Once we arrived at anchorage, we were immediately greeted by the craziest (and best) group of people I have ever met. They’re called *drum roll* 'The Kid Boats'. And the reason they are crazy is because kids are crazy, and the adults have obviously all been driven to insanity in close quarters - - - Simple as that. Non-the-less, this awesome group welcomed us with open arms, disco parties, fish fries, and Dungeon and Dragon smack downs (obviously the coolest people ever).
Our third day there was probably the most eventful, for me at least. It started with a 10-mile hike with most of the 'Kid Boats' up Volcan Sierra Negra. It was an early, cold, foggy morning, but that turned out to be the perfect scenario for hiking up a mountain in the humid tropics. On the way up, we noticed the smaller things: Galapagos birds, Galapagos bushes, dozens of Galapagos caterpillars, Galapagos flowers, and a few other Galapagos things. And by the time our slightly overgrown dirty trail turned into rocky, roly-poly, lava rocks, the morning fog had cleared. The view was amazing. Well, as long as you enjoy miles of black rock, craters, lava tunnels, lava tunnel cave-ins, and cacti. We stopped for lunch at the end of the trail, a place, I might add, with no bathrooms or places to hide. Our hike back was a little sunnier and this time we could see through the fog and into the huge caldera. We all made it back to the bus tired, laughing, and probably a little hysteric (Did I mention there were lots of kids on the hike?). We cooled off with an ice cream stop in town. Over all it was a memorable day. And then the panicked lady over the VHF called about a tsunami warning and made our April Fools even more eventful. At 8:00 pm, the anchorage of Puerto Villa-whatever-its-called, Isla Isabella had evacuated for 20 miles out. We had our own secret ways of getting information and after hearing about a 5-foot tsunami wave; we figured that 2 miles out would be more than enough. The whole thing was called off before 11:00 and we decided to head back into the anchorage. I guess it was Mother Nature’s way of celebrating April Fools... Personally, I think I'll just stick to shaking up soda cans.
The next morning Courage and I took a ferry to Santa Cruz for a day trip. We found some super yummy pastries, stocked up, called it lunch, and rented a cab to tour the island. It was nice, he showed us the hospital, university, community center, and tortoise reserve, but over all, I think I preferred Isla Isabella.
The two weeks after that is all kind of a blur of awesomeness. One day we went on a tour to the 'Wall of Tears'. It was perfect to hike to a tourist attraction, then hop back into the air-conditioned cab, and drive to the next place. We stopped at about half a dozen places along the way. Another day, we went to the flamingo lagoon. From there, we walked to the giant tortoise reserve (super cool) and down a long boardwalk across another flamingo lagoon and into town. We ended up visiting the tortoise reserve a few more times because the kids loved it so much. It was basically a circular pathway that went from pen to pen of gigantic tortoises the size of a desk to little eggs no bigger than an orange. We spent a few mornings at 'Concha De Perla' as well. The natives call it a small lagoon, but in all truth it was a huge tide pool because it connected to the ocean at high tide. The water was always clear and if you’re lucky, you could swim with a seal or a marine iguana. My parents went on tunnel dives and cave sightseeing excursions while I stayed with the kids. The farm was also a place of interest. The kids loved it because of all the ducklings and the adults loved the fresh food. Besides all that, we spent our days kayaking and body surfing on shore with the other 'Kid Boats'. In the evenings I was either invited to a game of Dungeons and Dragons or we had the anchorage on our boat for a disco party.
It wasn't just the tours and parties that made our Galapagos stop one of my favorite. I loved going out at night with a flashlight and seeing the two-foot, baby sharks (including hammerhead) circling the anchorage. And the fact that most of the animals only live in the Galapagos and some people might never get to experience the wonders of the Galapagos. Unlike most people, I can truthfully say that I have swam with penguins, turtles, rays, whale sharks, sharks, and annoying, squishy things (AKA my siblings). And I love every second of it!
. . . .Except the schoolwork,
Cassidy
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