May 27, 2016 - Leaving the Galápagos Islands

We had our breakfast at 5:45 and it was just the two of us as we were the only ones with an early flight. Some of the passengers were staying on the boat for another two days but I had selected the five day version of the trip. Betina insisted that she get up early to say goodby. Liz and I both enjoyed her company and we spent a lot of time talking to her. She is 41, single and is a travel agent in Denmark. Betina is very much a world traveler. 

We were anchored about a quarter mile from the pier so we boarded the Zodiac for the short trip to the pier where we were met by our guide who would be escorting us to the airport. I paid about $300 extra for a guide to meet us everywhere we had a transfer and I can tell you that was money well spent. Having a guide at each transfer point removed all stress from finding our way around. They all spoke at least some English so we were also able to get some of the local knowledge. 

We met Marianna at the pier and were escorted to a taxi. On the way to the airport we stopped at Rancho Manzanillo to see Land Tortoises in their natural habitat. I was a little skeptical as the last two times we saw Land Tortoises we might as well have been in a zoo. I was pleasantly surprised. This was a very large ranch and the tortoises are free to roam. They breed and lay their eggs on the property and the eggs are hatched naturally. I did have a small problem while there. When I got out of the taxi, a pickup truck, I reached into the truck bed to remove my camera from my backpack and the driver drove over my left foot. Fortunately the tire on went over my toes and not further up my foot. It was somewhat painful but I knew nothing was broken. Needless to say the driver and guide were quite concerned. My toes are still a little sore but I'm sure there is no permanent damage. This kind of thing only ever happened to Peg. She is probably showing me what life was like all those years.

Then it was onto the ferry and a short bus ride to the airport. Everything went great and we arrived in Guayaquil on time at 1:40 where we easily found our next guide. On the way to the hotel he told us about a three hour tour of Guayaquil that his company offers with an English speaking guide. I signed us up for the 9:00 AM tour tomorrow morning and paid the $14 extra for a private tour.

We spent most of the afternoon catching up on emails and resting. We had dinner at a small restaurant where we both had a chicken lasagna. We were both pleasantly surprised with how good it was. We are now back at the hotel and will be hitting the sack early.

ILYB

    Happy campers

    A happier camper

    An empty Land Tortoise shell