October 11th:Panama Canal Cruise Begins

Early Friday morning we said good bye to Wendy and Matt, picked up Cindy and Randy and headed to Los Angeles to board the Norwegian Joy Cruise Ship. The cruise was going to leave from Los Angeles, go through the Panama Canal and then end in Miami, 16 days later. We decided the cruise sounded interesting and we would end up close to Yesterday's Dream, our Fall/Winter home. A bonus was Cindy and Randy decided to join us.

We arrived in L.A. close to the ship, early as planned, and went to the Happy Diner for a great breakfast. Linda had done a good job of finding the restaurant. After breakfast we went to the cruise terminal and negotiated our way with the other 3,000 passengers. Before long we were relaxing by the pool with a "Cruise Toast".



Late Friday afternoon we set sail from Los Angeles. It was a beautiful day and we enjoyed the ride out of the harbor.  We cruised past two large Coast Guard boats as well as several very large container ships.


Saturday morning we started the daily routine of breakfast served in a very nice dining room. The selections are varied and the service is top notch. A great way to start the day. This was a day at sea, which means we would not be stopping at a port.

We decided to go to the pool and check out the water slides, well Cindy and me that is!

The highest water slide is really something. It starts with a trap door at the bottom of the starting platform and you free fall for about 20 feet. You are going so fast that you travel  almost straight up through the tube in a 360 degree arc, assuming you are going fast enough to make it all the way around. A couple more turns and you pop out the bottom 3 decks below where you started.

In the picture below, I dropped feet first, and am now travelling through the arc, almost at the top. Cindy took this amazing picture which caught me travelling through the tube. Way to go Cindy!

Steve in free fall Water slide

If you don't gain enough speed in the free-fall drop, you stop before going around the big arc and you end up sliding backwards and stopping at a flat spot. They open a special exit to let you out. We called it the "exit of shame" Not fun!

After seeing the free-fall drop Cindy said, "No way, I'd put my legs out and get stuck halfway around!"

Cindy and Randy at the top ready to slide

There was a second water slide that had less severe drops that was also fun. Cindy, Randy and I eventually all enjoyed that slide.










For breakfast, lunch and dinner, in the standard dining package, there are three dining areas to choose from as well as a very large buffet. In addition to the standard eating options, our "Last minute cruise package" included five specialty restaurant dinners.

We decided to have our first specialty dinner at Ocean Blue. It specializes in seafood and was wonderful. Linda had the surf and turf and I had a "seafood stew". Dessert is of course also included for all lunches and dinners. Very dangerous!



It was a very enjoyable Saturday at sea. We went back to our balcony and enjoyed a very pleasant evening. Sunday was Cabo San Lucas, Mexico. I had arranged a snorkel trip in the morning, Cindy and Randy were going to tour the port town and Linda was looking forward to "Alone time".

Cabo San Lucas in the rain

I woke up Sunday morning to cloudy and windy weather. We passed a beautiful rock formation with an impressive arch. This is one of the snorkel sites. The weather didn't look good.







We passed a lot of boats on the way in to the harbor. One was a beautiful wood trimmed sailboat. Another was the typical "Pirate ship".  Many tourist ports have started offering a sailing trip on a co-called "Pirate Ship". It seems pretty cheesy but it's all in fun.


I wasn't sure if the snorkel trip would go or not. After two trips to Guest services and the Shore excursion desk it was finally confirmed that the snorkeling was cancelled. I thought it was a good decision given the weather.  I went back to our room and informed Linda, "Alone time is over". However, after thinking about it, I decided I might as well go with Cindy and Randy to check out the port area of Cabo San Lucas. I don't like to shop but I know Cindy and Randy do, so why not go help them spend some money.

Large tequila still in Cabo San Lucas

We walked around town and enjoyed the many tourist attractions and shops. Cindy and Randy enjoyed the giant still in front of a tequila place.





This picture of a sidewalk restaurant was typical of the many eating places along the main street. The food smelled and looked good.

Cabo San Lucas Marina

I was amazed at the number of boats. Many are sport fishing boats because the fish are plentiful. Serious sport fishing, (tuna, sailfish, marlin, dorado, etc.) is a main tourist attraction for Cabo San Lucas. All types of styles and sizes of boats are packed into the marina. Made me wonder how long it took to get out.




I stayed with Cindy and Randy for a little while but soon lost interest in shopping. I went back to our ship and called it a day. The next day, Monday we would be in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico and I had arranged a zip line activity in the rain forest.