Before dinner last evening we took a few photos.
Last night we enjoyed dinner in the Crystal Dining Room. The theme of the dinner was California Dinner. As you can see from the menus, there were lots of items with California cuisine in mind.
Anne Marie chose one of the salads from the menu as her first course while Keith went with his standard salad.
We each had the broiled fresh swordfish steak. As you can figure out from now we do often order fish from the menu and we do prefer fresh fish when it is available. From time to time we will order other items such as poultry or once in awhile beef but we truly prefer fish or shellfish. You may recall that we thoroughly enjoyed the swordfish on the first voyage and this one was equally delightful. Also, the items that accompanied the swordfish were different than last time which changes it up a bit. Even the spinach was prepared differently.
Keith had mixed berries for dessert and Anne Marie had the sugar free Mocha Mille Feuille dessert.
If you read our blog each day then it should not be a surprise to you that we slept well again last evening and we looked forward to another wonderful day on the Crystal Serenity.
When Keith first made his way up to the Fitness Center the ship was definitely moving at bit due to the choppy seas but once on the Elliptical Machine he could no longer feel the semi-rough seas. About half way through his workout a couple of other guests were working out including Brian. Keith watched the repeat of last evenings National Conference Playoff game featuring New Orleans and Detroit.
With an early arrival to Cartagena, at 7:00 AM more guests were up earlier than normal. This was evident when Keith went to the Lido Cafe for some coffee and also when he was in the laundry room.
Keith was up first and back at the Fitness Center for his daily morning workout. About an hour after Keith finished his workout, it was Anne Marie's turn. Afterwards, we had breakfast in our room.
The irony about our visit to Cartagena, Colombia. Interestingly enough, with all of our cruising we didn't visit Cartagena until November of 2011 and including that visit within the last fourteen months we have now visited Cartagena four times. Similarly, we had not transited the Panama Canal until early 2007 and when we transit the Panama Canal in a few days it will mark the fifth time we have been to the Canal.
On prior visits we had hesitated to venture out into the city as we had heard some unfavorable reviews about the area as well as the aggressiveness of the drivers. However, after speaking with fellow guest Ashley just yesterday and also speaking with the representative who came onto the ship we decided to go into the old town area. We determined what areas we wanted to see and how we would go about doing this and what a fair price would be.
When we first walked outside, we were approached by several people in white shirts who are tour guides and are quite aggressive. We knew we did not need a guide. Rather we walked outside into a small parking lot and spoke with a taxi cab representative who spoke english very well and we agreed on the length, cost and where we would visit. The taxi driver we had was very nice and we knew up front that his english would be limited. However, between his limited english and Anne Marie's limited spanish we had a most successful trip.
We stopped at the San Felipe Fortress and happened to run into fellow guest Peggy who was kind enough to take a photo of us with the Fortress in the background.
We then went directly to the old or walled city. We made various stops as we toured this beautiful city.
One of several dungeons that we saw.
From the walled city we could view a soccer match
Anne Marie thought was worried that rather than going back to the ship she would be spending time in a cell.
This is one of several shops that is located in what were the cells.
These are shops that are now located in former cells.
Our taxi driver and the cab that we drove in.
A view of the old town Cathedral
Some artwork that we saw as we walked around the old town area
Another view of the Cartagena Cathedral
Keith sporting his new sombrero with the beautiful Crystal Serenity in the background
Our experience in Cartagena was a reminder to us about the importance of seeing areas of the world through our very own eyes and then coming to our own judgements and conclusions about what we have experienced. We found the old town area to be beautiful and we felt very at ease walking around the town. We enjoyed views of the colonial buildings as well as all of the narrow streets with very colorful buildings. We also visited a beautiful park. We also were very impressed with other areas that we saw including the skyline of the new city which in many ways has the look of Miami, Florida. We also saw many beautiful buildings as we made our way back to the ship including a museum and opera house. We took a bridge back to the pier which again had lots of beauty. We could have spent more time touring and we promised ourselves we will the next time we return to this lovely city.
Are there poor areas and unsafe areas to avoid? Yes. However, that is true of just about any city around world.
We enjoyed lunch at the Lido Cafe and afterwards Keith played Paddle Tennis with both fellow guests and members of the crew. Anne Marie walked on the Promenade Deck and also sat out at the pool. Anne Marie also went to see the Movie titled End Of The Spear and really enjoyed the movie.
All in all we had a wonderful day at Cartagena and then back on the ship.
This evening we are having Ashley and Kelly to our room before winner for some wine and snacks and then we will all go to Silk Road for dinner.
Keith had mixed berries for dessert and Anne Marie had the sugar free Mocha Mille Feuille dessert.
If you read our blog each day then it should not be a surprise to you that we slept well again last evening and we looked forward to another wonderful day on the Crystal Serenity.
