First stop in South America was Quito for a night, then travelled by minibus, plane, bus, ferry, taxi and dinghy to our cruise boat in the Galapagos Islands. There were 15 of us on board and all got on well. The boat, crew and guide were all fantastic. We had 3 x 3 course meals a day, and went to about 5 of the islands to observe the wildlife which was just amazing.
The animals at Galapagos just have no fear, and you can get right up close to them. Each island is it´s own unique ecosystem, that is almost completely untouched with no introduced species, and you can see evolution happening between the different islands.
The first day we went to the Charles Darwin Centre and saw the giant turtles, iguana´s and many others, then overnight we would cruise to the next island ready for a morning landing.
Next day we saw plenty of sea lions and went snorkelling with them. They were so playful, they would just swim up to you and check you out, before doing some fancy tricks to show off. Also saw lots of birds including the blue footed boobie bird. I resisted the urge to buy an "I love boobies" T-shirt which were selling well.
We also saw land iguana´s, sea iguana´s, sea turtles, manta rays, and many more amazing wildlife.
After Galapagos it was back to Quito for another night before heading on to Peru. I also visited the equator and a museum there which was really facinating. We did experiments like seeing the water go down a drain in different directions, 1m either side of the equator, and balancing an egg on a nail which you can only do on the equator.
The Galapagos Islands was a really unique experience.
