Live from Island Princess - Lewie Style

[TracieABD]

Super fun live from! Love that it is coming from two voices!

 

Anxiously awaiting the next segment.:):)

[argenta01]

Glad to hear you enjoyed the tour with Dora. I am going to take her tour when I visit in December. I am really enjoying your thread! :)

[2ndCitySue]

Day 5 - Lewie's Musings from Cartagena

 

Hi Folks,

 

First off, Let me fill Sali in on the changeable weather today. It was sunny, hot, and muggy to start. While out touring we got sudden thunder and a down-pouring of rain and flooding of the roads. We then had cloud cover which made it cooler. By the time we sailed away around 3:30, it was sunny again.

 

Allow me to share more about my life aboard the Island Princess. My traditional dining assignment is in the Provence Dining Room at 5:15 pm. My waiter is Jerrick and his assistant is Remo. They are Filipino and take very good care of us. Jerrick also helps me by cutting my meat. All of us at the table feel very spoiled by them. The Maître De comes by every night to see how our day was.

 

My table mates are like a family. George & Evelyn are like my parents and are very kind to me. Linda, her niece Teresa & my Aunt Sue are like my big Sisters. We spend a couple of hours together every night and enjoy the good food together.

 

I went to the Wheelhouse Bar and listened to the music of Randy Heddon and his Quartet. They were great. And what makes them even more great is that they saw something special in me and gave me a bargain on their CD. They even signed it, writing encouraging notes to me. If coming on the Island Princess, be sure to take a listen yourself.

 

Tomorrow, I will post you on our partial transit of the canal. Til then, Lewie

[BillB48]

Here's what you looked like a little while ago...

 

 

and as seen from the bridge..

 

 

These pics are also on the regular Princess board. Enjoy!

[Sun City Cruiser]

I see you posted your traditional dining is at 5:15, we are on this ship next week. Our reservation says 5:45. What did your original paperwork say?

 

Thanks

[2ndCitySue]

Day 6 - Lewie's Musings from the Panama Canal

 

Today we decided to stay on the ship to experience the operation of the locks as we pass through. The weather is sunny, hot and humid, about 92 degrees F. Later today, my Aunt Sue will write our report of the partial transit of the canal.

 

Today, I want to talk about my occupation at home. My cousin Mark and I have a coffee business called Lew's Brews Coffee. We sell El Salvadorian coffee at a Farmer's market in Palatine, IL. We get a lot of help from family including my Uncle Jack, my parents, and friends of the family. Without them I wouldn't be making it in the business world. If you ever make it to Palatine during the summer, I invite you for a cup of coffee.

 

This trip is renewing my spunk for Lew's Brews. Yesterday I bought Columbian coffee for Mark. This lush rain forest we are traveling through is inspiring me. I anxiously await writing to you from Costa Rica because our tour will go through coffee country and I will buy Costa Rican coffee for friends and family.

 

Sun City - Ours said 5:45 also but it actually is 5:15. Bill - Thanks

 

Stay tuned for tomorrow's musings from the ship at sea.

 

Over and Out, Lewie

[juniper berries]

Hi just wanted to say what a great live from you are doing. Look forward to reading the rest of your live from. I will be on the Island Princess doing a full transit in early January. Your review makes me want January to hurry up. Have a great rest of you cruise with wonderful weather and calm seas.

Ps Than you as well to 2ndCity for helping with the typing and posts.:)

[Orangefan]

Lewie,

Thank you for the weather reports. I was anticipating going in and out of rain and sunshine.

Sali

[jg21]

Lewie, take care of the ship for me; I'll be on it beginning next Wednesday. Love your reports!

[sawtooth]

Hello Lewie and Aunt Sue.

It's great to read about your experiences on this cruise.

We will be sailing on the Island Princess in January. We ear hoping the weather will be a little cooler.

What kind of stateroom do you have?

Hope you are keeping busy on your sea days.

Deborah

[RNGALNG]

Hello Lewie and Aunt Sue.

It's great to read about your experiences on this cruise.

We will be sailing on the Island Princess in January. We ear hoping the weather will be a little cooler.

What kind of stateroom do you have?

Hope you are keeping busy on your sea days.

