Karl's Pictures: Sabbatical Highlights

Karl had several goals during sabbatical - and one was to get back into photography. See 80 or so of the photos he took, capturing the memories and scenery, at the Liebat website. 

ARGENTINA (8/11-8/12/11): Iguazu Falls

Thursday, August 11: Mendoza -> Iguazu Falls (Argentina)

When we first booked our trip, several travel agents told us we should really focus our time on 1 or 2 countries – not hop around so much. We’re happy we stuck to our guns – finding a travel agent and itinerary that met our needs. Our 24 hour journey to Iguazu falls gave us a glimpse of why people were concerned. For example, the flights around South America are really not convenient. We left Mendoza around 6:30 am (we’ve rarely slept in!), had to fly through Buenos Aires with a 2 hour layover, then continue another 1.5 hrs to Iguazu Falls. The entire morning was in airports and planes – just to get across the country. The good news is that we still had a solid day to explore.   

Iguazu Falls National Park contains 14 miles of waterfalls that plummet up to 229 feet. We’re told that Iguazu is about 6x the size of Niagra. Karl said he feels Niagra is taller, but Iguazu is wider. The falls are in a rainforest, but more mountainous than the flat Amazon we’d seen the week before. Due to limited time, we didn’t have a chance to explore the jungle outside of the Falls area or participate in any of the adventure activities in the area (zip lining, jet boat under the falls, etc) – but there was plenty to see for the next 5 hours.

The Falls are called one of seven “natural wonders of the world.” We hiked the 3 main paths– to devil’s throat (see Lila’s facebook pictures & videos – that was the first one), the upper circuit (which winds along the top of the canyon), and the lower circuit (which was very splashy!) near the bottom of the falls. All the trails were wheelchair accessible. In fact, they’ve done an amazing job of building metal paths above the ground to really protect the wildlife and fauna. We saw feisty raccoons, beautiful blue and yellow jays, tons of butterflies, and even chased down a toucan hiding in a tree (we heard it about 5 minutes before we could find him). The fauna was very interesting, too. For example, there was cacti growing in the middle of the rainforest and grasses that survived with 1000s of gallons of water hitting them all day long! It had rained days before in Brazil, so the water was pounding (6-8x more volume than normal). It was truly an incredible sight. Lila had never seen anything like this before….waterfalls everywhere, water rushing so much so fast, and rainbows radiating from the falls.

After 5 hours of hiking around, we settled into the Sheraton, the only hotel located right in the national park. As we watched the sunset with Devil’s Throat in the distance, we saw many toucans flying by and jays and swallows trying to peck away at food on the balcony (I think one of the blue jays gave Lila a 10 minute stare down over a packet of sugar). Across the way, we could see Brazil. From there, you’re supposed to have a wonderful panoramic view of the Argentinean falls. But that required a visa which we never had time to get. It was such a wonderful way to pass the last evening. In fact, we couldn’t have picked a better way to end our Argentina adventure. We’ve loved the nature and hiking aspects of our trip. After the cold, city life of Buenos Aires and sitting around in Mendoza wine/food tasting, it was great to be outdoors in a tropical setting.  

Friday, August 12: Iguazu Falls -> Buenos Aires  -> Back to the US

At 8 am exactly, when the Park opened, we were first in through the Sheraton’s backyard! We hiked the upper circuit again. For an hour, we didn’t see anyone. It was great to have the jungle and falls to ourselves. At this point of the trip, we’ve been accustomed to listening for – and spotting – animals. It’s not the magical way the Amazonians guides do it, but Karl’s learned to be quite the “native.” One of the highlights of the morning was Karl spotting 2 parrots perched above a tree. It was very cool just to watch them hang out. After the upper circuit, we had time to hike the lower circuit. There’s a lookout pier on the lower trail that is just feet away from the bottom of the falls. Yesterday, only a few people dared to get close, and not us – too cold, too wet. But this morning, it seemed like a shame to come this distance and not feel the water. So we decided to go to the end. Just a few seconds and we were DRENCHED (imaging standing next to a fire hydrant wide open and you might being to get the same sensation). We made it back to the hotel in time to shower, before our 10:45 am hotel departure.

Then came the dreaded phone call from the travel agent…

Our flight to Buenos Aires was cancelled. It’s worth noting that up until now, we’ve had no issues with the previous 14 flights of our trip. The travel agent said they tried to rebook us, but were told we need to call the airline directly. We’ll skip the long details. In the end, we were able to get onto the next flight, scheduled to leave 2 hours later. In the meantime, we hung out at the Sheraton enjoying the views.

Fast forward to the airport. Our flight departure was delayed another 1 hour. This killed our afternoon plans in BA. We were originally supposed to land in BA, hang out in the city for 3 hours, then head to the international airport (1 hr away from the in-city domestic airport).  Quick math and you’ll note that these delays ate away at our “hanging out in Buenos Aires” time. Fortunately, when you’ve have guides and travel agents taking care of you, they include buffer time. Good thing, because luggage took an hour to come off the conveyor belt at the small domestic airport. Unbelievable! At this point, we’re stressed because Friday evening traffic (6pm) is unpredictable here, and we needed to get across town to the international airport.

Fortunately, traffic gods were on our side today. We made it to the airport a little less than 2 hours before our departure, only to discover we were upgraded to first class on the return (big smiles). Of course, the drama still wasn’t over. We’ve never seen an airport in the Americas as inefficient as Buenos Aires. The lines were massive, and stopped frequently to let the next phase clear out. For example, they stopped security scanning because immigration (the next phase) was moving too slow. We ended up waiting in these lines for almost 1.5 hours. Needless to say, all passengers were super anxious – people starting to fret over making their flights. In the end, it all worked out. Flights were slightly delayed to accommodate the madness, and even the pilot made jokes about the mess. But all of these delays killed our shopping time at the airport, which was supposed to replace our shopping time in Buenos Aires. We settled into our first class seats (enjoyed the welcome aboard drink) and finally took off around 9:30pm to Miami. Three weeks, 4 countries, and amazing memories!  

ARGENTINA & URUGUAY (8/6-8/10) : Buenos Aires, Colonia, Mendoza

It’s amazing that 2 weeks have passed so quickly, yet that we have experienced so much in  Ecuador and Peru. We’ve been looking forward to ending our 3 week adventure in Argentina given all the hype we hear from friends that Buenos Aires is their favorite Latin American city. And so the final phase began…

Saturday, August 6: Lima (Peru) ->Buenos Aires (Argentina)

Our international flight from Lima departed at 8:45, arriving in Buenos Aires at 3:15pm. The highlight of the journey was the LAN flight with movies on the back of each seat. It’s been a while since we just watched TV, so the short flight was a treat! During the flight, Karl pulled out his little travel emergency bag to show off how he’s built an amazing collection of travel gear over the past year. Of course, he proceeded to leave it on the plane as we rushed off to experience BA. Fortunately we were able to have someone retrieve it once we were on the the other side of immigration.

