10-Day Island Princess - Panama Canal Partial Transit - Chistmas Cruise Photo Review

[LittleMissMagic]

So FINALLY, Sam gets the car started, again. We all hop back inside and get going... down the hill and back onto the pavement... when it breaks down, again.

 

When we were stuck on the side of the road for a long time, he had made some phone calls and told us his brother was coming. Well, his brother caught up, but he got the car started, again, so his brother followed.

 

And then it broke down, again. This time in traffic. His brother pulls up beside us, and there is a big guy who is not smiling. "You go with him - he's like a brother to me." Like a brother??? You really have no blood relation?

 

We got in the car and met "Alexander the Great." The reason this guy isn't smiling is because he's also a cab driver... from a different company. "What we'll do is you'll go back to the guy that sold you the tour, and he'll give me $70, since I'm driving you now. Do you remember who sold you the tour?" "PRINCE!!! Prince sold us the tour!" (Thank goodness for unusual names here....)

 

Alexander then told us about how Sam knew his car needed to go into the shop, but he wouldn't take it in because he didn't want to miss a day of making money. "I told him... I told him you need to take that car in and get it fixed. It's not right. I didn't do this for him. He knew better. I did this for you because you don't deserve to get stuck because he was careless with his car."

 

So Alexander the Great took us to the canal. We get to the canal, and they want us to pay. Great... we were told that the price of the canal was included in the price of our package. Well, the guy who operates this shindig only speaks Spanish, so Alexander spoke with him in Spanish, and I picked up a few words here and there.... like no... and money... :D

 

Well, it turns out that this company that we bought the tour through doesn't like to pay them very often, and they often never see the money. Alexander says he'll pay the money for now because we're going back to Prince to get our money from him, and he'll make sure that he sees his $40.

 

So after all of this discussion, a boat pulled up, and we were able to board immediately. Finally no wait!

 

DSC_6644 by vshingl, on Flickr

 

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As mom said, "I feel like I'm on a real life jungle cruise."

[LittleMissMagic]

A bird... one of the few animals we saw.

 

DSC_6652 by vshingl, on Flickr

 

If you squint, you can see the small crocodile sitting on this branch. I was getting rather annoyed that I couldn't get any good photos because I had decided not to bring my zoom lens, the front of the boat had glass on it, and the couple in front of us was obnoxious trying to take photos which I could tell weren't going to turn out any good.

 

DSC_6653 by vshingl, on Flickr

 

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[LittleMissMagic]

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Iguanas. Really missing the zoom lens here...

 

DSC_6661 by vshingl, on Flickr

 

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Really, this looks like Adventureland. Great job, Disney.

 

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Edited January 3, 2013 by LittleMissMagic

[LittleMissMagic]

DSC_6681 by vshingl, on Flickr

 

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[LittleMissMagic]

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[LBumb]

tremendous job. keep it coming

thanks

[Just The 3 Of Us]

So happy I found your latest review - always love reading them and your pictures are amazing! Thanks so much for sharing your experience once again!

[jg21]

Love the review. We're doing the full transit in October, and your review will come in handy. Only thing wrong with the review is that it's written by a Clemson student. Kidding! Maryland grad here. We don't have many bragging rights lately...

[PrincessNancy]

Thank you for your fantastic review--we'll be on the Coral for the same itinerary in 2 1/2 months so your insights have been helpful. Loving your adventures in Limon! Can't wait to hear (and see) how it turns out!!

 

Wishing you a fantastic adventure in Italy.

 

Nancy

Edited January 3, 2013 by PrincessNancy

[Topo Gigio]

Just the other day I wrote why I quit cruising Princess. Because of the shower and the mattress!

 

Looks like they will change that on the Royal Princess.

 

Aren't you the girl from the Monarch of the Seas a couple of moths ago for your sis graduation party?

[Familygoboston]

Love the photos of the canal...DH loves your photography (and he's kind of a photo nut himself) He just bought himself the pro version of the camera you are using ( just for cruising...he has what can only be described as an arsenal of cameras!)...I like to use the AW like your sister, goes everywhere and the photos are decent as long as you let it warm up first. Great to see the canal, on our list...but you are right there are far better ways to see Costa Rica!! We went on a jungle cruise in Torteguero and it was like the real "jungle cruise" we saw every kind of animal and birds. You've go to go back and do it that way to really see it!!