Deborah

 

We did full way through mid February a year ago. You can expect 80-90 plus every day. I felt Cartagena was the warmest stop. Aruba as not to far behind. It is also not the rainy season then so we had dry sunny days all the way through.

 

When you go off the ship, splurge and get a bottle of water for each of you to take along. Something wet is better than nothing at all! Stay hydrated!

 

Have a great time!

[xavier]

Lewie you rock! Thanks so much for you and your aunt posting from the ship. I am loving your reports!

[argenta01]

If you see Shady Lady Coffee in Costa Rica, give it a try. When I did a full transit of the Panama Canal, I bought coffee in each port. That was by far the best!! I would have ordered more over the internet, but the price was sky high. I'm looking forward to going back in December and getting more Shady Lady Coffee. :D

[MustangGT]

Enjoying your live report Lewie! Sounds like you are having a great time!

Thanks Aunt Sue! Love your "Mayor of the Island Princess" comment! Leave it to the outstanding Princess cruise to make this trip memorable!

[Tweedy]

I am enjoying your adventure and look forward to reading more. I bet this won't be your last cruise.

[2ndCitySue]

Good Evening from Aunt Sue, I will talk about our exciting day doing a partial transit of the Panama Canal.

 

I viewed the transit mostly from the balcony on the front of the 11th floor, thanks to the tip from Mustang GT. The port lecturer Bill Fall, was narrating from that deck and he is phenomenally knowledgeable about the canal. I did run around the ship a bit to get other perspectives.

 

I started watching on deck at about 11:00. We were somewhat behind in entering the Gatun Locks due to congestion in the canal but it was exciting to see many ships anchored in holding positions. I took a short lunch break at about 1:00 because we were still on hold.

 

At 1:30 things began to happen when we started lifting our anchor and we also viewed a Hapag Lloyd ship coming out of the East side of the canal. We entered the East side at 1:47. It takes 8 - 11 minutes to fill the lock with fresh water by gravity. We entered the inner chamber at 2:12 and left the last chamber at 2:50. As Bill said, at that point we were off to the races.

 

At 3:00 thunder and rain started, lasting a good three hours. We could hear parrots, parakeets and macaws in the rain forest next to us. Fresh water was going out of the chamber, bringing fish to feed the fat crocodiles on the bank, although we only spotted one of them on the right bank. 52 million gallons of fresh water went out in 11 minutes. The last gate opened at 3:17.

 

The bough locomotives were casting us off at 3:23. We spotted a lovely yellow headed cara cara falcon soaring to our right. We also saw huge new gray gates off to the right, which are for the canal expansion project due for completion in 2015. At that point we turned around in Gatun Lake to head for the Atlantic side of Costa Rica.

 

I was exhilarated by this transit and really impressed by the engineering feat and the Yankee Ingenuity it took to build this canal a hundred years ago.

 

On board, there were some schedule changes. All dining rooms were on open seating tonight. I ate at the Horizon Court and was glad to have a light dinner for a change, soup and salad.

 

Tomorrow we will report tomorrow as we depart Limon, Costa Rica.

[kellor]

It sounds like you two are having a great time! We did the canal last year and just loved the whole thing! I want to do it again to see everything I missed. I have to tell you our worlds are similar....I actually own and operate 5 farmers markets here in Washington State! Keep having a great time and looking forward to hearing more about your adventures! Lori

 

Day 6 - Lewie's Musings from the Panama Canal

 

Today we decided to stay on the ship to experience the operation of the locks as we pass through. The weather is sunny, hot and humid, about 92 degrees F. Later today, my Aunt Sue will write our report of the partial transit of the canal.

 

Today, I want to talk about my occupation at home. My cousin Mark and I have a coffee business called Lew's Brews Coffee. We sell El Salvadorian coffee at a Farmer's market in Palatine, IL. We get a lot of help from family including my Uncle Jack, my parents, and friends of the family. Without them I wouldn't be making it in the business world. If you ever make it to Palatine during the summer, I invite you for a cup of coffee.

 

This trip is renewing my spunk for Lew's Brews. Yesterday I bought Columbian coffee for Mark. This lush rain forest we are traveling through is inspiring me. I anxiously await writing to you from Costa Rica because our tour will go through coffee country and I will buy Costa Rican coffee for friends and family.

