The Galapagos

The Galapagos has been on my bucket list ever since one of my colleagues went there on a diving trip. I have meticulously planned this trip one year ago; buying tickets when they were cheap and booking accommodations with anticipation. Ecuador has always fascinated me with its rich history and culture. 

Yet no one warned me about the long lines that one must wait in the airport to get the Tourist Card and the luggage check (to check for biohazard material). We arrived at 6am for our 9am flight yet we nearly managed to miss this long anticipated flight! Talk about airport frenzy! Once we got our tourist cards, the LATAM counter (I am shamelessly calling them out! lousy customer service) was closed, we could not check our luggage. The boarding gate was closing in 20 minutes. Our option was to lose our flight or lose our luggage. Thank God that there was an airport locker and we chose to leave our big luggage behind so we could board since the airline refused to check our luggage. After frantically running around the airport, we managed to board to our flight to Guayaquil and San Cristobal de Galapagos. 

Arriving to San Cristobal, we checked into our Airbnb and toured around the island. The sea lions were everywhere....scattered around the pier and greeting every visitor with a honk-like roar. We ended our first day in Playa Mann. My toddler was so excited; her eyes brimming with joy as she clashed with the waves. She is fearless, and like mom, has a unquenchable spirit for adventure. 

Second day, we did the 360 tour around San Cristobal. We circled the island starting with Kicker's Rock. When I tell you, that my heart leapt when I saw Charles Darwin's Blue Boobies...it was magical! My husband and I took turns snorkeling, and was a bit disappointed we did not spot hammerhead whales. We the stopped at Bahia Sardina, a beautiful beach East and Bahia Rosa Blanca in the North. Not a soul in sight and we were enjoying the most pristine waters. We swam with sea turtles and sea lions. At some point, a baby sea lion approached my toddler and me and started to play with us. We snorkeled and spotted so many sea turtles. 

Fourth day, I visited Isla Española. Isla Española is an island 35 km away from San Cristobal. It was about a 2-3 hours boat ride from the pier. Isla Española is the oldest island in Galapagos, and completely uninhabited. Going there was an adventure. Our Zodiac broke down a number of times: the sea lions kept surrounding us as the motor would NOT turn on. And surprisingly, it was the captain from our previous 360 tour that rescued us. My eyes lit up when I heard the other tour guide exclaim "Guacamoleeee!!!" (the 360 tour captain was notoriously famous in San Cristobal for making the best Guacamole on tour). As we landed in Isla Española, we walked about 100 meters and was surrounded by Albatross birds nesting and mating. A most exquisite sight, since the Albatross of Galapagos only nests in Isla Española and we were in season. Their magnificent wings can spread up to two meters and they can fly up to 110km per hour. I was so amazed at the sight of beautiful albatross circling around us so freely. The poem by Gerald Manley Hopkins came into my mind "Let me be to Thee a circling bird."

Let me be to Thee as the circling bird,
Or bat with tender and air-crisping wings
That shapes in half-light his departing rings,
From both of whom a changeless note is heard.
I have found my music in a common word,
Trying each pleasurable throat that sings
And every praised sequence of sweet strings,
And know infallibly which I preferred.
The authentic cadence was discovered late
Which ends those only strains that I approve,
And other science all gone out of date
And minor sweetness scarce made mention of:
I have found the dominant of my range and state —
Love, O my God, to call thee Love and Love.

Such an unmatched and spiritual experience. Such a riveting sight seeing these majestic giant birds circling around us in this uninhabited island without a care in the world. I shared this experience with a retired Biology teacher and an Irish lady I met at the boat ride to Española. We just stood there speechless, soaking in the moment of pure beauty and joy. 

However, my greatest satisfaction from this trip was to watch my three year old toddler learn and play with nature in its finest glory. Galapagos is untamed, wild and filled with brazen beauty.