Day: January 18, 2023

Panama Cruise – Day 12 – Wednesday, January 18th

edithtedLeave a comment

Puerto Vallarta, another beautiful beach town in Mexico, is better preserved than Acapulco, but more touristy. I think it is one of the more popular vacation destinations in Mexico nowadays (beside Cancun and Cabo). But despite 3 cruise ships in town, it didn’t feel crowded or swamped with people. In fact, the beach and the shopping mall we visited were very quiet!

We walked 7.5 miles today, mostly along the sandy beach which is demanding! But it was very beautiful! Perfect weather, sand between your toes, what else do you need?

Our evening we spent back on the ship, with a lovely dinner, a comedy show and a Motown music concert. There are always so many choices….. Each day we get a 4-page newsletter (Ted gets the English and I get the German version) in the room with all necessary, important and interesting news of the next day: time changes, dining options, entertaining highlights, etc

Panama Cruise – Day 11 – Tuesday, January 17th

edithtedLeave a comment

In case you wonder why we enjoy this cruise so much, part of it is because we have a lovely room with a balcony. Cruising through the Caribbean Ocean in January means perfect weather, 25-30 degrees Celsius with pleasant winds. A balcony is the must-have to enjoy sitting outside, read a book, play with Harold (my Ukulele) and/or drink a glass of something.

Today is our last day before we have a 3-day-3-port visit in Puerto Vallarta, Mazatlan, and Cabo San Lucas. And today we were quite busy: a q&a event on how to run a floating hotel, we watched a 1 hour performance of a marching band from the university of Wisconsin (300 of their band members are on this cruise!), we attended a wine & macaroon tasting, had a lovely dinner at a Mexican restaurant and watched the Beatles cover band again; this time: the psychedelic years!

Black glass wine tasting with macaroons
Guacamole – freshly prepared at the table
Shrimp ceviche – delicious
Red snapper with plantains

Ship Facts

  • The ship was built in Germany and is registered in Nassau, Bahamas
  • It is not registered in the USA because, if so, it could have only hire US citizens, but for hospitality they prefer to hire people from other countries (kitchen: India, room and restaurant service: Philippines, etc. Entertainment is mostly US)
  • The ship is 1094 ft – 333.5 meters long
  • It is 135.8 ft – 41.4 meters wide
  • 1700+ crew
  • 70+ nationalities
  • 20 decks
  • Total souls on board: 6700 (guests and crew)
  • The laundry facility has 25 staffs
  • The crew laundry is washing 300kg per day / 1500 pieces
  • There are 20+ different dining options
  • 210 waiters and 150 chefs
  • 10000 meals are served per day!!!
  • 1000 rolls and 550 baguettes per day