The Panama Canal

 October 24, 2022

“I am sorry for you tonight, Mr. President. You are facing one of the greatest decisions of your career. Upon what you decide depends on whether or not you are going to get your canal. If you fall back upon the old methods of sanitation you will fail, just as the French failed. If you back up Dr. Gorgas and his ideas, and you let him make his campaign against mosquitoes, then you get your canal. I can only give you my advice; you must decide for yourself. There is only one way of controlling yellow fever and malaria, and that is the eradication of the mosquitoes. But it is your canal; you must do the choosing and you must choose tonight whether you are going to build that canal.” ― Thomas W. Martin on Doctor William Crawford Gorgas Of Alabama And The Panama Canal

The president in question was Theodore Roosevelt. There were several civil engineers who managed the herculean task of bringing the canal to fruition (one of them a railroad builder which pleased my retired RR engineer father to pieces!). But the canal would never have happened without the leadership of Dr. William Gorgas.

At our shipboard lecture about the building of the canal, there was a collective gasp in the audience when our speaker shared that over 25,000 people died in the making of this waterway. That amounts to just about 500 deaths per mile of canal. And the lion's share of those deaths was caused by tropical illnesses, most particularly yellow fever. 

Passing under the Bridge of the Americas

Even though Dr. Gorgas, then a colonel in the army, had successfully eradicated yellow fever from Cuba in 1901, not all medical professionals agreed with his mosquito theory of how the virus spreads. But President Roosevelt backed the doctor and Gorgas ordered the draining of ponds and swamps, mass fumigation, spraying a petroleum/kerosene mixture on standing water known to be mosquito nurseries, and insisting on screens on windows and use of mosquito netting over beds.

Try getting the EPA to approve those things now! 

But within a year, yellow fever was gone from the region. How I wish it was gone from the whole earth! Large portions of South America and Africa are afflicted by this hemorrhagic disease today. Even with the development of a live virus vaccine, there are still over 200,000 cases of the disease resulting in over 30,000 deaths annually.

We had a bird's eye view of the workings of the mules, the small but mighty tracked vehicles that kept the Eurodam centered in the locks.

However, thanks to Dr. Gorgas' extreme measures, the isthmus of Panama is yellow fever free and the canal that links the Pacific and the Atlantic is the major source of income for the entire country!

The DH has put together a wonderful montage of our canal transit which involves two sets of locks and a brief cruise through Lake Gatun. Enjoy!

  

In this montage, there's a photo of a mystery animal that was wandering alongside the locks at one point. A rubber cookie with cement frosting to the first to identify this critter for us! 

And one more very short video for today! It's actually more about the audio...well, you'll see, er, I mean hear what I mean.

The Eurodam was a pretty tight fit! 

Puntarenas, Costa Rica

 October 22, 2022

 As the eco- and adventure-tourism capital of Central America, Costa Rica has a worthy place in the cubicle daydreams of travelers around the world! ~ Lonely Planet

Today marked our second time in Costa Rica this year! The first time was on the Viking Star on the World Cruise last January and our focus was more on the people of the country. This time, we booked a Mangrove cruise & Macaw Sanctuary excursion through the Eurodam. And we were so glad we did.

A quick bus ride took us to the resort where we boarded the little boat for our mangrove tour. It was interesting to see the way the water changed color from the brilliant blue of the Pacific, to this softer intercoastal section to the muddy brown of the swamp itself. 

Mangroves are interesting flora. They are perfectly at home in brackish, salty water that would kill most other plants. They protect the coastline and provide a home for countless species of birds and small creatures. When we visited Abu Dhabi in 2018, we learned the sultan had ordered more mangroves to be planted along his coastline and at that time, the UAE boasted 150 square kilometers of precious mangroves. 

Lots of birds along the banks but they have nothing to fear from the "logodiles" in the water.

Our guide kept trying to point out caymans, the small crocodiles that haunt those brown waters, but they were always too far away to be distinguished from their lifeless cousins, the "log-o-diles"--bits of drift wood that fool the eye. 

