Loyal Royal goes X! Equinox Nov 9-20 2015 Photo Review

[jfer8580]

Hi David,

Great review so far.....all I can say is what you have as the last line of your signature....."somebody put me back on the ship"!!

 

Other than our little hiccup in Belize, we had an outstanding time!!

[Darkwolfe]

I'm still at work, but I will try to add at least one more post to the review when I get home. Glad everyone is enjoying so far.:)

[dodger1964]

Great review. Looking forward to what's to come.

[elena7seas]

Great review, love the photos, looking forward very much to the next installment.

 

We are on the Equinox in mid-December so are particularly enjoying your review.

[tbmrt]

Would appreciate input as to excellent waiters and table locations on your cruise so we can ask for them when we are on the Equinox the week after you return.

 

Thanks so much!

Barbara

[Darkwolfe]

Would appreciate input as to excellent waiters and table locations on your cruise so we can ask for them when we are on the Equinox the week after you return.

 

Thanks so much!

Barbara

 

Ya'll's is super easy. Ask to be seated in Julio's section on the lower deck of the dining room. You'll know if you have the right fellow. Short, shaved head and infectious grin.

 

With apologies for not getting an entry in last night. Symptoms of a post travel cold wandered in. I got home, went to bed. Better now. Hopefully.

[Darkwolfe]

The rest of the turtle farm is dedicated to a very large open air saltwater lagoon and a freshwater lagoon you can go swimming in. There's also a restaurant, an aviary, and a slide. Good for a full half day if you are in the mood for it.

 

Restaurant on the right.

DSCF0069 by Wulfgar28, on Flickr

 

Freshwater lagoon.

DSCF0075 by Wulfgar28, on Flickr

 

Heading back to the ship...

DSCF0077 by Wulfgar28, on Flickr

 

Some misplaced buccaneers.

DSCF0078 by Wulfgar28, on Flickr

[Darkwolfe]

The day after Grand Caymen was a sea day cutting across the heart of the Caribbean towards Cartegena. During his daily announcements, the captain indicated that would would be pushing hard to reach Cartegena early as we had a medical emergency that needed to be taken care of. Best I heard on this one was that someone had fallen changing a bulb at a fairly high level and had a compound fracture to deal with. Ouch! May they heal quickly.

 

Tearing across the Caribbean at 22 knots... With a 60 mph headwind. Made for a good bit of bounce.

P1000941 by Wulfgar28, on Flickr

 

Having realized we would be arriving at Cartegena in the middle of the night rather than at dawn, I shoved myself out of bed as soon as we dropped to 14 knots a few miles from the pilot pickup. This lead to an interesting observation of our entry into the harbor and docking. I managed to get back to bed about 5am. It was worth the effort.

 

P1000963 by Wulfgar28, on Flickr

 

The pier and the "New City" across the bay.

P1000964 by Wulfgar28, on Flickr

 

The "New City" at about 4am.

P1000966 by Wulfgar28, on Flickr

 

Off to work again. Hopefully I will have better luck this evening.

[Darkwolfe]

We were taking the "Best of Cartegena" tour through the ship. Usually these "Best of.." tours are your basic bus tours that hit a few places around town where you can actually get off the bus and nose around a bit. The driving times tend to have a local guide narrating various details from the front of the bus. This tour matched expectations quite well and did actually exceed them somewhat.

 

First stop was Fort San Philipe. We only stopped outside, which was fine for me on this type of tour. Takes some pictures, fend off the vendors (pushiest I've ever seen!), pile back on the bus and move on.

 

DSCF2021 by Wulfgar28, on Flickr

 

DSCF2026 by Wulfgar28, on Flickr

 

The next stop was on the inside of the Walled City. Along one of the seaward walls, there are a number of shops embedded there. Seems these shops occupy spaces that were once used as prisons sometime back in the darker ages of Spanish Conquest. Obviously they are all cleaned up and whitewashed these days, but it's a little too easy to picture the horrors these cells must have been several hundred years ago. Once again, fend off the vendors, take a few pictures, pile back on the bus and move on.

