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LittleMissMagic's 17-Day ~Pacific Princess~ Panama Canal **PHOTO REVIEW**

LittleMissMagic

By LittleMissMagic,
in Princess Cruises

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greenie082756

greenie082756

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I am so glad that everything is going your way! Scholarship!! Yeeeeehaa! :D

 

I was worried something might of happened (mother instinct) as it wasn't like you to stop in mid stream.

 

I am so thrilled that it was just life getting busy for you!!

 

I am an avid fan of your reports of the cruises your on. Thanks again!!

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kirenne

kirenne

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Wow! Fantastic review thus far!

 

I will be honest - as I was flipping through brochure material after picking it up from the Future Cruise Consultant area on the Star last week, I turned to my boyfriend and said, "Mental note; never book on the Pacific Princess," simply because of all the amenities it doesn't have compared to other ships. However, seeing these photos has made me think I was a little too hasty.

 

Can't wait to read more as you post! I have a Nikon D3200 myself, and seeing your photos is really making me itch to get an upgrade soon!

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LittleMissMagic "Live from...." Rare

LittleMissMagic

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For dinner, I had the steamed asparagus. I start to feel disgusting after eating cruise food for so long, so it's always good to find my favorite veggies on the menu!

 

 

Medley of Tender Greens with Trio of Cheeses and Pecans -

 

 

Rachel is very particular about Creme Brulee (I'm really not a fan), and complained about the temperature and consistency.

 

Edited by LittleMissMagic
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LittleMissMagic "Live from...." Rare

LittleMissMagic

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After dinner, we watched the singers and dancers in Motor City. We were really hoping to get front row seats again, but people were less shy or faster to the show today, so we ended up on the second row.

 

It was really enjoyable to watch the singers and dancers because we saw them regularly around the ship and had conversations with them. It felt like we were watching our friends.

 

Also, the Pacific Princess might have a small cast, but they are definitely talented - more talented than I've seen of the casts on the larger ships. It also might have helped that the dancers were at the end of their contracts, so they had been working together for months, now.

 

Here's singers Craig (who we enjoyed many games of water volleyball with) and Rayna -

 

Edited by LittleMissMagic
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IECalCruiser

IECalCruiser

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Welcome back! We enjoyed the front seats on the Pacific. We were on before you in December and being so close to the performers was nice. I agree that Craig and Rayna did a good job as well as the rest of the cast.

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RNCheryl

RNCheryl

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Miss Magic: We are a retirement age , but still working, couple with children older than you.

 

We would LOVE to cruise with you. Your attitude is infectious and you would be great dinner companions.

 

Love your photos. Sharp and on point.

 

We did a Princess canal cruise last year on the Coral out of Ft. Lauderdale (our favorite ship, by the way) It was 11 or 12 days and too long for me.

 

Happy cruising!

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  • 1 month later...
LittleMissMagic "Live from...." Rare

LittleMissMagic

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[Day 07] At Sea

 

You might've noticed that I mislabeled Day 6 as Day 4... oops!

 

December 23 - Christmas Eve Eve! A day earlier, Rachel and I barely missed the signups for the the Great Gingerbread House Competition. Really, it was bogus. They said that sign-ups were until 12, so we went to the customer service desk at 11:45 to sign up, and they said, "Oh, we already sent the list away." "But it said in the guide that sign-ups were until 12." "Well the list is gone, so it's too late." Hmph.

 

Anyway, everyone onboard the Pacific Princess is incredible lucky that we didn't make the sign-up list because we would have kicked some major butt. I mean, I spend the majority of my life right now making architectural models and am fiercely competitive, so it's probably a good thing because I would've turned this friendly "hmm can we assemble a pre-made gingerbread house?" competition into a battle til death!

 

Instead, I unleashed my competitiveness in this afternoon's game of water volleyball.

 

Water volleyball actually wasn't on the schedule today. Rachel and I were just minding our own business in the pool when the water volleyball pool recruited us. They needed us to be down for a game so that they could convince the activities director that they should shut down the pool for an unscheduled game. These guys literally chased down the dancers, begging for volleyball. Finally, they found Jen and were able to persuade her that we should play. These are the perks of being on a small ship.

 

I am no good at water volleyball because I am not tall enough to stand in the pool (really, I couldn't stand anywhere in the pool), so I had to tread water the entire time which was exhausting. But I've got heart and had nothing better to do, so I joined the crew of afternoon water volleyball players.

 

After the net was taken away from us a few hours later, the guys continued wrestlemania, which I was down to watch (they kept trying to recruit Rachel and I for a sister-v-sister match, but I'm pretty sure they were just hoping for a wardrobe malfunction).

 

There were two minority groups on this cruise - children and young adults. And both were in the pool right now - kids splashing on one side, and the WWE bros on the other. But the kids got greedy and wanted both sides of the pool, so they kept swimming over to where the guys were rough-housing, and eventually a dad intervened and asked the guys if they could leave the pool.

 

So we moved to the hot tub. I might have mentioned this already but the hot tubs were always scorching hot! Like maybe you can dip your toes in hot. Not just annoying, but dangerous, especially with what I'm assuming was a record number of children onboard.

 

Went back to the room to clean up for dinner and noticed that we had a few stowaways outside -

 

 

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas! This gingerbread village was created by the wonderful dessert and pastry chefs aboard Pacific Princess. Not the results of the passenger gingerbread competition earlier that day!

