We started early in the morning passing ships at anchor or on moorings waiting their turn to pass through the canal. The trip from the Atlantic to the Pacific runs is about 55 miles and can take an entire day. After about an hour we came to the first lock -- the Gatun lock which raises ships just over 80 feet to Lake Gatun an artificial lake made to provide water to the canal. After traveling a carefully marked channel through the lake the ship is taken back to sea level in two stages the first at the Pedro Miguel locks and the next at the Miraflores locks.

That's a barebones description of the passage through the canal but actually transiting the canal is another thing entirely. Celebrity Infinity is about as large as a ship can be and still pass through the canal. As we approach the first lock the ship slows until it's barely making steerageway as the lock gates slowly open. We creep into the lock, guided by six electric engines (three on a side). The engines, called mules, do not pull the ship. Their purpose is to keep the ship centered in the lock so we don't hit the sides or the gates. As we edge up to the front gates of the lock, the rear gates close and the lock starts to fill with water. As the ship rises we can see that we have only about two feet of clearance on each side. After 45 minutes or so, the lock is filled raising the ship to the level of Lake Gatun. The front gates open and the mules guide us out into the lake. We steam slowly through the lake for about five hours, passing other ships headed to the Atlantic, a few towns, and lots of rain forest. Along the way we had intermittent thunderstorms. It’s hot and humid as one would expect in the tropics during the raining season.

We arrive at the Pedro Miguel locks in mid afternoon and repeat the process we had at the Gatun lock tough it takes less time because the look is not as deep. Another couple of hours and we're at the Miraflores locks. We repeat the process of entering and leaving the lock and the steam out into the bay of Panama. The entire canal passages took about 12 hours.