 

P1000984 by Wulfgar28, on Flickr

 

P1000985 by Wulfgar28, on Flickr

[Darkwolfe]

At our next stop, we shifted to a walking tour of the Walled City. There are many homes here that are still just that, homes. But a good many have been converted to government offices of one form or another as well. According to our guide, Cartegena will never tear down one of the old homes, but when a family dies out, the old home becomes government property.

 

P1000986 by Wulfgar28, on Flickr

 

P1000987 by Wulfgar28, on Flickr

 

Time for a digression. Cartegena's street hucksters are the most pervasive and agressive I've seen in a long time. They walk around with a stack of hats on their heads, boxes of cigars, fake emerald jewelry, etc. etc. and really tend to get in the way. Unless you are planning to buy something from these guys (I wouldn't but that's me) don't even give them the tiniest appearance of interest. You do that and you suddenly will have a new best friend. By new best friend, I mean like a deer tick dug into your skin that won't let go. These guys would literally shark the tour group at one point, then short cut around and reappear at another part of the tour and do it again. And again. And again..

 

You will have completely mastered the simple Spanish phrase of "No Senor" with the occasional variant of "No Senora" before this tour is over. You may even have learned a few extra flourishes to it. I did get to the point of "No Senor, vaya!" myself, but I'm fairly sure I heard at least one "Desparece cucaracha!" There were a couple of other phrases that I heard as well, but this is a family friendly review so I won't be repeating those here. To be fair, by that point, those phrases were becoming rather well-earned by the hucksters.

 

There was one very notable exception. There are street artists here that paint on small 5x7 inch mirrors. They don't get up and wave things under your nose. Indeed, your guides will take you right to them (getting a cut maybe?). Here is demonstrated, good, local talent. We watched one man create a very well done picture in just a very few minutes. Mostly with just his fingers. A brush was used during the last stages of the painting to add small details where needed. I'm very happy to support demonstrated talent (cut or not to the guide) so two of his creations went home with us.

 

These are scans of the two pieces we brought home. The grey edges are actually mirror edges. Scanners just don't like mirrored surfaces. These look MUCH better in real life.

 

Cart1 001 by Wulfgar28, on Flickr

 

Cart2 001 by Wulfgar28, on Flickr

 

Up next- Inquisition Palace and sights nearby.

[dirtgirl]

At our next stop, we shifted to a walking tour of the Walled City. There are many homes here that are still just that, homes. But a good many have been converted to government offices of one form or another as well. According to our guide, Cartegena will never tear down one of the old homes, but when a family dies out, the old home becomes government property.

 

P1000986 by Wulfgar28, on Flickr

 

P1000987 by Wulfgar28, on Flickr

 

Time for a digression. Cartegena's street hucksters are the most pervasive and agressive I've seen in a long time. They walk around with a stack of hats on their heads, boxes of cigars, fake emerald jewelry, etc. etc. and really tend to get in the way. Unless you are planning to buy something from these guys (I wouldn't but that's me) don't even give them the tiniest appearance of interest. You do that and you suddenly will have a new best friend. By new best friend, I mean like a deer tick dug into your skin that won't let go. These guys would literally shark the tour group at one point, then short cut around and reappear at another part of the tour and do it again. And again. And again..

 

You will have completely mastered the simple Spanish phrase of "No Senor" with the occasional variant of "No Senora" before this tour is over. You may even have learned a few extra flourishes to it. I did get to the point of "No Senor, vaya!" myself, but I'm fairly sure I heard at least one "Desparece cucaracha!" There were a couple of other phrases that I heard as well, but this is a family friendly review so I won't be repeating those here. To be fair, by that point, those phrases were becoming rather well-earned by the hucksters.

 

There was one very notable exception. There are street artists here that paint on small 5x7 inch mirrors. They don't get up and wave things under your nose. Indeed, your guides will take you right to them (getting a cut maybe?). Here is demonstrated, good, local talent. We watched one man create a very well done picture in just a very few minutes. Mostly with just his fingers. A brush was used during the last stages of the painting to add small details where needed. I'm very happy to support demonstrated talent (cut or not to the guide) so two of his creations went home with us.

 

These are scans of the two pieces we brought home. The grey edges are actually mirror edges. Scanners just don't like mirrored surfaces. These look MUCH better in real life.

