T Minus 8 hours and packing

At 3:30 AM tomorrow the Wagar family will be rising (and hopefully shining) to leave for our trip. Kaleb and Peter already have their alarm set so they don't miss the 5:45 PM flight out of Newport News airport. We like to fly from Newport News because it doesn't require going over any bridges. We've had some challenges with bridges being up when we needed to go over them. It's not uncommon in this area.

We've been reading a great history book on the Panama Canal. It's called Path Between The Seas: The Creation of the Panama Canal, 1870-1914 by David McCullough. Remember he wrote 1776 and John Adams? The book does an excellent job of presenting the facts of the building of canal without a lot of commentary. We'll share questions and facts about the Panama Canal as we go along. For now, consider that President Thomas Jefferson spent $15 Million to purchase the Lousiana Purchase. For a swath of land 50 miles long and 10 miles across, as well as some of the equipment that the French left from their attempt to build the canal, President Teddy Roosevelt spent $40 Million! At the time, the purchase of the land and equipment was considered bargin (especially since the French spent almost $300 Million to TRY to build the Panama Canal).


We're nearly packed and I'm printing the magnet for our door on the cruise. More to share soon!