by: Paul Selson
A Panama Cruise is amongst the most spectactular cruise available worldwide.
Just in case you are unsure exactly where Panama is in the world,… it is situated in Central America. Panama is home to the Panama Canal, which is a man made waterway joining the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans. The canal is known as one of the greatest feats of engineering in the 20th Century, due to the fact it physically severs the land mass of North and South America for a total distance of 80 kilometers. Since opening in August 1914, it’s use has steadily increased, culminating with over thirteen thousand vessels using the canal last year.
Hundreds of ships, including Panama cruise ships travel the length of the canal offering spectacular scenic voyages to a truly international audience. Actually touring the canal aboard a luxury cruise ship is an amazing experience. The journey takes a little over eight hours, passing through three locks, which raise the water level to allow the ships to pass.
The highlight of the voyage was standing on deck awaiting our turn to travel through the passage whilst a local historian commentated on interesting details and facts about the construction of the canal and it’s operational history. We also stopped off in the ports of Cristobal, Isla de Coiba, Isla San Telmo and Colon.
A Panama cruise will take you on a magnificent journey through the canal and offers many individual tour options such as sailing, kayaking (on Gatun Lake which the canal passes through), or the Panama Canal railway.
Whilst on your Panama cruise, you must take a trip to Panama City to take in some of it’s beautiful architecture and culture. Although it’s possible to take a round trip cruise, most people opt for a one way Panama cruise departing from either the Pacific or Atlantic side and ending on the opposite coast. Whichever route you choose, you typically can opt for a cruise duration of between ten and twenty nights,… the most typical Panama cruise being for twelve nights. Some of the itineraries take in Mexico, Costa Rica, Acapulco, Cayman Islands, Caldera, Columbia, Montego Bay and Florida with most routes now being available.
For me, experiencing a Panama cruise allows you the chance to enjoy breath taking scenery just a short walk from your luxurious cabin, fine dining and spectacular night life. Is it any wonder Panama cruises have become so popular? About The AuthorPaul Selson makes it easy to decide upon your Cruise destination, quickly & easily. Discover the 7 Top Cruise Destinations for the coming year. To receive your free 7-part mini-course visit: http://www.Cruise-HQ.com.
Email us at The Panama Club
+507-836-6542 / 43 (Panama) | 1-(305)-503-9957 (USA)
Well, we’re back at it again. Cruising I mean. This time, we’re taking a Carnival Cruise to the Panama Canal. While investigating the tours available, I was again amazed at the wide variety of shore excursions available.
Our cruise has only three stops in eight days. Our first stop is in Costa Maya, Mexico for a nine hour stay. The next port-of-call is Limon, Costa Rica for eight hours of fun. The last port will be Colon, Panama at the start of the Panama Canal for a nine hour stop-over.
Each port-of call has at least one shore excursion that would appeal to most everyone. We obviously can’t take all of the excursions, so, decisions have to be made.
In Cost Maya, Mexico, Carnival (on-line) offers a full two dozen possibilities! For the culture buffs there are two different Mayan ruins excursions to choose from as well as a “Mayan Culture Experience” tour.
Perhaps you would prefer to take a motor coach tour of the Costa May area and check out the highlights or you could choose the “Town & Beach Break Combo”.
For the adventuresome, Carnival offers horseback riding, Or, you could choose from the four different off-road tours, including jeep, kart, mini-rhino or dune buggy adventures. Two speedy water adventures are offered as well. How about a fly-fishing adventure in this very exclusive corner of the world?
Carnival offers twelve different beach and water sports excursions. Scuba diving, snorkelling, kayaking (in cool clear bottom kayaks!) and catamaran sailing are all included in these excursions.
Carnival lists one less excursion (twenty-three) for Limon Costa Rica. Many of these include the canals and rivers in the rain forest areas. Aerial trams, zip lines, boat cruises, kayaking, wagon or train – take your pick!
Tours to various plantations may be of more interest. Choose from coffee beans, pineapples, bananas – or perhaps the Costa Flores Tropical Gardens?
Take a horse-back ride or go white water rafting. Bike through a Caribbean Village. Explore Costa Rica on an off-road excursion. Carnival offers them all.
In Colon, Panama, Carnival’s on-line offerings include a dozen interesting excursions. Take a step back in time and visit an Embera Indian village where the tribe lives today much as they did when Balboa first set foot in Panama.
Of course, the main highlight for many here will be the Panama Canal, once considered the eighth wonder of the world. Six of the offered tours include the canal.
There is a golf course with the canal as a backdrop. You can fish at Gatun Lake, one of the most famous canals in the world.
Visit Portobello, the “Pirate’s Paradise”. Or take the Isthmian Railroad and see the Pacific Ocean and the Atlantic Ocean both in one hour.
With so much to do while on board the cruise ship, and the broad diversity of excursions available is it any wonder why vacation cruising is becoming so popular?
