It’s 8:30 in the morning and already hot and humid here. We are docked at the mouth of a river. If you look to the left, it looks like a regular tropical island. If you look to the right, it’s an industrial port. I made another panoramic picture of the mouth of the river.
This is the location of Corinto, Nicaragua:
I went all the way off the ship and talked to the shore excursion expert. She said that we can walk out of the port area and there is a small town with several internet cafes. I think Bill can make it on his scooter. There are pedicabs right outside the gate. I would love to ride in one but I think the scooter is better for Bill.
While I was upstairs this morning, I talked to the Catholic pastor on board the ship. He said that the United States mined this harbor in the 1980’s. Now we wonder why we aren’t popular here? When I told Bill about this conversation, he said, “It won’t be a problem for us because we’re Canadians, eh?”
I asked our Guatemalan guide yesterday about the current attitude toward America. He said it is improving since the CIA stopped supporting the large companies against the local people. Chiquita Banana was the example that came to his mind. They are part of United Fruit.
I’m really glad Bill bought some hard candy at the Wal Mart. I need it to control my cough. I would love to go swimming today but I don’t want to aggravate my cold. It’s not bad during the day but really annoys me at night.
Lunchtime:
Bill is asleep so I am waiting for him to finish his nap before we head up to the Lido deck for our next feeding. We ate lunch in the main dining room one day at my urging and it turned out that Bill didn’t like anything on the menu that day.He wants a sandwich with potato chips every day. He had better eat them now as potato chips are never on the menu at home.
We ventured out to see the shopping stalls this morning. It’s hot. I know that those of you wading through the snow don’t want to hear about how hot it is here so I will be quiet about it.
I tried the internet but it was another confusing keyboard. I read one story in the Salt Lake Tribune and then gave up and came back to the ship. One good thing—it was only a dollar. I think I will invest another $100 in the internet on board before we get home. That is the price for 250 minutes. Even then, the connection is poor.
I get upstairs by 7 each morning. Not because I want to get up but because I want to get on the internet before everyone else signs on. I heard from another passenger that the Celebrity cruise line has free internet and it works great. It’s something to think about.
The story I read was about Josh Powell who murdered his wife and children. He had a difficult time growing up and was cruel to animals. That’s always a bad sign.
I bought some grasshoppers that a young man made for us out of reeds. They are way cool. I think they will turn brown before we get home but may still be okay. A woman from the ship said she bought one in Japan and it is still good. I took a video of him making them. He said his name was Kevin which sounds unlikely. School starts in Nicaragua next week. It is mandatory but unenforced.
I enjoyed book club the other day. The wife of the Protestant minister was there and she is has good insights. We talked about how wonderful it is to be raised in two cultures. The dolphin people switched back and forth from Spanish to English with ease and I really admire that ability. We discussed the character of the boy’s mother at length.
The passengers on this leg of the journey are in better shape than those that left Some are only on the ship for 15 days. They are younger and not as handicapped. There are fewer scooters and walkers. There are fewer people who are severely overweight, too. There are not as many attending the big shows at night. They must be in the clubs or dance areas. Many are going to Machu Picchu or the Galapagos Islands or both.
There are lots of jokes about how old and decrepit the passengers are on the longer cruises. I believe it. But, I still want to go. We are setting the clocks forward again tonight. We will be on Eastern Standard Time.
On Sunday, we are visiting the Embara Village in Panama. We will take a tender to port, then spend an hour in a van and then ride in a dugout canoe for about an hour. We will spend two hours there and then head back. There is plenty to do and see in Panama but not so much if you need a scooter. It will be interesting to see how Bill does with his canes and his water shoes which don’t offer any support.
