Galapagos at Last!

Today was full with yet more long and rigorous travel.  However, throughout the entire trip a sense of excitement burned inside of all of us and lit up our souls.  We were flying to the Galapagos; the center of the universe for all wildlife photographers, birders, and animal lovers in general!  Half the photos in National Geographic’s best are from these islands!  I was so excited! 

In the morning, we were picked up from our hotel by our Galapagos tour agent, and driven to a special entrance of the Quito airport only for Galapagos visitors.  We needed to scan our bags for vegetables, fruits or anything else that could invade the perfect Galapagos ecosystem.  Once inside, the small room bustled with other excited tourists.  Soon, our escort left us and we were on our own.  With little difficulty, we were on the next flight to the Galapagos!    

After connecting in the town of Guaguil on the western cost of Ecuador, we took off a second time towards the majestic, Ecuadorean islands.  All three of us stared out the window with building anticipation.  After an hour and a half of flying, we looked out the window with renewed smiles of excitement.  We were flying over a vast ocean littered with rocky, green, and rich islands.  After circling over the ocean, we landed on a large island in the hot, blazing sun.  When we stepped off the plane, a heat wave came upon us along with a gentle zephyr.  Ahead of us was a long line of security and tourist cluster.  I could see many lines and confusion under a large open building.  I guessed that this was due to inspectors making sure that we did not bring other life into the Galapagos.  We also had to pay a Galapagos park entrance fee.  After waiting in many lines we took to a ferry leading to the island of Santa Cruz. 

On the ferry, the three of us saw a wild pelican feeding on fish.  I had all my bags in hand, and could not get out my camera.  The pelican was a propitious sign for many great photos ahead.  Once we got off the ferry, we were driven by a prearranged taxi to our hotel in the town of Puerto Ayora.  The drive took about forty-five minutes through a section of Santa Cruz not in the Galapagos National Park.  Here, many families dwell in small tropical towns.  We saw no animals due to the fact that we are not actually in the park.  I am surprised that there are actually towns in the Galapagos islands and was a little disappointed to not see much change from mainland Ecuador.  I was relieved to hear that the park hosts only animals and no towns!  

I am so excited to see the Galapagos National Park tomorrow!  The next five days we will be waking up early to go diving and I just can’t wait!  Tonight, we walked to Scuba Iguana, our diving company, and got outfitted with our diving gear.  Tomorrow at 7:20, we leave for a good day of diving! 



Thank you for reading Rohan Geographic!