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Email us at The Panama Club
+507-836-6542 / 43 (Panama) | 1-(305)-503-9957 (USA)
Canal digging dates back to the Ancient World, providing the means to move crops, building stones, and people. Wheeled transport, where it existed, was hobbled by poor road surfaces, and loads carried could not approach what a canal barge transported. One of the earliest canals, connecting the River Nile to the Gulf of Suez, dates to the reign of Ramses II in the 13th century B.C.
By the 18th century, Europe was heavily investing in canal building, substantially lowering the costs of moving heavy bulk items such as coal for making iron and clay for manufacturing bricks. England’s fine china industry took off when smooth canal transport almost eliminated the breakage previously prevalent on the rough roads. Canals joined navigable rivers, creating thousands of miles of interconnecting inland waterways, still used today by commercial traffic and large fleets of cruising riverboats, hotel, and charter barges.
In the United States, early 19th century canal construction in the East and Midwest linked the Hudson River, Great Lakes, and the Mississippi River system into thousands of miles of continuous water highways. When the railway era arrived, passenger traffic withered away; but by continually enlarging and deepening the principle canals, commercial traffic prospered. Today’s inland cruise lines, such as the Delta Queen Steamboat Company, RiverBarge Excursion Lines, American Canadian Caribbean Line, and Clipper Cruise Line, make significant use of these waterways.
Saltwater canals for ocean-going sailing ships were considered long before the technology existed to make them a reality. Then in the 19th and early 20th centuries, the fast steamships sailing on regular schedules
prompted numerous canal-building projects to expedite passenger and freight traffic. While the Cape Cod Canal might cut 135 miles off a trip from New York to Boston, the Panama and Suez canals could cut weeks off a long inter-ocean voyage.
The cruise industry uses saltwater canals for economy, convenience, and creative itineraries. In the case of the Panama Canal, a daytime transit may be the lure to choose to that cruise in the first place, while passing through the Kiel, Corinth, or Suez canals will provide a bonus on any itinerary.
Although a canal across the Isthmus of Panama had been contemplated long before its actual completion in 1914, it was the opening of the Suez Canal on November 17, 1869–a French construction project followed by British financial control–that revolutionized trade routes and passenger travel between Europe, Asia, and Australasia. Sea journeys from England to India previously made via South Africa’s often stormy Cape of Good Hope were shortened by nearly two weeks.
The 100-mile Suez Canal was dug through the Isthmus of Suez to connect the Mediterranean and Red seas: no locks were required, thus lowering the costs of construction and operation, and greatly reducing transit times. The Suez was nationalized by Egypt in November 1956 and closed for six months during a failed Anglo-French intervention. During the nasty Six-Day War between Egypt and Israel, the canal was blocked by sunken ships and closed to traffic from 1967 to 1975. Today, canal tolls form a highly lucrative source of revenue for Egypt, while for cruise lines the waterway provides many attractive port options.
Travelers find the scenery mostly arid desert, but the landscape does take on a lovely glow at both sunrise and sunset. But it’s the area’s fascinating geography, history, politics, and strife that come to mind during a Suez sailing. The southbound transit usually begins with a call at Port Said, the headquarters for the Suez Canal Authority. Egyptian canal pilots join here, and in the early morning the ship takes a place in a long convoy.
Most tonnage will be container vessels, bulk carriers, and generally empty tankers heading to the Persian Gulf to take on oil. A permissible draft of 62 feet and 210,000 dead-weight tons are the maximums, so the largest loaded supertankers from the Persian Gulf still must sail via South Africa. However, in terms of tonnage, the Suez still handles the largest volume of traffic of any canal, as 25,000 ships pass through annually, with transit times ranging between 11 and 16 hours. Lake Timsah and the Great Bitter Lake form the widest sections, and sometimes convoys will anchor here for a few hours before proceeding, as some stretches handle only one-way traffic. Then at Suez (Port Tewfik), the pilots debark, and the ship resumes normal cruising speeds into the Gulf of Suez and the Red Sea.
In Germany, the 61-mile Kiel Canal (officially Nord-Ostsee Kanal) slices through Schleswig-Holstein just south of the Danish border from the mouth of the River Elbe to the city of Kiel, shortening the distance between the North Sea and the Baltic Sea. Locks at each end minimize tidal variations. First completed in 1895 to allow the German navy to move between its strategic northern ports, the canal was further enlarged by 1914 to permit increasingly bigger ships to avoid the longer passage via the tip of Denmark and the Great Belt Route. At the post-World War I Treaty of Versailles in 1919, the canal was internationalized, though administered by Germany. In 1936 Hitler canceled the agreement; free navigation was reintroduced after World War ii. Today the Kiel Canal carries more ships than any other–41,682 in 2004.