After the short estuary cruise, we reboarded our bus and headed for the Natuwa macaw sanctuary. What an amazing place! Scarlet macaws, which as native to Costa Rica, fly free in the dense canopied rain forest, sharing their home with a loud troop of howler monkeys who've moved in. These animals remain in the area without any restraint or cages because they love the forest there. 

The sanctuary also cares for animals that have been victimized by illegal animal trade. Our guide told us how smugglers would stuff these beautiful birds into PCV pipes and load them into suitcases to sneak them out of the country. 

The center also cares for birds that are not indigenous to CR, other species of macaws and African Grey parrots, which our guide claims have the intelligence of a 5 year old child. There is also a sad cage of hybrids which produce beautiful, but violently unpredictable birds. 

In addition to birds, the center had rescued a wild hog, sloths, spider monkeys and three jaguars. 

One of their spider monkeys had the simian equivalent of Down's syndrome.

I couldn't see a difference between one monkey and the next, but our guide said she'd been genetically tested.

We had a lovely day at the sanctuary and really enjoyed the chance to see these amazing animals. Please join the DH in this photo montage he's put together...

Guatemala

 October 20, 2022

I am like a drop of water on a rock. After drip, drip, dripping in the same place, I begin to leave a mark, and I leave my mark in many people's hearts.

~ Rigoberta Menchu, Guatemalan activist who was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1992 for her work based on respect for the rights of indigenous peoples.

Guatemala is a new-to-us country and we know very little about it other than news reports of drug cartels, violence and many of its citizens making the long trek to our southern border, hoping to slip into the US for a better life. Our guide today, however, wanted to show us the beauty of her country and its people and reasons to stay. 

The coastal plains offer tropical beauty and rich, arable land, the not-so-distant mountains a reminder of the area's volcanic past.

We left the lowlands near Puerto Quetzal, and headed into the hills to a drive-through safari park. Years ago, when our children were young, we did something similar at the beautiful country estate of Longleat in England. (Think Downton Abbey with vast enclosures for monkeys, giraffes, gazelle, and zebra, and lions, leopards and tigers--in a completely separate area, of course.) Back then, we had a spot of trouble in the simian enclosure because the monkeys kept hopping up onto the hood of our rental car, trying to rip the rubber off our wiper blades! No worries this time. We were in a large coach.

The first section of the safari park was dedicated to African and, in the case of this emu, Australian wildlife. We saw them running wild outside of Esperanza in 2018 (See the DH's photo montage on that day's post!) The flock in Guatemala seemed just as at home here as those down under did.

The giraffe and its enclosure-mates showed no fear of the motorized traffic, or of the predators in the next enclosure. 

Fun fact: Even though a giraffe's neck can be up to 8 ft. long and weigh 600 hundred pounds, it still only has 7 vertebrae in its neck, the same as ours.

The lions were well-fed and definitely not interested in us or any of their furry neighbors.

To get from one enclosure to the next at Longleat, we passed through large heavily monitored doors, a la Jurassic Park. Here, the gate from one area to the next was controlled by a rope that was controlled by a guard perched in a tree stand. We had a little incident with the ropes because our coach was too tall to pass under them easily. An escape hatch on the roof caught on one of them and the hatch was ripped right off. Our clever driver hopped out, wild beasts and all, and shinnied up to gerry-rig it back on. 

Then we left the drive-through section of the park, left the bus, and hiked over to the section dedicated to animals indigenous to Guatemala. 

This snub-nosed cayman is much smaller than its crocodile and alligator cousins, but I still wouldn't want to swim with one!

Puma aren't as big as their African relatives, but can still weigh up to 260 lbs. I'm not about to say, "Here, kitty, kitty," to this one!

There were also smaller, and much louder, animals like this howler monkey. And a colorful macaw and this toucan who was playing peek-a-boo behind some leaves.

Lots of the smaller animals were curled up in the corners or covered portions of their cages because they are nocturnal, so not every enclosure revealed a new animal to us. 

