Jinxed myself

 

First off, this is a photo taken on my balcony one evening - the fog so thick, I couldn't see beyond the railing! 

After telling you all that I never get sick on a cruise ship and despite my preparations to avoid it, my luck ran out. I was tired after the visit to the zoo in San Diego, and turned in early that evening. I woke around midnight feeling absolutely horrid, with an extremely sore throat, chills, and a cough. It had come on quickly, I had been sneezing that evening, but otherwise felt fine. I took some Buckley's cough syrup, a Tylenol cold and flu tablet, and a wet wash cloth. I slept off and on for the rest of the night, waking myself with my coughing, and using the wash cloth to cool off my face and chest. 

By morning, the fever was gone, but my throat was still quite sore and the cough definitely lingered. I had brought Covid tests with me, and while the test was negative, I decided that I'd avoid leaving my cabin as much as possible. Whatever I was suffering from (and I do think it was actually Covid) was something I hoped not to share anymore than I likely already had. 

When my steward, Jerry, arrived mid-morning to clean the cabin, I stepped out onto the balcony. It was a cool morning, about 16C/60F but sunny. I heard Jerry bustling about the room and suddenly he appeared at the balcony door telling me it was too cold outdoors and insisting I come inside. I really didn't mind it and the fresh air was lovely, but I didn't argue.

I spent the rest of the day, mostly dozing off and on, with the balcony door open to allow the fresh sea air to come into the cabin. 

The following morning, I needed something to eat (I hadn't felt like eating the day prior), so masked up, and went to the buffet to grab some breakfast. Had I been thinking the evening prior, I could have had a Continental breakfast delivered to the room in the morning. 

My sore throat had disappeared by then, but I was still coughing and feeling very tired. That day and the next were both sea days so I continued to stay in my cabin, spending time on the balcony, watching television, knitting and napping. I actually watched a movie,  "Table 19", a comedy about a group of misfit guests at a wedding. I quite enjoyed it. For meals, I continued to mask up and attend the buffet shortly before it closed for each meal to avoid crowds. 

Passing the coast of Northern California.

Sunrise photo on a sea day.

Because I had been napping during the day, I found myself awake at night. The second last night, I heard the sounds of birds outside - again, my balcony door was open slightly for the fresh air. I wish I could have gotten a photo or a video (perhaps reader David would have been able to identify them). There was flock of them, flying in a V pattern, that appeared entirely white and ghostlike due to the ship's lights. The sound was a trill that I did not recognize, and it seemed to me they were migrating south. It was eerie to hear and see them in the middle of the night. I'm not certain how far off shore we were at the time, but I have to assume they were quite far out to sea.

By the third day, I was feeling much better. I did venture out, with my mask in place, to stop by the knitting group in the morning to say so long and safe travels to the group. Similarly, that evening, I met a few of the solos outside the dining room to do the same. I stayed just a few minutes with both groups. I had tested again that day, with a negative result for Covid, but didn't want to chance spreading my germs.

By embarkation, I was feeling almost normal, just a bit of a cough remained and I continued to wear a mask in public. I was scheduled to leave the ship at 9:15 a.m. on Friday, with a booked shuttle to the airport. We were off a little early, and I waited outside for a few minutes for the shuttle to arrive. Another of the solos, Edlinda was also taking the shuttle to the airport, and we spent our time chatting. We were all dropped at the same doors at the airport and I made my way down the halls to the WestJet gates. I was in line for the gates to open for about 45 minutes, as they open three hours prior to the our flight. 

Of course, the flight was delayed about 90 minutes before we were up on our way to Calgary. There I went through CBSA quickly. However, instead of being directed to my next gate, I was sent out into the main airport. This meant I had about a 10 minute walk to security for re-screening before I made my way to my gate. The flight was scheduled to leave about 8 p.m., giving me plenty of time for a bite to eat. Then, of course, the flight was delayed about an hour. By the time I picked up my luggage and grabbed a cab it was close to 11 p.m. It was a long day, and I was ready for a good night's sleep.

Despite falling ill, I enjoyed the cruise very much. I met some wonderful people, some of whom I expect to keep in touch with going forward. Who knows, we might even meet again on a future cruise.

Just as a tease, I'll let you in on a secret. I have another trip booked, not a cruise this time, and I'll share more in a few weeks. :)

Visiting Victoria

We arrived before dawn in Victoria. No surprise there as the distance from Seattle is a mere 66 nautical miles. I'm sure the ship did circles in the ocean for much of the night. I truly appreciated having the balcony for the early mornings. No need to get dressed before I headed out for the sunrise photos!

