After Cartagena Colombia we headed toward the San Blas Islands of Panama.  There are approximately 365 islands that make up this archipelago of which 49 are inhabited by the Kuna people. The Kuna have their own very distinct language, culture and traditions.  As happened now on a few occasions the seas were not amenable to tender operations so we didn't go ashore.  Below is a long distance view of a few of the inhabited islands.  As a result of rising sea levels a number of the inhabited islands have been designated as unlivable and the Kuna people had to be relocated...just ask them if they believe in climate change!

Our next stop before transiting the Panama canal was the city of Colon Panama.  Colon is a heavly commercialized port with a significant amount of shipping activities.  We were docked in a small bay just at the mouth of the canal.

After a couple of days of doing pretty much nothing in Colon we left our dock in the AM and the ship wondered around in the Atlantic for half a day before the starting time of our transit through the canal around 4 PM.  Transit through the Panama Canal should be on everyone's bucket list.  It's considered one of the 7 Wonders of the Modern World.  The history of the canal is an interesting read and I'll leave you to do that on your own.  I'll provide some factoids and a few pictures just to make this section somewhat interesting.  The US took over the building of the canal when they purchased the equipment from the French who had made an earlier attempt in the late 1800's.  The US started working on it in earnest in 1901 under Teddy Roosevelt and it was completed in 1914 when Woodrow Wilson was President.  Our ship's transit was through the original set of locks known as Panamax which has three sets of locks (Gatun, Pedro Miguel and Mira Flores) with two lanes one each for East and West bound ships. In 2016 the Neopanamax set of three locks was open to allow larger ships passage but it only allows for one way passage.  Each compartment in the original locks holds 26 million gallons of fresh water and can be drained or filled in 8 minutes.  After the ship has moved into the first compartment, the water in the second department drains into the first compartment lifting the ship for passage into the second compartment.  In total each ship is raised and lowered 85 feet from either the Atlantic or Pacific into or out of Gatun or Mira Flores artificial lakes.  The ship moves from compartment to compartment under its own power but is tethered to an electric train (mule) on each side to keep the ship centered.  The entire transit takes approximately 11 hours.  Since we started at 4 PM the last set of locks we transited were in the dark.  From top to bottom, left to right you can see Panama Canal pilots coming on board to take control of the ship during the transit, crocodile welcome to the canal, pulling into compartment one of the Gatun locks with compartments two and three in the background, an electric mule keeping us centered in the compartment, compartment 2 doors opening, moving into compartment 2 of Gatun locks with mules keeping us centered and lastly a view of Mira Flores bridge at night.

After leaving the canal we headed North along the Pacific coast of Costa Rica.  Our fist scheduled stop was the port of Quepos Costa Rica.  Again due to high seas and questionable competency of the ships tender operations, we had to cancel this port visit.  Then it was on to the port of Puntarenas Costa Rica.  Because of the significant volcanic nature of the country, you'll see that the beaches are basically black sand beaches.  We decided that the town of Puntarenas didn't have much to offer so we opted to head to the ferry terminal where we made a ferry transit across the Gulf of Nicoya.  After exiting the ferry my intrepid leader, Kathie, led me to a local bus which we boarded along with many other Costa Ricans and a few chickens (think of the movie Romancing the Stone).  Then I asked her where we were going and guess what she wasn't sure but as always she found a way to recover and we ended up in a Costa Rican hotel/bar.  We only had time for a quick beer before we grabbed a local taxi and headed back to the ferry terminal for our trip back to Puntarenas.  The next day we did a walking tour of Puntarenas and confirmed that there wasn't much to see except the local architecture and a church.  When I asked my tour guide Kathie the name of the church she said it was "Our Lady of the Broken Heart" and when I gave her a strange look, she amended that to "Our Lady of the Sacred Heart". :-)  From top to bottom, left to right here is black sand beach, ferry boat, islands in Gulf of Nicoya, Kathie in her native surrounding, Puntarenas Colonial architecture, Our Lady of the Broken Heart church and our dockside neighbor leaving port, the US Coast Guard Eagle (officer training ship).

As we continue North up the Pacific coast of Central America our next stop was the country of El Salvador.  The port of Acajutla was very commercial and there was nothing much to do in town so we booked an excursion into the interior to get up close and personal with a few volcanoes.  But as lucky would have it there were no volcanoes to be seen because of the cloud cover but did take a nice hike through the national park - Cerro Verde Volcano Park.  From top to bottom, left to right - Welcome to El Salvador, Cerro Verde Park sign, Kathie on the trail, Kathie the liberal tree hugger, the "Together forever" tree and the 450 year old Snake tree and our guide Kevin.

On the trip back from the park we made a stop in the town of Izalco El Salvador.  Of course no excursion is ever complete without  a visit to a local church.  In this case it was the Church of Dolores built in 1773.  Here are pictures of the exterior, interior and a statue of the Virgin Mary.  Back outside we were able to see a very vague outline of the Izalco volcano which is just a youngster having been formed in the 1700's and it was active until 1996.  According to a local story, the volcano's eruptions in the 1990's had started a lava flow heading directly towards the city of Izalco.  With the whole town praying, the priest from the church grabbed the previously mentioned statue of Mary, strapped it to his back and headed toward the lava flow.  When he got close he put the statue down, knelt, said a prayer and got burnt to a crisp by the lava...not really.  Legend says the statue stop the lava flow and saved the city.

