Welcome to the Paradise That Is The Galapagos Islands

Every morning for 8 days I was awoken by a soothing morning greeting by our ship's crew, welcoming me to "The Paradise That Is The Galapagos Islands," along with a random selection of early 90s power ballads (definitely a few Phil Collins' tunes in the mix).  I have to say, it was a lovely way to wake up.  We started each of our days early to avoid the intense heat of the afternoon sun along the equator.  Everything was scheduled and prepared for us (a nice change for a self-proclaimed planner-and-sometimes-control-freak).

Breakfast at 7:30am, off to our first activity by 8am (panga ride to animal watch or nature hike on one of the islands), followed by a snorkel, then back to the ship for lunch, an afternoon nap (amazing!) and then our final activity for the day (usually another walk or snorkel), shower, dinner, star gazing, then in bed by 9pm.  The days were busy, the guides were full of knowledge about the local flora and fauna and the meals were tasty.  The best part was, no one had to plan anything or make any decisions (the staff took care of all of that for us) -- and in my family - where the kitchen can often feel a bit crowded with too many proverbial cooks - this was a major blessing.

The gang's all here!

The trip got off to a bit of a rocky start.  I blame the groundhog who called 6 more weeks of winter.  The plan was to all meet in Miami for our flight to Ecuador.  Winter wrecked a bit of havoc on the whole gang.  I was forced to cancel my trip to Chicago earlier in the week (which totally bummed me out as I was really looking forward to seeing Katherine, Paul & Matt) to avoid the risk of getting stuck in Chicago.  Michelle and Tim's flight from Seattle was delayed by 5 hours, causing us all to fear the worst: that their flight would end up being canceled, meaning they would miss our connection in Miami.  Monica and Phil got a call the night before their flight letting them know it WAS canceled.  They were able to rebook on another flight...from Nashville.  So they hopped in the car in Columbus and drove all night to Nashville for their connection, changed in Orlando and made it to Miami in the nick of time.  Mom had it easy, she boarded at LAX and snoozed her way to Miami.  With a little luck (and after a lot of airport waiting time) we all made it to Miami in time.




After noticing some 7 year old boys meeting the pilot while I was boarding my JFK > MIA leg, I decided that you are never to old for a cockpit visit.  It must be 20+ years since my last one!

Once we landed in Guayaquil, it was easy breezy.  Airport pick up, hotel check in, transport to our Galapagos flight in the morning, guides met us upon arrival and a quick panga ride to our ship, the M/Y Eric.  Orientation, cabin check-in, lunch and then we were off on our first adventure.  

Throughout the trip we visited 6 islands in the Galapagos Archipelago: Genovesa, Santa Cruz, Fernandina, Isabela, Santiago, Rabida, and then back to Santa Cruz.  To be honest, they all sort of blend together a bit by the end - but Fernandina might be my favorite: the rugged terrain formed by lava flows, the beautiful tide pools, the sea lions, the marine iguanas and deep sea snorkeling with HAMMERHEAD SHARKS!!! (note: I can't believe I did that, I was sure I would get eaten -- underwater photos to come soon).   

Below is just a sampling of some of my favorite moments, mostly involving me with animals (never forget: animals are SO cool), you can see way more in my Best of Galapagos album which is a combo of photos that both my sister and I took.  

Giant Tortoises:

OMG, these guys were unreal.  They are HUGE!  And so cute when they amble along.  They live a bit of a lonely life if you ask me though.  They are not social, rarely hang out together, mate with different partners their whole life and live for up to 200 years!  That is a long time to hang out by yourself.  But they are so amazing to watch, I could hardly get enough.

making new friends everywhere I go

Spoilers: this definitely has holiday card potential!

Giant Tortoise on the go

Sea Lions: 

Hanging on the beach with my sisters & a family of sea lions!

I could hardly get enough of them. They are so cute and floppy and bendy and love to play.  They let you get so close to them - like RIGHT next to them.  And in the water, they swim around and play with you - doing flips, blowing bubbles and basically challenging you to mimic their every move.  If I came back as a Galapagos animal, I hope it will be a sea lion :)

yup, he kissed my hand!

with a baby!!!

Marine Iguanas:

Marine Iguanas basking in the sunshine

silly sisters lounging like iguanas

Land Iguanas: 

Sea Turtles:

Wow, I loved these guys.  So beautiful and graceful in the water.  Sea Turtles only leave the water to lay their eggs and they are totally solo animals, they aren't social at all.  So really, you hardly see them together unless they are mating.  I spent about 25 min snorkeling along with one guy in the clearest, most beautiful water.  It was one of the highlights of my trip!  Once I get my disposable underwater camera pics developed, I'll share!

Michelle said she'd come back as a sea turtle,
so this was us playing together!

The water at Rabida was so green and the island was so red!

Birds:  

I gotta say I'm not really much of a bird watcher -- incidentally, there are quite a few out there! -- but in the Galapagos, you just have to get onboard with the birds: so many finches, oyster-catchers, fly catchers, boobies, penguins, pelicans, flamingos, hawks, owls, you name it, they are here -- in lots of different colors and with different beaks!  Here were some that caught my eye - captured by my amazing sister Michelle's unbelievable lens (see more of her incredible work here).

This is the Frigatebird.  Only the males have this special red pouch on their necks.  They enlarge them and "dance" to attract the females.

Red footed booby!  These guys were so cute. There were also blue footed boobies and masked boobies.   

Here are some really cute pelican feet.  The pelicans were super fun to watch - I even saw one dive underwater to catch a fish while I was snorkeling. 

Here is a cute little finch, sitting on a tree. 













Here is a little Galapagos penguin.  They were so fun to watch.  Totally funny on land, and like torpedoes in the water!

And here are some of my favorite pics with my family:

The whole gang on a panga ride with our boat driver, Luis

Monica and Phil with some lovely cactus.

Michelle, Tim and Monica on the panga at Santa Cruz Island.

Me and the boys, Tim & Phil near Rabida Island.

                                              

With Michelle (aka. my 'mini-me') on Fernandina Island.

and with mumsy on a panga ride

The trip was an absolute blast.  I got lots of sun, got to get super close to some awesome animals, and it was so great to spend so much time with my family.  Can't wait for our next family adventure...