After we were cleared to disembark, I stayed onboard until later in the morning. My plan was to walk to Fisherman's Wharf for lunch at Barb's Fish and Chips - yes, please for halibut. Since I had time, I went to the Knitter's and Knatters group. There were six of us that morning; Diane, Catherine, Carol, Helen, Bree, and myself. We were set up in the Doubledown bar next to the casino and the stale smoke was evident. Diane took charge and got permission for us to move to the Symphony dining room - more space and a large table to set out our supplies.

Carol had no plans for the morning, and asked if she might join me in Victoria. Of course, and we made arrangements to meet at the gangway after dropping our projects in our staterooms. Well, best laid plans and all, there are two gangways so we missed each other. I had waited about 15-20 minutes when I decided to head out on my own. She did catch up with me after I'd arrived at Fisherman's Wharf.  Funny story, I mentioned my destination to another, non-Canadian passenger and was informed that Fisherman's Wharf is in San Francisco. :) 

The wharf was a short walk from the port, winding along Dallas Road. At the wharf are the private houseboats, as well as several businesses; mostly restaurants and a couple of gift shops. 

There are public walkways between the length of the houseboats, but these are private homes. 

One can, and I did, walk towards the inner harbour where I could watch the floatplanes start their journeys. It's been over 40 years since I left Northern Saskatchewan, but I still find great joy in seeing and listening to the sound of small aircraft.

Back on the board walk, we spotted these manniquens on a balcony keeping watch over the tourists below.

Another favorite was this sign: beware of log!

Carol had caught up to me and when I was finished with photos we headed to the order window for Barb's Fish and Chips. We both ordered the one piece fish and chips, along with a drink and were handed a pager. It wasn't a long wait before our food was ready, and we carried our trays over to a picnic table close to the water to eat. Oh, it was a good as I hoped, the batter crispy, the fish fresh, and so very tasty. We did have a few pigeons keeping an eye out for fallen bits of chips, but neither of us shared.

Carol is from Ohio and recently retired, an enthusiastic and prolific knitter, and was also travelling solo. I invited her to join the group for dinner, but she had other plans for the evening. We parted ways back at the ship, and after a short nap, I took my knitting to the aft deck for a cup of tea.

Next to us in port was this National Geographic cruise ship. I took a quick look at their website and while the itineraries look amazing the cost is way beyond my means. On the other hand, a smaller ship would allow the passengers views and opportunities to explore that are not available with the large cruiseliners. Perhaps I need to start buying lottery tickets.

Sail-away happened late that evening, after dinner so I have no photos. I met with eight of the solo/singles group that evening for drinks and dinner. No photos of my food this night, but I did try vegan ice cream for dessert; blueberry and it was good.

Next up - Day 4 - San Francisco

Puerto Vallarta, Mexico

I had no excursion planned in the port, and though I did leave the ship, I didn't spend much time off of it. However, that day I got in over 22,000 steps - just from moving around the ship for various photo opportunities!

I woke about 6 a.m., as I sensed a change in the movement of the ship. I grabbed a quick breakfast at the buffet and headed up to deck 15 to eat. A woman stopped by the table as I was eating, and I learned she lived in a community that my older brother had lived in for many years. He had left before she arrived, but she had heard his name. Small world!

My first sighting of Puerto Vallarta, still dark at the time. After breakfast I headed to the front of the ship for the sunrise.

The sunrise was pretty, but not as nice as the ones at sea. I didn't stick around to watch as the sun climbed over the hills.

The big attraction in Puerto Vallarta was the Walmart store. I'd heard several other passengers talk about making a trip to the store while they were in the port. Especially among those who were on the World Cruise (111 days). 

The store is literally down and across the street from the pier. I decided I would join the parade of passengers when the excursion crowds left the ship and look for a couple of items.

While I had thought I might walk or take a cab to the Malecon boardwalk, I knew that it would likely be very busy, and full of vendors. As I've mentioned previously, I'm not enthralled with being swarmed by the vendors so that idea was quickly rejected. One of the other single/solo members did check it out and said it was very busy so I'm glad I made the decision.

I headed off ship about 8:45. I laughed because the exit from the ship led through the duty free shop (this is often the case in Mexico) and several other shops, before one can reach the busy sidewalk. I did notice one shop in the area that I would stop at on the way back.

The street to cross was very busy, and at least a couple of vehicles took the traffic lights as mere suggestions. Most, however, did stop on the red light for pedestrians. I stayed on the outside away from the traffic and was able to safely cross. 