Now if you've ever been to Izalco you know you can't leave until you've had a chance to make your own pupusas at the world famous Pupuseria Don Mario.  So we did...don't be jealous we'll show you how to make your own the next time we're together.

Continuing North our next stop was the country of Guatemala and the port of Puerto Quetzal.  Here again the port city didn't have much to offer so it was time for our next excursion inland.  After some serious negotiating we were able to secure a couple seats on a repurposed school bus and it was off to the colonial city of Antiqua Guatemala.  Founded in 1543 Antiqua was the capital of Guatemala and much of Central America until 1773.  It sits at the foot of the Acatengo volcano which dominates the landscape at 10,000 feet elevation.  We did a walking tour of the city and enjoyed many of historical sights.  From top to bottom, left to right you can see the volcano and town in the distance, ruins of the Santo Domingo convent that was demolished in 1773 and has since been repurposed as a luxury hotel, Ceiba tree (180 ft) the national tree of Guatemala, coffee tree and beans.

Next we headed into the central part of the town where, of course, we found the San Jose Cathedral, the central plaza and fountain, Kathie found a street fair just in time to eat again (and again),

Then further along we passed through the Arch of Santa Carolina before arriving at the La Merced Church.  Obviously with all of this walking around in the brutal heat we needed to stop for a local adult beverage - Mechilata (beer, lime juice rimmed with a spicy salt mixture).  It was time to head back to the ship but we made on more stop at an observation point looking down on Antiqua and then into our trusty school bus for our two hour trip back.  Kathie was praying all the way that we be back in time for dinner and thank God we were:-)

The next stop was Puerto Chiapas Mexico which was a gigantic nothing burger except Kathie got an opportunity to get a long delayed haircut.  She was super happy with the results.  From Puerto Chiapas we headed to the resort town of Huatulco Mexico.  Huatulco is known as land of the Nine Hidden Bays which includes a total of 36 beaches and of course my beach bunny had to make sure we stopped at one.  From top to bottom, left to right - Welcome to Huatulco, the marina next to our dock, pictures from La Mirador observation point, Le Entrega beach and our shadow the USCG Cutter Earl Cunningham.

Next stop along the Mexico coastline was the famous city of Acapulco (think 40's, 50's & 60's).  To be honest it was a very pleasant surprise in many, many ways.  So let's start off with our first surprise.  We no sooner got off headed for Fort San Diego which was just a few minutes walk away but we were blocked by a demonstration applauding an imminent visit from Claudia Sheinbaum, President of Mexico.  As it turns out while we were walking around Acapulco she was driving by our ship and waving to the passengers on board.  We had to postpone the visit to the fort until the next day and instead did our requisite walking tour of Acapulco.  From top to bottom and left to right - Demonstration for Mexican President, one of Acapulco's many bays, Playa Tlacopanocho, fish for sale next to beach, Kathie having a refreshing Mexican chocolate drink, the exterior and interior of the Cathedral de Nuestra Senora de la Soledad.

After the beaches and churches in Acapulco our next stop was straight up the side of the hill to reach the La Quebrada.  This is the site of the world famous Acapulco Cliff Divers.  Before arriving I was thinking this would be another typical tourist trap BUT I was very mistaken.  For $5 per person we had a front row seat to an absolutely great show.  There were 6 cliff divers that start the show by walking through, in bare feet, our observation platform.  Then they climb down the cliff, jump into the water, swim across the small opening, pull themselves back out and proceed to climb up the diving cliff.  Depending on each divers level of experience they climb to their desired cliff location and then when the water volume is just right they do their dive.  The origination of this show started in 1934, when the Mirador Hotel, higher up on the cliff, talked some foolhardy guys into doing a dive show.  From the highest platform the dive is 115 feet high and the diver reaches a speed of 52 MPH.  Now for your viewing enjoyment, from top to bottom and left to right - La Quebrada welcome sign, observation/viewing platform, their landing spot and the coastline to the South of the diving cliff, divers scaling the cliff in their bare feet and then the divers taking off and finally the Mirador hotel and La Perla restaurant and viewing bar.

Our second day in Acapulco wasn't as exciting but it definitely was interesting.  We started the day with a short walk to Fort San Diego.  Originally built in 1617, it was extensively damaged in a 1776 earthquake and then rebuilt and opened in 1783.  Some of the interior rooms in the fort now contain a museum spotlighting the history of the port of Acapulco.  I learned that beginning in 1550's Spanish galleons began a thriving trade route between Acapulco and Manila in the Philippines.  This route saw a significant amount of Asian goods originally shipped from China and Japan, move through the Philippines then on to Acapulco then overland to the Caribbean and then on to Europe.  The museum had several plaques, maps, Asian artifacts and models of Spanish galleons.  There were also few rooms that were left as they looked in the late 1700's.  Here's few pictures of the history of the port of Acapulco the original fort food store.