It rained intermittently and we were walking over uneven terrain so sometimes, our views were downward. I enjoyed seeing the imprints of large leaves on the impressionable ground.

Our trip back to the ship was uneventful, save for the leak in the ceiling of the bus, which happened to be right above our seats. Our guide asked if we'd like to have them stop and call for another coach, but we told her we weren't made of sugar and wouldn't melt. Our driver raced the oncoming storm, and we arrived back at the Eurodam safely, albeit soggily.

I totally don't fault our guide or the tour company for the problem with the skylight. Guatemala hasn't had tourists for a long time and a few kinks need to be worked out yet. We were delighted to see more of the country, its animals, and most of all, its people. Everyone was very welcoming and the safari park was a family-friendly area. It was fun to see moms and dads taking their children around. 

Some travelers complain when they run into rain, but every inch of this earth needs it. I'm grateful for it at home so I need to be thankful for it when we travel as well.

Good-bye, Guatemala! We loved our time with you!

Huatulco

 October 19, 2022

Cerca del cielo...Close to heaven

Early in the morning, before the sun burned away the clouds, the Eurodam glided into the sheltered Bay of Santa Cruz so we could call on Huatulco. I continue to be amazed at what a mountainous country Mexico is. For some reason, I always thought of it as more like our southwestern desert states, but that's not the case for this part of the country. It's lush and green and...humid. (In that respect, it's not unlike our own beloved Ozarks in the summer!) 

I can happily watch waves pound rocks for hours!

Umbrella in hand, for protection from sun as well as rain, we trooped off the ship and into the waiting pier area. It boasted a neat collection of shops, restaurants and parks. 

Love seeing all the flowers! Late fall and winter in the Midwest leaves my eyes color-starved. I'm wearing Percival (my purse-sized portable oxygen concentrator) in his little backpack. It makes me happy when I don't have to burden the DH with my O2 needs, not that he'd complain. Bless the man!

And of course there were the obligatory public art installations. This one proclaims the area as a great place for sport fishing. Of course, Huatulco also boasts lots of beautiful beaches, archaeological sites in the nearby mountains, and a host of other activities.

None of which we signed up for. I wished we had. Archaeology always calls to me, but heightened elevation plus humidity makes me hesitate. I can usually deal with one or the other, but together it's a recipe for some very uncomfortable breathing conditions.  

But the people were friendly and very welcoming and happy to direct us to a mini-mart where we could find some cold cokes to take back to the ship. (Really missed having an endless supply in our cabin's mini-fridge like we did on the Viking Star.)

A squeaky clean public square. It would have been a great place to sit and people-watch, but there were very few people around.

I'm reluctant to mention this next bit, mostly because it was just based on a feeling...

As we were making our way back to the ship, the DH noticed a trio of young men conspicuously eyeing me while I was taking a picture of him. They seemed to be focused on Percival, possibly wondering what the backpack was, possibly wondering if it was worth anything... Or maybe they had abuelas who were chained to a bulky oxygen cylinder instead of being able to wear a small device like mine and wanted to know more about it.

Whatever the reason for their interest in us, we kept to more populated areas as we made our way back to the Eurodam without incident. 

I can only think of one other time when we left an area because of a feeling. We were on Maui and having a lovely time driving around that gorgeous island. Suddenly, as we were driving along the coast, we both experienced an overwhelming sense that we were not supposed to be there. It was sudden. It was very focused. And it was simultaneous. I can't explain it any further than that other than to say Maui is sometimes a very mystical place. We made a U-turn and left the area.

I share this not to throw shade on Huatulco. It is a lovely place and our mistake was not booking an excursion that would get us out of the immediate port area.  

That's not to say we haven't had wonderful adventures exploring on our own--our day following a cat around the walled medieval town in Kotor, Montenegro comes to mind--but safety when traveling is a big deal to us. It's important to: 

• Be aware of our surroundings. Stick to populated areas. Keep your wallet in your front pocket. Leave your jewelry on the ship. 
• Have a plan. Do your homework on the port. Know what you want to see and how you'll get there and back again.
• Don't sign up for something you wouldn't do at home. If you're not a good swimmer, don't try to snorkel. If heights give you the willies, don't hop on a zipline. If you're not a rider, don't book horseback riding through the surf. If you haven't ridden a bike since you were a kid, flying down Haleakala on a Schwinn is a recipe for disaster. 
• Listen to your gut. If you feel a check on a place or an activity, rethink your situation and opt for something else. 

