03 October 2011; At Sea.

 Only when sailing along its coast you realize how big a country Mexico really is. Since our departure from San Diego we have been constantly sailing along its coast and we will continue to do until the night of the 5th., when we will finally pass its southern border. We are staying an average distance from the coast of between 4 and 14 miles. The four to stay out of the 3 mile coastal zone which every country in the world sees as their property but sometimes we are much further out when the coast meanders away from the straight course line that we follow. We are also now starting to see ships again , as the coastal Mexican route is used by all shipping coming from and going to the Panama Canal or ports in that area. So we passed a few tankers and regular cargo ships who in some cases were going faster than we did. This is a novelty of the last few years. 

In the past cruise ships were always flying by, their schedules set at the regular cruising speed of 19 to 21 knots. Then with the fuel getting more and more expensive all the cruise company’s started to amend their cruise routes in such a way that the passages between ports could be done with average speed of 17 knots or so. Occasionally still higher but the average was coming down. This resulted in the benefit of a much lower fuel consumption and avoided the need to raise the ticket prices for the guests or to keep adding a fuel surcharge. In the last 10 years the fuel price for a ton of HFO has nearly tripled, while the ticket prices for the cruises have either remained stable or have even come down. So reducing the average speed and thus the fuel consumption is by far the best way to make reasonable cruise prices possible. For cargo ships that is different. Their engines are normally designed to have the best fuel efficiency if they are run full-out or are completely stopped. Cargo ships, even container ships do not run on schedules with fixed arrival and departure times and thus they can save more money by sailing on the most economical speed (which is full out for most of them) to the next ports and then either wait at anchor or go directly to the dock.

Cruise ships arrive and depart at set times and that means that the speeds between ports vary greatly. That brings the phenomena that the “slow” cargo ships are now overtaking the once “fast” cruise ships. Apart from the cargo ships we see the occasional Mexican navy ship patrolling along the coast. Since the issue with the drug cartels started in Mexico we have seen an increase in navy activity, although I do not really know if it is related. The drug problems are many inland, either among drug traffickers themselves or with the government involved but the ports and the coastal seas have not been involved that much. Still the cruise companies have amended the schedules somewhat and are omitting some ports, not because the port itself is an issue, but the chance that a cruise guest, either on tour or privately, ends up in an area further inland where there is an issue. I have no reports that any of the ports that we are visiting has issues, so we can happily go there. If there were issues then Holland America would be the first to take corrective action. But it is business as usual at the moment and beyond being careful there is no reason for concern. It is the same as if you live in New York. If you walk in Central Park by night you are careful and so it is when you visit any other place in the world. Be careful and as long as you do not wave your wallet around or show off your $ 2000 Rolex to everybody there is nothing to worry about.

 Tomorrow we are in our next port Huatalco de Santa Cruz. This is more or less a man made resort with an enormous pier for two ships and a nice little town connected to it. I am keeping an eye on the weather as there is a Tehuantopeccer blowing about 40 miles to the East. That is an off shore wind which can reach velocity’s of up to 75 or 80 miles an hour but it is very local and in Hualtalco it should be wind still. Still I am keeping a close eye on it, in case it spreads its general direction a bit wider.