Dirty Dozen return to Galapagos
Hebe
Fri 21 Feb 2014 00:36
18th February 2014 00:19:50S 88:44:11W The Barnacle Cleaning Debacle continued on a further night and day….not enough divers then one got sea sick. Eventually we all mucked in sharing whatever scuba gear there was (precarious passing of cylinders across boats…) Harry and Imo not only scrubbed ours but did another boat, heroes and there was an inquisitive shark hanging around too adding more drama. We got back to lovely San Christobal where they were having yet another Bank Holiday I think Independence Day (they had one a week earlier) or the election perhaps. Party party, everyone dancing, blaring music, football in the street and all very good natured and happy. These folk are so at one with their extraordinary environment, living with the animals. The tourists struggle around laden with their cameras, swim wear, trainers, snorkel kit, sunglasses, ruck sacks, and binos, sweating in the heat. The locals here just hang out. This family Mum, Dad and 7 children arrived on the beach in the clothes they stood up in and just romped and played , diving down to squeal at the turtles, rolling in the sand and building a sand croc. I watched them for hours, so happy. The fun carried on into the night with fireworks, and just when we were fast asleep 5 sea lions clambered on our deck, the final straw being one landing on our hatch and nearly joining us in bed! Loved San Christobal here is the local dentist…. The local taxi drivers take you around the island in their jeeps, so we took a wee tour with Carlos and visited the giant tortoise breeding programme which is really successful with about 15,000 released into the wild over the last 12 years. Then we climbed up into the tree house in the top of this Avatar tree which even has a room in the roots, like everything in the Galapagos its had a dose of George's Marvellous Medicine. Wonderful flowers along the wayside, and huge lichens waving in the trees, we climbed up into the clouds to see a lake in an old volcano, amid typically Scottish bracken. Watched the immense frigate birds diving in to wash their feathers. Bye Bye lovely San Christobal - I hope a sea lion wins the next election. |