 

I understand your mom's feeling...mine was here with my girls when DH and I went off to St martin for a week, and wouldn't that be the week my 13 YO DD most needs her mom for the first time (if you know what I mean!;)) We were stuck with some kind of plane problem in this crappy motel and I just cried and cried. She was perfectly fine, my mom is so cool and it was all good, but still...the guilt!!:o

Edited January 4, 2013 by Familygoboston

[LittleMissMagic]

Just the other day I wrote why I quit cruising Princess. Because of the shower and the mattress!

 

I totally agree with you on that - the bed was only slightly more comfortable than the floor.

[LittleMissMagic]

So we get back into the cab after the canal tour, and Alexander tells us that first we'll go see Prince and then he'll take us to the beach. Rachel huffed, as she was very anxious to get to the beach and no longer enjoying this excursion. "This is the beach I'll take you to." Mom asked if he could drop us off now and take Dad with him. "Yeah, yeah, I can do that." As much as I wanted to make Rachel happy by going to a beach, I wasn't so keen on letting our dad leave us. I decided that after 45 minutes, if he wasn't back, then I'd panic.

 

Well, this beach was a public beach. And by public beach, I don't mean the lovely white sand beaches of the Caribbean islands. I mean a true local beach. As soon as we got out of the car, it was clear that we were of the minority. This was not the type of beach that we had in mind, and I remembered one of the Canadian girls we'd met who had been to Costa Rica before telling us that their private beaches were nice.

 

DSC_6699 by vshingl, on Flickr

 

Mom clearly didn't see the many conflicts we faced being possibly the only tourists on the beach because she set her bags down, left them unattended and headed to the water. Luckily, Rachel and I were right behind her to guard our things. She also told us very loudly how much money she had in the bags so we could go get chairs or drinks if we wanted. This lady...

 

DSC_6701 by vshingl, on Flickr

 

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As much as I like to learn about the local culture, I was not comfortable here. Maybe it's because we were already in some shady deal with the tour company. Or perhaps it's because I was wearing my obnoxious 'Merica 'Merica 'Merica tank. Either way, I felt like I stood out like a sore thumb.

 

Dad came out sooner than I had expected. We told him that we didn't want to stay long. He got us some drinks. Apparently, this bar was more like a venue to sell beer than an actual bar. I had requested a rum punch. "You mean you want rum in your punch?" "Uhhh... yeah something like that." It was like kool aid and rum. I'm a college student. Whatever.

 

After we finished our drinks, we were ready to leave. Alexander the Great was right there waiting on us.

Edited January 4, 2013 by LittleMissMagic

[LittleMissMagic]

So - back the the tour company fiasco.

 

They first went back to the tour company. The tour company asked to see the receipt. "I didn't get a receipt." "Then it must've been a private transaction. If you had a receipt, we could help you." Turns out Prince was pocketing our money rather than turning it into the company and sent us with a cab driver rather than a tour guide so that he wouldn't get caught. We wouldn't have known or cared, had the cab not broken down.

 

Well, Alexander says, "I know where Prince lives. I'll take you to him." And he drove my dad to Prince's house, but Prince wasn't there.

 

So we get in the cab and start driving...

 

DSC_6709 by vshingl, on Flickr

 

But instead of taking us back to the ship, he took us to Prince's house.

 

DSC_6711 by vshingl, on Flickr

 

"Hey, Prince - do you recognize these people?"

 

Prince comes staggering over. He peers in the back seat, looking confused.

 

"I said do you recognize these people?"

 

He goes to the other side and looks at Dad. "I sold you a tour?"

 

DSC_6712 by vshingl, on Flickr

 

"Yeah, for $180 this morning."

 

"Oh, yeah. You're not happy with your tour?"

 

"The cab broke down. We had to get Alexander to drive us to the canal and the beach."

 

"But of what Sam gave you - you weren't happy?"

 

"We were happy with Sam, but his car broke down. He took us only to the rainforest. Now I'm having to pay him because he rescued us."

 

"They want their money back."

 

"I don't have the money."

 

"Give them their money back."

 

"It's not my fault! It's not my fault the cab broke down."