Walmart was....interesting. It was clear the farmacia was the most popular section and many of the shelves were well picked over. Other areas of the store had very limited selections, and some sections made me think of an old hardware store where parts and pieces of items are placed willy-nily on the shelves. One thing they had mountains of were candies and potato chips.My only purchase was a small tube of toothpaste as I was running low. 

I left the store and walked over to the nearby mall, however it wasn't open until 11. I headed back towards Walmart, as I'd noticed a small cafe (VIPs) and decided to stop in for a cup of coffee when I saw the "free WiFi" sign on the door. I ordered a cup of coffee and a pastry - basically a croissant with chocolate inside. The coffee was amazing and the pastry simply delicious! I used the free WiFi to call D before checking in on FB, my blog, and Instagram. I finished off my visit by catching up on the local (Canadian and Saskatchewan) news while enjoying my coffee refill.

On the way back to the ship I did stop at the Casa Mexican store and purchased the last of the gifts for my children. For C, I found four small bottles of hot sauce, and for D, three small bottles of Mexican vanilla and a glass dolphin. Something interesting happened there; the clerk told me the total was $44 USD - which seemed a bit high, but I couldn't see the screen. The clerk tried running through my Mastercard a couple of times and it wouldn't process. The second clerk came over and said something to her, quite sharply, and she re-ran it again and this time it went through. I glanced at the receipt and noted it read $34 USD. I suspect she was trying to put in the higher price to obtain $10 from the till for herself but Mastercard credit cards don't allow for cash back. 

I wandered around the ship for awhile, dropped off my purchases at the stateroom, dropped off a book at the library and chose another easy read, and went to the gym to stretch before going for lunch. I had been stretching each day, most often in my stateroom, but I chose the gym since there is a scale. Happy was I when I stepped on the scale to learn that I hadn't gained any weight on this cruise! After lunch I headed to Deck 7 to walk, read, and take photos.

The brown pelicans were predominant in the port. Always keeping an eye out for their next meal.

I often take photos, not necessarily knowing what I'm seeing through the lens. This is a ship from Vidanta Cruises, the first Mexican luxury cruise line that debuted in April 2022. Now that takes some courage, starting a new cruise line in the midst of what was still a pandemic. There isn't a lot of information on-line but it appears the 540 passenger ship sails along the Pacific coast of Mexico.

Looking towards the city, I noticed these workers on the top floor of the building. It looks to me that one of them is taking a photo of us.

I had noticed at the port shops, a ferry station. These two were coming and going at the same time. I've no idea where they went or where they came from. If I were to return to Puerto Vallarta, I'd probably consider the option.

There was never a time without some traffic on the water nearby.

We had company in port too, when the Royal Caribbean ship pulled into the pier nearby.

All aboard time was 4:30 p.m. I stayed on the starboard side of the ship to watch for latecomers. These fellows weren't late, but I was surprised to see the bicycles. I've never seen that on a cruise before, but it's not a bad idea if one enjoys biking. No line-up for a taxi!

We did have one late arrival. At about 4:40 there was a call on the ship for one passenger and within a couple of minutes I saw him hustling on board with a bag full of purchases. I should note, that I saw many of the crew carrying bags of groceries on board as well - not from Walmart. They do get fed on the ship, but I'm sure there are foods they prefer that they'd find in the city.

I stayed out for sail-away and watched the pelicans.

The ship stirs up the water, and I'm sure that offers the birds good fishing.

I didn't have time to clean up before the singles/solos meet-up so I went as I was. After a buffet dinner a small group of us went to see Nathan Phan's show. A magician, musician, and comedian, he was fun to watch. I was back in my stateroom by 9 and asleep not long after.

Next up - a final post on "what did I do on sea days?".

Panama Canal - Part 1

This will be a photo heavy post, with explanations as I add the photos...so a long post. It was a long day -  I was awake at 6:10 a.m. and after a quick breakfast, I was outside on Deck 16 not long after.

Our transit was through the old locks which are smaller than the new locks that were opened in 2016.  Princess has only two ships that can transit the old locks, the Island and the Coral.

I didn't make it in time for the sunrise - this would have to do. We were waiting out in the Atlantic Ocean with a large number of other vessels. The transit normally takes from 8-10 hours, our transit took longer due to weather conditions later in the day.

 

The companies that own the vessels pay for the privilege of transiting the Panama Canal. The lecturer  mentioned that our ship, the Island Princess, would have paid a toll of over $360,000 USD for the trip. 

