It was inevitable, figuring out how to take a big trip where all of Suzanne’s nourishment needed for two weeks had to be packed in suitcases. That’s what faced us for our winter trip we booked through Travel Discoveries II where we traveled on an eleven-day cruise through the Panama Canal and the southern Caribbean Sea with Norwegian Cruise Lines.

Off to a rocky start, we made it through Chicago TSA unscathed but didn’t know the process in Panama. Then, NCL didn’t have a bus scheduled to take us from the airport to the hotel, so a little wait ensued. After a nice evening at the Hilton and a leisurely walk the next morning, we were ready to board the bus to the ship. Not knowing that this was the first time NCL used this new incomplete port, we boarded the bus at 11:30 am and arrived at the ship after standing in line after line and sitting on a bus for what seemed forever. We finally boarded around 4:30 pm.

We departed that evening and entered the Panama Canal early the next morning which took most of the day to travel. For the next ten days, we visited Costa Rico, Aruba, Curacao, Bonaire, and Columbia. At each stop, we took a tour to see all we could about the culture of the country. By bus, we would tour historic and scenic sites, local neighborhoods, and rural areas; once by train, we traveled along a coast. Monkeys in the trees, the salt flats of Bonaire, wild donkeys, an underwater adventure, a hot cave 60 meters above sea level, and the list goes on. Most of all, we were surprised at how aired the islands were with cactus and desert plants, not the lush, tropical, flowering landscape we were expecting.

Getting ready for the trip, I was pretty much a mess with concerns about Suzanne’s eating for the next two weeks. As it turned out, NCL had a dining crew member take unbelievable care of her. By day two, he and the chef knew exactly how to prepare foods that she could eat. She enjoyed a variety of soups, pasta alfredo, and even chicken pot pie. Toward the end of the trip, I started wondering if I was going to have to haul most of her food home with us (LOL). Their efforts made this trip even more enjoyable for Suzanne.

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As much as we enjoyed this trip, we are still trying to decide if the travel to and from a trip like this is worth it. An early morning flight to Panama meant staying in Chicago the night before just to arrive the day before the cruise began so another hotel night before boarding the Ship. Then, on the way home, as I’m sure we all looked like drug dealers, extra security at the Panama airport posed new challenges. Finally arriving in Chicago at midnight, we opted for another hotel night before heading home. All in all, about five travel days out of the thirteen days we were tied up in travel. Shamu could have taken us across the country in that much time.

The one big takeaway from the whole trip was how fortunate we are to live in the United States. Seeing the living conditions of such a large segment of the population pulls at your heartstrings. Grateful is an understatement with our abundance of food, housing, and the comforts we all expected here at home.

If I take the wings of the morning and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, even there your hand shall lead me, and your right hand shall hold me.

Psalm 139:9-10