A Kiel Canal transit is unique in its largely rural nature. On a Radisson Diamond cruise a few years ago, I could smell the manure from the bordering farms. Railway and highway bridges span the waterway, and several ferry crossings fill in the gaps between. An unusual transporter bridge (1913) uses a ferry-like gondola connected by cables to an overhead railway span to carry cars across the waterway so not to interrupt canal traffic.
The port of Amsterdam is accessed via the 15-mile North Sea Canal (or Amsterdam Ship Canal) providing a mildly interesting transit from the North Sea port of Ijmuiden through the Dutch countryside. When completed in 1876, the North Sea Canal made Amsterdam one of Europe’s great ports. While still important, the rival city of Rotterdam has long surpassed it in maritime traffic, although many cruise lines still prefer Amsterdam.
Locking operations include the Northern Lock, one of the largest chambers in the world at 1,312 feet by 492 feet. That explains why the locking operation takes so long, as pleasure craft and barges pass by using smaller, easier to fill/empty parallel locks. The arrival in Amsterdam is a treat as the ship passes the city center, river cruise and ferry docks, and the massive Central Station railway.
In Greece, as far back as 602 B.C., a Corinthian tyrant named Periander considered digging a canal to link the Adriatic and the Eastern Mediterranean, but it is said that the high priestess of the Delphic oracle dissuaded him. Roman emperor Nero tried and failed due to troubles at home. Finally the modern Greek state started construction in 1882, finishing the four-mile sea-level waterway nine years later, creating a most dramatic cut through the isthmus’s often solid rock. In the past, slides caused intermittent blockages, including a two-year closure in 1923 and then for five years when the retreating Germans dynamited the canal walls in 1944.
With a width of just 69 feet at a depth of 26 feet, only relatively small cruise ships can make the transit, which reduces the voyage from Piraeus to Venice by 130 nautical miles. Ships greater than 800 net tons must be towed, and the largest often have tugs tied to the bow and stern to avoid scrapping the uneven rock walls that rise as high as 259 feet. When approaching the eastern entrance though the Saronic Gulf, the view ahead looks impossibly narrow. The ship passes over sinking bridges and under 170-foot-high vehicular and railway spans linking mainland Greece with the Peloponnese. Tiny figures lining the road bridge look down from above. In the height of summer, the rock walls reflect a lot of heat, and it’s a huge relief to exit into the cooler Gulf of Corinth.
In North America, the seven-mile Cape Cod Canal connects New England’s Buzzards Bay and Cape Cod Bay, making the Cape Cod Peninsula an island of sorts and saving 135 miles for ships sailing up the East Coast bound for Boston. The idea for a canal here began as far back as in the 17th century with Miles Standish of the Plymouth Colony and was revived during the Revolutionary War to give American ships a safer passage, but nothing came of it. August Belmont, a New York financier, backed the canal, which opened July 29, 1914, but largely because of high tolls and restricted clearances, it soon became a money-losing venture. The government purchased the waterway in 1928 and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers enlarged it for deep-sea ship transits by 1940.
The Cape Cod Canal is one of the world’s widest at 480 feet, with a depth of 32 fee[ at mean low water, and currents can run to 5.2 miles per hour. Ships up to 825 feet in length may pass, and clearance under the Sagamore and Bourne highway bridges and one railroad lift span is a standard 135 feet. Today about 20,000 ships and boats use the waterway, skewed very much toward pleasure craft. The few cruise ships that use the canal are generally on New England/Canada itineraries. At the Buzzards Bay entrance, the ship will pass the Massachusetts Maritime Academy and slide under the 1935-built vertical lift railroad bridge with its dramatic 271-foot steel towers and 544-foot horizontal span.
The 14-mile Chesapeake and Delaware Canal, slicing through the states of Delaware and Maryland, is aptly named as it connects the Delaware River to the Chesapeake Bay. Besides pleasure craft and coastal cruise ships traveling the Intracoastal Waterway, 40 percent of all deep-sea ships using the Port of Baltimore transit the canal as it provides a short cut from New York and Philadelphia.
Digging started in 1804, but the C&D was not completed until 1829. The original canal had locks and a 10-foot depth; eventually it was greatly enlarged to handle modern steamships. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers eliminated the locks and expanded the waterway to a width of 450 feet and a depth of 35 feet by 1938. Lift bridges restricted traffic to one way, and after numerous collisions, high fixed spans replaced all but the railroad bridges. But as traffic has leveled off, major future investment other than maintenance is unlikely. The C&D Canal is a scenic waterway listed on the National Register of Historic Places. A canal museum is located in the old pumping station at Chesapeake City, the former coaling depot located at the western end. On weekends in summer, the grassy banks are alive with families enjoying an outdoor barbecue.
The Panama Canal is perhaps the only canal that is marketed as a distinct cruise destination–a sought-after one on many people’s cruise check-list. While most ships make the long-day sail from ocean to ocean, some just climb the Gatun Locks, anchor in Gatun Lake for shoreside excursions, then return to the Caribbean the same way.
