When you open yourself up to travelling there is a good chance that you might find that you never quite know where you will end up exploring. When I first decided that I would take a trip overseas and explore somewhere other than Australia, I had three destinations in mind, each for a different reason.
Having the chance to transit the Panama Canal was not one of those first three destinations. It was not even on a list of places that I ever expected to visit. But taking that first step and pushing my comfort zone out a little gradually gave way to taking more steps outside the comfort zone.
It was the second trip that I took overseas when I boarded a cruise to visit this unique part of the world. In some ways when I booked this trip I was looking for a comfortable trip, and originally had booked just to visit The United States. However, as luck would have it, things turned course and I end up booking a cruise that would take me all the way through Central America and ultimately to transit the Panama Canal Twice.
This photo is taken on the morning of the first of two transits that I took through the Panama Canal. The ship I am onboard is the MS Statendam of Holland America Line, which now sails under the name of Pacific Eden for P & O Australia. The ship is rather close to entering the first lock on the western side of the Panama Canal at Gatún.