 

Cart1 001 by Wulfgar28, on Flickr

 

Cart2 001 by Wulfgar28, on Flickr

 

Up next- Inquisition Palace and sights nearby.

 

I bought one of those paintings, too, that he did in just a few minutes. Much better than those cheap trinkets everyone else was hawking!

[bostonfred]

enjoying the review...this will be a great help for us in January...gracias:eek:

[Darkwolfe]

enjoying the review...this will be a great help for us in January...gracias:eek:

 

"De nada, amigo." Glad you are enjoying the pics. :)

[Darkwolfe]

Well phooey! Flickr has an update/issue/mouse-in-the-server problem this evening so I'm going to have to hold up until they fix it. Our next stop is Inquisition Palace and Plaza de Bolivar.

[upwarduk]

Very interesting pictorial review.

We have not been on Equinox (Eclipse x3) or to Grand Cayman, so I was surprised to see a Union Jack flag flying.

I have seen similar in Hawaii, but that's because Captain Cook discovered it. I will have to investigate the reason for the flag flying in Grand Cayman.

from Wikipedia

The Cayman Islands were colonized from Jamaica by the British during the 18th and 19th centuries and were administered by Jamaica after 1863. In 1959, the islands became a territory within the Federation of the West Indies. When the Federation dissolved in 1962, the Cayman Islands chose to remain a British dependency. The territory has transformed itself into a significant offshore financial center.

Edited November 26, 2015 by upwarduk

[Darkwolfe]

Ok Flickr is back online as it should be...

 

Returning to the actual tour, we walked from where the bus unloaded us to Inquisition Palace. There is something inherently creepy about the place, even in broad daylight. Oh granted, it's all cleaned up and reasonably neat for a multi-century old building. But the "stains" of its past will never go away. The number of people convicted of witchcraft is ridiculous. Worse yet, during that period of the Inquisition, all property of the convicted became the property of the Church. You can guess how many verdicts of "innocent" were handed down. Not many. You half expect Cardinal Bruja's ghost to step from around a corner at times.

 

P1000994 by Wulfgar28, on Flickr

 

Now there's a device to give anyone the shudders.

P1000998 by Wulfgar28, on Flickr

 

The Gallows...

P1000999 by Wulfgar28, on Flickr

 

I didn't hear from the guide on this but I suspect both of these nasty contraptions are reproductions. If anyone knows for certain, feel free to add that info to this thread.

 

Reproduction cannons..

P1010002 by Wulfgar28, on Flickr

 

There are some original torture devices in the place for those interested in the macabre. Spiked collars, chin lifts and other nastys are inside. Pictures weren't real possible since we had a crowd of folks milling around all the time.

 

Up next, Simon Bolivar and Cathdral touring.

Edited November 26, 2015 by Darkwolfe

[DrivesLikeMario]

My parents always taught me it's best to say, "Gracias, pero no." Thanks, but no. It's firm and still polite. You can always tell the gringos because they say, "no gracias". ;)

[matondo]

Thank you for your review! We took this same cruise last November. We had a wonderful time. The weather got really bad the last 5 days of the cruise but we ran with it and had fun anyway.

 

Keep up the good work!

[Darkwolfe]

My parents always taught me it's best to say, "Gracias, pero no." Thanks, but no. It's firm and still polite. You can always tell the gringos because they say, "no gracias". ;)

 

I don't think anybody was able to more polite than "No Senor" for more than about 5 minutes if that. These guys would just about trip you up trying to sell stuff.

 

That being said, it never hurts improve one's knowledge so I am glad you added that. Hopefully it will get some use!

[Darkwolfe]

After looking through the most basic portions of the Inquisition Palace, our guide lead us out to the park in front. There's a statue of Simon Bolivar out in the park there. I did not catch the name of the holiday in process, but there was a group doing some traditional Latin dances out front. We didn't get to hang around for that though. Off across the park to the Emerald Museum. Well, naturally, said museum was really more of a jewelry shop than anything else but at least it was at least half museum instead of less than a quarter like some.

