The Galapagos, Ecuardor - Day 2-6

So about that internet....there hardly is any in The Galapagos. So here is a recap of the last week!

On day two in The Galapagos, we were supposed to meet our boat at 11:30 at the docks, so we decided to check out a little early from our hotel and go to Tortuga Bay. On our way to the beach, we found a nice hidden grove to go through:

It took us a while to find the path to the beach. When we finally hiked up the mountain, we were told it would take about 30 minutes to walk down this pathway to Tortuga Bay. About halfway through the very brisk walk, we decided we needed to turn around to make it back to our hotel to gather our luggage and meet the boat. Very disappointing, exercise for nothing:

I was pretty nervous for this part of our trip. One, we had booked this cruise through email and it was ridiculously expensive (1,550 per person). Yes, it was way cheaper than any of the other cruises through The Galapagos, but that was a lot of money for two students to spend for 6 days. Two, it was paid in full, so if the travel agent was playing us, we would be out $3,000. We went to the docks and saw our boat in the distance, the "Aida Maria". It was a 16 passenger yacht, which after extensive research seemed the best way to see The Galapagos. Not only does it take you around to most of the islands, but when you are departing with only 14 other people, you're much more likely to not scare the animals away. We sat at the docks staring longingly at the Aida Maria hoping to see someone leave the boat. After ten minutes a Zodiac (small dinghy) came speeding away from the yacht and heading our way. We ran up to it screaming Aida Maria at them (I'm sure they know the name of their boat but we thought we'd remind them) and threw our luggage in the dinghy so they knew we meant business.  They shipped us to the boat, fed us lunch, and informed us that we now had a two hour siesta, an Ecuadorian custom that we were happy to observe. In the afternoon we met up with most of the other passengers and went to the Santa Cruz Highlands to see some wild Giant Tortoises:

They had kept a Giant Tortoise shell after one had passed away that could be climbed into. Alex took the liberty of doing so:

The rest of the cruise was a whirlwind. We spent days exploring totally uninhabited (by humans) islands, snorkeling through azure waters, and seeing animals in the wild like you would never be able to do anywhere else in the world. They were completely fearless of humans, birds would stand totally still when you approached for a picture, iguanas wouldn't even blink at your approach, and sea lions would gladly lay with all your things in the sand and approach given any interest in their activities. I took about 1500 pictures, but here were most of the winners:

Penguins! Never thought I'd get to see those in the wild:

These were my favorite Iguanas, the love birds. They spent the whole day gazing longingly at the ocean, just enjoying each others company. And spitting on each other to cool down. That was lovely:

The most delicious looking crabs ever. Too bad they were protected:

This baby seal decided to jump on the back of our boat. We had a hard time "White Fanging" him so we didn't take him with us and away from his mother. He was very upset to have to leave the party: 

The seals knew just how to pose to get the collective "Ahhhh" from all the humans around. They really hammed it up:

Alex takes great snorkel shots:

I even dived down to get a picture of this star fish. I was very proud of myself:

Just swimming with sea turtles, no big deal. We went to a bay where you literally couldn't move without kicking one in the face:

A fuzzy picture of a pacific reef shark. Our guide went down to pull on his tail so we could get a good shot of him, and Alex dove down to get his "superficial bite". And of course his camera skills have one again proven themselves inadequate:

Baby seals, again posing for the camera:

A hawk swooping in and out of the crowd:

Our obligatory kiss shot in front of the ocean. This was the best one. Pathetic, I know:

The best part about the snorkeling were the sea lions. They were ridiculously playful in the water. They would swim in and out of the snorkelers, blowing bubbles in peoples faces:

Sunset on the last night:

Some Frigate Birds doin a little dance, makin a little love, and all in all getting down tonight:

And say what???? Blue Footed Boobys:

We had an amazing experience, and The Galapagos lived up to everything that we were told and read about. The week flew by unfortunately, but thankfully the trip isn't over. We are currently on our way to Cusco, where we will climb Machu Picchu in the wee hours of the morning, and find ourselves another unforgettable experience.