3 Days At Sea; Puntarenas, Costa Rica; & San Juan Del Sur, Nicaragua

             On 10 March, we went to breakfast at 9:15.  Since neither of us was feeling very hungry, we ate a little lighter than usual.  However, not light enough because by the time we reached our cabin, Sally was ill and Jesse was also feeling much worse.  Our symptoms appeared to be stomach flu.  (We wondered if the other 12 passengers from our small group were ill also.)  We both stayed in bed all day, skipping lunch and ordering soup, hot tea, and crackers from room service for our dinner.  We set our clocks back by one hour before retiring for the night.

On 11 March, we both awoke around 7:00 AM, but were still far from 100 percent; in fact, we had low-grade fevers.  Therefore, we skipped breakfast and lunch and lounged in our cabin all day.  Determining the correct time of day was not simple with all of the changes; but luckily, the local time is always displayed on the ship’s TV channel.

Jesse briefly ran into Angela this afternoon when he was running an errand; she said she had seen the other passengers in our group, and none of them had been sick.  So where, and when, did we pick up our germs?

Since this was a formal night, we had ordered canapés, which were delivered to our cabin at 4:00 PM; we enjoyed chocolate-covered strawberries and caviar.  By 5:00 PM, because we still didn’t feel well enough for a formal dinner in the dining room, we went to the Horizon Court for a light dinner, where we avoided sitting with others.  Afterward, we went right back to our cabin, where we watched a little television before falling asleep.

On 12 March, we awoke around 6:45 AM and Jesse tried downloading our e-mail.  Internet access on Princess Cruise ships has not been very good lately.  Between 5 and 6:00 AM appears to be the best time, so we were a little late getting started this time.  We managed to get only about half of it downloaded before everything slowed to a crawl.  Since we pay by the minute, it’s not cost effective to use the internet when it is that slow.  Angela told us that they had to shut down the internet on one ship because so many of the young people were trying to use Skype. 

We went to breakfast around 10:45 AM.  Although we sat at a table for two, Helen (from London) stopped by our table and conversed with us for a little while; then we conversed with Dave and Christine, who were seated at the next table, until around noon.  Dave and Christine are from Perth, Australia, and started travelling about 7 years ago after they both retired, and have traveled extensively, including several cruises and a 60-day land tour across Canada and the USA.  After breakfast, we visited Angela, the ship’s future cruise consultant, and asked her to check on a few details of our two back-to-back cruises next August and September.  As always, Angela was very friendly and her mannerisms made us feel really “special.”  Sally later remarked that she always wished that she had a personality like Angela’s!

At 2:45 PM, we attended a complimentary Grapevine wine tasting for the Elite passengers.  We tasted five wines, but decided we still like best the $2.99 Moscoto wine that we purchase on sale from our grocery store in Bettendorf.  During much of the dull presentations, Sally said afterward, she let her mind explore elsewhere, as she might while sitting in a dentist’s chair.  Afterwards, we returned to our cabin for more rest and relaxation.

Although we had intended to eat dinner in the Horizon Court, when we found out that they were serving lobster in the dining room, we changed our plans.  We shared a table with Murray, Mary, Toni, Bill, and Frank.  Murray and Mary have a son who lives in Coralville, IA.  Murray is 93, was raised in New York City, and fought in WW II.  Toni and Bill live in Florida, but they also have a son in Iowa.  Bill is originally from Rockford, IL, though they have lived in Florida for many years.  We had seen Bill and Toni on the dance floor several nights; although they don’t actually do ballroom dancing, they like to be out on the dance floor and prefer the Atomic Band’s rock and roll music.  Frank is cruising alone for the first time.  His wife is in a care facility and is unable to travel anymore.  He’s not sure whether he will try the “solo” cruising again or not.  We retired to our cabin at about 8:30 PM.

On Friday, 13 Mar, we awoke around 6:30 AM and went to breakfast after preparing for our day’s excursion.  We met our tour group in the Wheelhouse bar at 9:00 AM.  Since there were two Princess Cruise ships in port, we were a little slow disembarking.  At 10:00 AM, we boarded our tour bus, with tour guide “Leo” (Leonardo) and our driver, Victor.  We quickly learned that about half of the bus was filled with passengers for the Ruby Princess and the other half with passengers from the Island Princess.  This was the first time we have ever seen an excursion formed from more than one ship – and it was very confusing for Leonardo.   The Island Princess is doing a cruise in reverse of the one we took Jan/Feb 2014 from Ft. Lauderdale, through the Panama Canal, to Los Angeles.

