Still catching up on the Galapagos. Such a procrastinator...

October 18, continued...

Today was our last day full on the islands. We went to climb Prince Philip's 372 steps on Bartolome to the top of its extinct volcano to look out over the bay at pinnacle rock. It was a hard hike, but worth it. Besides the lovely view, I can feel my legs and buns turning to steel more each day.
The pumice stones here are so light, I could life a boulder without straining. Okay, maybe it wasn't a boulder, per say, but a very large rock.
A bit of snorkeling along pinnacle rock was very productive. So many starfish of all sizes and colors cover the ocean floor. The water is freezing, but so clear and blue. The blue and white spotted box fish, the parrot fish, and the rainbow of unknown fish are everywhere. I don't even know where to begin looking when I'm under water. Cholo came and swam with us and spotted several sharks. One, a white-tipped, I believe, swam under the shelter of a rock, but Cholo stuck his whole leg in to scare him out. It swam so close to me, I could have reached out and touched it. The same thing happened again as I was swimming around a large rock jutting out of the water. A shark came up right behind me before sliding away into the shadows below me. I have swum with sharks. Kind of crazy.
The afternoon was spent in a mangrove, looking at shore birds and their nests, as well as sea turtle mating grounds. We were “lucky” enough to see two of them “copulating,” as Fassi regularly says.
The very best part of the entire day was when, while I was ready the Odyssey and lamenting over how we didn't get to see dolphins or whales, the captain stopped the boat and yelled for us to come see the whales. They were pilot whales and were far away, creating fountains with their blowholes. Gradually, they came closer to the boat. I think we counted five of them, all swimming so close to the Golondrina, we could have leaned over to touch their scarred backs as they dove along side us, spraying us with their misty exhales. How do I describe to you the sheer joy of seeing the huge, satin shapes gliding beside us? I can't. You simply have to experience it yourself.


October 19, 2009
Location: Santa Cruz
A cloudy morning hike at 5:30 to see lazy iguanas dragging their bodies across the red rocks was our last taste of these stunning islands. No one said much as Fassi gave us one last lecture on the copulating habits of the reptiles and mammals. We saw a very pregnant sea lion, whose bulging stomach was twitching from the pup inside. He also said that the cove where we were visiting was once a very popular snorkeling location. That stopped after two very idiotic tourists were attacked after they'd irritated sharks.
I am so excited about returning to Mama Isa in Cuenca, but for more than the washing machine and my huge bed. Traveling along the coast is tiring. Familiarity with anything is rare in a foreign country and I know I can find it again back “home” on Cacique Chaparra. The Golondrina is stilly really where I'd love to be.
Fassi brought us to the air port before saying ciao and hugging us all. “Ciao, Blue Booby,” he said to me, pinching my cheek fondly. “Travel safely.” The nickname “Blue Booby” came from the first day on the ship when I strapped on pastel flippers in the dinghy and Fossi (“Guapo”) and Alberto (“Cholo”) laughed and told me they were the exact color of the feet of the Blue Footed Booby. From then on, I was rarely called by my name but rather by the name of the waddling shore bird.
Our flight back to the mainland was uneventful (except for the screaming toddler on the other side of the aisle, which makes me repeat, once again, that I never want children). Guayaquil was the same as we left it the previous Monday: cloudy and loud. We returned to the Macaw for the evening and regrouped with our other half. I was thrilled to see Antonia, my honorary cousin, and Sara, fellow Tom Bomb groupie, again. We took a walking tour of the city, which is gorgeous along the coast. Parks line the water side and are filled with fruit trees and ice cream stands (paradise, obviously). We walked up the 444 steps to where the oldest part of the city is, then climbed a few more to overlook the city from a lighthouse at the peak.
I am going to have killer legs by December 13.
Near the Macaw is a mall so I went to load up on Double Chocolate Oreos and dark chocolate. And chardonnay. Quite a combination, let me tell you.
A bunch of us sat on the roof of the hotel drinking wine and comparing the two Galapagos trips (“Did you see the jelly fish?” “No, but I felt one!” etc.). Quite a bit of drama had occurred in a short period of time due to 7 full days without being able to escape to our happy places. We non-dramatic ones tried to ignore it on overlooking the city but even that proved too difficult. Everyone is at their wit's end and incredibly grumpy.
Fortunately, that was almost solved with a bottle of Chardonnay, a few packs of bears, and a lovely evening on the roof of the Macaw. No matter how grumpy one is, one cannot remain so after consuming white wine. ...Or so I hear.