The impetus for a canal joining the Atlantic and the Pacific came with the California Gold Rush and the opening of the West. A transit from New York via Cape Horn to San Francisco took a couple of months while a proposed canal would reduce the voyage to a couple of weeks. Actual distance saved for a ship carrying coal from the East Coast to Japan is 3,000 miles and for a banana boat from Ecuador to Europe, 5,000 miles. The French, who were largely responsible for building the Suez Canal, failed after 20 years to dig through the Isthmus of Panama because of disease and financing. It was not until August 15, 1914, with war raging in Europe, that the 50-mile (deep water to deep water) canal was finally completed. For the fascinating story of American imperialism, politics and entrepreneurial know-how, read David McCullough’s The Path Between The Seas (Simon & Schuster).
While the daytime northeast to southwest passage is a hot, sticky affair that lasts between eight and 10 hours, it is well worth staying out ondeck as long as you can to enjoy the multi-faceted experience. The day starts early with ships slotted numerically into a convoy and two Panama Canal Company pilots coming aboard to take control of the ship. Approaching the three-step Gatun Locks, the French channel is evident to the right just after passing Cristobal-Colon. The ship slides into the first 1,000-ft. By 110-ft. lock, aided by “mules” (electric locomotives) that operate over parallel tracks. Some ships such as 1969′s Queen Elizabeth 2 and many of today’s new cruise liners are referred to as Panamax because they just fit the maximum dimensions allowed. Channel depth is maintained at 39.5 feet.
Once completely within the chamber, the rear gate closes and water by gravity flow begins to lift the ship to the level of the next lock. Ships alongside may be moving in the opposite direction and descending the flight, or if the Pacific-bound traffic is particularly heavy, they might be on a parallel course. Once through the third stage, the ship has climbed some 85 feet and the luxuriant rain-forest setting becomes readily evident.
Ships waiting their turn may be anchored in Gatun Lake, a huge water reservoir continually filled, primarily by the Chagres River, and held in place by a one-half-mile dam just off to the right. If making directly for the Pacific, your ship will begin the 23-mile passage through the lake and into the twisting channel to Gamboa, the canal’s headquarters. Here there is likely to be a heavy lift crane tied up, and the tracks of the transcontinental Panama Railroad parallel the waterway. The channel narrows for the passage through Gaillard Cut over the continental divide, with 587-foot Gold Hill on the left and Contractor’s Hill on the right. The latter’s height and once-steep slopes have been considerably reduced to avoid landslides that once plagued this section. Gradually the canal is being widened here to handle two way traffic, but Panamax ships cannot pass here.
The stepping down to the Pacific involves the single Pedro Miguel Lock, then the two-chamber Miraflores Locks, offering a popular viewing stand for visitors. Soon the ship will pass the port of Balboa with high-rise Panama City in the distance, then slide beneath the Bridge of the Americas carrying the Pan-American Highway south from Alaska to its abrupt end in the thick Darien jungle near the border with Colombia.
Clearing the canal and dropping the pilots, there’s a sense of freedom and relief along with fresher, drier air as the ship sails out into the Pacific. For the captain and his officers, it’s time to take back control of their ship.
With treaties signed in 1977 and 1979, the U.S.-owned Canal Zone and Panama Canal were handed over to the Republic of Panama with the final stage taking place on December 31, 1999. Since its opening in 1914, 910,000 ships have passed through, and the highest toll ($226,194.25) was paid by the Coral Princess on September 25, 2003. Panama is planning to hold a national referendum in 2006 regarding a plan to build a third set of locks to measure 1,401 feet by 216.5 feet with a water depth of 60 feet. While the primary reason is to handle the huge new 10,000-unit capacity container ships, the very largest cruise ships, including Carnival’s 200,000-grt “Pinnacle Project,” would also be able to transit, but completion is a good 10 years away. Currently Panama operates at 93 percent of capacity, hence considerable delays occur at peak times for container ships and bulk carriers.
While Panama Canal transits will be readily evident in any Caribbean to Pacific Ocean itinerary, the inclusion of the other canals may be just footnoted. However, each has its own interesting features as well as a friendly reception from those watching from ashore.
Grand Cruise Canals At A Glance
Most canals have been improved expanded over time
but only those with significant rebuilding are
noted as enlarged.
First Locks or
Canal Name Location Completed Length Sea Level
Cape Cod Canal Massachusetts 1914 (A) 7 miles Sea level
Chesapeake & Maryland & 1829 (B) 14 miles Sea level
Delaware Canal Delaware
Corinth Canal Greece 1893 4 miles Sea level
Kiel Canal Northern 1895 (C) 61 miles Locks at
Germany each end
North Sea Netherlands 1876 (D) 5 miles Four locks
Canal (varying
sizes)
Panama Canal Panama 1914 50 miles Six locks
Suez Canal Egypt 1869 100 miles Sea level
(A)--Enlarge for deep-sea ships 1940.