After the fort, and thankfully just a few steps away (it was 96 and sunny) we stopped by the Acapulco Mask Museum where we were treated to rooms of masks of every type.  Then our last stop for the day was the Acapulco Naval Museum which had a replica cutout of the frigate Don Pedro which was the first ship to sale between Acapulco and Manila.  The director of the museum gave us a personal and detailed explanation of the rooms and mechanics of the ship model.

As we continued North up the coast of Mexico our next stop was the sailfishing capital of Mexico - Manzanillo.  Since neither Kathie nor I wanted to spend $1000 on a fishing excursion, we settled for a view of the bay, a walk around town and a day at the beach.

Next stop up the Mexico coastline was a favorite of many of the people on the ship - Puerto Vallatra (PV).  Why you might ask?  Well first, because we have a lot of old cheap (oops I mean cost conscious) people on the ship.  There was a Walmart and Sam's Club directly across the street from the cruise terminal.  Second, PV has very large gay (LGBTQ) community and there are an equally large number of residents on the ship who fit that category.  They couldn't wait to tell us about all the great bars and restaurants and beaches to go to.  Kathie and I passed on their advice but we sure did spend some time in Walmart and Sam's being the old cost conscious people that we are.  PV has great malecon (boardwalk) that is perfect for strolling and looking at some amazing sculptures.  Here's a few pictures to prove that point.

And of course you can't go into any large Mexico city without stopping at the local cathedral.  In PV it was Nuestra Senora de Guadalupe.

This business of saving my soul always makes me thirsty and fortunately Kathie is always willing to join me for a cold one.  Unfortunately Kathie chose a seat in front of the wrong school flag and I made her pay for her own beer.  The experience was saved  though when I noticed a sign representing my view of life.

Well it was time to move on to yet another "M" city on the Mexico coast, this one is Mazatlan.  For those of you who have frequented Mexican port towns, here's a bit of trivia.  Mazatlan is the city where the original and omnipresent Senor Frog was opened in 1971.  Another hard to believe piece of trivia is that in Mexico, 75% of Senor Frog's revenue comes from serving alcoholic beverages....who'd of thunk it :-).  Unfortunately now that I've got you all excited about Senor Frog's we didn't go there but we did enjoy our two days in Mazatlan.  As usual we had to start with our walking tour of the city to see the plaza's, colonial architecture and cathedral.  Another interesting piece of trivia, for my Jewish friends, is that much of the construction cost of this Catholic cathedral came from a local Jewish family.  Because they wanted to remain anonymous they didn't want their name associated with the structure so the church decided to recognize them by adding the Star of David to all of the stain glass windows.

Our second day in Mazatlan was spent....you guessed it...at the beach.  Mazatlan has a malecon (broadwalk) and beach that goes for 17 miles.  As with Puerto Vallarta the malecon has many interesting bronze sculptures that I'm going to show you whether you like them or not :-).  Along the beach we also found a great seaside restaurant and enjoyed a heaping dish of shrimp cheviche and the view.  And no tour of Mazatlan would be complete without a ride back to the ship in an open air taxi.

Staying on the Mexican coast but leaving the Pacific we headed North into the Gulf of California aka Sea of Cortez.  Our first stop was the famous city of Topolobampo.....what?  You've never heard of Topolobampo....can you say it fast three times??? Can you say it slow one time? Whether you've never heard of it or can't say it, as it turns out it was an interesting two days.  Topolobampo doesn't get many (or any) cruise ships so when we pulled into the dock they were waiting for us (and our money) with open arms.  They had literally rolled out the welcome mat with bands and music.  They had a large group of teenagers with "Ask Me" t-shirts on that swarmed us offering assistance and advice for what to do in Topolobampo.  So guess what...we opted for a tour of the city and a boat ride Into the Bay of Topolobampo.  Now this bay isn't just any bay.  It's the home of two famous residents - Pechocho the bottle-nose dolphin who has lived a solitary life in the bay for the last 40 years and one of my favorite birds the blue footed booby.

Okay, you know the drill by now...and the second day we decided to fight the crowds at Maviri beach before heading off into the sunset as we left Topolobampo.

Then it was 150 nautical miles across the Gulf of California to the Baja peninsula and the capital - La Paz.  Kathie and I spent our first day in La Paz dealing with a case of the infamous "Montezuma's Revenge".  Thank God we both packed a supply of imodium.  By next day we were ready to take  our required walk around town and see the sculptures on the malecon.

And for our final stop in Mexico, thank God, it was the famous tourist trap aka Cabo San Lucas.  Resorts, hotels, restaurants, bars, people and beaches for as far as the eye can see.  Since we only had one day there and had to tender in, it was a very short day.  Kathie and I were on a mission.  We had just been informed that because of liquor licensing requirements the ship would not be serving wine in our Hawaiian ports of call.  Fortunately due to exquisite planning and financial controls we had thousands of Mexican pesos to get rid at our last stop.  With a little help from a local (and a nice tip) we found a liquor store close to port and stocked up on what I like to call the necessities of life - WINE & BEER.  Oh and I also took some pictures of Cabo's signature landmarks.