QuattroRomeo

Today is a sea day and it is very windy outside. Lots of water on the Lido aft deck this morning. Attended the Captain's talk this morning where he and Tjalling were quite entertaining. Someone asked if there were any new Pinnacle ships coming out. The Captain said there was one in the works but it was taken over by Cunard, and will be the Queen Anne. He added that there are no slots available right now in the new build shipyard until 2028, and they are still exploring new technology for new builds.

Seafood spring roll was good, but could have used more sauce. Boston lettuce salad was very good. Tuna was great, onion rings were awful- skip those!- and DH liked his pepper pot soup and the liver. The Sacher torte was tasty but the tiny bit of whipped cream was kind of silly!

We were pretty tired after the heat of the day and just rested until supper at CO. Meal was very good tonight and they got busy early. One of the announcements onboard was that someone was celebrating a 100th birthday today! Never too old to cruise!!!

Today we were in Puerto Limon, Costa Rica. Another very hot, humid day. The dock is right downtown so no problem getting around. It has a huge shopping area in the terminal with competitive prices. We took a half day tour with a private company, Relax Day tours. It included a tour of a Del Monte banana plantation, Tortugero Canal boat ride, fruit stand, and beach with a great restaurant for lunch. Had a very tasty deep fried whole snapper and plantains. Lots of stops along the way to see things they spotted- 3 sloths for example. Good tour, but the minivan seating was tight.

Last night there was a new comedian, Cisco Duran. Quite different from the last one- Cisco will say anything! Pokes fun at old people, fat people ( includes himself), marvelled at how few black people HAL has, (he is one), compared HAL (favourably) to Carnival, etc. Pretty funny for the most part but will make some people uncomfortable. Don't sit in the front rows...l

Did a quick run to the Colon shops. Rather disappointing. A duty free place, 4 Embera Indian stalls, and a big mall with very few stores. Indian stalls were the best.

Had a quick dinner in CO: watermelon and feta appetizer, rockfish for the main (overcooked), and passionfruit mousse for dessert - very tasty:

Saw the crew putting the lifeboats back in position as we neared open water. On our way to Colon next.

Heading back through the locks, and under the bridge:

Walked around the ship a bit yesterday after lunch, only saw some watches on display by the shops.

Yes they had panama rolls at breakast, and I also noticed them outside on Seaview deck port side. I think they were at the bow on Deck 5 too.

Had the Central Park pizza for lunch at NY Deli. Way too hot up there. Surprised the cooks didn't faint! There was a display of Canal t-shirts and souvenirs on tables at the fwd end of Lido pool. Will see what's available in Colon.

We are now in the locks again, heading back. It was interesting this morning listening to Tjalling (Cruise Director) speak about the experience of the Zaandam and previous Rotterdam in Mar 2020 when they had to surreptitiously head through the locks at night with no lights on to get back to Ft Lauderdale. He was aboard the Zaandam. If you have read Cabin Fever, it was truly horrific for them.

Yes the excursions are back- at least some of them! Tenders headed out at different intervals as called, from deck A gangway.

Deck 5 bow open for viewing.

Extremely hot and humid in the Panama Canal today. Nice and sunny, clear views. The life boats on deck 3 are nicely tucked in for the locks.

Other than Half Moon Cay, which is by tender, the only other port we've done so far is Curacao. I didn't notice any there but there could have been; we docked pretty close to town. Of course it isn't close for scooters! The ship tour buses do come up close to the ship. Our tour was private so we just exited the security gate and waited by the side of the road. Lots of taxis there. There are some shopping tents right off the ship. Right now we are in Gatun Lake, and they are calling the ship tours one by one. Cannot do private ones from here.