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The Swissotel in quito is very nice.obviously with no status no exec longe priveleges but a nice room on 4th floor.Quite large,very nice bathroom and a place to consider definetly if visiting Quito.That night taken out to the Theatrum restaurant in the Old Town.Meant to be one of the best and food is good but not outstanding.Taken with an Israeli family of 4 who kept us waiting 45 minutes and on arriving at the restaurant refused to sit at the table for 6 allocated going to a vacant table of 4.Just hoping they are not on our cruise!
Back for a nights sleep and up at 6 for the breakfast buffet.An incredible selection with quite a few things I had no clue as to what they were.The good news is that on Saturday and Sunday the breakfast buffet includes champagne.Not well advertised but there it was amongst the fruit juices-well a Spanish sparkling anyway.So for you champagne lovers just keep a note.
Just one other couple staying at the Swissotel for our cruise and fortunately not THE family.A couple from texas now living in Mexico who we get close to over the next 8 days.Flying Aerogal from UIO to GPS via Guayaquil.Surprise we get to use their lounge-sandwhiches,rolls coffee etc and nice comfortable seats and boarded first.Aerogal34 soon has us flying over the Andes.Strange to see snow on one of the peaks-the only place in the world that can be 0 degrees latitude and 0 degrees C at the same time.Pilot is Vladimir and when he steps out of the cockpit after landing in guayaquil he looks just as you would imagine with the tash and sunnies.
2 hours from guayaquil to GPS and we are served lunch.On the 30 minute segment from UIO they managed to serve us a nice muffin and beverage.
After landing at GPS our first sight of the wildlife as an iguana scurries across the runway.No problems getting through the airport as long as you have $US100 each for the national park fee.Soon on the bus and taken to Baltra port.At the l;anding sealions are sleeping on the benches-what a smell!Onto the pangas and out to our home for the next week-the Athala 2.
More next time.
We meet our fellow passengers-the retired couple now living in Mexico,a retired couple from Washington DC,a retired couple from boulder,colorado,a divorced fellow from LA and his daughter,a couple from Tel Aviv and their son(no not THE family) and a DJ from Minneapolis and friend.The retirees have it.We get the safety drill and set off for Bartholome.Cruise for about 2 hours.First a panga ride and see our first galapagos penguin.Lunch is buffet style.Every meal starts with a soup and most contain potato.Then a beef stew and a fish dish with a choice of salads and finally fresh fruit.After lunch our first snorkelling event.Fantastic.Great visibility and over 20 varieties of fish plus eels,starfish etc.Swimming with a school of hundreds of Surgeon fish is great.Getting back to boat served a fresh juice plus a plantain snack-boy will we get sick of plantain.
After this a climb to the top of the Island-marine iguanas,sea lions,pelicans then a great view from the top.Back to the boat for a champagne reception to meet the crew then dinner-soup,steak,ice cream.The first problem arises-the barman is not the regular and insists they have no sav.blanc-he finds it the next night but there are only 2 bottles-$30.He has very little english.
After dinner we do an overnight traverse to Isla de Fernandina the newest and most westerley island-that is the next instalment.
As we arise for breakfast later a local fishing boat is alongside.We will find out later why.Breakfast is always good and soon after we are off to land on Fernandina.Marine Iguanas,turtles,a new born sea lion,boobies(of the feathered kind),pelicans,frigate birds,a flightless cormorant nesting and very watchful of the Galapagos hawk and a nesting blue heron.What is amazing is that the animals have no fear-particularly the blue footed boobies who will walk right up to you.
Back for lunch as we motor to the northern part of Isabella island.Meatloaf and fish are the choices.After lunch our second experience of snorkelling-rays,turtles including one swimming straight for drron veering off when about 2 feet away,swimming with a penguin either side with coral beneath,sea lions and thousands of fish.Water so clear.Incredible.Then a panga ride before back to the boat for dinner.Sand slipper lobster from the local fishermen-we are told they needed to trade for some regular food.subsequently people on other boats reported exactly the same experience.Call me cynical.At least we got a whole lobster-the others only got a half each.
