Galapagos 13-20 June

We are back from a voyage of a lifetime. The galapagos turned out to be some of what we imagined and more of what we could have never expected. The poster images of sweeping views and sunsets over turtle infested beaches crept into our mind during our two days of hunting in Quito for that perfect last minute deal (which we got). Endless beaches and tropical wonders galore. The animals, we knew were important, but shared the light equally with its floral counterpart. But, as we arrived direct into Baltra, one of three main airports in the Galapagos, our vision was shattered. The galapagos is a desert. A volcanic wasteland with shrubs for grass and cacti for trees. Crumbles of volcanic rock make the land seem as if some great concrete city were just torn to shreds and left without order on something that surely, surely had to harbor life at some point in the past.

Our yacht Fragata

North Seymour Island and its land iguanas

Bartolome Island and its moon landscape

Now, some would say there is more in the highlands on the interior, but it too is just overrun by invasive blackberry (not the tasty variety) thorn bushes. To top off our first impression, our supposed to be guide was not present but instead an old unhealthy non-fluent version of him who walked too fast and said to little. A poor entrance.

Pelicans

One of the thousands crabs we saw. They have amazing colors.

Another marine iguana

A marine iguana eating

Puerto Ayora, our first and only town, started to change things. It was full of necessary rations (beer and chocolate) and home of the Charles Darwin Research Center. The CDRC has giant turtles. And I now like giant turtles very much. They are the size of armchairs, slow, and full of personality. Anna and I got to spend some quality time with a galapagos turtle who was unafraid and posing to show off his long neck.

Our new friend

We then had to walk back into town to catch up with the rest of the crew and go aboard for our first meal in the Yacht Fragata. We were welcomed that evening with a warm introduction by the staff and grasshopper cocktails, just like grandma's minty grasshopper pie with a kick. After dinner, we went back into town because we would stay anchored in Puerto Ayora for the night. Instead of going to the bars we opted for a walk around town and then shared a beer with a grumpy sea lion sleeping on a park bench.

The crew

The boat
The next day we were off to sea. We quickly learned how difficult activity is when sailing. It is best just to grab a seat in the over air-conditioned TV room on the wrap around leather sofa at front or go up top two more stories and take some sun and wind while admiring the companion bird of the day (pelicans, frigate birds, gulls, etc). There were two floors of cabins, half down below and half above the main floor. We were lucky to be up top in a two bed room with tiny private bath (showers meant for Ecuadorians) and a large window that took up one whole side. The boat could hold 16 plus a crew of 7 at capacity and didn't appear to be the most speedy of those we saw but definitely very comfortable.

The staff
The staff was friendly despite the thousand times that they shouted "VAMOS! VAMOS!" There was Oscar, the quiet and friendly bartender who coupled as boat chauffeur and hors d'oeuvre server post snorkel.

Manuel, the guide

 Oskar waiting for us returning from snorkeling

The cef and his Sous whipped up some marvelous food ,every night different and full of fresh veggies (which are hard to come about in Ecuador). Food was served family buffet style, always with juice and dessert. The mechanic and the captain worked well together to keep the boat running smooth and reliable. The guide, Manuel, however, was lacking some positive characteristics. Stern, defensive, uninformative at times, and a tourist (us) hater, Manuel was a good example of what the tour agencies and internet said, 'a bad guide can really affect you tour.' Things could have been better with another guide. But it did seem to pull the rest of us together by giving us all something to talk about, our bad guide.

The animals
As i said earlier, the Galapagos wasn't what we expected, but that's not necessarily bad. I could have never told you that I would have such amazing encounters with animals. The galapagos is a zoo with no cages, and no one is afraid of us humans. By the end, we had swam with penguins hunting for fish and SHARKS, laid on the beach with sea lions, swam with sharks, witnessed albatrosses welcoming their partner with a loving beak joust, played in the water with curios sea lions, got sneezed on by marine iguanas, pet giant turtles, and walked with blue footed boobies. Anna found it hard to get a good picture with baby seals because they would chase her off while i couldn't stop admiring the deep red crabs picking their dinner off of the volcanic rocks.

My absolutely favorite!

Sea lions chasing me

 :-)

Blue footed boobie

Albatros

Resting iguana

Beautiful flamingos

Pelicans playing with sharks, next to our boat

The frigate bird

Red footed boobie

And the sharks....

This is Post Office Bay on the Floreana Island. It is a mailbox set up by pirates many years ago where nobody pays postage. The idea is that if you find a postcard addressed near your home, you deliver it yourself and in exchange you replace it with your own. Both of us found a postcard that we are going to deliver but have no idea when our postcards are going to reach their destination

To sum

The Galapagos were both unexpected and interesting. It supposedly was once declared hell on earth by a spanish priest while later a certain charles darwin began to see deeper into its beauty. I see its two sides, while it is curiously exotic and allows once in a lifetime water exploration(snorkeling/scuba) and animal encounters, there is an ugly side to galapagos. Exploding volcanoes, barren landscapes, and deficient resources. Yin and yang.