When I was younger, I had no fear. I rented a board on Waikiki and learned to surf with the help of two teenage boys I met on the beach, who coached me in exchange for a chance to ride the board in a time or two. Another time, I got caught in a rip current, but swam out of it by keeping my head and swimming parallel to the beach for a while until I was able to turn back to land. I explored the cities in Europe and Japan solo, taking public transit and wandering map in hand, whether I spoke the language or only had a smattering of phrases.  

Sadly, I couldn't do any of those things now. To everything there really is a season. I can't do what I used to, but I will keep doing all I can.  

I used to tell our kids, I'm like the Disney character Goofy, who famously said, "I'm brave...but I'm careful!" 

It still fits. 

Mea Culpa

Some people say the whole world is sad

Because their own small thoughts are blue.

Yet you cannot say the road is bad

Because you have a pebble in your shoe

The Cheerful Cherub by Rebecca McCann

First, I'm sorry for the interruptus to the tale of our travels. Part of it was because of my own crappy attitude. I don't like spewing my discontent around. Heaven knows, there's enough of that going on everywhere!

So I decided to wait until I figured out why I was feeling so negative about this trip, aside from the masking debacle which I've already complained about ad nauseam. Yes, we experienced some legitimate causes for discontent--a dark hair discovered on my plate under my steak on formal night , the general downsizing of both portions and choices in the main dining room, the frenetically overworked staff (a ratio of about 800 to 2200 passengers is a recipe for problems), mechanical problems in the thermal suite that were never addressed for the entire 21 days, upselling in the main dining room and around every corner--I could go on, but it would serve no purpose. 

I finally realized the main problem was my expectations. I was looking for the same Holland America we fell in love with back in the early 2000's. I remember the feeling of being cossetted by elegance at every step. A particularly choice moment of each day was settling into a lounge after the main evening theatre show to bask in the music of an incredible string quartet while white gloved attendants offered Belgian chocolates.  There was no need to go to a specialty restaurant because the main dining room served lobster and host of other decadently delicious things with no hint of upselling. The ship sparkled with cleanliness and the crew/guest ratio seemed much better. 

But it's 2022 now. The world has changed and cruising has changed with it. HAL has lost a couple of years' revenue and piled up a mountain of debt. Carnival, its parent company, just announced a 4th quarter loss of nearly 2 billion. All nine of the brands under the Carnival umbrella (Carnival, Princess, Holland America, Cunard, Seabourn, P & O, P & O Australia, Aida, Costa) are treading water.  If they are to survive, they must increase revenue and decrease expenses. 

It was foolish of me to expect nothing to have changed.

So, while I love a bargain as well as the next girl, I have to reconcile myself to higher prices, higher fees and add-on's, and lowered expectations of what I'll be receiving for my grudgingly spent dollar. (I am enough my father's daughter to be...shall we kindly say...frugal! The DH always claims this trait of mine is part of why he was able to retire early.) However, "less for more" is our new normal. It's true at our local market and gas station and it's also true for cruising.

I've gone back and added lots of photos to the previous posts for this trip and going forward, I will share the things that were fun & memorable & just plain fascinating without complaint. Besides, in addition to Guatemala (new to us country!) and Costa Rica, we still have the highlight of the voyage, the Panama Canal to transit! 

Here we are with Casper, the Food & Beverage officer, on board the Viking Star for our incredible 2022 World Cruise. It's hard to describe how amazing the staff, the ship, the itinerary, the experiences were during that entire voyage. We were spoiled rotten. Now I have to keep reminding myself that not every cruise ship we board will have received the memo that we are actually secret royalty and must be treated as such!