2022. Would this be the year that life as we knew it would return? I’m reminded of the old Abbott & Costello routine: “Niagara Falls, slowly I turned, step by step, inch by inch…” It seems that’s the way it went. After so many months of calculating the infected and the deceased and the horrific toll on family and friends, imperceptibly, things started to improve. Masks became optional or not required, venturing out for things other than essentials or health care was increasing. Slowly, the world was finding a way to deal with the worst of COVID and preparing to battle the variants. While the severity of these variants has not equaled the initial onslaught, they nonetheless, can be dangerous, especially to those with compromised immunity. The medical community, it seems, has been busy keeping up with emerging variants and has had vaccines available as each strain emerges.
Now that it was safer to travel, Rose and I had decided to go somewhere very different, Greenland. I have a fascination with countries in cold climates and Greenland certainly fit the bill. However, this was not to be in 2022. I never got a verified reason but we were booked on 2 different cruises going to Greenland and both were canceled. We were not able to find a comparable cruise. It seems Greenland was not on the schedule of sailings for 2022. So what do you do when your vacation of choice is out of your control and is no longer available? You go somewhere completely different, of course! We found a cruise through the Panama Canal that looked amazing. A passage through the canal and visits to four countries. It departed from Los Angeles and arrived in New Orleans with lots of sea days in between. The first stop was to be Nicaragua.
Apparently, there were problems in Nicaragua refereed to as civil unrest. It was deemed unsafe to go there. An extra day cruising the Pacific was welcome and we made the most of it. Next stop was to be Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. Once again, this was not to be. This time Mother Nature decided our fate. This was the year that a hurricane hit Puerto Vallerta head on. Our captain changed course and took us to the quaint seaside town of Huatulco (pronounced wah-tool-ko). I really had no expectations of Puerto Vallerta and this necessary diversion proved to be a happy surprise for me. One of the substitute excursions that was offered was a deep sea fishing trip which I immediately jumped on. Rose is not a fisher person so she opted to stay in town and explore, (translation) shop. As a child and young adult I often went deep sea fishing with my dad and granddad. It’s something I’ve truly missed as an adult. We arrived at the dock where there were two boats and 12 anglers. Each boat took half of us and we wound up on a boat with 5 women and 1 man. Some of the males on the other boat were surprised that so many women wanted to fish. Mexico has strict laws regarding what species can be kept when caught. Ahi were off limits but Mahi Mahi were legal to keep. I caught a 15 pound Mahi Mahi and bragging rights! At the end of the trip, our boat had caught 6 (1 per person), the other boat caught 0! One of the best excursions ever. The young man who would be considered the first mate worked tirelessly the whole trip. It’s apparently customary, the catch of the day goes to him for his family. It was well deserved.
Next stop Costa Rica which was everything you would expect a beautiful, tropical paradise to be. Jungles, beaches, magnificent wildlife and an unexpected rivalry between Costa Rica and Columbia over who has the best coffee! My excursion that day was “A Walk in the Clouds” which was a nature hike in the rainforest. Rose chose an excursion with an exhibition of local culture, dancing and crafts.
Now on to the highlight of the cruise, the Panama Canal.
The beginning of the canal passage started early. I was on deck at 6:00 AM and had a good viewing spot. The passage took around 10 hours and was fascinating. Watching the locks raise and lower so that massive ships can pass through is an engineering feat almost impossible to believe. I was on deck at 6:00 AM to make sure I had a good viewing spot. The entire passage is quite slow and takes between 8 to 10 hours but what an experience! Passing through the locks and seeing how they raise and lower is almost impossible to believe especially dealing with the size of the ships that traverse the canal. This is all accomplished not by the captain of our cruise ship but by a pilot who boards the ship, takes control and safely guides it through the canal. At some points it seemed as if we would be stuck inside the canal, the walls appears that close but that was never a possibility. The pilots are incredibly well trained and proficient. The actual distance through the canal is approximately 50 miles with beautifully diverse scenery. This cruise definitely deserves to be on a must experience list.
Our passage through the canal was unforgettable especially when you realize what used to take approximately 5 months has been reduced to around 10 hours.
With control of our ship back in the hands of our captain, our next and last stop is Cartagena, Columbia. Since historically, Columbia produces the highest quality emeralds, Rose and I planned an excursion to the Emerald Museum. The presentation was extremely interesting. We were told real emeralds always have inclusions. The value is in the intensity of color and the deepest green emeralds come from Columbia. The museum had samples of Emeralds from all over the world ranging from pale green to deep green. At the conclusion of the tour, we were each given a small sample stone and then let loose in the shop. I think this was the only time Rose didn’t buy something. In addition to seeing and learning about emeralds we were taken to Castillo de San Felipe de Barajas. Built by the Spanish is the mid 1600’s it was so well constructed, despite numerous attempts, it was never taken. Last stop of the day was Port Oasis which is part bird and animal sanctuary, part souvenir shop and our way back to the ship. There were the most brilliantly colored birds I’ve ever seen. Parrots, flamingoes, peacocks, toucans, ducks and many others along with Sloths and anteaters. Unfortunately, I was unable to get any photos of the emeralds and the birds but I did get the Castillo, and the anteaters.
Columbia was the last stop on this cruise but since the cruise was ending in New Orleans, we did have a mini vacation in the Big Easy before heading home. And so our 2022 adventure came to close with high hopes for the new year. To be continued…