Panama Canal March 21-april1: Away we go!

We just returned from another cruise.  On a cold wintery day last November we decided a cruise somewhere warm in the Caribbean would do the trick.

We chose the 11-day Coral Princess March 21 - April 1 cruise, which was a partial transit into the Panama Canal, plus it stopped at our favorite island, Aruba!  The price for the cruise was very good; however, it slipped our minds that this would be spring break season just before Easter and airfare and pre-cruise hotel prices in Florida were on the high side. Oh well, the cruise was booked!  We'll go!

The days counted down and soon we were on the ship and leaving Port Everglades in Fort Lauderdale.  We watched as the Coast Guard stayed close to the ship until we left the port area.

Yes, the Coast Guard is armed with a machine gun

Almost to the open sea and the Coast Guard makes one last lap

 The next two days were sea days and we met our Cruise Critic roll call for a Meet & Greet on the first sea day and then for a Slot Pull in the Casino the second sea day.  We each donated $15 and got 5 pulls on the machine.  Joyce was the big winner with a gain of 45 credits for the group.  Two others each scored 6 credits.  After all the pulls were made, the 12 of us split the winnings and each received $5, or we each lost $10, depending on how you look at it.....  All in all it was a fun time with new friends...just not profitable!

Our BIG winnings!

We enjoy Afternoon Tea on the ship at least once during a cruise.  Actually it's the scones with clotted cream and jam we really enjoy.

We recognized the name of one of the performers on the ship as the violinist we enjoyed on a previous cruise. We arrived in the theater very early and sat near the front with our Kindles to pass the time until the show started.  Before the show, David Klingenberg came out from behind the stage and greeted us.  We enjoyed chatting with this very talented young man from Oregon, who has traveled the world over the past two years.

Next, our first port.........ARUBA!