By the time we got to our very cool boutique hotel (PuroBaires) it was around 5pm. The hotel managed to find a wash & fold laundry place for us. It’s uncommon for people to have washers/dryers, and instead they depend on a service. We walked about 15minutes to drop our things off, then proceeded with a 2 hour walk until everything was ready. It gave us a chance to explore the hip Palermo SOHO neighborhood we were staying in. There was a wonderful square with artisans displaying their goods while people strolled by. We noticed how European and young everyone looked relative to the last 2 countries.  At 5:30pm, the city was full of activity. Everyone was in cafes with drinks and sweets. By 7pm, they all disappeared and BA felt like a ghost town. However by 10pm, the restaurants were full again with people having dinner before their night on the town.

We couldn’t manage waiting until 10pm for dinner, so we had the hotel book us a “super early” dinner slot at 8:30. The restaurant, Lo de Jesus, is one of many restaurants known for their beef. As you may know, Argentina is famous for grilled steaks and Malbec red wine. The meat was unbelievably tender and delicious (and when you say medium rare, the steak was still moo’ing with just a sear on the outside).. As we left dinner at 10pm, the restaurant had just gotten full. We still can’t understand how Argentines eat so late!

One other note – we are SO thankful we bought sweaters in Cusco! It’s in the 50s here, and while we packed 1 sweater, it’s not been enough.

Sunday, August 7: Buenos Aires

We got a great overview of Buenos Aires on Sunday. The city of 4M (which swells to 10M if you include suburbs) starts a little late since it ends so late. We began around 10am. In summary, we finished the day surprised by eclectic architecture and cultures of each neighborhoods. 

We began in the Main Square, Plaza de Mayo. There’s a neo-classical Cathedral, the colonial Cabildo, the old town hall and the pink colored Presidential Palace (think “Evita” where she sung from the balcony). From there we went to San Telmo neighborhood. It’s the oldest part of the city, bohemian atmosphere, narrow sidewalks, cobbled-stone streets, flat roof colonial houses and windows with iron railings. On Sundays, there’s a flea market and an artist’s market. It was great to browse the streets and square. We continued to La Boca quarter, where Italian immigrants settled in the 20^th century. We saw the famed Boca Juniors soccer stadium, multi-colored tin houses, and the very cool (but touristy) Caminito Street. There, artists exhibit their work outdoors, tango dancers dance in the cafes – all set against brightly, multi-colored buildings. Apparently it was the way immigrants inexpensively dressed up the area. We also learned about the history of tango, which originated in Argentina by the immigrants – all a mix of various cultures.  It was interesting to go from the poorer neighborhood of Boca to the beautiful wide streets of Peurto Madero and the marina. The surroundings include tall glass buildings, a stylish bridge, and renovated old brick warehouses that now house restaurants/shops. All around the city – there were so many plazas. We ended the tour in Riccoleta, an expensive neighborhood that houses one of the weirdest sites we’ve ever seen: a cemetery. This cemetery includes monuments that were designed by architects. It’s really incredible – think of a little city of mausoleums. Creepy, yet beautiful.

We returned to our hotel for a short break before walking around Palermo more. We walked to the leather outlets, but decided that the selection in China is much better. Nothing like having things custom made! We also walked to another square. During weekdays, this square is surrounded by bars and discos. On Sundays, it turns into another artists fair. Inside the discos, small boutiques and sellers set up shop. It’s odd to walk into a disco during the day and see clothes for sale and the bars covered up.

For dinner, again at 8:30pm, we got into a hot restaurant – La Cabrera. The atmosphere was wonderful. The quality of steak was good. Best, it was just a few blocks from our hotel. During our dinner we came up with the following list….

-          Most surprising about BA (good): 1.  such distinct differences between the neighborhoods and 2. the grave site.

-          Most disappointing (bad): 1. poop on the ground (tons of dogs being walked, all which seem to poop freely!) and 2. all the graffiti (which seems to a common part of the political expression).

-          Our favorite spot: San Telmo.

Monday, August 8: Day trip to Colonia (Uruguay)

Across the river from Buenos Aires is the city of Colonia, in the country of Uruguay. Lila had been to Uruguay years ago, but only to the capital city of Montevideo. We were deliberate in adding Uruguay to our agenda so Karl could get 1 country count closer to Lila. J We took the ferry at 8:45am, returning around 6pm. It’s around an hour journey across the Rio de la Plata river. The river looks more like a sea from the coast, and ends up at the Atlantic Ocean.

Colonia dates back to the 17th century. Its small, Old City is a World Heritage site. We were pleasantly surprised to have a tour guide for a few hours, then roamed around on our own. It was wonderful because we really felt that we learned a lot about Uruguay – the history, culture, and lifestyle. Our tour guide was very knowledgeable. We opted to start at the not-officially-opened Visitors Center – a great stop to get an overview via a short video of Uruguayan images (which our guide explained) and a historical timeline. We did a quick tour around town, learning about the river, and seeing an old resort the Spanish opened, including a Bull ring and sports center. Once bull killing was deemed inappropriate, the ring closed as did  the rest of the old resort (only two years after it was opened). The old city was quite charming. There were 2 highlights. The first was the architecture. The Portuguese (who ruled Brazil) built in Colonia as a way to spy on the Spanish in Argentina. The Spanish didn’t like that. In fact, during just 100 years, Colonia passed between the Spanish and Portuguese 10 times!  Right next to a short, Portuguese house with roof tiles, you’d see the flat roof Spanish home. One cobble stoned street would peak in the middle and slope on the sides - the way Spanish architected drainage. The next cobble stone street would be dipped in the middle with the sides higher to create a water drainage in the middle (Portuguese design). It was very fascinating! The other highlight was this old Portuguese house we found refuge from the cold wind off the river.  Inside the stone building with low roof, it felt like we had stepped back in time. We enjoyed an assortment of cheese and meats, including the famed Colonia cheese with a bottle of Tannat (the country’s signature red wine).

We returned to Buenos Aires via ferry, which even had a duty free shop inside! It was an interesting day, got Karl to 58 countries, and put a few more stamps in both of our passports. That evening, we relaxed at the hotel, still full from our Uruguayan lunch and then the cheese/wine snack. We organized our luggage and prepped for the 5am departure on Tuesday to Mendoza.

