The Galapagos

To all who had been waiting for this blog I would like to say that I had full intentions on blogging information on a regular basis  from the Galapagos but we in fact we did not have any cell service or Internet for approximately 7 days. At times I thought about writing but made the decision to just sit back and take it all in. Now that we are home I have had the time to reflect back on all that we did and I would love to share this amazing experience with you.

For starters the Galapagos Islands over exceeded my expectations, it was animal encounter heaven! If you love animals it is a complete must to move this trip right up to the top of your bucket or travel list.It is not the most beautiful place I  have ever seen or the clearest water I have snorkeled in but it had its own beauty that just jumped into my heart and swept me away very quickly. The beauty for me was the fact that the animals are so calm and not afraid of humans, you are not allowed to touch or approach the animals and should be at least 6 ft away from them, they are just amazingly used to humans and have not been hunted or harassed , maybe one of the last places on earth like this. There is also an abundance of animals, you don't see just a few there are allot!!!! I can sit here all day and try to explain what we had the honor to see with our eyes but words are nothing like being there. Ok well here it goes................

Day 1
Began  from Miami to Quito, Ecuador which is a very easy and quick flight of just 4 hours and 20 min. We arrived and our transportation was there and ready to pick us up and take us to our hotel the JW Marriott which was very nice and fairly new.We all checked in to our spacious rooms and then headed down for a cocktail and snack at the bar, we had an early evening since we traveled all day and had to rise and shine early for our biking trip through the Andes Mountain's.

Day 2 .... Go to Biking with the Dutchman Blog post here or on Facebook.

Day 3
A short flight from Quito to Guayaquil for a pick up of more passengers traveling to the Galapagos and then 1 hour and 20 min  to Baltra which is a is a small island of the Galapagos. Also known as South Seymour. Baltra is a small flat island located near the center of the Galápagos'. The island is very arid and vegetation.From here we were taken by bus from the airport  to the ferry dock and transported to Puerto Ayora, Santa Cruz.After quickly boarding our Catamaran with welcome cocktails and snacks we check out our lovely rooms and started our adventure immediately jumping on our dinghy's and off we went to our first location in the Highlands to see the Giant Tortoise in the wild.
The Galápagos' tortoise  is the largest living species of tortoise and 10th-heaviest living reptile, reaching weights of over 880 lb and lengths of over 5.9 ft. With life spans in the wild of over 100 years, it is one of the longest-lived vertebrates. The tortoise is native to seven of the Galapagos Islands,Spanish explorers who discovered the islands in the 16th century named them after the Spanish  Galapagos , meaning tortoise.
Shell size and shape vary between populations. On islands with humid highlands, the tortoises are larger, with domed shells and short necks. On islands with dry lowlands, the tortoises are smaller, with saddle back shells and long necks. These differences from one island to the next helped Charles Darwin to develop his theory of evolution.

After emerging ourselves into the the adventure that is about to unwind we arrived back to the boat for our wonderful first dinner aboard.

More to come..........