After dinner we did the night traverse to Santiago island-in the process crossing the equator for the 4th time in 2 days so the traditional ceremony with pina coladas.
Santiago next.
Monday and after breakfast it is snorkelling off the north side of Santiago island.As i leave the beach I am followed by an old bull sea lion but he decides i am no problem.Then rammed by a damsel fish that decides i am intruding on its territory.Once again hundreds of fish,starfish and sea urchins.Then a walk to see the Galapogos fur sea lion.Different birds here-darwin finches,mocking birds,yellow warblers.Back to the beach and a new born sea lion with placenta still attached.Back to the boat for lunch,beef stew and spinach cannelloni.
Monday afternoon and a short traverse to Rabida Island.Again snorkelling.Initially it appeared boring but gradually more and more fish.Had lagged behind the group and was swimming in a school of small fish when an explosion in my left ear.Surface and their is a blue footed booby floating beside me.Put the head back under and seconds later another enters 2 feet in front,gets it's fiss and veers off to the right.What an experience and privilege.Next a young sea lion trys to teach me how to swim,then a large ray.Back into the panga and cruise the shore-nesting pelicans with young,more boobies,sea lions,fur sea lions,marine iguanas,turtles etc etc.
Dinner-chicken and beef shaslicks.
Next to San Critobal to leave our DJ and pick up some honeymooners from New Joisey.
Tuesday morning sees us pulling in at Isla de Lobos.As we anchor 2 dolphins go past.Days highlights are nesting frigate birds inflating their red throats.Also as usual boobies,pelicans,swallow tail gulls,mockingbirds and finches,sea lions,turtles and a ray.
To St.Cristobal and the shops.A word of warning-do not use the internet cafes-slower than the tortoises.Had lunch at the Misano restaurant and decided to be decadent and politically incorrect for mrsdrrons birthday.Decreased the lobster population by 2.Served with fries and salad for $12.50.As usual washed down by a chilean Sav.blanc.
The afternoons excursion is to a tortoise breeding centre-a long drive over a bad road in misty rainy conditions to see a few small land tortoises.Drron rescues it for the bird fanciers by spotting one of the 100 surviving Chatham mockingbirds.
Back to the boat which has had problem nunmers 2 and 3.First it has slipped its anchor and hit another ship.Fortunately the damage is way above the water line.Next-they havent replenished the sav.blanc stocks.However the regular barman is back and service improves.Dinner is supposedly a pork chop but is ham steak.Has to be washed down with an Argentinian palamino fino.not too bad.
Now for the night transit to Espanola island.That is next.
Its now Wednesday and Espanola island.A beach landing at Gardner Bay-a picture perfect white beach covered with Sea lions including a just born fellow with placenta still attached.The mockingbirds are eating this.A few stupid tourists from another boat posing with newborn and turning backs to mum-fortunately for them nothing happens.Then snorkelling-not nearly as good as previously with less visibility and less fish but a few playful young sea lions.Lunch is thousand year old chicken-tough as anyway.
After lunch to Suarez Point.Sea lions,marine iguanas as always.As we leave beach there are 3 pairs of blue footed boobies doing their courtship dance-one pair only a foot away.Then Nazca boobies,nesting boobies,boobie chicks.Then to see the Wave gannets including chicks,taking off from cliff and then 2 couples doing their courtship dance with clashing beaks.Again one pair is a foot from drron-this is amazing stuff.
Getting back to landing and a sea lion is refusing to get off path.Onto slippery rocks and one goes down but manages to save his expensive camera.Back onto boat and dinner is shrimp-quite OK.
Next morning is Post Office Bay on Floreana island where whalers exchanged messages.Not really worth it.
Next instalment-drron's perfect moment and disaster strikes.
