Cruises - E - carmennieves-torrens.com

Above left, you can see the trains (mules) that are used to pull the ships along from lock to lock. Each lock is like a gigantic pool. At right, you can see the slopes of the tracks. On one side, the ships are taken higher and higher (I think Atlantic to Gatun Lake), and on the other side lower lower and lower (from the lake back to the ocean). As the pools are filed with water, the ship rises. The huge gates behind the ship are closed and slowly the one in front is opened and the ship moves from one lock to the next. This continues until the ship is in the lake. The tug boats, in photos below, help the ship up to enter the canal and then help the ships leaving the locks.

The first to try building the Panama Canal were the French. The man who built the Suez Canal, Ferdinand de Lesseps, was the first to make a serious attempt at building the canal. The project started in 1879 and by 1889 the project was bankrupt because it was poorly managed and under-financed. President Roosevelt revived the dream of having a canal built after the French went bankrupt.

The American put in charge of the project was Col. George Washington Goethals of the US American Corps of Engineers. The canal was completed in 1913, ahead of schedule and under budget.

The first boat to test the locks was the tugboat Gatún and it was done on September 16, 1913. The Canal officially opened on August 15, 1914.

Ships being built today are longer and/or wider than the locks now in place. For that reason, new locks are being added to accommodate the new larger ships (post-Panamax ships as they are called). The Panamanian government is building two enormous sets of single lane locks that are three-step each. They will be built on either side, Atlantic and Pacific. (2022 - Per a Google search, the expansion to the canal was opened on June 26, 2016.)

During this cruise, each ship was being charged about $2.90 per ton to cross the Canal.

(2013 - The Chinese are looking for a new location to make another canal that would accommodate even bigger ships than what is expected in the new locks of the Panama Canal. One suggestion was to build the new canal through Nicaragua. As of 2022, this plan is still in limbo.)

Before docking in Cozumel, a ferry came up to the ship for the passengers going on Chichén Itzá tour. Once we were on the ferry, the Wind headed to Cozumel. We were taken to Playa del Carmen and there got on tour buses. Going to Chichén Itzá was easy. However, on the return trip something happened to the air conditioning. Windows were opened. Shortly thereafter, the bus broke down. No matter what the driver tried, the bus would not move. The driver made contact with those in charge of the tour. We were behind schedule. We would not make it back in time to board the ship before it sailed. Eventually, taxis picked us up. The diver of the bus explained to us that the cars would be able to drive faster than a bus. Ma, Maria and I got in a taxi. I think another passenger was with us. I can't remember the total number of taxis. The cars were small. The drivers drove like mad men. I wondered if we'd get in an accident. We got back to Playa Del Carmen, boarded a fast ferry and headed to Cozumel. The ship had already begun to pull away from the pier. The ferry got next to the ship. We boarded, the ferry pulled away and the ship took off. Would you believe some passengers felt we caused the ship to be delayed? It was the talk of the evening!! This is why it's best to book most trips offered by the cruise line. Had we booked this tour on our own, we would have most probably been left behind on the island of Cozumel.