 

P1010006 by Wulfgar28, on Flickr

 

Outside the museum a group of youths were putting on a street dance show. Good talent in that group and I didn't mind pitching a dollar into the hat for them. Curiously I heard some rather negative comments about the street dancers from another cruiser. That caught me rather off guard. There's any number of things I could say about or to the utterer of the comments, but they really wouldn't do any good. just remember this, you are in a different country, your country's social norms do not apply.

 

Off we go a nearby cathedral. Claustro E Iglesia De San Pedro on the maps or Iglesia de San Pedro Calver. A very well kept 1580s church that focuses on the positives the church had rather than the Inquisition. St Claver ministered to the slaves in Cartegena almost entirely. He saw that they too were human with souls in need of saving.

 

Front of the church

P1010007 by Wulfgar28, on Flickr

 

A few things inside. These were brought from various churches around Columbia for safekeeping.

P1010010 by Wulfgar28, on Flickr

 

Up high above the sanctuary.

P1010011 by Wulfgar28, on Flickr

 

Up next back to port and sailing away.

 

Hope everyone here in the US had a wonderful Thanksgiving yesterday and exercised great sense regarding Black Friday. Namely, stay home. :D

[Darkwolfe]

After a short wait (no doubt so any potential emerald sales could take place), we walked back to the bus and drove off. The remainder of the time was a simple driving tour through the Walled City and then off through the New City. There were places in the New City that looked rather like they were ready to fall down. Some were in perfect condition. Many of the buildings are only partially completed and many others showed need of exterior maintainance. Not really surprising all things considered. The entire New City is just barely above sea level so wet streets are not uncommon either.

 

New City from Equinox

P1000976 by Wulfgar28, on Flickr

 

Equinox at the Cartegena Cruise Pier

P1010018 by Wulfgar28, on Flickr

 

Our bus dropped us off right at the ship and we had at least three hours before sailing so we walked over to the port shopping store and the little bit of wildlife hanging around the area. Several macaws were present plus a small troop of monkeys that were making off with whatever snacks they could raid.

 

Red Macaw

P1010027 by Wulfgar28, on Flickr

 

A monkey on a food raid. These guys did not sit still for long.

P1010030 by Wulfgar28, on Flickr

[Darkwolfe]

Once we finished nosing around it was time to be back aboard the ship and ready to sail. Yet another medical emergency delayed our departure. We were up to three by this point. Only this one has the tale that someone got into some "recreational" while ashore that he shouldn't have. Last I heard, Columbia was pretty harsh on that sort of thing.

 

I noticed this one crate on the pier too. Really kinda wanted to know what was inside, but I wasn't about to try and take a peek. Or maybe I don't want to know what's inside....

P1010056 by Wulfgar28, on Flickr

 

A look from the harbor into Cartegena.

P1010053 by Wulfgar28, on Flickr

 

A full zoom to get the monastery up above Cartegena.

P1010051 by Wulfgar28, on Flickr

 

Out past the New City

P1010073 by Wulfgar28, on Flickr

 

Bucket list checkmark added- Reach South America. Even in this small way, it counts!

 

On our way to Panama! And an Epic Excursion Failure!

Edited November 30, 2015 by Darkwolfe

[Darkwolfe]

Colon, Panama (Bucket Check - See the Panama Canal)

 

[begin Rant]

 

Warning. I don't have much positive to say about this stop. There were more than a few frustrated jokes about Colon needing a "cleansing" before the day was over. High walls and razor wire were not only in evidence around Colon, they were downright commonplace. You really didn't get the feeling that there was much safe around the area. Even the Cruise Director was rather direct about it the night before. "If you don't have a tour and you get off the ship, you will get right back on and quickly." He was not making an idle joke.

 

I'm not going to place all of the blame on Celebrity for the mess this stop turned into. They got stuck taking it on the chin for it, but the fault lies in other places. Most notably the Panama Canal Authority and very likely the pilot that we had to wait around for. Celebrity was a much a disappointed customer as we were.