The pilot boat arrived carrying the pilot who would navigate the canal. The ship's captain has to relinquish control of his ship.

This boat brought the men who would be throwing and connecting the lines for the mules that assist with the movement of the ship.

But before we reached the first set of locks, the Gatun locks, we sailed under the Atlantic Bridge. Construction on the bridge was started in 2013, it was finished and open to traffic in 2019. A four lane highway connecting North and South America, it is 2820 meters (abt 1.75 miles) long, with a span of 530 meters (1738 ft), and a height of 212 meters (695 ft.). The Island Princess is 63 meters in height (204 ft.) We had lots of room to spare.

The pillars are massive - I liked the curvature.

For the first series of locks, I started out on Deck 7. I was leaning out over the railing for this photo.  The men in the safety gear were from the second boat. Their job was the throw/pull the lines to secure the cruise ship to the mules. The line-up of vehicles on the track are the mules.

This was taken while we were travelling through the locks, so I'm slightly out of order. You can see the lines that are attached to the ship. On the top of the mule are a series of lights, like traffic lights, that provide needed information to the pilot on the ship. There are also bells that chime quite frequently. There are two mules, one on either side of the ship running on what appears to be a rail system.

Here we were waiting our turn to enter the Gatun locks (after the mules were in place). The ship in the locks ahead of us is the Amadea, a German ship that has a passenger capacity of 904. In contrast the Island Princess holds 2200, though we had about 1700 passengers on board for this trip. I had moved from Deck 7 to the forward public balcony on Deck 11. While it was out in the sun, so quite hot, it truly was one of the best places to view the locks.

The water level had increased in the first lock (don't ask me how it happens) and the gate was opening to allow us to enter.

While the gates are opening wide, you can see the next set of gates ahead, and the hill that the mules would climb as we made our way into the next lock. The water would slowly rise in our lock to bring us up to the level you can see in the photo with the Amadea. I'm not an engineer, nor have any such aptitude so I'll just call it magic. I know it has to do with gravity and water flow and that's about it.

While we were in one of the locks, I went down to Deck 7 again, to get a photo of the wall. There wasn't more than three feet between the ship and the walls on either side. Obviously the connections to the mules are very important.

In this photo I'm on the port side of Deck 14. You can see the lock that allows ships to travel in the opposite direction to the left. We did indeed meet more than one ship as we transited this set of locks. 

I went to the aft of the ship, to capture this photo of the car carrier (the grey ship on the right) as it sailed towards the Atlantic Bridge. As you can see there is another vessel waiting to the enter the locks behind us as well.

We reached Gatun lake about 10:15 in the morning. I don't recall when we first entered the locks, but I know it was early than we had expected, probably around 8:30. In that time, we travelled just 1.2 miles.

At this point we were anchored for some time in the lake, so I took a break from the sun, and grabbed some water, and went back to my stateroom to relax for about an hour. I was able to watch our progress via the Bridge cam on the television.

We were travelling through the Culebra Cut. This is an artificial valley, created to cut through the Continental Divide in Panama. The valley links Gatun Lake (Atlantic), to the Gulf of Panama (Pacific).

I didn't take a lot of photos in the cut, but there were a number of these directional beacons that assist in the navigation of the canal. It operates 24/7 and while the locks have lighting the cut does not.

There was some evidence of soil erosion throughout the cut, and in some placed terraces had been built. I presume those were meant to keep the soil in place.

This is Titan, otherwise known as Herman the German, a 350 tonne floating crane. Built by the Nazis in 1941, it and three others were seized at the end of WWII. It is still in use, by the Panama Canal company for heavy lifts in the locks. I shudder to think what would require its use.

At the end of the cut, we found the Centennial Bridge. The bridge was opened in 2004, as the first bridge (we're not there yet) wasn't sufficient for the level of vehicular traffic. The clearance is 80 m (262 ft.) so not as much head room for the Island Princess.

By this time, it was nearly 1:30 p.m. and the tummy was rumbling. I headed up to the buffet for lunch and kept an eye out the window as we headed towards the second locks, Pedro Miquel.

And it is at this point, I'm going to end this post as it getting very long - Part 2 tomorrow.

Countdown - 27

I'm going to be one of "those" annoying people who will remind you each time I post how many more days there are until Christmas.  It's in my title!  I'm a bit of Christmas geek if you couldn't tell.

When I left off last week I'd mentioned I was working on a little snowman while watching television.  I finished that on Sunday, finished Eli's sweater on Monday, and worked on a pair of slippers for D and my cross-stitching for the rest of the week.  (I'm trying to insert these photos without a lot of white space, Blogger isn't being helpful 

at all!

