Vagabundo del Mundo

The second phase of my trip to Ecuador was to the famous Galapagos Islands. It is an extremely expensive trip on a backpacker budget, but as everyone who has gone would tell you, worth every penny.
The Islands technically belong to Ecuador even though the lie 600 miles off the nearest Ecuadorian coastline. They were first made famous when Charles Darwin arrived and noticed that almost all of the wildlife on the Islands had evolved and adapted to their unique environment. 100% of the reptiles, 50% of sea life, and 70% of the birds are endemic species, they can only be found in the Galapagos. Knowing all of that makes it almost impossible not to reach deep in your pocket and shell out the hefty airfare $350, park entrance $100, and tour expenses of $100 to $300 dollars a day.
The tour we arranged is what is called a land tour. The majority of the tours are on cruise ships which travel by night ( 6-8 hours) and leave all day for exploring the islands. The problem is that most are foreign companies, and very little of the enormous revenue gained is distributed amongst the islanders. This leads them to continue in illegal fishing, gaming and otherwise harmful behavior to what is truly one of the most spectacular places on Earth. The land tour in contrast is totally operated by locals and consist of short two to three hour speed boat trips from island to island, leaving overnight stays in hotels and plenty of time to get to know the islands and the people who inhabit them.
The thing that I didn't take into consideration was sea sickness. I have never been sea sick in my life, and so I don't even consider that a speed boating rushing through rough seas could be a problem.
The first day we set out from Baltra Island to San Cristobal. The journey was 2 and half hours and included a drifting period to observed large volcanic rock island with sea lions and endemic birds. During this drift just about everyone on the boat got wheezy. Later in route to San Cristobal one of the boat motors had a problem. The captain shut it down and the three man crew went to work, meanwhile the boat was at the mercy of the rough open sea of the Pacific. It was during this time that everyone on the boat started getting sick. With the crew busy repairing the motor, I was left to pass out and collect vomit bags. One of the only people not sea sick, I was starting to seriously question the decision to take the speed boat land tour. Fortunately that would be the only such episode, the following day the other passengers discovered Mareol, a motion sickness pill.
We stopped for snorkeling and got a chance to swim along side baby sea lions and enormous sting rays. The water is crystal clear and pristine, and the sea life is spectacular.
On San Cristobal Island we got our fist view of the Giant Turtles, land turtles weighing up to 500lbs and living a life span of approximately 250 years. There are 5 species of Giant Turtles in the Galapagos, all of which are considered endangered. These turtles can survive up to 6 months without food or water, thus making them very attractive to the pirates that inhabited the island centuries ago. They would put them in the ship and the kill them as they need food, without any need to maintain them. Currently introduced animals brought from the mainland, such as savage pigs, dogs, and goats represent the main problem. Eating the eggs, and destroying the natural habitat. All inhabited island have turtle breading centers, and gradually reintroduce these animals into the wild.

After San Cristobal we went to Floreana Island. We walked around the island observing enormous land and sea iguanas, and later a natural spring which provides the drinking water for the Island. Situated in the highlands are old ruins of pirate caves and dwelling of the first settlers of the Island.

Leaving Floreana we headed for Isabella Island to spend the night. We arrived just in time to see the magnificent sunset along the west coast of the island.

Isabella is the largest island and consist of 5 Volcanoes. The following morning we took a journey on horseback to see the largest volcanic crater in the world.

Later we hiked along the surface of the volcanic lava observing the beginnings of life form, cactus and small plants growing through what looks like the surface of the moon. You can see different colors of lava representing different eruptions, craters formed by bubbling lava and hot air trapped underneath. There are also many lava tunnels which are formed from the air rushing underneath the lava as it flows to the sea. The view from the highest point is one of the most incredible things I have ever seen.

The following day we off to visit another turtle creation center where we able to interact a little with the turtles. Feeding the large turtles and picking up the small ones. Holding a baby giant turtle in your hands is impressive when you think that this little creature will actually go on to live about 3 times your life span. Leaving the creation center we hiked through a mangrove area to see the famous Galapagos flamingos, and of course more land iguanas.

Leaving the Island by boat we got an excellent view of the blue footed bobby. A spectacular looking bird with bright blue feet, endemic of course to the Galapagos.

In Santa Cruz we would pass the remaining three nights of the tour. A visit to the Charles Darwin center we saw another Giant Turtle named Lonesome George.

He is the last of his species and they have been searching for over 20 years for a mate. So far no luck, they estimate his age to be around 200. We also got an opportunioty to visit the protected area where the turtles are introduced into the wild. They look amazing roaming around in their natural habitat.

By far the most beautiful island in terms of classic island qualities is Bartalome. The combination of white sand and golden sand beaches, volcanic rock and craters, and crystal blue bays blending into the turquoise ocean. It is from here that the classic propaganda photo is taken, I didn't mind taking one myself.


The Galapagos Islands give a person a new respect for the world. As the Earths ocean plates shift the islands are moving over hot spots they create volcanic eruptions. Over time these volcanic rock bases begin to break down into surfaces suitable for plant and animal life to survive. The birds of the Galapagos have evolved beak's to be able to penetrate the rough surface in search of food. And the reptiles turtles etc.. to survive extended periods without food or water. There is nothing more substantial to give you an idea how many parts of this planet may have looked millions of years ago. They are some of the youngest parts of land in the world, and they date back millions of years. Sorry George Bush, but knowing this doesn't bode well for your insistence of teaching creationism to the youngsters of our country. Perhaps leaving the country a bit, would´ve done you some good. I know it did for me.