Tuesday, August 9: Buenos Aires -> Mendoza (Argentina)

We arrived in Mendoza, a 2hr flight from Buenos Aires (440miles NW), around 9:30am. Our itinerary in Mendoza got a bit screwed up, but we did some last minute coordination with the tour guide and arranged for a city tour in the morning. We really enjoy learning the history, and getting an orientation of a city when we arrive. Especially with a new city every couple of days, it’s really helped us piece together the history and culture of the continent. The city is dotted with huge central plazas. We saw at least 5 – not bad for a city of 130k citizens. Most of the history of the city was wiped out in an earthquake in the mid 1800s. One of the most amazing sites was the city park – Parque General San Martin – with 11 miles of paths, 300 species of imported fauna, an amazing rowing club, and beautiful statues. It was very grand – especially for a smaller town. We also drove into the mountains to see a beautiful monument to San Martin, one of the lead generals who fought the Spanish for independence of Argentina, Peru, & Bolivia. Apparently when San Martin returned from Spain, he chose to be based in Mendoza to plot out the revolution against the Spanish. We also stopped at the central market, where we got some delicious dried fruit (Lila thinks the peaches were the best, but in fact Karl’s dried, white figs ruled!).

We started our visit to the wineries in Lujan de Cuyo, or the first zone. It’s home of the Malbecs and the main area of Argentina’s wine industry. The first stop was for lunch - at Clos de Chacras winery. It was an outstanding gourmet pairing of many food and wine courses. One thing about Mendoza – they like their wine with good food! Afterwards, we visited Alta Vista - a well known winery known for the mix of old and new, Malbecs and Torrentes. From there we stopped by Carmello Patti, a winemaker who produces wine under his own label. It was a very small operation and fun to hang out with the charming older man. Afterwards, we walked around the small town of Chacras, where our hotel was based. We’ve decided that we like the charm of small hotels, but like to be based in a larger city/town where we can walk around. In Chacras, you can walk the entire downtown in 15 minutes. The hotel, Lourdes de Chacras, was a charming boutique hotel made of old stones.

That evening we had dinner at Nadia OF. The chef, Nadia, is married to a winemaker O. Fournier. She started the restaurant to do  wine pairings with his wine. Again, the food/pairings were wonderful.

Wednesday, August 10: Mendoza (Argentina)

Today’s wine visit was in the Uco Valley, a high-altitude wine region pushing against the Andes. It was about 1 hr from the town of Chacras, about 90min from downtown Mendoza. It’s considered the new frontier in Argentine wine. Our first stop was Salentein. No words can describe the amazing architecture and structure of the winery, set against the beautiful backdrop of the snow capped Andes. As you approach the winery, it really doesn’t look like anything special. But inside and underground is amazing. Frommers described it as “temple like cave” – and that’s what it felt like! Maybe because it’s winter, or because it’s Mendoza, but we were surprised how quiet the winery was. In the US, such a beautiful winery would be over packed with visitors. Afterwards, we visited Azul, an uber boutique winery that produces only 40,000 bottles each year. We got to some wine from the 2011 March harvest straight from the tank. We also tried their premium wine straight from the barrel. The winemaker was very cool to talk to. The morning’s visits were really excellent and enjoyable visits!

For lunch, we ate at the Altus winery, a small very rural winery that hosts the top quality restaurant Bistro La Tupina in a converted vineyard workers’ cottage. The pairing was again amazing – and never ending! At least 3 times we thought we were done. We had small courses of appetizers (chorizo, chardonnay cheese, blood sausage (disgusting thought, but good in the belly), an amazing egg dish (presented in an egg shell)). Then we were given  delicious sheppards pie, empanadas, a lentil/meat stew, and finally the most tender short ribs. They also prepared wheat-free versions for Karl.

We napped on the hour car ride back to the hotel, arriving around 5pm. Clearly we were too stuffed for dinner that evening so we opted for a game of pool with a cheese snack plate at the hotel. We’ve now had more meat and cheese since landing in Argentina than we’ve had the entire year!

A few things we’ve taken away from Mendoza. Its common to drink young wines, meaning inexpensive (e.g. US$5-$10) that are not aged in oak to show off the flavors of the grapes. They aren’t fans of barrel aged – we had many wines including a cab that spent no time in a barrel – only a concrete or stainless steel tank. As a result, many of the wines don’t have a long finishes. There’s a big shift from producing quantity (150 years of producing the 4^th largest volume of wine) to quality (less than 10 years of experience). Most of the wines are not “drink alone” wines, but rather should be paired with food. The specialization is Malbec, but they are experimenting with a variety of whites and reds. The migrant workers are predominantly from Bolivia, who earn ~ $15/day. There’s a recent effort to improve the working conditions. Water is highly regulated by the Dept of Irrigation.  Overall, we learned a ton about the differences with California’s wine region and preferences. It was very fascinating and enjoyable! 

PERU (8/3-8/5/11) : The Amazon

8/3, Wednesday: Cusco -> Puerto Maldanado -> The Amazon

We were shocked by our arrival in the Amazon. It was not only pouring rain, but it was super cold. We later heard that the temperature had dropped from 35 to 10 degrees C overnight.

At the airport, the various lodges greet visitors for their journey into the Amazon. To get to our lodge, the Inkaterra Reserva Amazonica, we took a bus to a check-in center about 5 minutes from the airport. Then it was a 20 minute bus ride to the boat. The transport boat looked like a large canoe with a small roof and an engine that previously was part of a car (similar to the Thailand river boats). We put our life jackets on, gave thanks to the fact we had rain coats, and began our 1 hour (very wet and cold) journey into the rainforest. The Inkaterra is one of the “remote, yet accessible” of the Amazon ecolodges. One of Lila’s YGL friends owns a few ecolodges but they are 3-8 hour boat rides further than where we stayed (we just didn’t have the time on this trip for visiting his award winning lodges).   At our lodge, we were shown our cabana - #8, which overlooked the river. The “resort” has 35 stand-alone cabanas all with only 1 wall, the rest was wood frame covered by mosquito screens. In warm temperatures, that architecture would be lovely. Instead, we put on 3-5 layers of the summer clothing we brought in an effort to stay warm. The cabana had running water (toilet, bath), a bed with additional mosquito netting, a sitting area, and 2 hammocks – all inside our framed house, several feet above the ground (in case the river floods &/or animals come for a night visit). The Inkaterra is supposed to be one the most luxurious of Peruvian Amazon lodges.