 

Sun City - Ours said 5:45 also but it actually is 5:15. Bill - Thanks

 

Stay tuned for tomorrow's musings from the ship at sea.

 

Over and Out, Lewie

[JUSRN]

Just off Island Princess on Sunday.

We had Jerrick and Nemo at the 7:30 dinner and yes they pampered us!!! Great service!!!

Loved the elegance of the ship.

[OCruisers]

Hi Lewie! Really am enjoying reading this! :)

 

LuLu

~~~~

[2ndCitySue]

Hello from Sunny Costa Rica,

 

Today is very hot and humid but no rain, although Limon gets 100 inches of rain per year. First let me answer questions/comment you made yesterday:

 

Deborah - We have an inside cabin which is perfect for us because we generally are either out on tour or on the deck.

 

Argenta01 - We didn't find Shady Lady Coffee in the supermarket we visited. We bought lots of 1820 Coffee and are told that is what locals drink. My aunt bought some previously and it was great. We got it for $3/bag.

 

Jim - I'm seriously taking care of the Island for you. You will find it in ship-shape next week - Guaranteed!

 

Tweedy - you are correct that this won't be my last cruise. Your comment sparked in me an idea for my musings today. I shall fill you in on my extensive cruise experiences and some land tours.

 

1) Marco Polo in 2000 - I went on a Baltic Sea Cruise, visiting Sweeden, Finland, Russia, Estonia and Denmark. In Russia we took a full day excursion to fly from St. Petersburg to Moscow for a crash tour of the Kremlin, Red Square, etc.

 

2) Alaska - Dawn Princess in 2005 - I did a cruise tour of Denali followed by an inner passage cruise from Whittier to Vancouver.

 

3) Marco Polo Transatlantic in 2006 - I sailed with Aunt Sue from Southampton to Barbados. We stopped in Gibralter and Madeira, across the Atlantic to the Caribbean.

 

4) Royal Caribbean Adventure of the Sea Transatlantic in 2008 - I went with Aunt Sue from Barcelona to San Juan, Puerto Rico. We stopped in France, Spain, and Portugal, then across the Atlantic to San Juan. To tour in San Juan was emotional to me because of my Puerto Rican roots.

 

5) Caribbean Cruise on Royal Caribbean in 2009 - I went with my Dad to Nassau, St. Thomas, St. Martin, and back to Ft. Lauderdale.

 

6) Panama Canal Cruise on the Island Princess in 2013 - Aunt Sue and I are having a blast on this cruise.

 

7) Egypt Land Tour in 2010 - I went with Aunt Sue all over Egypt. I took a course in Egyptology and this trip was magical for me.

 

8) Holy Land - Land Tour in 2011 - I traveled with Aunt Sue, Aunt Catherine, and my sister Catie on a pilgrimage trip. We went to Israel including Jerusalem, Palestine, Nazareth and the Jordan River. This was truly a religious experience for me.

 

Tomorrow, I shall send out my musings at sea, on the way to Grand Cayman Island.

 

Cheer, Cheer, Cheer-io,

Lewie

[2ndCitySue]

DAY 7 - LIMON, COSTA RICA from Aunt Sue

 

Greetings Friends,

 

Today we went on a fabulous Tour by Eduardo with our Cruise Critic Buddies. We started out at an extensive fruit stand where we consumed very fresh bananas, pineapple, papaya, coconut, cocoa beans and saw green coffee beans. We saw a coffee plant with coffee cherries growing on it and a cashew tree. We watched sugar cane being made into syrup. They sawed off the top of coconuts and let us drink the "milk" with a straw for the nominal price of $1.00!

 

Next up was a trip to the Dole Banana Plantation. We saw where they carefully wash the bananas to remove all soils and chemicals. We watched the experts at work separating the bananas worthy of exporting from those destined for other uses, such as fertilization of the crops. We walked in the fields and saw how they are grown and protected from environmental damage. It was extremely educational for us.

 

Next we went for a cruise on the Tortuguero Canals. We took a Jungle Eco Tour and saw birds, such as Blue Herons, Snow egrets, an immature yellow crown night heron, yellow topped cara car a birds, and could hear the birds chirping. We saw and heard monkeys high in the trees along the bank, green iguanas in the bushes, and several Jesus Christ Lizards that seemingly walk on water. We saw a baby crocodile on a log in a swampy area and several three toed sloths, one of them huge. We saw blue butterflies fluttering around. I felt like I was in heaven!

 

