March 10-13, 2011 Queen Victoria Cruise / Panama Canal

Queen Victoria Cruise March 10-13, 2011


Thursday March 10, 2011
Guatemala aka “Guacamole” was fun. We rode inland and up altitude (5000 ft) to a coffee plantation nestled among three volcanoes. From that point we rode in jeeps up another 1500 ft to get roped and harnessed up for a swing through the trees. Don’t tell anyone but I think Granny was the oldest in the group but she performed like the youngest! I may have heard a Tarzan yell come from her direction on the longest zip line….. We toured La Antiqua and ran the gauntlet of street vendors before ride back to the QV.
Friday March 11, 2011
“At sea” today, which means full activity schedule on board. Frank missed another line dancing lesson- it really is a “girl thing.” So here is the schedule: eat, exercise, eat, dance lesson, snack, lecture, eat, read, snack, play bridge, tea time, harp concert, snack, pool time, dinner, casino, after dinner snack, cruise performance, bedtime snack, bedtime. Betty’s schedule is similar with a few more casino stops thrown in : )
Saturday March 12, 2011
Panama City (still on the Pacific side) is a thriving large city and it should be from what we were told they charge to transit The Canal. Hay mucho dinero! The PCA (Panama Canal Authority) has a “pay before you go” policy- cash up front, no credit cards, no IOU’s - and we complain about Georgia 400 tolls! Panama has a long and interesting history from it’s new world discovery by Chris Columbus to it’s assuming control of the Panama Canal Zone in 2000.
Sunday March 13, 2011
Panama Canal transit- WOW! What a construction wonder. We have been through three locks with two more to go. We are traveling with container ships, yacht transport ships and other cargo ships. This is a busy busy place. No problem for the QV- we have six (yes that is SIX) inches to spare on either side. And these locks don’t have any of those rubber bumpers in case you get a weeeeeee bit too close to the sidewall. We will be in the Atlantic Ocean in about five hours.