Today’s story begins with yesterday. We’re traveling with Ed and Lynne. Ed is really good at seeing things. He took us to the bow of the ship and showed us lots of flying fish. His theory is they were trying to get away from the ship. It’s impossible for me to photograph, but it was quite an impressive site. We spent quite a while watching flying fish, and gulls fishing.

Today we crossed the Panama Canal. It took 10 hours, which is typical. The thing that impressed me most was the lock doors, called leafs. The original leafs are still in use. They are massive. I think I heard 7,000 pounds, and I think I heard 9 tons. Either way, that’s heavy. However, they are hollow. They float. When the canal first opened in 1914, they were operated by 30 HP electric motors. Now they have hydraulic rams. Sometimes they refuse to open. When this happens, they can be opened by hand — just by turning a wheel.

It was all cool. It turns out that our lanai area was exactly where the pirates pilots boarded our ship. I was also impressed with the Culebra Cut, the toughest excavation and the site of numerous mud slides. Even today, it is narrow and crooked enough that ships prefer not to pass each other while in the cut. If you choose to look at the pictures, you will see many details of the canal.

After an exhausting day guiding the ship through the canal (and also enjoying a some wine, just as the French did when they were in Panama), it’s time to rest up for dinner. I hope this finds everybody doing well.