When Keith first made his way up to the Fitness Center the ship was definitely moving at bit due to the choppy seas but once on the Elliptical Machine he could no longer feel the semi-rough seas. About half way through his workout a couple of other guests were working out including Brian. Keith watched the repeat of last evenings National Conference Playoff game featuring New Orleans and Detroit.
With an early arrival to Cartagena, at 7:00 AM more guests were up earlier than normal. This was evident when Keith went to the Lido Cafe for some coffee and also when he was in the laundry room.
Keith was up first and back at the Fitness Center for his daily morning workout. About an hour after Keith finished his workout, it was Anne Marie's turn. Afterwards, we had breakfast in our room.
The irony about our visit to Cartagena, Colombia. Interestingly enough, with all of our cruising we didn't visit Cartagena until November of 2011 and including that visit within the last fourteen months we have now visited Cartagena four times. Similarly, we had not transited the Panama Canal until early 2007 and when we transit the Panama Canal in a few days it will mark the fifth time we have been to the Canal.
On prior visits we had hesitated to venture out into the city as we had heard some unfavorable reviews about the area as well as the aggressiveness of the drivers. However, after speaking with fellow guest Ashley just yesterday and also speaking with the representative who came onto the ship we decided to go into the old town area. We determined what areas we wanted to see and how we would go about doing this and what a fair price would be.
When we first walked outside, we were approached by several people in white shirts who are tour guides and are quite aggressive. We knew we did not need a guide. Rather we walked outside into a small parking lot and spoke with a taxi cab representative who spoke english very well and we agreed on the length, cost and where we would visit. The taxi driver we had was very nice and we knew up front that his english would be limited. However, between his limited english and Anne Marie's limited spanish we had a most successful trip.
We stopped at the San Felipe Fortress and happened to run into fellow guest Peggy who was kind enough to take a photo of us with the Fortress in the background.
We then went directly to the old or walled city. We made various stops as we toured this beautiful city.
One of several dungeons that we saw.
From the walled city we could view a soccer match
Anne Marie thought was worried that rather than going back to the ship she would be spending time in a cell.
This is one of several shops that is located in what were the cells.
These are shops that are now located in former cells.
Our taxi driver and the cab that we drove in.
A view of the old town Cathedral
Some artwork that we saw as we walked around the old town area
Another view of the Cartagena Cathedral
Keith sporting his new sombrero with the beautiful Crystal Serenity in the background
Our experience in Cartagena was a reminder to us about the importance of seeing areas of the world through our very own eyes and then coming to our own judgements and conclusions about what we have experienced. We found the old town area to be beautiful and we felt very at ease walking around the town. We enjoyed views of the colonial buildings as well as all of the narrow streets with very colorful buildings. We also visited a beautiful park. We also were very impressed with other areas that we saw including the skyline of the new city which in many ways has the look of Miami, Florida. We also saw many beautiful buildings as we made our way back to the ship including a museum and opera house. We took a bridge back to the pier which again had lots of beauty. We could have spent more time touring and we promised ourselves we will the next time we return to this lovely city.
Are there poor areas and unsafe areas to avoid? Yes. However, that is true of just about any city around world.
We enjoyed lunch at the Lido Cafe and afterwards Keith played Paddle Tennis with both fellow guests and members of the crew. Anne Marie walked on the Promenade Deck and also sat out at the pool. Anne Marie also went to see the Movie titled End Of The Spear and really enjoyed the movie.
All in all we had a wonderful day at Cartagena and then back on the ship.
This evening we are having Ashley and Kelly to our room before winner for some wine and snacks and then we will all go to Silk Road for dinner.
Keith and Anne Marie
Bravo to you both for exploring the area on your own. It appears you were richly rewarded. Colombia looks great.
ReplyDeleteKeith that hat is a terrific look for you!
thanks for your blog,
Ilene
Ann Marie...
ReplyDeleteI love your choice of clothes, and you look great in everything that you wear. Your dress in today's top picture looks as if it was chosen to co-ordinate with the stained glass in the Serenity's lobby!
Keith...
I so enjoy following this blog when I am not cruising, and your pictures are great!
I appreciate the time and effort you put into this effort...thanks!
Barb
Great. You went into Cartagena! From reading previous blogs, I didn't think you had seen the city. The architecture is really beautiful. I'm glad you felt safe walking around.
ReplyDeleteIn addition, a fashion comment on how perfectly Anne Marie's dress matches the Serenity decor. If you haven't noticed, look again at the evening photos.
ChansondeLaMer
So much information in today's blog. I was particularly interested in your report on Cartegena since we will be traveling there in March. Thank you for your report. I was surprised to read that you had your first transit of the Panama Canal in 2007. I would have thought you had been through long before that year.
ReplyDeleteAgain thank you for blogging and the pictures. I am enjoying it so much.