The experience of the trip???
My second opportunity to snorkel with the sea lions. We were swimming along when I encountered two extremely playful sea lions. The swam up to withing inches of my body and spiraled around diving down blowing out air bubbles along the way, I mimicked their tricks and they showed me new ones. Ive yet to see the photos because I had to buy a disposable underwater camera, but I cant wait to see them. It certainly makes swimming in a caged pool with the dolphins seem a little cheap when you do it in the wild
The sea lions are definately the most friendly animals, and the stars of the show in the Galapagos

As a result of having gotten so far behind I have decided to break Ecuador up into two sections. The first entry will be Ecuador the mainland, and the second the Galapagos Islands.

The easy way to start is to say that crossing the border into Ecuador, suddenly everything changed. It was not just a difference of culture or landscape, but also a change in perception. Brenda was required to get a tourist visa for Ecuador, which limited our time to only thirty days. The lazy schedule of Colombia now out the window we would start traveling at an almost touristy pace.

Unfortunately the security of my belongings would also come into play as we would be robbed twice in a little more than a week. The most painful was my memory chip which stored all of my photos from the last 8 months of travel. That was actually stolen from an Internet cafe as I was writing my last blog entry.

Our trip in Ecuador started in a town called Otavalo. A small town in the foothills of the Andes, it was the perfect place to start. Saturday mornings in Otavalo the whole town turns into a fair, and the local people fill the streets dressed in traditional Otavaleño clothing. The women wear long cashmere skirts hemmed with traditional designs and white blouses embroidered by hand with designs of flowers, vines, etc.. They also wrap a cloth around their backs which is usually occupied to carry their children, hens, or a 100lb bag of potatoes..no kidding. When not doubled over carrying an enormous load the outfit is very appealing and accented with a lot of neck and wrist jewelry. The men (but who cares about them right?) dress in linen pants and shirts with a small car and always have along braid.

We stayed for three days with and Otavaleñan family and had a wonderful experience. They still live in a very humble environment, grow all of their own feed and participate in local community projects as their ancestors have one in that community for thousands of years. If someone is building a house, everyone helps. Likewise with community farms etc.. I had some amazing photos of all of this, but you`ll just have to use your imaginations.

Laving Otavalo we headed for Quito to arrange our Galapagos trip. The night we arrived Ecuador was playing a soccer match against Brazil. We got into Quito in time to catch the match in a local bar which fell desperately silent as Ecuador was throttled 5-0. Late wandering around the center we stumbled upon a live outdoor theater and dance performance. It was a collaboration of several different countries and consisted of dancers hoisted by cable lines gliding from rooftop to rooftop which an amazing light show and live music. It was quite simply one of the most spectacular outdoor performances I have ever seen, and free to kick of the international theater and dance festival in Quito. Not bad for an opening night.

Quito turned out to be a cultural city with all of the things you enjoy and hate about a big city. Not surprisingly it would never duplicate the magic of the first night, not that I expected it to. We did take advantage of the opportunity to eat wonderful international cuisine, a warm welcome after literally two months of pot luck.

After a round trip flight to the islands then back to Quito we headed south to town called Baños. For those of you practicing elementary Spanish, your probably laughing to yourselves about a town called bathrooms, but it actually means baths. It is home to several thermal hot spring, and rest in a valley surrounded by mountains, volcano's, and over 65 waterfalls. One day we decided to rent an ATV an head along he trail of the 12 waterfalls. It was a spectacular trip and culminated with a great hike and my first opportunity to swim and bathe in the waterfalls of fresh mountain water in years.
From the viewpoint in Baños

Leaving Baños we had big plans to take the famous nose of the devil train ride, but tit was sold out when we arrived and we had to keep on moving. We took a similar route in bus which provided spectacular views of the Volcano Chimborazo at 6100 meters the highest peak in Ecuador. We traveled all day and arrived at the picturesque arquelogical site of Ingapirca. Unfprtunately the whole town had lost power that night, we used candles and got by. The next day visiting the ruins was spectactular. Here are some shots

Cuenca is in my opinion the most beautiful city in Ecuador, with a peaceful and tastefully designed historic center, as well as a river that divides the old and the new. There is all of the usual fanfare, but we decided to take it easy and relax for a few days. The end of our Ecuador experience would be spent in a place called Vilcabamba.

Vilcabamba is the very south of Ecuador and on the edge of the rainforest and the Andes mountain range. The people of Vilcabamba are famed for living for more than 100 years and taking advantage of the healing waters and exceptional climate. Ironic as it would be, we would experience some of biggest weather difficulties in Vilcabamba. We took an 8 hour hiking, horseback, and canopy tour in the cloud forest. The day started exceptionally with fantastic views of the surrounding valleys as our horses navigated the edges of the mountainsides along steep inclines. Arriving at the nature reserve, we started our hike through the cloud forest. The hike was difficult and filled with muddy steep down hills, complicated by the rain that started to fall. By the time we arrived at the zip lines it was an all out downpour. The hike back was a struggle with just about everyone sliding everywhere and and a 20 river crossing over a tree trunk now soaked and slippery.

The return would be equally difficult as the rain continued to fall and the path was now too slippery to navigate on horseback. Our guide told us the contrary, but while crossing a relatively flat pass my horse slid two legs over the ledge and fell to thew ground. Naturally he started to buck like crazy, thinking he was falling over the mountainside. I was fortunate to free me feet from the stirrups and jump off as he was trying to throw me. Needless to say it was enough of a scare that we all walked the rest of the way pulling our horses along. Scary in itself when you imagine pulling a horse down a hiking trail covered in steep rocking downhills, slippery as hell. More than a few times we had to jump off the trails as the horses slid out of control towards us.

Finally after 10 tough ours we arrived back at the lodge. Just time enough to bathe, change into dry clothes and head to the bus station for an overnight bus into Peru. Anyway that was our farewell to Ecuador. More or less a disaster as far as the mainland was concerned, but that is what happens when you rush things.