The Galapagos

The ship circled around the rock so we could see it from all directions.

Post Office Bay, on Floreana.

Whalers used to have a barrel here where they would leave letters to be picked up by ships on their way back to Europe or the United States. It’s still used, and the guides read off the list of destinations for the postcards other visitors have left. If you take one of the postcards you promise you will deliver it to the recipient.

They didn’t have any awaiting delivery to New York, so I didn’t take one, but I did drop one off, addressed to a friend of mine in Manhattan. And two years later, it was delivered.

The lava rocks and pools.

Genovesa is a tiny, horseshoe-shaped island surrounding a volcanic caldera which forms Darwin Bay. There’s rock and mangrove and lots and lots of birds.

We were told that the fish market in Puerto Ayora was definitely worth visiting. This blue-footed booby clearly thought so as well. I love the “Nothing to see here, folks” attitude while he tries to get close to the fish.

Another Hood mockingbird, on the park sign.

Sunrise off Española, and the crew getting the zodiacs ready for the days excursions.

There are only two seasons in the Galapagos, the wet season and the garua, or misty season. We were there during at the end of the garua. The mist burned off as the day got warmer, but by the end of the day it was sitting overhead like a sun hat, with a ribbon of clear blue sky circling the horizon.