Two days in one? I possibly chose the worst two days to do in one write up since We. Did. So. Much.
Yesterday we met at the lobby of the hotel at 3:45 am to hop on a bus to the airport. Zombies we were! The plane took us on a 34 minute flight to Guayaquil, the biggest city in Ecuador (population 3.5m), where we got more passengers and then we were on our way to Baltra, one of many islands of Galapagos we are visiting this week. Once in Baltra (the island has a military base, a major airport and nothing else) we took a bus to the ferry that took us to Santa Cruz. There, a bus (are you keeping track of the morning's transportation?!?!) took us to Manzanillo, a land tortoise farm. The radiator on the aforementioned bus worked whenever it wanted to but we were prepared to push if we needed to.
Instead of pushing though, our entertainment was an unnamed student terrified of wasps who jumped up so high that he ended up on the floor between the seats of the bus. Pics were taken.
Manzanillo: The tortoises were everywhere and it was pretty amazing to see them hanging out in the bushes, beneath trees, out and about just camouflaged with the rocks. At any point in time you'd bump into something not sure if it was a tortoise or a rock.
We had a delicious lunch at the farm and then (wait for it!!!) got on a bus that took us to a water taxi that took us to a boat. The infamous boat which was going to be bumpy, shaky and uncomfortable. Most of us were prepared with Dramamine and were ready to go. No one in our group puked so we were off to a great start of many more boats to come. Other group wasn't that lucky.
When we got to Isabela island (about 15 hours after we started in Quito!) we were greeted by many sea lions, marine iguanas, penguins, zayapa crabs and that was just by the pier. We dropped off our things and had a relaxing second part of the day. Some students rented bikes to ride around the island, others went to buy souvenirs. After dinner it was time to recharge our batteries and get some well needed rest.
Breakfast is at 6:25!
We awoke in Galápagos islands well aware that today will be a full packed day. Hi, understatement of the century.
By 7:15, we learned about flamingos in the wild and were pretty excited when we saw them fly over us. This is no zoo and it was very cool to see flamingos in action. Wr have videos of them dancing too!
Our local guide, Martin, spoke to the students in Spanish. After each portion, I asked the students to tell me what they understood. Martin and Fabian were both impressed! We have a variety of levels of Spanish and with everyone paying attention and participating we understood everything that was said!
Next, we were off to a birthing center of tortoises. The sheer amount of tortoises was awe-inspiring! We saw 500 lb ones and tiny babies, we saw them get fed (we were lucky since they only get fed twice a week), we surely saw two tortoises procreating and lastly, we saw the naturalist dig up the eggs that were laid yesterday so that they can move them to the incubator. Wow, there isn't a single thing we missed, I think!
Next up: hike to Volcán Sierra Negra. While the view of the 12x9 kilometer crater was out of sight in the fog, the hike was great. The greenery surrounding us was gorgeous and the sprinkle rain kept us cool. Even Prianka rocked the hike with her not-so-awesome knee!
After pizza lunch, it was the walking tour on the volcanic rocks of Islote Tintorera. We saw hundreds and hundreds of marine iguanas. They blend so incredibly well with the rocks, I dare you to really look at your kids' pictures to see how many you can spot. A sea lion performed for us, Tintorera sharks swam all around and a few giant sea turtles popped their heads from the water. The only thing left to do was to swim with them!
With snorkeling gear on, we spent some time in the water swimming with turtles, admiring beautiful fish and seeing stingrays swim by.
What a day. By the time we got home we have been out for 10 hours and it was just four pm. Our group decided to head to the beach before dinner.
Before I get to the beach, here is a side note: earlier this week, I've been complemented on how nice, polite and respectful our kids are. Today, I was told that wow, our kids are in such good shape (we chuckled since hey, we are from the Bay Area, we can hike!), and that we are a great group to travel with since our Spanish is so useful.
And that takes me back to the beach...
While the kids were playing in the water (I could only wish I had a video of Nick and Yusuf running and then Yusuf face planting in the water. Oops, he asked me not to tell), drawing in the sand, hanging out without their phones and with their new and old friends, there was a group of people that sat behind me.
They were Australian and British. And they talked. And talked. And talked. About how Americans are awful. Rude. Annoying. Arrogant.
And it made me so grateful for being with these kids. As parents, you give this opportunity to your kids so that they can travel and see how others live. So that they can open their minds and go beyond the stereotypes. So when they encounter people who think about them in a certain way before ever talking to them, they can maybe change their minds, even
if for a second.
So there I was, sitting on the beach with a group of jaded individuals behind me and a group of incredible teenagers in front of me. I know exactly which group I rather be a part of.
Tomorrow, we leave for Santa Cruz island at 5:25 am. Charles Darwin Research Center is the first thing after a two hour boat ride and more snorkeling. I think we can do it!
As for wifi, who knows. New island, new hotel, new adventure.
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