 

To begin, there was zero organization for finding your tour. Our group that was going to the Canal got pointed one way, then another, and still a third before we finally found the right bus. Once that was done, everyone got loaded up and off we went. After about and hour and half we found ourselves parked in an abandoned US Military base next to a giant floating crane nicknamed "Herman the German" and then nothing. For almost two hours while we wait on the required canal pilot to show up. Sit around and smell diesel fumes or go pace aimlessly. Facilities? Hardly. Locals unlocked a bathroom for the ladies, but the stories coming out of that experience were pretty bad. Holding walls and doors together by hand and don't sit on the seat, it might bite back. Some of the guys gave up and wandered off behind nearby trees. Much Yuck.

 

Finally, words comes around that the canal pilot has arrived. So all of the busses get moving again for about a block, drop off the passengers for the ferry and leave. Well enough. We expect four maybe four and half hours on the canal. Yeah, nope. Try over six. Only about one of those hours was actually of good use and real interest. The rest consisted of trying to find a comfortable spot to either sit or stand. The chairs were fairly typical cheap plastic and metal things which were better than nothing, but not great. Bathrooms on the ferry were small, cramped, and fairly disgusting. They were not handicapped accessible either and we had at least three people on the tour that needed handicapped assistance. They didn't get it.

 

Narrators on this tour need some redo as well. The fellow on the bus made a fair effort but wasn't real easy to listen to. The guy on the ferry itself took his time to bash Americans about building the canal. Complete with major historical inaccuracies and a down right hostile attitude towards the United States in particular. Excuse me? You have at least 200 US citizens on your ferry right now spending money in your country and you're going to give us a verbal trashing? Let's pour gas on an already lit fire. Bad, bad choice. By the time we reached the first set of locks exiting Gatun Lake, tempers were beginning to get frayed.

 

Herman the German

Story on this crane is that it's spoils of war from WWII. There were three. This one is only one that's apparently still in use. The British had one but it was lost in the Channel. The Russians got the third and it went behind the Iron Curtain so who knows.

P1010098 by Wulfgar28, on Flickr

 

We wound up behind this tanker for a good part of the day. Looking at the name, you can see why I renamed it "The Junior Pint" fairly quickly. Had to find some humor somewhere.

P1010109 by Wulfgar28, on Flickr

 

The "Golden Empress" was one of several ships abruptly forced to moor on the side of the canal due to the lock times being changed.

P1010128 by Wulfgar28, on Flickr

 

The "Pint" transiting the lock at Pedro Miguel

P1010136 by Wulfgar28, on Flickr

[Darkwolfe]

After all this time we have finally come to the part of the canal that is actually of interest. These are the Miraflores Locks.

 

It's officially getting busy.

P1010144 by Wulfgar28, on Flickr

 

The lock tower and Visitor Center. Frankly, our friends that were in the Visitor Center while we were on the ferry got the better deal. They got back to Equinox in time for dinner.

P1010157 by Wulfgar28, on Flickr

 

After we pulled clear of the lock. The difference in height between the two ships is really rather impressive.

P1010165 by Wulfgar28, on Flickr

 

Sunlight is starting to fade as these two mules haul a tanker clear of the lock.

P1010170 by Wulfgar28, on Flickr

[Darkwolfe]

And we have reached the Pacific Ocean...

DSCF0084 by Wulfgar28, on Flickr

 

...Barely. But it counts. By this point, most people were well past enjoying this excursion and were very ready to be back to the ship.

DSCF0085 by Wulfgar28, on Flickr

 

The good part of the tour was the passing through the Miraflores Locks. Very interesting watching the mules moving ships trough the locks and our own passage through as well. That was the highlight of the tour.

 

On down the canal to the Pacific side and that was the tour. We were given certificates of passage on the bus coming back. Frankly I think most folks would have been happier to have returned to the ship on time and foregone the certificates. By the time all was said and done, the tour was three hours late returning to the ship. 320 not very happy cruisers there. Celebrity got burned on this one and wound up refunding 60% of the tour cost, which was fine with me. That about equaled the irritation vs reasonable parts of the tour.

 

Final comment on Panama. Skip it. Just don't even bother. If you want to see the canal, take a cruise that goes through it. Otherwise, just don't. I hope I never say that about another port. I like my reviews to be positive as much as possible and this stop was anything but.

 

[End Rant]

 

Up Next- A much better day in Costa Rica. Whitewater rafting on the Reventazon River!