(B)--By 1927 a virtually new sea-level canal:
Enlarged for deep-sea ships in 1938.
(C)--Enlarged by 1914.
(D)--Enlarged several times to present
dimensions by 1930.
COPYRIGHT 2006 World Publishing, Co. (Illinois)
This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group.
Email us at The Panama Club
+507-836-6542 / 43 (Panama) | 1-(305)-503-9957 (USA)
Neither geography nor geology, interesting subjects though they be, were on my mind one hot February afternoon when I boarded Radisson Seven Seas Cruises’ Radisson Diamond. An impending voyage would take us along South America’s Caribbean coast and through the incomparable Panama Canal to rain-forested jungles, but somehow the academic mindset for such a journey just wasn’t there–at least not yet.
After all, it was Carnival time in Aruba. Colorful floats, musicians and costumed dancers snaked through the downtown streets of Oranjestad. And as thousands of plumed and painted revelers whirled by to the beat of whistles and drums, we were too busy vying for camera angles to think about our departure from this island just east of Venezuela. English and Spanish blended with Papiamento, Amba’s hybrid language, on an island where cactus and mesquite grew over miles of arid, desert-like terrain. I gave little thought then to the radical changes in scenery that would unfold over the next eight days–an odyssey through both natural and manmade history that would, in effect, transport us through a few million years of Mother Earth’s existence.
In retrospect, it seems fitting that a ship with a somewhat alien appearance should take us on this diverse and specialized voyage through space and time. One of the few ships offering seven- and eight-day cruises from Aruba to Costa Rica through the Panama Canal, the Radisson Diamond, viewed from the side, looks like a modem, but conventional, cruise ship, resplendent in gleaming white and blue trim with a vertical profile rising nine decks. The radical distinction, however, arises from a bow or stern angle. She is a 420-foot/350-passenger giant catamaran, resting on two narrow hulls. Each has a submerged, computer-controlled fin, which significantly negates the rolling effects of the sea, a feature that would prove its worth later in the cruise. The innovative SWATH (Small Waterplane Area Twin Hull) design, which gives the ship a deep draft of about 25 feet and contributes to a relatively slow speed of 12.5 knots, also provides a wide beam of 103 feet and a lot of open deck space.
Built at Finnyards OY in Rauma, Finland, and launched in 1992, the ship turns heads wherever she goes on her around-the-world itineraries. In November, she repositions from Europe to the Caribbean, and nowhere is she more remarkable. In a land punctuated by colonial history, primitive indigenous natives, untamed jungles, and a canal whose locks afford her a scant three-and-a-half-feet clearance on either side, the Radisson Diamond is unique among all other vessels.
“She was originally built for charters, with luxury and individual attention in mind,” said Harald Bernberger, the ship’s hotel director. “She was also built for stability and for people who are dubious about cruising. At the same time, our mission is to provide high quality and a level of service where just being nice isn’t enough.”
The objective was evident the minute we boarded. A smartly dressed and congenial stewardess, one of 206 officers and crew, showed us to a 193-square-foot balcony stateroom on deck 7. The balcony itself was another 50 square feet and totally private, a feature we would thoroughly enjoy every day in the tropical climate. The large dining room was the next delight. The ship has an open-seating, no-reservation policy for dinner from 7:30 to 9:30 p.m., with a wide assortment of table configurations for whatever mood you might be in, and a highly professional dining-room staff. We never sat at the same table twice, and joined new friends for dinner when we desired. And we were delighted one evening by the alternative restaurant, Don Vito’s Trattoria, where a five-course Italian dinner was punctuated throughout by a spirited performance from the dining-room staff.
The ship’s mission also includes minimal concern for extra costs. There was no charge for Don Vito’s food and entertainment, no charge for staple items such as bottled water, and absolutely no tipping anywhere on the ship. Our cabin stewardess also supplied our stateroom refrigerator and bar with our favorite drinks.
We had spent Saturday night at the Radisson Aruba Resort, and Sunday morning playing golf at Aruba’s desert-by-the-sea Tierra del Sol course, so when Monday morning rolled around, we were just rising and stretching our limbs on the veranda when the ship pulled into Curacao, our first stop. We opted for an animal encounters snorkeling trip rather than shopping and sightseeing in already familiar Willemstad. Later, when the ship slipped down the harbor channel toward the open Caribbean, I felt my first twinge of anticipation. The soft twilight lit the Dutch architecture of the waterfront buildings as we turned west toward Latin America. Cartagena, Colombia’s walled and historic city, lay ahead. But first, a day at sea–and some mind-opening information about where we were going.