During our stay, we learned the difference between a rainforest and a jungle. A rainforest has 4 layers of vegetation, with the highest being ~200 ft. A jungle only has the 2 bottom layers. More light shines through a jungle, because it doesn’t have the tall trees. Therefore, more vegetation grows on the ground level. In a rainforest, due to the lack of light, less grows on the ground – and therefore it’s easier to walk around. In the Amazon, the jungle is a subset of the Amazon rainforest.

At the adventure center, they outfitted us with mud boots that came up to our knees. For the next 2 days, we’d be living in these! By the time we really settled in, it was already 4pm. We went into the jungle on the grounds of the Inkaterra for a 1 hour walk, followed by a night walk a few hours later. A few observations …. Birds don’t like cold – just like humans. They were all hiding. Little light made it through the 4 layers of the rainforest. It was very calm with little movement. And, if there was movement, it meant there was some creature moving (or the rain!). The spiders are really big and ugly, and we saw several walking sticks and beetles.

All meals were included in our stay. We got to choose from a set menu, all very good tropical-inspired cuisine. In fact, the Inkaterra is supposed to have the best food in the Amazon. The restaurant, like our cabana, had screens as walls.

By 9pm, we retreated to our cabana for an interesting night. Karl managed to sleep with a single layer, whereas Lila slept in about 6 layers. The blankets were warm, so it really wasn’t too bad. At 11:30pm the generators were turned off, and we were without electricity. The lanterns in our room provided enough candle light, but we weren’t prepared for Karl’s sleep breathing machine turning off.

8/4, Thursday: The Amazon

Our first activity started at 7am, Thursday morning. Thank goodness we woke up to overcast skies – but no rain! – and slightly warmer temperature. Our wake-up call was someone knocking at the door – but the birds were already starting to make their morning sounds! All excursions are included with our stay at the ecolodge. Excursions are led by a native guide with no more than 8 people to the group. In the morning, we selected to visit Lake Sandoval inside of the Tambopata National Reserve. It required a 30 minute boat ride up the river, then a 1 hour hike, and then we took a canoe on the lake. We were joined by a young Italian newlywed couple and their private guide.  Luis, a native of the area and our guide, explained that the native people are more interested in mining and a variety of other businesses – not ecotourism. In fact, it often causes problems within a family because their older relatives don’t understand why someone would do ecotourism.  Why save animals in the jungle when they should be hunted/eaten? It’s slowly catching on, but still slow.

During our hike, we saw a variety of birds (including a toucan), some monkeys hiding in the top of a tree, some leaf cutter ants (they use the cut leafs to grow fungus), and a few other insects. The walk was muddy and tough. During the canoe ride, we saw some really unusual birds like cormorants and blue herons. We didn’t see any piranhas although they’re supposed to be in the Amazon.

Upon return to the pick-up point, the boat wasn’t there. Lila walked around until I found cell service (it was the first time we had a connection since arriving into the Amazon). Our guide was new to the lodge and a bit hesitant, but after 1.5 hours of waiting, we convinced him to take action. We used our phone to call the check-in lodge, who then radioed back to our lodge. We couldn’t believe it – they left us! We complained later that our guide didn’t have a radio, and that no boat came. The lodge manager explained that something happened to one of the boats, and that our guide should have had a radio. They put the blame on the eco coordinator who was getting disciplinary action. We got (and took!) credit for “saving” the group of stranded folks. All it took was a bit of impatience and determination to find cell service. J

In the afternoon, we went on a walk through the rainforest, including a canopy tour with hanging bridges. The bridges were connected by 7 towers. It was fun to walk 100 ft above the ground…kind of scary occasionally, but with a very cool view. During the hike to get there, we found a vine hanging from a tree that was a few hundred feet high. Of course, Lila had to swing…not too gracefully though. She was out-swung by the North Carolina kids that were with us (there was a family of 6 along on the hike).

In the evening, we went on a twilight cruise on the Madre de Dios river. It was absolutely incredible to see the sky of the Southern Hemisphere. In fact, seeing the stars so close and clearly, it was easy to understand how the Incans connected to the sky. The Milky Way looked like a reflection in the sky of the river! We spent an hour on the boat cruising up and down the shoreline spotting white caimans (like crocodiles). It was exciting and fun.

Afterwards, we had dinner & enjoyed a fun time with the Italian lawyers. The wife didn’t speak much English but could understand when we talked slow. It was a lovely end to an exciting day. That night, we slept very well again – aside from the generator going off and Karl’s machine not working. Basically, if you go to the Amazon, you have to be ready for no cell service and intermittent electricity.

8/5, Friday: Puerto Maldanado (Amazon) -> Lima

As our trip in the Amazon came to an end, we still had a half-day left. We went with another guide on a boat ride to the river island (aka Monkey Island – although we didn’t see monkeys).  The island was called money island for the recently relocated monkey families moved there by one of the local universities.  Our guide questioned the study – he was concerned they had didn’t release enough of one species to ensure long term success/breeding.

On the way to the island, we spotted a variety of birds and white caimans along the shore. We also saw these machines that looked like old wooden manual contraptions. The locals use these for sifting for gold. They can find 5-10 grams per day in this area of the river (and as much as 50 grams a day further upstream in a frontier part of the river that even the local police don’t try to patrol).

Upon arrival to the river island, we went on a 2 hour hike. The weather had warmed up so the birds were finally out. It was unbelievable how much noise they made! During the wet season, the island is flooded by the river. The result is the vegetation was so different than other parts of the rainforest we had seen. It sounded, smelled, and felt like a stereotypical jungle. It’s worth noting that unlike the Galapagos, the animals in the Amazon don’t come close to humans. They’re often in trees or hiding. We borrowed binoculars to see the vibrant colored birds. Who would have thought that we would be so into bird watching! What was really amazing was to watch our guides. They grew up learning animals sounds and being able to imitate them (to attract the animals so they could hunt). The guides would hear the birds and be able to name the specific species. It was amazing!

Back at the lodge, we packed up and prepped for the boat ride back to civilization. The ride back to Puerto Maldanado was so much better than the cold, rainy trip into the Amazon. The weather was improving so well – another day and we’d see even more animals. Nevertheless, it was an exotic and interesting adventure. In Puerto Malanado, we had a chance to visit the butterfly house to see some of the 3800 Peruvian species flying around. They were beautiful!

Our flight out of the Amazon stopped back in Cusco for 30 min to pick up more passengers, before continuing to Lima. Our transfer guide told us more about the country and capital – so we got a good overview of Lima and about Peru overall. We stayed at a small B&B type of place in the Miraflores neighborhood, had an amazing dinner at a restaurant nearby, walked back along the coast, and called it a night by 9 pm (we had another 5am departure the next day).   

