Every Day

The last day in the Galapagos! Ty and I wanted to get in one last snorkel and per our favorite travel agent we decided to hit up Charles Darwin beach early in the morning. We all woke up early in the house to go on our morning adventures. The girls were going to the Charles Darwin Research Center, my parents were going to hang out at the research center and the beach and Ty and I were going snorkeling. Tide was low and rocks that we swam over last time were now jutting out of the water. We put on our thickest wetsuits (that we brought) and slowly got into the freezing water. There were two older ladies who were wading in the water as well and giggled at us as we squealed at the cold water. They told us to have a good snorkel and we were on our way. It was cool to see a little closer to all the small fishes and rocks since the tide was out but we really didn't see much. We were not out for long when we got really cold and bored (when you see sharks, turtles and rays on all you...

"9:30 I'm walking out of this house." I announced to everyone the evening before. I wanted to get a good start on our last full day together. At 9:30 am, I did leave the house with only a few other people (funnily enough all the parents) and we walked into town to get our snorkel gear. After the shop handed me a bunch of the same size fins that were too big and a pair of adjustable, I finally actually got a pair of fins to wear for the day. Yay! Just as we were ready to leave the shop, the rest of the gang showed up to get their gear and we said we would meet them at the ferry. On the dock we looked at all sorts of wildlife and also spotted the tiniest little baby sea lion with its mother. It was about two feet long and so adorable. The park service had sectioned off an area for them to be alone but we still had a good view from the dock. The little yelps it was making to get the attention from mama was adorable! Then everyone arrived and we were able to take the ...

Today was our day for adventure. Ty and Jake got up extra early to catch their dive boat and the rest of us got up a little later. We were meeting our naturalist in town at 8:30am. Our naturalist seemed like a really cool guy telling us about what we would be doing for the day. Our guide said the hike would only be 2 K which is super short for us. I was a little disappointed thinking the hike would be longer but it'd still be fun! We were also informed that we would be going to El Trapiche which is a chocolate, coffee and sugarcane plantation too! How exciting! I love the beginning of an adventure. We all hopped into a van and were on our way to our first destination, the lava tunnels! On our way, our guide was telling us the history of the towns on Santa Cruz island. And once we all jumped out and were excited for the start of our adventure! We started our walk to the lava tunnels and got distracted by every plant along the way. Our guide went and got us grapefruits, oranges...

Because we practically didn't sleep for two days in a row, we slept in and had a slow morning. Well, other people slept in. I was wide awake at 7:15 am and was too excited to lay in bed till 8. So I got up and did yoga on our second story patio. The sun, which was struggling to come out behind some wispy clouds, felt amazing on my skin and the warm air was exactly what I had needed that morning. I got my heart pumping a bit and then jumped on the bed to wake Ty up. "We're in the Galapagos! Get up, get up, get up!" We were waiting for our travel companions to join us for breakfast and a morning exploring the Charles Darwin Research Center, but they never came so we went off to get some of the "best coffee in the Galapagos" and slowly meander through the Research Station, hoping they would join later. Little did we know, Jake was passed out until 11am! He was sick though and needed it to feel healthy for the rest of the trip! We took our time reading the s...

It was beautifully warm getting off the plane onto the tarmac. We walked to a sign that welcomed us to the first eco-friendly airport in the world. Along this long covered (with solar panels) walk, we saw volcanic rock and Darwin's finches! Getting through customs was a breeze, we even got Galapagos national park stamps in our passports! Score! When we left the airport, we again found my name on a whiteboard. This guy helped us find the correct bus to take us to the ferry and then helped us get taxi's for the ride into town. But back to the bus. We were sitting there for awhile and it was HOT. and I LOVED it. I talked with our guide for awhile in very simple, broken Spanish. He complimented me on my Spanish, however, after this trip, I am very aware of how I need to work on it. I want to take Spanish lessons! Getting to the ferry was beautiful. The Island of Baltra used to be a military base for the U.S. during WWII. It is a large flat island north of Santa Cruz (w...