Darwin was Here

There are few words to describe a voyage through the Galapagos Islands. One could ponder the 13 species of Darwin Finches, or meditate on the differences between a land iguana and a marine iguana, or coo over the extremely cute baby sea lions that cry for mommy, or lament about the colorless and seemingly empty desert landscape, or ponder the appearance of penguins at the equator, or fret about the weirdness of how cold it is at the equator, or just enjoy it.

Days are very busy, snorkeling with the sea lions, penguins, turtles, stingrays. Manta rays that lurk ominously at the bottom like a death shadow. Kayaking in the Pacific. Long hikes through rocky terrain made of lava named after Hawaii (Ah Ah and Hoi Hoi or some other nonsense words). Lots of eating. Many naps. Great conversations with more interesting people than I'd ever have the opportunity to meet otherwise.

I feel very lucky to have been able to have this experience. Photos tell the story. And I apologize in advance for being so visually verbose.
THE BIRDS

Magnificent Frigatebird (male)
Young frigatebird
Blue Footed Booby
Nazca BoobyBaby Albatross
AlbatrossRed-billed Tropicbird
PelicansDarwins FinchGalapagos PenguinsPelicans at the marketVermillion flycatcherGalapagos DovesWarbler

THE REPTILES

Land Iguana

Marine Iguana
Lava LizardPacific Green Turtle
Giant Tortoise (babies in the Darwin Station hatchery)Giant Tortoise

THE MAMMALS

Orka chasing a Mola Mola

Sea LionsDinner

THE LANDSCAPE OF THE MOST REMOTE ARCHIPELAGO ON EARTH
note: awesome dude from Santa Barbara who raved about visiting his son who lives in the East Village where they ate at Odessa and enjoyed the Russian baths.
Ollie, son of Eddie the zodiac driver who took a dive into the water while saving Slim from the same fate. If there is space, the company allows Ecuadorians to travel with the group tolearn about the Galapagos, something they don't often have the chance to do.

Antonio the Naturalist
Portulaca, we consider it invasive, there it is endemic.
Crossing the equator

GUAYAQUIL, the largest city in Ecuador