Overall our trip to Peru trip was – Cusco, the Sacred Valley, Machu Picchu, the Amazon, and a quick stop in Lima. It’s amazing how much we can cram into 7 days. J

PERU (7/29 – 8/2/11): Cusco, the Sacred Valley, and Machu Picchu

7/29, Friday: Ecuador -> Lima, Peru 

We arrived in Lima, from Ecuador, around 10:30pm. Fortunately our hotel was right across the street from the airport, making the arrival very convenient. The hotel, Costa del Sol, offered us 2 welcome drinks – which we gladly accepted. We are now in the land of the “Pisco Sour” – a frothy, limey, yummy drink made from Pisco (Peruvian brandy). We hadn’t had dinner so the accompanying fresh corn nuts were a welcomed treat. As with all of our transfers, we were met at the airport with someone to assist us. While it was probably overkill on this simple commute, it has made our trip great. They show up with printed boarding passes, get us from point A to point B, and give us some context about where we’re at. The result has been stress free, burden-less travel!

7/30, Saturday: Lima -> Cusco

Our Lima morning started early, with a 7:45am departure from the hotel. Flights up to Cusco (“up” being 11,500 ft) depart in the morning. We were thrilled to find a Starbucks in the airport. The trip has disappointed us on coffee so far. It’s mainly been powdered Nescafe. While Ecuador is famous for coffee – they export the good stuff! We boarded the plane and were thrilled to discover our 2 friends from the Galapagos cruise were seated right behind us. Josie and James, an Australian couple, had been the people we’d hung out with the most. Turns out they were flying to the Amazon, with a stop in Cusco (basically our trip in reverse as we stopped in Cusco, then will continue to the Amazon later in the week). It was fun to catch up.

Arriving in the high altitude turned out to be ok. We had learned from Tibet that Karl needed altitude medication (which one of his co-travelers in Croatia prescribed upon return to SF), so he were well prepared. Our guide and driver met us at the airport, then took us to the hotel to acclimate to the altitude. A tradition here in the highlands is to have coca tea to help adjust. For the record, there’s not much taste and there’s absolutely no buzz. We were told the government oversees the farming – so not to worry about drug development. We’re convinced it just gets people to drink water and hydrate! Our hotel – Casa Cartagena – was gorgeous. It’s retained the old Spanish feel of this World Heritage site/city, but has fusion with modern design. The staff was fantastic, as was the service. It was also centrally located. So instead of resting for 2.5 hours like our guide told us to, we went off to explore the main square and have a yummy lunch of fresh fruit drinks and ceviche (restaurant: Limo). 

Our guide, Freddy, picked us up at 1:30 for a 3 hour tour around town. Our first stop was Sacsayhuaman – massive stones (e.g. 10 ft tall) perfectly cut and seamed together (without mortar) in a series of zigzag walls. We started learning about the Incan empire, and the massive destruction by the Spaniards in the 16^th century. The stones somewhat formed a pyramid along 3 hills – reminiscent of Egypt. There’s no record of what the place was, those lots of speculation. We then made a quick stop by Q’enko, a cave-like altar (note these words are cuecha which is the old Andean language). From these 15^th century ruins, we went back into town to visit some of the first churches established by the Spanish. Cusco was the capital of the Incan empire.

The next stop was Q’orikancha – a Spanish convent that was built on top of and around the Inca temples. In fact, it was the first of the Spanish religious buildings. Afterwards we visited the cathedral – also build on top of Inca buildings. Freddy explained a ton – but with sole focus on the Incas. With no hard facts or history of the Incas, we were left with a lot of speculation of the pre-16^th century life that surrounded us. We clearly understood, however, that the Incas were phenomenal architects, lived in harmony with the land and with the skies. Overall, very fascinating. Lila wants to now study how lost ancient cultures are connected!

After our formal tour, we watched the sunset around the main town plaza. It’s very quaint with its old Spanish architecture. We saw a wedding couple be serenaded by college students – that was a treat! We also ran into one of Karl’s colleagues from San Diego – Joel. He was on vacation with his family, including 2 sons. Small world!

Back at the hotel, we did a lesson on making Pisco Sours from the bartender who quickly became our friend. His name is Eddie, and he previously served on a cruise ship in Europe. For dinner, we ate at MAP – a popular restaurant at the PreColombian art museum – steps away from our hotel.  

7/31, Sunday: Cusco, Chinchero, and the Sacred Valley   (Urubamba, Ollataytanbo)

Our hotel offered a great breakfast. In fact, breakfast has been included every stay. It’s been great because we’ve missed a few lunches here & there due to schedule. We opted for no set lunch/dinner because we didn’t want to be restricted by meal schedules. Freddy and the driver picked us up at 9 am for the hour drive to our first stop: Chinchero, a small village with two significant stops. The cool thing was that Chinchero wasn’t in our tour book, but turned out to be a gem! The first stop was the VERY local Sunday market. Andean women - dressed in colorful outfits -  sold food and carried babies on their backs in colorful ponchos. The men sold some food, or were hanging out at the stands that sold purple beer. The market was full of wonderful smells like cilantro, potatoes, and many other fruits and vegetables. Karl got some great photographs. Freddy would occasionally speak with the farm women in the local language. It was truly a wonderful start to the day. Afterwards, we walked over to the textile “factory.” About a dozen women worked away on their weaving while we learned about this Peruvian non-profit founded to retain and support the weaving traditions. They focus on 4 communities – all with different weaving styles. We were the only tourists in this small community, where we learned how they spin yarn from alpaca wool, color by natural means, and finally weave in various styles. The goods were really great and we wanted to buy more (even just to support the local women that got 90% of the sale price for the items they created). Everything looked so beautiful but unfortunately wasn’t soft due to the tight weaving style.

Our journey continued into the Valley. We would occasionally stop for a view of the snow capped Andes in the distant. Finally, we arrived in the Sacred Valley. Our first stop was lunch. We weren’t really in the mood, but our guide talked us into trying some of the local cuisine. Potatoes are a big side dish so we tried 4 different types of potatoes and a dehydrated potato that is used in salads. To be honest, it wasn’t anything special (my guess is they picked the 4 worst ones from the 2000 species they grow in Peru). We did enjoy some of the local salads made from beans and flowers.