 

At some point, Rachel had asked if we could just leave, and Alexander had turned around and told her it was okay.

 

Alexander just wanted to mess with Prince. Dad had already paid him for his trouble and more. So Alexander took us back to the port.

 

Now this is a sight for sore eyes -

 

DSC_6716 by vshingl, on Flickr

 

We had an adventurous day in Costa Rica, but it was good to be back.

 

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Edited January 4, 2013 by LittleMissMagic

[LittleMissMagic]

DSC_6720 by vshingl, on Flickr

Adios, Costa Rica.

 

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It's been real.

[iloverags2]

Yeah, I'd say that was an adventurous day!

[MilliesMom]

Great review.

[goodycruising]

Enjoying the good and bad things on your reviews. I would be very scared going in those areas without being on an official tour, and it is great that some turn out great and some turn out not so great but you all have a laugh and make the best of it.

 

My hubby just asked if in my last post I had mentioned that I thought you had very nice manners, getting dressed for dinner and made up, and waiting for permission to leave the table while others were having dessert. It is obvious that you have been brought up with manners, and you have a few "tounge in cheek" jokes about them - but you say them with lots of affection. Good story about the walking! Some parents, like mine, wonder why they don't know what their kids are doing or thinking, it is an important thing to spend quality time with your kids. I hope you go well in your studies coming up, it is always scary doing something unfamiliar, but it sounds like you will have a fun time.

[blondcat]

Love your reviews and fun seeing one from the younger generation.

 

I can tell you have great banter with your parents - reminds me of my brothers and I with my mum and dad. Sense of humour is a wonderful thing within a family which not everyone experiences (evidently!).

 

Looking forward to the next posts

 

Sent from my BlackBerry 9300 using Tapatalk

[LissyTx]

Thanks for writing, I always love your reviews. Looking forward as well to the Princess/RCCL comparison.

[lcmslady]

sorry if this ends up being a double post...it's late and the computer and I aren't playing well together.

 

You have a great eye for pictures. I will admit that I skipped through the PC ones since I'll be there next week for a full transit on the Island Princess.

We are in an outside cabin on the Plaza deck so it was nice to see a preview.

 

Hope to meet all of you some day - you sound like you're great fun to hang out with.

 

Good luck in Italy!

[LittleMissMagic]

Enjoying the good and bad things on your reviews. I would be very scared going in those areas without being on an official tour, and it is great that some turn out great and some turn out not so great but you all have a laugh and make the best of it.

 

I can't believe I forgot to tell you the funniest part of the story. When we were leaving the rainforest to get in the cab, my dad asked some random woman on the cruise ship tour (Princess offered the same tour... minus the car on the side of the road experience for $200pp) and was bragging to her about how he was paying less than half of that. And sure enough right after, our cab breaks down. Karma! :D

 

My hubby just asked if in my last post I had mentioned that I thought you had very nice manners, getting dressed for dinner and made up, and waiting for permission to leave the table while others were having dessert. It is obvious that you have been brought up with manners, and you have a few "tounge in cheek" jokes about them - but you say them with lots of affection. Good story about the walking! Some parents, like mine, wonder why they don't know what their kids are doing or thinking, it is an important thing to spend quality time with your kids. I hope you go well in your studies coming up, it is always scary doing something unfamiliar, but it sounds like you will have a fun time.

 

Thank you for the compliment on my manners. My Mississippi mother would take great pride in that. :)

 

I didn't know that so many people read the previous poster's comment, but I assure you that we just joke around with eachother an awful lot, and I am not intending to be disrespectful or to hurt anyone's feelings. I suppose I tend to treat trip reports more like diaries, but it's the style of writing that I enjoy reading myself and one that I automatically refer to when constructing my own reviews. Unfortunately, when I reveal so much of my personality, that gives the reader more to judge than just the cruise itself. And while that's something I usually ignore, it's a little more difficult when someone is accusing me of being unappreciative of what my parents have given me. I think if I were unappreciative, I wouldn't have bothered to write a review and certainly wouldn't have put so much into it. Clearly, considering the demographics of these boards, I have a greater appreciation for cruising than most people my age.

