Off the boat and onto solid land, though it doesn’t feel so solid. A short walk to see the captive tortoises at Darwin Station, and that’s the so called 8th day of the cruise. I parted ways with the other passengers as they took the arranged ride to the airport and I went to the hotel to rest, write these… Read more »
The last, though technically penultimate, day of the Galapagos cruise was one full of luckily timed sightings. On the morning walk at the red beach, we saw a rare bright red bird which the guide said lives in the highlands and never ventures so close to the sea. At the same beach we had another opportunity to swim with two… Read more »
Retrospective On the visit to Santiago and Bartolome Islands I saw, for the first time, lava that actually looks like what I imagined lava to look like. The Galapagos are incredibly different from the volcanic lands of Iceland. A large area is covered by black streaks and swirls of lava flows. For contrast, heaps of iron-heavy rusted red ash sprout… Read more »
Retrospective On the first real day of the cruise we got out in the “panga” (dinghy) to see the rock formations along the shore of San Cristóbal Island, where the ocean has eroded giant archways into the soft stone. We then went snorkeling off the panga near some rocks a bit out on the ocean. The current was strong and… Read more »
South America Day 33 continued – Retrospective There are nine passengers on the boat including myself. There is a Swedish family of four with two little blond girls, like in Full House. There are two young German speaking Swiss girls traveling together, and another young German girl. My roommate is a nice Dutch guy a few years older than me…. Read more »
I feel like my rate of absorption of Spanish is slowing down a bit. The classes feel harder as I have not digested and sufficiently practiced everything I’ve learned. Last day in the jungle. Today I went for the morning hike with the group instead of class. At one point while walking through the jungle the guide yelled run! Not… Read more »
By noon on the second day I haven’t yet done a walk in the jungle because I’ve had 7 hours of classes. The lodge is a surprisingly nice place to study, especially in the morning. However, I am starting to think that combining studies with the jungle trip was not the best use of my time and money here.
As I was waiting at the bus station, a woman put down some baskets and bags next to me. A minute later I heard noises. When I looked down I found I was standing next to a big bag full of live chickens. I took the bus to Otavalo, which is a town famous for its artisinal craft market. They… Read more »
Today we went to the butterfly garden in Mindo. This was the cleanest, most touristy sight I’ve seen here yet, but also new and fun. There were variously camouflaged cocoons, and the opportunity to watch the butterfly being born. Some young ones were still hanging from their cocoons drying their wings. Many more were flying around the garden and feeding… Read more »