The journey continued to Ollantaytambo, the last settlement before getting to Machu Picchu far, far away. The scenery was beautiful and the town has it’s old charm with Inca grid of streets, canals, etc. After Machu Picchu, this temple is considered one of the Incas biggest architectural feats. They were able to defend Ollantaytambo against the Spanish in the 1530s, so the ruins still are in good condition. We say “temple,” but like all Inca ruins, there’s no clear answer to what this really was.

The ruins were amazing – large stones fitted together perfectly and without masonry, hundreds of steep yet wide terraces, entrances that lined perfectly to the winter solstice (the shortest day of the year), etc. It’s hard to describe – you’ll have to see the pictures of the terraces. They not only leveled hillsides with rocks but also created a unique system of irrigation. In addition, they transported layers of different soil types in order to grow specific types of crops up the hillsides. One town we didn’t visit, terraced down the earth in a circular shape in order to have warm enough soil to plant certain crops. They were true agricultural experts!  

On way home, got stuck in traffic in Ollantaytambo – it was horrendous. Over 1 hr waiting for what could have been walked in 5 minutes. The problem is that the streets are so narrow that buses and cars take turns going through. By the time we got back to Cusco, we were cold and tired. The weather here has been cool – and we didn’t pack enough warm clothes. We asked Freddy to take us to a shop where we did superfast shopping of alpaca sweaters (which would later be a life saver in the Amazon – who knew!?!).

Back at the hotel, we enjoyed an evening cocktail with our bartender friend Eddie (he didn’t charge us! Hint: tip your bar tender well on the first night of your stay). Dinner was at a restaurant next door. It was recommended in the guide book. It turns out the best restaurants in Cusco are booked days in advance. We didn’t plan until we arrived, so we were out of luck for the most part. At least the restaurants we still got into were good, had amazing presentation, but sometimes felt a little over stylized on the presentation.   

8/1, Monday: Cusco-> Machu Picchu

Our days seem to start early on vacation, and end with sleep by (or before!) 10pm. On the first day of August, a supposedly symbolic day to the farmers in the Peruvian highlands, we were out of our hotel by 6am. After a 20 minute drive, we got to the train station. Freddy joined us on the “Vistadome” train to Aguas Calientes (the small town at the base of Machu Picchu). During the 4 hour, 69mile) journey, he pointed out many Inca trails,  and natural highlights. Apparently you can only get to Machu Picchu by train or hiking 4 days on the Inca trail. The train had windows on the roof, so you could get a great view as we headed “down” to Machu Picchu (still blows us away that you climb to the top of the mountain and it’s less high than Cusco at 11.5k ft). Freddy explained that he would stay with us to manage the entry into Machu Picchu, give us a 3 hour or so tour, then catch the train back – leaving us on our own for the rest of Machu Picchu.    

At the train station at Aguas Calientes, there is a group of porters who take your bags directly to the hotel. We were left with just our day pack. Fortunately we shed our sweaters because it turned out to be a very steamy day at the top of the mountain. From the train, we walked to the bus, which took us to the top. Machu Picchu isn’t visible from the valley, nor from the ride in the bus on the way up. We arrived around 11:30am. Sun was strong. Tons of people. Steep stairs everywhere. Freddy took us around, and explained how Hiram Bingham “discovered” the lost city of the Incas in 1911, with the help of a local farmer. The setting is incredible - nestled between mountains. Only 2500 tourists are allowed in each day. We’re pretty sure they were all there with us! After Freddy’s 3 hour tour, we did a hike towards the Sun Gate on the main trail that goes into Machu Picchu. It’s really hard to describe the ruins or the experience. By 4pm, we were sweaty, exhausted, and with wobbly knees. We started the climb back down the ruins to the main gate, to catch the bus down. Back in Aguas Calientes, we walked 15 minutes more through the local community back to our hotel – the Inkaterra lodge. The setting was beautiful – more on that tomorrow. After a shower, lots of cold tea, and our welcome drink (another Pisco Sour!), we enjoyed dinner at the hotel and an early night to sleep. We also made arrangements to do a “eco-hike” on Tuesday around the lodge.

8/2, Tuesday: Machu Picchu -> Cusco 

We were out of the hotel by 6am, walked into town, then caught the 30 min bus ride to the top of Machu Picchu. It was amazing to see how long the bus line was in the morning! The first bus leaves around 5:30am. We were told to be there by 7am for the sunrise. Each day, about 400 people are allowed to climb Huaya Picchu – the tall mountain that’s always photographed behind Machu Picchu. The hike is supposed to take about 1 hour and be reasonable – as well as steep. We missed our opportunity to climb (too many people beat us to the buses), so opted for hanging out at Machu Picchu again.

The sunrise was beautiful – not too crowded and great light for photography. We spent about 3 hours walking around Machu Picchu and doing another hike in the area. This time the hike was about 45 minutes (beyond the Machu Picchu ruins) to an Inca bridge. High in the mountains, the Incas used a 3 foot or so ledge as a trail. There was one point where the trail disconnected. They put small stones and 4 small logs to make a bridge. Today, you can’t cross the bridge – but you can get close to see how they put the small stones high in the mountains. It’s brilliant and amazing that they were able to construct such a passage way! Around 10 am, we headed back into town for a shower and nature walk at our hotel. The nature walk started with a magnifying glass. We were disappointed, thinking we’d see insects not the orchids we had hoped to see. We were pleasantly surprised to discover the walk was full of the smallest orchids we’ve ever seen….we’re talking the “big” ones were the size of Lila’s pinky finger nail.  The owners of the Inkaterra lodge have done a lot of conservation work on the 2 hectares of land. We spent 2 hours walking around the orchid garden. Fascinating!

Grabbed lunch at Indo Felicite, a popular tourist spot with good food, before heading back to Cusco via 4 hr train. During the train ride, we sat with a girl from California who was traveling with her dad, also a teenage Spanish girl  traveling with her family. We ended up talking to them for about ½ the trip ride. About ½ way through the ride, music started and out came a dancing human dressed in a bird outfit. It was hilarious – though, was aimed to be culturally entertaining. They then started a fashion show of baby alpaca clothing. It made the trip amusing.

We were met at the train station by the driver, who also had our laundry entire washed and folded for US$10!  The (same Cusco) hotel, Casa Cartagena, upgraded us on the last night. Our bartender friend, Eddie, had 2 complimentary drinks waiting for us, along with a sampling of potato cakes. We grabbed a late dinner at Chicha restaurant, founded by a famous Peruvian chef, which came highly recommended by some friends we made in the Galapagos. This was the first night we could get in – and the wait was worth it. The food was amazing! The restaurant was about 5 minutes walk past the main square, so we had a nice evening walk – with full bellies - back to our hotel.