[LittleMissMagic]

Day 8 - Sea Day

 

Today was another boring-to-write-about sea day. We got up super early to get chairs on the pool deck since Princess hardly has chairs. I'll also note that daily on the morning show, they would tell people not to save chairs. That morning, we got to the deck at 8:30 AM and were lucky enough to score chairs on the 15th deck that overlooked the pool. We also had a great view of the movie screen. I was able to watch Devil Wears Prada (though the sun became more terribly blinding as the movie progressed) and get a nice sunburn all over my legs and back. My back is peeling as I type... I also chose this day to wear a bikini with cutouts, so I have a super weird tanline. Good thing it's winter.

 

Tonight was the second formal night. It was also lobster night.

 

IMG_1702 by vshingl, on Flickr

 

IMG_1706 by vshingl, on Flickr

 

IMG_1709 by vshingl, on Flickr

[LittleMissMagic]

Day 9 - Grand Cayman

 

Grand Cayman was the only port we had been to before (back in 2008!). We knew that we wanted to go shopping, to Hell, and then Seven Mile Beach.

 

That morning, they had everyone go to the Bordeaux Ballroom to get a tender ticket, and you'd wait there until you were called. We were lucky enough to be handed a ticket and told immediately to go. Well, we were in line and two women wandered up behind us looking rather confused got in line. I wasn't sure if they knew they had to get a tender ticket, so I thought I would make sure she had one so she didn't stand in this line only to be told she needed a tender ticket. Well, instead of speaking to me, she gestures to a sticker on her chest that says #2. An older gentleman behind me butts in rather rudely and says, "She doesn't need one. She's on an excursion," as if I'm an idiot for trying to be helpful... I wasn't even talking to him. "Oh, you're in an excursion? Then I guess you're good to go! I just wanted to make sure because I'd have hated for you to wait in this line..." It was pointless. I was talking to a wall. She didn't even want to hear me apologize for trying to help her. Sheesh. Someone's panties were in a wad.

 

Once we got to land, our first stop was Margaritaville.

 

DSC_6725 by vshingl, on Flickr

 

My parents are huge parrotheads, so it's always a must to purchase some Buffett souvenirs.

 

Next we went to the liquor store. I (err... actually my father) had promised my boyfriend that I'd bring him a souvenir. I had been checking the prices at other ports and on the ship (Princess's alcohol isn't as good of a deal as Royal Caribbean's), but Grand Cayman was definitely worth holding out for. A handle of Grey Goose was $45, liter of Absolut 2 for $20, liter of Bacardi 2 for $20 (handle 2 for $30), handle of Goldschlager for a remarkable $25. If you're on this itinerary and want to purchase alcohol, the best deals I saw were in Grand Cayman.

 

And then Rachel's store -

 

DSC_6726 by vshingl, on Flickr

 

Every Christmas, she buys herself a ring. This year she wanted an even more extravagant ring because despite all efforts to steer him in the opposite direction, my boyfriend ended up giving me the ring that she had been wanting for my birthday.

 

It was actually an ironic story... my boyfriend was going to get me a Michael Kors watch for my birthday, but he felt like he couldn't anymore after Rachel's boyfriend got her a Michael Kors watch. So Rachel suggested he get me a ring and gave him some ideas of what to get me, but my size 5.5 finger is apparently difficult to shop for which really limited his options. So he ended up giving me a purple amethyst ring since we go to Clemson. When Rachel saw it, she was furious because she had wanted a purple ring because we go to Clemson. I'm actually not at all surprised because Rachel and my boyfriend have very similar personalities... I think that's why I like him.

[LittleMissMagic]

While Rachel was jewelry shopping, Dad was checking out prices to go to Hell. He found a lady who would take us to Hell and then Seven Mile Beach for $12pp. Everyone else wanted to take us on a tour for $15pp which included a variety of other stops, such as the Turtle Farm. It sounded like a good deal, but Rachel wanted the beach, and I wasn't about to interfere with that again.

 

If you've never been to Hell, it's a quick little stop.

 

DSC_6728 by vshingl, on Flickr

 

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You can mail a postcard from Hell. I thought it was a cute idea, but I couldn't think of many people whose addresses I knew off the top of my head who I could send one to without someone in their household possibly being offended. We live in the Bible Belt.

 

DSC_6755 by vshingl, on Flickr