Most of the seats in the Constellation Center lecture hall were full for the first of three lectures by Dr. David Pasta, a retired oil industry geophysicist and geologist. A ship’s profile on passengers identifies most as age 45 and up, well-educated and experienced travelers, whose motivation for frequent cruising is based mainly on destination and itinerary. The morning lecture on “plate techtonics” held their attention. It dealt with the formation of the Caribbean and the resulting biodiversity of the Central American region where we were headed–a land where converging geological plates once squeezed together, forming an isthmus with an astounding variety of plant and animal life.
This was, of course, the same isthmus that confronted and frustrated Spanish explorers in the 16th century as they searched for a way around the world to the treasured spices of India and the Orient. But if they had found a way through back then, the city of Cartagena would never have become the main goldshipping city of the Americas, and the second most important commercial city of the 17th century New World (after Mexico City). Penny Zeilman, the shore excursion manager, told us that 97 percent of the Radisson Diamond passengers did the worthwhile city tour of Cartagena, our next port-of-call, so we combined this with our own meandering review of the walled inner city. A central cathedral is surrounded by narrow streets whose colonial buildings and second-story balconies drip flowers and ferns. We wandered through jewelry shops along the congested streets, and detoured from the onslaught of street vendors hawking T-shirts and other souvenirs.
Cartagena is a gem in itself, and certainly a Colombian showcase for tourists, but here on the northern tip of South America we felt poised on a springboard, ready to launch toward what we considered the two main objectives of this cruise–the transit and history of the Panama Canal, and the ecological wonders of Costa Rica. The only passage that still stood between us was a somewhat rough night at sea and the hundreds of tiny atolls known as the San Blas Islands. Attendance in the dining room was noticeably sparse that evening, but the rolling motion of the ship, we were assured by veteran Captain Dag Dvergastein, would have been even less comfortable aboard a mono-hull vessel.
By early morning we were back in calm seas. The San Blas Islands–which appear to pop up like a chain of green, tropical, palm-studded gems salted on a blue sea–spread out before us almost in a straight north-south line. Penny Zeilman had been tentative in her recommendations here. “People come back either loving it or hating it,” she told us. The Kuna Indians have lived in eastern Panama for the past couple of centuries, and about 40,000 of them live today on about 40 of the San Blas Islands. The islands are so tiny, and the bamboo-sided, thatch-roofed dwellings so congested in each commune, that visitors can feel uncomfortably close here.
On the positive side, the Kuna women are known worldwide for their “molas”–brightly colored cotton squares cut, embroidered, and quilted into geometric patterns and designs based on nature and sold as crafts. Designs are elaborate and never exactly the same. The Kunas, who govern themselves independently from the rest of Panama, are generally reticent people. Men, who fish and travel to the mainland for supplies, are rarely seen by daytime tourists. Women, in addition to making and selling molas, adroitly pose themselves or their children for photos in exchange for mandatory modeling fees.
The islands are well within sight of the coastline, and by dawn the following morning the Radisson Diamond was already headed up the dredged approaches to the first three sets of locks of the Panama Canal. We would spend a full day and much of the evening transitting the 50-mile-long canal in one of the highlights of this trip, beginning with an early morning lift in the Gatun Locks and a visit to the Gatun Yacht Club, a remnant of the old Panama Canal Zone. Passengers were tendered to the club, which features folkloric dancers, arts and crafts from three different indigenious Indian groups, plus great views of the lake with ships anchored or in transit.
We also opted for a rain-forest tour, which was part hiking, part riverboat cruise on the Chagres River. It flows from Panama’s high country to the sea, and damming it in the construction of the canal during the early 1900s is what formed Gatun Lake. More Kuna Indian molas were for sale back at the yacht club, but more intriguing were the needlework, brightly dyed fabrics, carvings, baskets, and other products displayed and sold by the Wounaan Indians. They had come from their village many miles distant with Peace Corps volunteer Sue Kozacels of Santa Fe, New Mexico, to be on hand for visiting cruise ships.
Meeting Sue and her friends, along with the dancers and staff of the Gatun Yacht Club, was an unexpected and pleasant addition to our entry into the new world of the Panama Canal, which was formally returned to the government of Panama by the United States in 2000. Onboard the day before, Dr. Pasta had lectured on the canal, from its origins with the French in the 1800s to its geological complexities. And as we headed south-southeast toward Gaillard Cut, the narrow nine-mile channel across the Continental Divide, it became clear why so many lives were lost in so many construction disasters due to landslides. We watched the steep and rugged rock and shale hillsides slip by our balcony, and much later that night the lights of Panama City were clearly visible off our port side as we passed under the Bridge of the Americas and into the Pacific Ocean. While we were glad the cruise line was responsible for the $40,000 toll, the experience was well worth the anticipation.
