PCL2
NCL2 Day 8: Costa Rica
We docked in Puntarenas, Costa Rica, but immediately booked a private excursion to see the countryside. The van carried 9 passengers, a driver, a guide (Larry) and a guy who seemed to be along for the ride. We visited a monkey farm where the spider monkeys were wild (it is illegal to hold a monkey … Continue reading
NCL2 Day 5: Colon, Panama
We had a day in Colon, Panama, before we entered the Panama Canal. It has a reputation as being dangerous so we didn’t leave the port area. But what a port area! Cheap stores galore. Marlene was in heaven She got a basket full of sundries for $8. And a bottle of nice perfume for … Continue reading
PCL2 Day 8: Disembarkation and wrapup
Carl and I joined Bobbi and Patricia for breakfast for a final time together, followed by some goodbye hugs. Then we waited for our color (Gold-5) to be called. And waited. And waited. Seems there was a problem with the new facial recognition software in customs. We had been told by our dinner neighbor that … Continue reading
PCL2 Day 7: At sea
This was my first cruise with back-to-back days at sea since the transatlantic crossing (TC1). I enjoy days at sea, so there is no problem with having two of them in a row. It just means that I am going to eat more than usual (a fine beef bourguignon for lunch and mahi mahi for … Continue reading
PCL2 Day 6: At sea
This day at sea was very relaxing. I spent some time on the balcony, reading, but the main features were the 3 (count ’em – 3) trivia contests, the formal dinner, the Thursday Night Football game on the big screen under the stars and a late night at the casino. I also got some very … Continue reading
PCL2 Day 5: St Maarten
We docked near Phillipsburg but we never made it into the city so I will just say that we visited St Maarten. We had no excursions planned for St Maarten (or anywhere else) so we weren’t affected by the cancellation of all cruise excursions to the French side of the island. We later learned that … Continue reading
PCL2 Day 4: St Thomas, US Virgin Islands
I had a real breakfast, then Carl and I went down to participate in the morning trivia contest and noticed that Christmas decorations had been put up while we slept. These people never sleep. We did badly at trivia so we went ashore. The port area in St Thomas is like any other port in … Continue reading
PCL2 Day 3: At sea
Not much happens during a day at sea. In this case the “not much” consisted of eating, having a very poor pina colada by the pool, losing the rest of my winnings in the casino, doing very poorly at trivia (though, in my defense, I arrived late and teamed up with a couple who had … Continue reading
PCL2 Day 2: Princess Cays, Bahamas
Princess, like most other major cruise lines, has its own Bahamian island. This makes a lot of economic sense as there are no docking fees and all souvenir shops are run directly or indirectly by the cruise line. They have a captive audience for a day, while providing the illusion that you have visited the … Continue reading
PCL2 Day 1: Embarkation
Carl and I spent Friday night as guests of his friend Tom in Ft Lauderdale. Tom has a lovely mid-century house in a quiet neighborhood and a lovely new Mercedes S580 in the garage. He gave us a tour of Ft Lauderdale Saturday morning, which gave me a better sense of the city than my … Continue reading