8/3, Wednesday: Cusco -> Puerto Maldanado (Amazon)

Straight forward: woke up early, packed, breakfast, hotel, then the ride to the airport. We couldn’t figure out why the travel agent was getting us to the Cusco airport 2 hours early. In fact, we were a bit miffed. But when we got there, we found a line that was the longest line we’ve ever seen in our lives at an airport (imagine Thanksgiving travel lines in a city that was shut down for a snow storm)! And, it was just for baggage drop off (everyone prints boarding passes in advance)! There wasn’t even preferred check-in. With some negotiations and finagling, she managed to get us to the front of the line . We then boarded the plane for the 30 minute flight to Puerto Maldanado, at the base of the Peruvian Amazon…..

ECUADOR (7/27-29): Salinas

The story of Salinas is one of “extraordinary coincidences.” We decided to visit Salinas, a 2 hour drive from Guayaquil, based on a House Hunters International episode we watched over the Christmas 2010 holidays. At the time, Karl did some quick research on the city – inspired by the availability and inexpensive prices (e.g. $100/sq ft) of coastal property. With our trip to S. America, we added Salinas to our itinerary, but did little to prepare.

Here’s how the story unfolded:

-          Karl was locked out of his liebat.com e-mail account that had some of his initial December research – he waited until arrival in Ecuador to try to retrieve the info.

-          But we had no connectivity in the Galapagos Islands – none. So we charged our PC on the last day on the boat with hopes to download the info upon arrival in Guayaquil (the airport city).

-          We landed in Guayaquil – PC fully charged, but not our personal wi-fi card. Two hours in the car to Salinas turned out to be another missed opportunity to do/find the research.

-          We arrived in Salinas, but without money to tip the driver. We had tried to get money out at the Guayaquil airport, but the ATM was down. So we didn’t even check into the hotel. We dropped our bags at the front, then went with the driver to the downtown area – about 10 minutes away – in search of an ATM.

-          About 3 minutes from the hotel, we realize we had 20$ emergency stashed away. But by then, we were already in the car & on our way to town (and a bit miffed by the drive, no money, and the hotel not being in the center of town).

-          Finally, we hit the ATM in downtown Salinas, tipped the driver, and decided to cool off a bit with a walk along the coast. We were less than 20 minutes into our stay and less than 5 minutes into the walk when….

-          We passed a couple. Karl turned to Lila and said he thought it might be the couple from House Hunters International episode. Lila stopped in disbelief, asked the probability, to which he replied 90%. It was good enough odds that…

-          Lila ran a half block back, asked if they spoke English, then asked if they were on HHI. It was them, and Karl even remembered they were from Chicago.

-          After a few minutes chatting, we asked if they knew any real estate agents that could help us last minute with a similar household search. It turns out they are real estate agents! On the show, they were the buyers (not agents). They offered to show us around the next day - Thursday at 9:30am.

-          Without any prep or background, Kimberly came by our hotel at 9:30am. We talked through some options before she took us on a whirlwind adventure to 15-20 options (homes/condos/raw land from Salinas to Olon (~1.5 hr away). It was an amazing overview of the area. By the time we finished the day (~6pm), we saw many options that piqued our interest, but weren’t set on any one specific property.

But the story doesn’t end here…

On Friday morning, Kimberly and Hector show up again at 9:30. They have about 5 places they want to show us. After visiting a condo at the Yacht Club, we are given the choice of property 45 minutes out of town, or 5 condos in town. We opt for the property – which blew up the rest of the day’s schedule. The property was incredible! The owner recently decided to sell off 8 portions of her bluff (which she’s owned for 15 years) overlooking the small, quaint fishing village of Ayangue. The property overlooks a charming beach - a calm, sandy, and shallow cove. The land is super reasonable for ocean front / beach access. We spent quite a lot of time there, and ended up rushing back to the hotel (to catch the van to the airport).

Yet the story still doesn’t end here! Back at the airport in Guayaquil…

As we were walking down the jetway to board our flight to Quito, Karl pauses at a picture on the wall. It’s Ayangue! In fact, it’s a few from the beach where you can see “our” bluff on the right hand side. The picture wasn’t labeled, and it could have been anywhere on the coast. But we knew it was “ours” from the shape of the cove to the houses on the opposite bluff.  

We boarded the plane laughing about the Salinas adventure and how it unfolded. It could have turned out to be 2 days by the pool/beach eating ceviche. Instead, it was a series of coincidences that appeared to suggest this should be our second home. J 

We're still discussing whether this is the right place for us, but definitely fell in love with Ecuador and think it's a great investment!

ECUADOR (July 22-29, 2011) Quito & Galapagos Islands

7/22, Friday: SFO->Miami->Quito

Spent much of the day en route to Quito, Ecuador (Karl’s first visit to America’s southern hemisphere). Fortunately it's Central Time, so pretty easy to adjust. Lila ended up with a migraine from Miami to Quito, making the arrival in South America’s second highest capital really painful. Fortunately, she was fine the next day.

The Patio Andaluz, our boutique hotel, was located in the Old Town – also known as Quito’s Colonial core. The hotel was a charming, converted home (mansion) from centuries ago. It was conveniently located near the main square. Accommodations were classic and simple.  

7/23, Saturday: Quito and the Andes Highlands

We started the day at 8:30am with a guide and driver who took us back up to the Northern Hemisphere to explore the Otavalo mountain region, about 60 miles north of Quito. The Otavalo Market is famous in South America, especially on Saturdays when locals come for their weekly trades. It was colorful with bright textiles made from Alpaca and Llamas, spices, fruits & veggies, and handicrafts.  The Otavalenos still wear traditional clothing. The men have long straight black hair in ponytails, and women wear multi-stranded gold bead necklaces atop their white and navy blue embroidered outfits. They are one of many indigenous people in Ecuador. The country, which is the size of Colorado, was conquered by the Incas (~1000 AD) and later by the Spanish (~1450 AD).

In the afternoon, we returned to Quito around 4pm to explore the Old City, where we were staying. Quito is an attractive city. It was the first city in the world to be named a UNESCO World Heritage site. The buildings in the Old Town date back to the 1500s, and include over 40 Catholic churches (we didn’t believe the number until we kept stumbling across them every 3-5 minutes walking!). We spent 3 hours walking around – which sounds fine until you consider we were at 9200 ft.   We were pretty exhausted after our exploration. Fortunately, we found a charming restaurant called Theatrum with delicious seafood and ceviche (which turns out to be as much Ecuadorian cuisine as Peruvian).