The next morning, I stepped out onto the balcony and froze, midstretch, in surprise. There before us as we cruised along the coast was a bounding pod of bottle-nosed dolphins. Was this our Costa Rica welcoming committee? It seemed fitting for a country widely known for its wildlife, rain forests, volcanoes, and ecological adventures. On our last night, we had dinner with our lecturer, David Pasta, and his wife, which offered us more enlightenment on this area, as well as a recap of his final talk on biodiversity, volcanoes, and global warming. By now, images of Aruba Carnival revelers had dimmed, and my mind was ready for more natural phenomena.
From Puerto Caldera, where we debarked the Radisson Diamond, we traveled west by car, visiting first a park and then a mountain village where a rodeo and fiesta were in progress, en route to our San Jose hotel–a small, European-style property called the Hotel Le Bergerac, complete with a French restaurant. A full day “Costa Rica Highlights Tour” followed, which included breakfast at a coffee plantation, a trip to the Poas Volcano crater near San Jose, lunch at the Selva Verde Jungle Lodge, and a jungle river trip. Iguanas, monkeys, crocodiles, sloths, and birds were among the many residents of the forest, and our experienced riverboat guide astutely pointed them out. Total cost of our entire two-day stay in Costa Rica, a major highlight of the trip, was less than $450.
Brochure rates for the Radisson Diamond Aruba to Costa Rica cruises through the Panama Canal start at $2,396, per person/ double occupancy. For more information contact your travel agent or Radisson Seven Seas Cruises (Cruise Travel Magazine), 600 Corporate Drive/Suite 410, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33334; or log onto www.rssc.com.
COPYRIGHT 2002 World Publishing, Co. (Illinois)
This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group.
From: Cruise Travel | Date: 11/1/2002 | Author: Kerr, Jim
Email us at The Panama Club
+507-836-6542 / 43 (Panama) | 1-(305)-503-9957 (USA)
PANAMA CITY, Panama — Known for its famed waterway, Panama’s capital boasts more than just a spot to watch the ships cross through the engineering marvel.
Visitors can chose between a swim in the Pacific or the Caribbean, hear tales of pirates looting the city’s original site, find bargain shopping, sample tropical fruits and try their luck at the horse races in Panama City.
OUTDOORS
Head to the Amador Causeway and snap photos of Panama’s downtown or the Bridge of the Americas, where traffic crosses over while ships cruise through the canal. Once part of the off-limits Canal Zone guarded by the U.S. military, the causeway has become a favorite of locals and tourists. The thin strip surrounded by the ocean houses duty-free shops, restaurants, hotels and dance clubs. Construction signs and sites make it evident that there’s more on the way. Kiosks sell hammocks, guayaberas, hats and molas, brightly colored fabrics with elaborate, hand-sewn designs of the Kuna Indian tribe.
By day, twentysomethings and families catch the cool of the ocean breeze while biking, in-line skating, or jogging along the causeway. It’s a strenuous and humid walk, so renting multiseat bikes at the stretch’s entrance works best.
For a day of diving, snorkeling and other water sports, head for Taboga Island, on the Pacific coast. Ferries bound for Isla Taboga leave from a Balboa pier and the causeway each morning and return in the late afternoon.
MUSEUMS
Check out any of the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute’s stations. Visit one of the island sites, such as the Barro Colorado Field Research Station, for a boat ride across the canal’s Gatun Lake and a chance to see a half-dozen native monkey species in their natural setting.
At the Marine Exhibition Center in Punta Culebra, view sloths, pelicans and other tropical forest-dwellers along with an unfettered view of the ships crossing and the rhythmic pounding of waves crashing on jagged rocks. Both kids and adults will be mesmerized watching the crab-eating shark and hearing the boas slithering in the dry forest walk within the park.
CUISINE
For breakfast, sip a frothy cafe con leche, made with locally grown coffee beans, or cinnamon tea. Beer connoisseurs should look for local brews Soberana, Balboa and Atlas, which have a light taste that’s thirst-quenching in the sticky climate.
Pencas offers a view of the ocean and authentic Panamanian cuisine, which is inexpensive even at many upscale eateries. On the restaurant’s menu are minitamales wrapped in plantain leaves, pesada de nance (a cereal-textured fruit dessert with bits of white cheese), dorado en salsa de coco (fish in coconut sauce) and ojaldas (a fried bread). On Wednesday nights, Pencas features a troupe of foot-shuffling folk dancers and a live band complete with accordion. As the show wraps up, dancers and some of the servers extend their hands for a dance with audience members. When I told our waiter that I didn’t know the steps, he turned to my mom and asked “Does the lady dance?”
HISTORY
History buffs should explore the remnants of Panama’s colonial past to learn about its history in the quest for riches in the Americas. Just a cab away from most points in the capital city is Panama la Vieja. In 1671, Panama la Vieja was sacked by pirates, led by Sir Henry Morgan. Red-brick streets, a cathedral spire and crumbling walls, arches and buildings of the Spanish settlement era remain.
