Livin' the Life!!

We just got back from a cruise with Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines. We loved it!! It was much better than I thought it would be. The entertainment, the food and the ports were all superior. It is a vacation within a vacation. A wonderful aspect of this is that there were people from all over the world. This was a cruise catering to the Latin Market, so many of the passengers were from Panama, Colombia, Chile, and Costa Rica. There were many people there from other areas as well, U.S.A and France just to name a couple. The cruise staff represented 60 countries from around the world. If you have never been on a cruise, then I highly recommend this! I'm ready to do it again! Our trip included, Cartegena and Santa Marta, Colombia, Aruba, Curacao and Bonaire. Each one well worth the visit with Cartegena and Curacao being my favorites. I think Dennis agrees with me on this one, as well. Arrival in Panama City, Panama

We were shuttled across the country to Colon, Panama where we met the ship.


Emergency Drill - can't do without that!!

Cartegena, Colombia is a beautiful city with a very European flair. Lots of history involving the Spanish Inquisition, pirates, and of course, treasure. Colombia is well know for emeralds and they had some beautiful gems and jewelry for sale.

Market in Cartegena

Beautiful balconies and homes

Passing the day.....

Peaceful moment in a Santa Marta, Colombia church...

Market in Santa Marta, Colombia

Street scene in Santa Marta, Colombia

Now we are in Aruba. Love the busses.

Main shopping strip in Aruba

Beautiful beaches and ocean in Aruba

Curacao is BEAUTIFUL!! Very Dutch and colorful and clean, clean, clean.

Prettiest alley I have ever seen....anywhere!

A very interesting market in old town Curacao. Lots of very unusal items, spices, fresh fish and who knows what else.

It just doesn't get any fresher than this.

On to Bonaire!!!

Great snorkeling trip in Bonaire. The SeaCow crew was great!! The fish and coral reefs were spectacular. Even saw a barracuda.

Like swimming in a pool the water was so clear!

Quaint shops are in Bonaire, but Bonaire is not as touristy as Aruba and not as big as Curacao.

Last day of the 7 day cruise and we end it with a trip to The Panama Canal. I always wanted to see this and it was as interesting as I thought it might be. I guess I can check this one off the list.

There they are. It is not in this photo, but a ship is being towed into the canal. You actually see the ship rising as the water floods the canal and raises it up to the level of the lake in the background. The ship would move from left to right in the picture and if I am not mistaken, will exit the Canal at Colon, Panama and go into the Caribbean.

Now that's S-I-N-G-I-N-G !!!!

My dear friend, Michael Donnelly in NYC, sent me this video and I am blown away. It is not often you get to see someone sing who really knows what they are doing..and to do this live, to me, is equally amazing. I hope you enjoy it....I sure do!

Better days ahead....

Rainbow across the street

Well the weather finally cleared! Has it ever been nasty here with lots of strong winds and rain. Once again, the Sixola community at the border are flooded. I mean we had some weather!!! Trees are down, people without utilities, busses and trucks were blown off the roads. OY!! Anyway, it has cleared and today, while still abit cool, is a pretty day. "Un dia muy linda", as they say! It is welcomed as well.
The bright spot about the bad weather is that we caught up on some movies:

MILK - absolutely the best- Sean Penn is so believeable in this movie, I forgot it was him!!

DOUBT - absolutely the second best - what all actors should aspire to do and be!!

Revolutionary Road - heavy, but loved the period piece and her "angst" at the dullness of their lives.

Vicky Christina Barcelona - truly enjoyable. I liked it better than I thought I would.

The Wrestler - kudos for Micky O'Rourke. Welcome back!

The Changeling - Angelina Jolie is nothing short of marvelous in this movie. Well directed by Clint Eastwood and a great period piece. Highly recommended.

We are still waiting on "The Reader". and what else have I missed....hhhmmm, it will come to me later.
Anyway, we enjoyed all of these and you probably will too. I absolutely forgot about the Grammy's last night, but I am not so much into the music produced these days, so I probably would not have known who they were anyway.
That's about it for me! Drop a line when you can!

.....over the rainbow,

Old Crow Medicine Show

Welcome to the tropics !!!

One could debate that title right now. It is really chilly here, due to a cold front which came in yesterday. A very unwelcome visitor, I might add. We had just gotten to a couple of typical summer days in Costa Rica when this came back around.
The winds are out of the Northeast, (strong enough to make you look up from the task at hand), it is ratteling roofs, and screaming around corners into every nook of the house. Houses here are not air tight, and don't need to be. On top of that, Moravia is a very wet city anyway. We catch the Caribbean breezes after they have picked up the moisture from the oceans, rivers and rain forests to the east of us. Naturally this cold front has intensified all of the regular characteristics of our region making it very, very and very, very wet.
HOWEVER, comma, I do prefer this to what is happening in the United States Right now. uuuuweee!!! I hear of the extreme cold up there right now and am content with the situation here at hand, knowing better days are ahead. Hang in there, stay warm and put on a pot of soup!!

YouTube - "Fields of Gold" by Eva Cassidy

YouTube - "Fields of Gold" by Eva Cassidy