 

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LittleMissMagic "Live from...." Rare

LittleMissMagic

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Our head waiter, Nelson, had to wear that silly hat until Christmas, but was kind enough to share it with Dad. Like I said before, Nelson was an incredible head waiter, and spoke to us every night. He was much better than our waiter and assistant waiter who didn't even bother to learn our names.

 

Appetizer that night was the crab and artichoke dip, yum!

 

 

I piggy-backed off of Rachel's creativity and ordered the Pad Thai (main course) as a smaller portion in place of a salad.

 

 

Because we couldn't miss out on the main entree, Surf & Turf -

 

 

And for dessert, Love Boat Dream. I'm actually not a fan at all. It's a texture thing. But it makes a pretty photo, for sure.

 

 

Tonight, we celebrated by the pool at the Love Boat Deck Party. It was really cute, and they dressed all of the dancers up like Isaac in his bartending outfit with mustaches. I didn't bring my camera because it's heavy, and every once in a while, I just want to enjoy the evening and not photograph it.

 

And here's something Princess doesn't skimp on - nightly turn-down service with chocolates!

 

Edited by LittleMissMagic
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dforeigner

dforeigner

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I always enjoy reading your reviews along with the pictures you post. This must be the slowest review in CC (if we get technical, the pace seems like it is one day per month). The suspense is killing me but do appreciate the fact that you come back and continue posting about the trip.

 

Thank you.

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LittleMissMagic "Live from...." Rare

LittleMissMagic

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[Day 08] San Juan Del Sur

 

This morning, we woke up in Nicaragua - another unique port that we'd yet to visit!

 

Since it was our first time, we opted for one of Princess's cruise excursions - "Masaya and Mombacho Volcanoes, Vistas & Lunch" (SJ1-340), "a rigorous full-day guided photo experience via air-conditioned transportation". The activity level was rated "strenuous".

 

San Juan Del Sur is a tender port, which lets guests off at a very narrow floating pontoon with steep steps. The message in the Patter was very specific - Due to the size of the pontoon, no assistance is available to our passengers and therefore all passengers going ashore today need to be able to walk unaided (there is no room for wheelchairs and not wide enough for walking frames) along a narrow, moving pontoon and negotiate approximately 8 very steep steps.

 

They really packed us onto the tender boat tightly. I was in a very uncomfortable position near a window leak, and it kept dripping repeatedly on my shoulder, water torture all the way to the dock.

 

 

The pontoon, like they said, was tight. And despite the very realistic warning of the amount of physical fitness it would take to get off the pontoon, there were a lot of passengers struggling. I think that maybe they thought that while they couldn't have the assistance of crew members, their family members could assist them... but it was just too narrow to be able to walk up side-by-side. Needless to say, it took a long time to get off of that crowded, steamy tender boat.

 

Since we were so patient in getting off of the tender boat, we were the last on and seated in the back of the bus. :cool: I was cool with it because it was elevated, so we got a great view. Also, all four of us could sit in the row, so it was a pretty good deal. It just became annoying because it took so long for everyone else to get on and off the bus, so we were always waiting forever.

 

Now, remember how I said that this tour was rated strenuous? Maybe people looked over that little detail, didn't take it too seriously, or don't have an accurate current assessment of their physical capabilities. Because there were a lot of people on the tour who were definitely not fit for (my definition of) the "strenuous" activity level.

 

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LittleMissMagic "Live from...." Rare

LittleMissMagic

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Our first stop was Lake Nicaragua, one of the world's largest lakes. It's home to the only freshwater shark on the planet.

 

Here's a freshwater shark out of water, coming to eat me.

 

Fins to the left...

 

 

Fins to the right...

 

 

And I'm the only bait in town!!!

 

 

Oh wait, there's some more bait...

 

 

And now that I've been eaten by a shark, my parents only have one child, their favorite child.

 

 

Just kidding, I'm still alive.

 

 

Had you fooled, didn't I?

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LittleMissMagic "Live from...." Rare

LittleMissMagic

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Horses out and about, minding their own business.

 

 

Back on the bus!!!!!

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LittleMissMagic "Live from...." Rare

LittleMissMagic

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My beer appears to be the local favorite.

 

 

Our guide purchased some fruit and had us pass it around on the bus.

 

Rachel will probably be angry at me for posting these photos, but I need her for a scale figure. Believe it or not, Rachel actually reads what I write. But the only feedback I receive from her is, "OMG YOU POSTED THAT PHOTO OF ME???"

 

Sorry, Rach.

 

(To be fair, I always think Rachel looks beautiful which is why I don't understand why she doesn't like all of my photos. ;))

 

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LittleMissMagic "Live from...." Rare

LittleMissMagic

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Our guide was pretty great. I liked him a lot. I don't remember his name. You know, since I only post once a month.

 

 

We stopped at Catarina Overlook next, which had a restroom. $10 just to pee!

 

 

Just kidding, that's 10 Cordobas which is a little more than a quarter. And it got all four of us in the restroom. Also, I had to pay for it because I was the only one with small bills, so I made some ridiculous deal in which I would trade my $5 for a $20. Dad told me that was absurd, but my mom was desperate, so sold!! :D

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LittleMissMagic "Live from...." Rare

LittleMissMagic

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The view from Catarina Overlook of Apoyo Lagoon, formed when hot springs filled the crater of a dormant volcano -

 

 

It was so windy!

 

 

I think this is what the cool kids do these days...

 

Edited by LittleMissMagic
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