Guided tours telling of the colony’s former grandeur and demise are available.
Some miles away is the Casco Viejo, an old colonial neighborhood with narrow streets and pastel-colored buildings in the midst of renovation. Its architecture resembles New Orleans’ French Quarter.
Just like locals have for centuries, watch the sunset from the Paseo de las Bovedas, a sea walk along an old Spanish military fort that served as a prison. Other sites include the Catedral Metropolitana, El Teatro Nacional and the unguarded Church of the Golden Altar. Several restaurants and cafes also dot the neighborhood.
GAMBLING
Place a bet on the horse races at the Hipodromo Presidente Jose A. Remon on a Thursday afternoon and mingle with locals and visitors. The horseracing park also is open weekends and holidays.
More than a half-dozen other casinos also offer all night games of chance in Panama. Among the favorite spots is the casino at the Hotel Panama.
NIGHT LIFE
Hit the causeway or the city’s financial district for some dancing, dining and drinking.
ELSEWHERE
Panama City also connects travelers by plane, bus or boat to other provinces. You can spot large green plantain leaves and dozens of noni plants heading out of the capital city. If you roll down the car windows while driving through heavily forested areas, you might hear the monkeys shrieking.
- The province of Colon is where gold and silver from the Americas passed before being transported to Europe. Explore the cannons and the lush green Spanish fortress in Portobelo.
Bocas del Toro offers scuba diving and national parks for trekking.
- Baru volcano is Panama’s highest point at 11,408 feet. Close by is the alpine town of Boquete, in the province of Chiriqui.
IF YOU GO:
Panama
PANAMA TOURISM
INSTITUTE: www.visitpanama.com or (011) (507) 226-7000.
SMITHSONIAN
TROPICAL RESEARCH INSTITUTE MARINE
EXHIBITION CENTER: www.stri.org. Adults, $2; retirees, $1; children, 50 cents.
PENCAS RESTAURANT: Amador Causeway, (011) (507) 211-3671.
HIPODROMO
PRESIDENTE JOSE A. REMON RACING PARK: www.hipodromo.com/general (in Spanish) or (011) (507) 217-6060.
SAFETY: Panama is relatively safe, but be aware and don’t venture into some neighborhoods at night. The country has a special police force to help tourists.
DRIVING: Driving within the city can be erratic and some areas have few traffic signs or lights.
TAXIS: Taxis looking for a fare usually honk. Wave to flag them down and settle on price before taking trips.
Copyright CHICAGO SUN-TIMES 2005
Provided by ProQuest Information and Learning Company. All rights Reserved.
http://www.suntimes.com
Email us at The Panama Club
+507-836-6542 / 43 (Panama) | 1-(305)-503-9957 (USA)
Situated in the country of Panama in Central America is the Panama Canal – a manmade waterway connecting the great oceans of the Pacific and the Atlantic together. It is 80 kilometers in length and is wide enough to accommodate a whole host of ocean-going vessels, including Panama cruise ships. The Panama canal marks the only point at which the landmass of the North American continent and South American continent are physically separated from each other – a fact that distinguishes the canal as a true wonder of the 20th century engineering world.
The Panama Canal was initially designed to cut travel time for vessels that needed to cross between the Pacific and the Atlantic oceans. It first opened its commercial doors on 15 August, 1914 and is now used by more than thirteen thousand vessels each year. Along the canal’s length are three sets of locks. The locks act as water elevators, enabling vessels to traverse upslope/downslope across the canal terrain.
A Panama cruise takes in the full length of this magnificent canal, revealing some awe-inspiring views of an incredible feat of engineering, as well as offering a tantalizing selection of tour options along the canal. These include sailing or kayaking on Gatun Lake, through which the canal passes. Visitors can also book a tour of the Panama Canal railroad, which takes in dramatic views of the canal itself and the Central American rainforests.
Vibrant Panama City with its eclectic mix of architecture, people and culture is an essential excursion to take while on a Panama cruise. The historical district of Casco Viejo is well worth a visit, if only to see the remnants of the 17th century Spanish fortifications there. For sports-minded cruisers there is a world-class golf course located just 20-minutes away from Panama City.
Panama cruises depart from many of the coastal seaports around the U.S. The most popular cruise routes are one-way cruises departing from one port on the Atlantic or Pacific side and ending at a U.S. port on the opposite coast. Round-trip cruises are available too. These provide passengers with more ‘at sea’ time, and use the Panama Canal as the furthest destination point on the cruise.
Whether one-way or round-trip, Panama cruises incorporate other stops en-route to the Panama Canal and are often of between 10-20 nights in duration. A typical 12-night round-trip Panama cruise itinerary departing from Florida includes calls at Mexico, Jamaica, Costa Rica and Columbia as well as taking in the entire length of the Panama Canal. With so much variety on offer, its no wonder a Panama Cruise is top of the vacation wish list of many an American!
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