We started our tour with a short drive through Puntarenas; then continued on a 2.5-hour drive to Rio Perdido.  Leonardo described the sites as we rode along and gave us a lot of history about Costa Rica.
 

Hot Springs

About 12:45 PM, we arrived at the Rivers of Joy, Hot Springs and Spa, and were given fruit drinks as we entered the restaurant.  There we enjoyed a buffet meal, consisting of various salads, vegetables, meats, and desserts.  After lunch, we were given free time to lounge in one or more of the three hot-spring pools on the premises.  Those who wished took a 20-minute walk down to the Rio Perdido (“Lost River”) where they could bathe in the more natural hot-spring environment.  Many participants thought the “Rio Perdido” was worth the walk, but at least a couple of them returned after making it only halfway down; they said the climb back up the hill was strenuous.  We opted out of that adventure.

The Río Perdido is perfectly hidden by its host canyon and a canopy of dense flora. This is a place where highly mineralized, geothermal heated waters flow from underneath massive boulders. Not far from the generous springs, the hot water is quenched, as the river pours into the larger and cooler Río Blanco. This specific place is considered to be magical by the locals. Here, a third body of water – a small stream – falls 80 feet from its cliff top finale into the Río Blanco, making it an impressive point of convergence; a beautiful act of nature were waters meet.  The property utilizes 100% clean energy from internal and local sources. Efficient technology for lighting and cooking is used, and there's not really a need for heating water there, as the volcano's subterranean magma channels kindly take care of this.

After spending three hours at the Rivers of Joy, we started our 2.5 hour ride back to the ship.  During this time, Leonardo told us that the building at the springs is only about 4 years old (it is very modern in design, with lockers and showers), and they plan to add some overnight facilities soon.  Since many of the passengers had enjoyed various beverages during our stay, Leonardo decided to make 15-minute pit stop at about the halfway point.  Since the ship was scheduled to sail at 7:00 PM, Leonardo received at least 5 calls, requesting updates on our ETA.  We finally made it back to the ship at about 7:00 PM.   However, since we were not the last ship to return (as we thought we might be), it was at least another 1.5 hours before the ship was underway.

After sharing a light dinner with John and Shirley, from Saskatchewan, Canada, we retired to our cabin for the night.

On Saturday, Mar 14th, soon after 6:30 AM Sally announced that she didn’t feel well enough to participate in today’s excursion.  After we ate a fairly fast breakfast, Jesse headed to the Princess Theater to meet his tour group at 8:15.  The agent at the check-in table informed Jesse that Sally could get a refund on the tour if she obtained a stamp from medical.  Jesse returned to the cabin and passed on that information to Sally, but cautioned her to make sure the medical charges didn’t exceed the $79.00 tour cost.

About 8:45 AM Jesse boarded a ship tender for the short 5- or 10-minute ride to the San Juan Del Sur pier.  There he boarded the tour bus at 9:00 AM, with tour guide, Gabriella, and the driver, David.  During the 30-minute ride to the Amayo Hacienda, Gabriella described the sights and shared a brief history of Nicaragua.   Prior to the Panama Canal, Nicaragua was a common route for merchants and travelers to get from the East side of the Americas to the West side, without going around South America, which could take 8 months.  This involved a combination of river and land travel, and was used by many Americans during the California Gold Rush.

At one point during the 1960s, Nicaragua was 60 percent illiterate; however, later one of the presidents made public education mandatory, and now the illiteracy rate is down to 14 percent.  Although most of the population finishes the first 5 years of school, after that, the dropout rate is very high, with only 35 percent of the students completing high school, mainly due to the large number of teenage pregnancies.  Because so few colleges and universities are available, admission to them is extremely competitive.  Also, many students are unable to afford the cost of books or travel involved.