We made a final stop at a supermarket for bargain priced coffee and then scurried back on the ship. The tour was a super bargain at $45/ person. Our guide Rey and driver Pluma were exceptional. We highly recommend Eduardo's Magical Tour.

 

I love this cruise, Sue

[EatPrayCruise]

Hi Lewie & Aunt Sue,

 

We are on the Coral Princess on November 15 for the same or similar itinerary, so we are happy to be reading your reviews! Your stories and musings are delightful and we thank you for taking the time to keep us all informed and on the edge of our seats.

 

Enjoy!

 

:o

Edited October 27, 2013 by EatPrayCruise

[phabric]

We were on this cruise a few years ago.

 

You are bringing back memories of this cruise. We might think about doing it again.

 

I have enjoyed both of your reviews.

[2ndCitySue]

Dear Fans of the Island Princess,

 

I am sitting on a deck chair on the Promenade of our beloved Island Princess, without a care in the world. I want to share what's shaking on the Island. Last night after another delightful dinner in the Provence, I attended the comedy show in the Princess Theatre by the charming Irishman, George Casey. He kept us laughing but wasn't quite as hysterical as at his first show two days earlier. I was glad I went though because I enjoyed the laughing I did.

 

Next, I quickly moved on to the Explorer's Lounge for "Ye Olde Pub Night" hosted by the CD Rich and his able assistant Dan. The Princess Singers & Dancers participated and it was my favorite production so far. It was a high energy combination of comedy, sing along and production routines. From what I was able to gather, this is a revival of a previous Princess concept which went away some years ago. I'm glad they brought it back and I felt honored to be part of the first run of this on the Island.

 

I next attempted to find Crooners because I wanted to listen to piano man Bobby Hamilton who has been receiving good reviews from fellow cruisers. I met him during the canal transit when he was viewing it from the same deck as me. But I ended up going up to get ready for bed because the clock was moving ahead one hour, which meant I had to sleep fast because Lewie was already in bed and he is an early riser. I'm going to catch Bobby's performance tonight.

 

I also want to share about an extremely helpful class taught by Asst. CD Dan on IPad tips. I missed the class itself but was able to watch it twice on stateroom tv. One of my main takeaways is that I can compose this blog offline and do a cut and paste. Then I turn on my internet and paste it into the Cruise Critic form to submit my entry. Then I'm ready to turn off my internet and I've only used about 3 minutes of internet time. I am on track for my free 250 minutes (due to Platinum Status) lasting me for the entire 10 day cruise for both Lewie's and my blogs.

 

The other biggie IPad tip for me is being able to do a screen print of something I would like to read after I get off the internet. By simultaneously touching the off switch AND the home key, whatever is on my screen goes to my photos for my reading pleasure while off line.

 

I have also found that our remarkable Internet Manager, Nebo, is a wealth of knowledge on all things internet. Earlier in the cruise he cheerfully helped me out until I was able to drive my IPad without a learner's permit. He amazes me because I have seen him helping 3 of us at the same time without getting rattled or short with any of us. He's another gem of a staff member on this lovely ship.

 

That's it for today. See you tomorrow after we hang out in Grand Cayman.

 

Make It a Great Day,

Aunt Sue

 

Slight correction from yesterday: we actually went to the Del Monte Plantation.

[2ndCitySue]

DAY 8 - LEWIE'S MUSINGS AT SEA

 

Today on deck was enjoyable. The weather was sunny, hot and humid. This evening it is raining. Tonight was formal night. Dinner was very elegant and Jerrick and Remo spoiled us again.

 

My theme today is the music on board. It is excellent. In addition to the talented Randy Heddon Quartet, I have enjoyed other performers. The Joszef Mezei Trio play piano, violin, and viola in the Atrium. I like their classical music, especially their version of Ave Maria, which lifted my spirits. Bobby Hamilton, The Piano Man at Crooners, belts out Louis Armstrong and Frank Sinatra with gusto.

 

I'm coming down with a bad cold so I will sign off for now. Tomorrow I will report from Grand Cayman Island.

 

I hope you are enjoying reading my blog,

Lewie