I was quite annoyed when I pulled the pattern I used the last time I made her slippers because the pattern was no longer free.  I know that the creators deserve to earn from their designs, but it meant I had to look for another free pattern because the price of the first was more than I was willing to pay. These are called Cloud 9, because they're made from chunky blanket wool, and are incredibly soft.  I did modify the pattern to add a second sole.  D is hard on slippers, and wears through them quickly. I made the last pair in May of this year - hopefully this pair will last as long.

I did my grocery order through Walmart this week and while I'd prefer to use our local Co-op or Safeway they don't offer curbside pick-up.  One substitution was made, which I agreed to, and although I'd indicated I'd bring my own bags, everything came out in Walmart bags again.  Since this was a larger order, I've got more than enough for whatever purpose I can find. Perhaps I'll have to learn out to make a rug out of them!

After Walmart I stopped at Michaels (across the parking lot).  They started their Black Friday deals early, so I was able to pick up a number of items at 50-60% off.  In addition to ribbon, a ball of yarn, scrapbook paper, and some glue, I found a frame with a mat for a photo I took this fall and had printed a few weeks ago.  It's now hanging above my couch, and I love it even more (if that's possible).  

On the way home I stopped at Co-op to get meat as it's better quality than Walmart and though a little more pricey, it's worth it.  I must say, the best part of shopping on-line is that I don't wander the aisles and impulse shop.  Thursday I ran out to Pet Valu for cat litter - it was senior's day so it gives me a 10% discount, and I ended up picking up more bird seed there as well.  There was a bit of sticker shock with the latter, but with the discount it was a little better.  

Also on Thursday, I tackled another Christmas craft.  I had picked up a small sled at Value Village last week. This is it before I began working on it.  It's cute, but definitely not what I wanted.  

I removed the twine hanger, sanded it down a bit to get rid of any residue and then painted most of it with my gray chalk paint.  After that had dried I measured and cut a piece of scrap book paper to fit on the sled seat and the curved area above.  

With Modge-Podge (a glue) I added the paper, allowed that to dry, and then added another coat of the Modge-Podge on top to seal the paper.  Again, I allowed that to dry before adding the little berry garland to the edge of the base.  Finally, I replaced the twine and this piece now hangs in my main bathroom. I've decorated with blue, white, and red in there (towels, candles, a stuffed snowman, and a festive shower curtain with kittens in Santa hats).  This piece fits right in! 

Friday morning, I was up at 5 a.m., no particular reason why, just wide awake and ready to go.  C left for work about 6:30 and after a bit of blog reading, a chat with D, and an episode of NCIS New Orleans, I got busy.  I pulled out all the Christmas presents in the house (including one from D to Eli) and got almost everything wrapped. I haven't yet picked up the gift cards for my niece and nephew - I'll likely pick those up next week and finish wrapping then.  I also need to finish weaving in the ends of the yarn on my daughter's blanket.  I'll do that in the next few days while I'm watching television.  I have a storage room in the basement off the laundry room that Eli has never been in, so all the gifts have been hidden there. I'm not expecting he and D to visit before Christmas, but just in case they need to make a trip to the city for any reason, he won't likely find them.

I even got a start on the Christmas baking this week.  It helps I'm making less and fewer amounts.  First up is a cranberry lemon bar (with coconut). I always cut the edges of the pan before cutting into squares, so I know that it tastes delicious!  I also made 2 dozen sugar cookies to decorate.  I'll probably send these to work with C on the 24th to share with his co-workers, decorated of course.  I've stored these in the sun room because there is no room in the fridge freezer and wouldn't you know it, the temperatures are just above freezing for a few days!  The ambient temp in there is just on the cool side, but the floor is still cold, so I've tucked the goodies in a dark corner on the floor. I know they'll freeze again overnight.

Today has been a write-off.  I had some tummy issues last night, something I ate disagreed with me, so it was late before I was able to get to sleep and I was up several times in the night.  The cats woke me around 6:30 so I got up and fed them, before going back to bed.  D woke me at 7:30 when she called, we chatted for a bit, I went out and fed the birds, before lying down on the couch and sleeping again until 11:30.  I've been up for three hours now and still feel as though I've been pulled through a wringer washer backward.  Since I'm certain that is more information than you wanted, I'll sign off for the week with a photo my brother sent me of this morning's sunrise.

Have a great week everyone, take care and stay well!