Darwin called the Galapagos a 'little world within itself' and I was very sad to leave this little world. As with everything in the Galapagos, the parting was leisurely. We lingered over the spectacle of the wildlife playing around our ship in the dock of the bay, with sea lions entertaining us by hitching a ride on the panga carrying our luggage to dry land. Once disembarked we were driven to the Interpretive Centre in Puerto Baquerizo Moreno, which is the capital of Galapagos Islands. I found it very informative about the island's history, geology and environmental details and where we are reminded of the number of circumstances that have come together to make the Galapagos so special. We whiled away a pleasant hour or two along Avenida Charles Darwin, the main strip - bought a fluffy blue-footed booby for Isla and enjoyed a cold drink whilst watching the boats bobbing in the harbour. San Cristobal airport is just a few minutes drive away for our flight back to the mainland, but we didn't reach our hotel until 7pm. I suppose the Galapagos is 600 miles from the coast of Ecuador and we had to remind ourselves that being remote makes it what it is. Our hotel was just 20 minutes from Quito airport, which was a good thing because we were only there to eat and sleep, but as we drove through a very poor and dilapidated area, with stray dogs, shoeless children, shady men and blousy women loitering on street corners our hearts sank a little. What had Trailfinders done to us? The hotel put me in mind of a colonial Spanish pleasure dome, with heavy dark wood furniture and fittings, sun loungers, pool, juke box but no people. I felt like I was in an episode of The Prisoner. I ordered steak, egg and chips for dinner, washed down with a delightful Carmenere. That was a good choice by Ian, so good in fact that Phillip treated us to a second bottle, if I remember correctly. However the comfort food failed to raise my spirits. Richard was fretting over our next destination, becoming very anxious about the effects of altitude and talking about getting a flight home early. It was definitely a low point of the trip for me and I couldn't help seriously wondering if staying in the Galapagos wouldn't have been a better option.
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| Sea lion thumbs a ride with our luggage going ashore |
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| Our guides at the Interpretation Centre |
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I hope Louise is listening as this is
clearly a very important point |
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The main post office in the capital of Galapagos (!)
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| Hosteria Rincorn De Puembo near Quito Airport |
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