL FREE….  There is also the Main Dining Room for the Sit-down dinners.  But we don’t like to dress up, we prefer buffet style.  We filled our plates and found a table near the windows so we could watch the people still boarding and watch the skyline.

Rich on our Balcony as we were leaving Galveston
Very comfortable and spacious. Love seat on the left, TV on the right

Finally, the rooms were ready for us. We found ours and unloaded our clothes. This would be home for the next 15 days. We chose a Balcony Room. It was a fabulous balcony as it was double wide due to the location on the ship . Unfortunately, when Ron booked it, there was only 1 left. It was the very last room on the Starboard side. It was the farthest away from all activities. It seemed to get farther and farther as the days went on. The Windjammer Buffet was above us, but we had to walk to the middle to get to the elevators. But on the other hand, as much food as we ate it was probably a good thing…. lol… So now we are aboard, we have eaten, the boat is preparing to leave. Time to explore this ship. We have 2 days at sea before we arrive at Georgetown, Grand Caymen, British West Indies. So I will leave you with a vision that never got old. This picture was taken in the very back of the boat. We could fill our plates in the Windjammer, and head outside to the tables and chairs. We sat their for hours, during the days, when we went through the Panama Canal and watched so many sunsets……Next Stop Georgetown Grand Caymen.