After Post office Bay it was a short trip to the next snorkelling site at Cormorant Point.Very strong current around a group of rocks.We go in off the pangas.The first in saw some reef sharks but by the time I was in they had gone.I was with Marty from DC who was my snorkelling buddy.He had been unsure at first but by now was taking to it like a duck to water.Again many fish,rays and a fantastic coral garden.
i had also been asked by our guide to keep an eye on the young israeli as although he was a very strong swimmer he was slightly challenged and did tend to do his own thing.He did this again swimming off from the group.I went after him but he was too good so i signalled a panga in to keep an eye on him.I was now a fair way from group and as i drifted along a sea lion turned up to play.I did m,y best to imitate him which obviously amused him.He swam all around me finally coming up alongside and putting his flipper around me as if to say-"don't give up your day job."Absolutely fantastic!
Had to get back into the panga from the water-not a pretty sight.Get back to the boat and I am called to the top deck.Mrsdrron has taken a tumble out of the hot tub.A wave hit just as she was getting out and down she went.Nice egg on the head plus bruises to arm,thigh and back.Fortunately nothing broken.We notified Haugan cruises and they responded well.ringing us when back in Quito,sending a bottle of wine and fruit when in the jungle but most importantly saying they are putting in a hand rail when the boat goes into dry dock shortly.
After lunch I do the trek on Floreana and we see flamingoes,more boobies with chicks and scores of rays within metres of the beach.Drron is again first to find another form of life as a bluebottle wraps itself around my ankle.Dinner tonight is meant to be BBQ ribs but again is ham on the bone.Tonight we motor to Santa cruz-the next instalment.
Friday begins with a visit to the Darwin centre to see the giant Galapagos tortoises and land Iguanas.This unfortunately is the only time we can see the large tortoises up close.See Lonesome George the only remaining Pinta tortoise who has finally mated with 2 females at the age of 100 approx.Poor old fellow grew up alone and didnt know what to do.
Walked back through town and the myriad of souvenir places to the dock at the other end of town.There barges are being unloaded but despite this a dozen blue footed boobies are doing co-ordinated dives for fish right there.
Back to the boat and travel to Isla Plazas.We see land iguanas in the wild as well as their marine cousins,the ubiquitous sea lions,boobies,tropic birds and nesting wave-tailed gulls.
It is then off to anchor at North Seymour Island for our last night on the boat.Dinner is a cook out on the top deck-this is really good and should have been done more often.After dinner we have to settle our bar bills.They make this complicated.To the quoted price is added 12% tax,10% service fee and if you use a CC an extra 10%-common in Ecuador.Fortunately we were aware of this and had plenty of cash-using cash the 10% service fee is taken off so in fact you end up paying 20% for using a CC.
When you get back to the cabin the envelopes for tips are on the bed-they suggest at least $80pp for the crew and $50pp for the guide.A rotten US bit of ?culture that has been taken up enthusiastically by the Ecuadorians.Beware your envelopes are coded and will be opened before you get off the boat-from talking to others on different boats this seems to be commonplace.Our envelopes had a different animal or bird image for each of the cabins.
Next instalment-our last excursion and back to Quito.
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It is an early morning start before breakfast for our last excursion.After making our way around the sea lions the first thing we see are nesting frigate birds with many of the males puffing out their red neck pouch to attract a female.Towards the end of the walk 3 of us saw a male blue footed booby kill a chick.The mother then returned and chased him off.Message to PETA-nature is cruel.
Now a short run to Baltra port and finally disembarking.A short wait for a bus to take us to the airport.No lounge access this time-must not have tipped enough!Share a bottle of sav blanc with our new friends from Mexico.Sitting on the steps to the restaurant-full of germans sitting and not eating or drinking.
Finally on to Aerogal0035 to UIO via Quayagil.This time a 737-200 with rows 1-3 premium seating.We of course are back in row 10.Once again lunch served to Quayagil and a snack to UIO.The FA's were the same as going to GPS.Now they didnt recognise drron-guess it is a case of seen one gringo seen them all.
Landing uneventful and soon taxiing past the vintage planes again.Very quickly to the Hilton Colon picking up our luggage from the Swissotel on the way.At checkin we are redirected to the Exec.lounge for checkin.Great an upgrade and lounge access.I will sum up the Hilton after our return from the jungle.
Next our VIP airways flight to Coca and the trip to the Napo Wildlife Centre in the Amazon Jungle.
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