A cocktail party last night, (or in my case, an ‘orange juice’ party) and then, later that evening, a couple celebrating their 60th wedding anniversary, so, on this very special occasion, I, the Hotel Director, Cruise director and numerous Petty Officers and crew gathered round to wish them well.

Up to the Bridge for 6 a.m. for our arrival at Manta, a dull day, however the rain has, thus far, held off.

A small port with only 2 piers, the berth was cleared for us as it usually houses tuna fishing boats.  Even so, we are surrounded by them; triple banked and anchored, a refrigerated cargo ship is opposite us, loading frozen tuna.  As you may have guessed, the region thrives on fishing, the cold Peruvian current brings bounteous amounts to area.  The restaurants on the numerous beaches are renown for their seafood and people travel great distances to sample it.

The other product for which the area is known are the famous Panama hats, for they are hand-made in Montecristi and exported worldwide.  The thinner and lighter the hat, the more expensive it is, some as much as $1,000 U.S. Hmmn, mine cost around $90 and I thought that was expensive…..

34 of our guests disembarked here, this is common occurrence on a Grand World Voyage, guests will leave the ship in a port and rejoin in another.  In this case, the majority are going to the Galapagos Islands and others to Lake Titicaca which lies on the Peruvian/Bolivian border.  The guests will rejoin the ship when we are in Callao, Peru.  Similarly, many will leave us in Callao and travel to Machu Picchu 15th-century Inca site located on a ridge between the Huayna Picchu and Machu Picchu mountains in Peru.

We have taken on fuel here, ‘bunkered’ fuel is the proper term.  1260 tonnes of the stuff at a cost of $800,000, yup, operating a cruise ship isn’t cheap and I don’t recommend taking one to the shopping mall.  This is enough fuel to see us to Papeete, where we will have to take a refill.

The port authority of Manta provides shuttle buses into the city for guests and crew and takes them to the Plaza Civilia.  Even though it’s a Saturday, a market is open, (but of course 😕 ), having a cruise ship visit is an opportunity the merchants do not want to miss and the city has allowed it.  I jumped on the bus and took the opportunity to take some photos; I wandered around the stalls, full of the ‘usual’ trinkets and souvenirs, including Panama hats.  Judging by the number of guests wearing them on the return bus, the merchants had a successful day.