Crossing the Equator

November 17 in Fuerte Amador

Tender going toward Marina

Fuente Amador is a marina where cruise ships anchor and transfer passengers to shore by the ship's tenders. It is at the Pacific entrance of the Panama Canal. It is 20 miles from Panama City center. There is a red and white tower on the end of the jetty which looks like a lighthouse. You can also see the International Bridge from here.

City from the ship

View from the cruise ship

Tender or lifeboat to load people to go ashore

Harbor light

Fuente Amador is a marina

Looking over the breakwater

From the tender of the dingy dock

Tender unloading

Not such a good day today. First of all, we were anchored out and had to tender ashore. I didn't expect that. I was worried about whether the scheduled tours would get tender tickets before us, so we started out early.

Ship at anchor

Port lecturer (green shirt) for directions

People at the ramp to help getting the right bus

Bus ready for passengers

We were supposed to meet Damian of Panama Private Tours for a tour of Panama City, but he never showed up. Bob was annoyed - I had forgotten to bring the page that I printed out with people's names and phone numbers so I could not get in touch with them. The Port Lecturer and others there at the port tried to help, but to no avail. When I got back to the ship I sent an email to the guy we were to meet and to his boss, and got one back from his boss in apology. But I didn't get my money back which I had paid in advance.

Restaurant from parking lot

I walked over to the restaurant to try to use the pay phone. We could have eaten on shore, or we could have hired a taxi to take us into the city. They have a set rate to go into the city but you should be sure to settle on a price before you get into the taxi. But I was so upset that I had no appetite, so we just went back to the ship.

Tender coming to pick people up

Pictures of the anchorage from the tender on the way back to the ship

Cargo ships at anchor

Large sailboat

Probably a tuna fishing boat with stern net boat

More ships anchored

Large cargo ship - Panamax?

View from the 12th deck outside the Crow's Nest - Fuerte Amador

Panama City across the water

Bob left the room, and went up to read in the library. I worked on the computer and took a picture of the Panama excursions so I could see what I missed.

From the TV - Panama City bus

Panama City on the room TTV

We both had lunch in the Lido separately - I have learned to actually look at the menu to see what there is to eat, because otherwise I have a full plate before I get to the good stuff. I had

Shepherd's pie

Desserts

We went up to trivia. We missed a trick question - What record did Babe Ruth break in 1928 (his own), and we couldn't remember which movie made the phrase 'babilicious' famous - I knew who said it but didn't know the title of the movie (Waynes World). We also missed that France blew up the Greenpeace flagship Rainbow. We guessed Japan. We did know who won the only medal for the US at the 1968 Winter Olympics (Peggy Fleming), the machine invented in 1902 by Willis Carrier (air conditioning), and the city that Matlock was set in (Atlanta). We also guessed correctly that the historic character that Jack Lemon played in a 1956 movie when he (Jack) broke his ankle was John Wilkes Boothe.

Before trivia, I had been working on the computer in the library so I had my computer with me and I showed one of the couples that we had trivia with the picture that I had taken of them on the tender back from San Blas. They asked me to send it to their daughter - they didn't want to pay for the internet themselves and didn't think they could get pictures on their ISP.

For dinner the menu was Dutch. Bob had the

Dutch Shrimp Cocktail

Dutch Pea Soup, and Gebakken Zeefong which was Dover sole. They gave him a special fish knife. I had

Chilled Blackberries Soup

Carrot Salad with Cumin and Orange Dressing, and

Gebarden Zendeborst (roasted duck)

We both had the

chocolate fudge sundae

for dessert. Our towel animal was an elephant.

Towel animal

Tomorrow we have a sea day and cross the equator

November 18, 2008

Today they had the King Neptune initiation for the crew who had not previously crossed the equator. They had it in advance before the equator crossing as that was at 0200. I didn't go to watch. We each got a certificate afterwards, although of course Bob didn't need one as he crossed the equator on an aircraft carrier in 1969

The special at breakfast was a

taco omelet-very tasty

I went to lunch in the dining room (Bob ate in the Lido)

Dining Room Table

and had the

Alaskan seafood chowder in a sourdough bread bowl

and a tuna melt

with a peach melba sundae for dessert.

They had a sauteed unicorn fillet on the menu and I hesitated to ask what that was. Later I found out it was a somewhat salty fish.

Dinner was formal. I wore the dress I didn't wear to our granddaughter's wedding with the jacket of mother's. Bob had the

jumbo shrimp cocktail

Fillet Mignon "Mermaid" (steak and shrimp)

But he had trouble with his hiatal hernia (which keeps him from swallowing) and left before finishing his dinner. I had the asparagus soup, the apricot soup

Soup

Cous Cous Florentine, which was vegetable kebabs

blueberry sundae

The people we were eating with were all Canadian. They told us that a lady was taken off by ambulance in the Canal - also with her husband and luggage. They said she waved and didn't seem to be in any distress, but didn't know why she was leaving. Later found out it was a heart attack, and she didn't want to leave but the ship's doctor insisted.

Tomorrow we get to Manta, Ecuador