We arrived at Amayo Hacienda at about 9:30 AM and were greeted by the matron of the Barrios family and given a fruit drink, which must have been made with pineapple juice.  This gorgeous, family-owned estate, originally acquired by the Hurtado family from the King of Spain, is located directly on the shore of the massive Lake Nicaragua.  The Barrios family also leases land to the power company for wind turbines.  Interestingly, we saw one turbine with a damaged blade, and another that had been blown completely down.  Apparently they were damaged in a storm some time ago, and the company is awaiting an insurance settlement.  According to the wind turbine manufacturer, “this has never happened before.”  According to Gabriella, wind turbines currently supply about 5 percent of Nicaragua’s energy needs.

Soon after we arrived, we were entertained by a Nicaraguan band and dancers in colorful costumes.  At one point, two of the dancers who were pretending to be an elderly couple, involved a couple of the passengers in their dances.  Following the music and dance, we were given a lesson in tortilla making.  An equal number of male and female passengers were given the opportunity to hand make tortillas, which were then baked by the cook.  Tortillas are the main staple in the diets of most Nicaraguans.  Then samples were distributed to the passengers (but not the ones the passengers made!).  We also were provided with more fruit drinks.

Next, we went to a pottery table, where they told about Nicaraguan pottery and offered items for sale.  This was followed by a similar mahogany carver’s table.  There were many hand-carved Domino sets offered for sale.  After that, we were all given the opportunity to try our hand at cow-milking.  (Of course, Jesse was not remotely interested!)  At least a couple of the passengers had been raised on farms and had previous experience. 
 

Lake Nicaragua

We were then taken down to Lake Nicaragua, the 10th largest freshwater lake in the world. This impressive body of water was nicknamed "La Mar Dulce" (The Sweet Sea) by Spanish Conquerors who first believed it was a sea because of its oceanic qualities: large waves, heavy storms and nothing but water at the horizon.   Across the lake, we could see the twin volcanoes, Maderas and Concepcion, which rise majestically out of the water to form the island of Ometepe in the distance.  Though Maderas is dormant, a plume of smoke can sometimes be seen rising from the active Concepcion. The rich, fertile eco-system of this gorgeous blue lake and its volcanoes is home to many rare and exotic species of plants and animals, including the freshwater shark which cannot be found anywhere else in the world.  Although we had been told to bring our swimsuits and towels for an opportunity to take a dip in the sparkling waters, no one actually dared to swim, and only a very few waded out until the water was at their knees.  We then all relaxed in lawn chairs and hammocks until lunch at 11:30 AM.

 We enjoyed a traditional Nicaraguan lunch served in a festive style. This "Caballo Bayo" as it is called, consists of multiple foods (meats, plantains, cheeses, etc.) which were combined and wrapped in a tortilla for a tasty and satisfying meal.   No one was very hungry at the time, and one woman confessed to Jesse that she was embarrassed because she could finish only half of her meal.  After everyone finished, we watched one of the Hacienda’s staff perform with a “dancing horse;” then we were taken down to a forested area by the water to watch small monkeys scamper around in the trees overhead.

At 1:30 we re-boarded our bus for our 30 minute ride back to the pier.  Upon reaching the pier, a ship’s tender was already waiting for passengers, so we boarded immediately and were back on the ship before 2:30 PM.

Since Sally had not yet been to the ship’s medical office, we immediately walked down to the 4th floor to the medical office.  However, we found the office closed until 4:30 PM.  Upon our return at 4:30, the receptionist informed us that Sally would need to see the doctor at a cost of $75.00, plus any additional medications, in order to get a refund for the day’s excursion.  Therefore, we decided to just lose the excursion cost.  (We had brought an ample supply of cold medications, etc. with us on the cruise, so there was really no need to visit a doctor.)

By then, it was 5:00 PM, so we rode the elevator up to the Horizon Court on the 15th floor for a light dinner.  Although we had intended to eat alone to avoid passing on Sally’s germs, through a table mix-up, we ended up sharing a table with Lyla and Mao, from San Francisco.  Lyla is a retired information technology specialist and Mao is retired a retired Civil Engineer.  They have been on about 7 cruises, 5 with Princess.  Afterwards, we returned to our cabin and retired for the night.