7/24, Sunday: Quito -> Guayaquil -> Galapagos Islands  (Baltra and Santa Cruz Islands)

We departed the hotel at 5:45am – way too early for a vacation! The journey to Galapagos wasn’t easy. We flew 30 minutes from the capital of Quito to the city of Guayaquil, where we refueled and boarded more passengers. Then we continued to Baltra Island, a former US military base, 1.5 hours away. On Baltra, we took a bus to a ferry to Santa Cruz island. Then it was another bus to the other side of the island, where we boarded an inflatable dinghy over some very rough waters to our cruise boat.

A few things struck us by this point. First, what a pain to get to the boat! By the time we boarded it was around 1pm. There was an older Danish woman with a bad hip and an older American couple from Alabama. It was painful to watch them make the transitions across the different transportation modes. Clearly they didn’t do research to figure out this was an adventure beyond their physical capacity. Second, the cruise boat was not what you have in your mind. The “Coral 1” run by Klein Tours (one of the oldest tour operators in the islands) holds 36 passengers. Most of the Galapagos cruises are around this size, but some boats hold up to 100 passengers. We had a decent cabin and a boat full of Australians and Europeans, mainly multi-generational families who were super fun to travel with. By the end of the cruise, we really got to know everyone. 

At 4pm we went back to the land for a 3 hour journey through the Charles Darwin Research Center. The Darwin Research area was fascinating, especially as we weren’t super familiar with Darwin’s journey to the islands. During the cruise, however, we read a chapter from his journal with The Beagle through the Galapagos. He was still young in his career, talked a lot about the tortoise meat, dissecting lizards, etc.  At the Research Center, there is a big focus on preserving the tortoises. They estimate that over 150k tortoises were killed for their meet in the 19^th and 20^th centuries. The tortoises would last a long time (8+ months), required little food/water, and therefore would be good on the ships to sacrifice when the crew needed food. The center explains how the tortoises adapted to the various islands in the Galapagos, showcasing shells for tortoises in the highlands vs. low fertile lands. This was an early inspiration for Darwin’s theories of evolution and natural selection.  While at the center, we met Lonesome George, the 150 year old tortoise who is the last of his species. We also stumbled upon two giant tortoises mating! It was interesting to be able to stand close to them and learn about the preservation efforts.

Afterwards, we walked through the local, super cute town of Puerto Ayora on Santa Cruz island (one of the few that are inhabited by humans). There were some beautiful artist boutique shops and lots of outdoor bar/restaurants playing soccer games on big screen TVs!

The waters were rough that night, but we slept well – and early! - with the rocking of the boat.

July 25, Monday: Espanola Island (Punta Suarez & Gardner Bay)

One of the highlights of the cruise was our first full day: Espanola island. Animals were abundant and interesting, but also fearless of humans. In fact, this is common around the Galapagos – the fact that animals will go along their daily life without concern for the tourists who pass through during the day. It made touring the islands extremely special.  The guide claimed it’s because humans don’t disturb them. The Islands are part of a national park and highly regulated.

While on Espanola island, we saw green and blue footed boobies (birds) performing an awkward and amusing mating dance.  There were marine iguanas everywhere with their red and black markings. They stayed closed to each other to stay warm. We also saw Galapagos doves, a variety of mocking birds and finches. The best part for us was the Albatross birds. An estimated 12k bird pairs (they are monogamous for life!) inhabit this island – all but a fraction of the world’s population. Since it’s nesting season, we were able to see many small albatross birds. We also went to the cliff to see the “Albatross Airport” where the birds take off and land over the ocean. To top it off, we also saw the Albatross doing their courtship fencing with large yellow beaks. It was a spectacular morning!

In the afternoon we went to another part of the island, where we snorkeled with sea lions and stingrays. The beach was full of sea lions and their pups. One was doing a performance in the water for Karl. In general the snorkeling was ok, but not great. The water was a little cold (we were in wet suits) and murky. Despite being near the equator, the fish weren’t as colorful, differentiated, or clear as in the Red Sea.

From the boat, we saw a school of dolphins – at least 150. It was an amazing sight to see such a large school as they raced alongside the boat.

In preparation for our trip, Karl bought a new camera lens from one of his brother’s friends. It’s a 200-400mm lens. Basically, it’s the size of one of our daughters! Needless to say, there were a lot of photo buffs on our cruise. They all had lens-envy of Karl’s massive attachment. On this day, and the ones that followed, he was regularly asked about it by other touring groups, as well as jealously and jokingly teased by our fellow travelers. It was pretty funny.  

July 26, Tuesday: Floreana Island (Punta Cormorant, Champion, Post Office Bay)

The highlight of today was supposed to be the flamingos at the foot of the volcano, but they weren’t there. Instead we hung out at the beach watching birds dive into the water to catch fish – blue footed boobies, swallow tailed gulls. More marine and lava iguanas, as well as orange and blue colored crabs along the volcanic rock.  In the afternoon, we had 2 excursions. The first was a dinghy ride around another volcano. The birds were abundant and unbelievable. Karl got some stunning photographs. The final stop of the day was to the oldest post office in the islands, established in 1793 as a way to spy on the whalers. Over the centuries, people leave unstamped post cards in a barrel. Visitors would pick up a card to hand deliver. We picked up 2 postcards from Cupertino and 1 from Healdsburg!

That night, we took a 2 hour nap on the top deck under the stars. Since it’s winter, the sky hadn’t been clear. We were told the South American summer (Dec-Mar) is a beautiful time to visit – the weather is warm, the days are sunny, and the night skies are clear. That said, we thought this time of year (“winter”) was great because of the nesting/mating season.

27^th: North Seymour Island

What a great way to end our adventure! North Seymour Island is home to the frigate bird – a beautiful black bird with a 2 meter wing span. The males puff up their scarlet throat sacks to attract females. During our 1.5 hour hike, we saw many frigates -  puffed, flying/soaring above, and in massive nests that housed several of the big birds. We even saw a few babies. There were also a few blue footed boobies, iguanas, and sea lions – but the frigates made this island very special!

We boarded the boat and headed back to Baltra island to catch our flight.  Less than one week had passed, and the trip was already beyond our expectations. The Galapagos islands are an amazing sanctuary to wildlife we’d never seen before. We definitely recommend the adventure to people who enjoy nature, photography, or a truly unique experience!  Just make sure you take comfortable enough shoes that you can walk over the lava-rocked islands and go in & out of boats with ease (we loved our Keen’s).

It was much easier getting back to the airport than when we first landed. At the airport, we finally cell service and were able to reconnect to civilization. The best news was that the girls were weaned from their bottles! Our trip was a great introduction to the Galapagos islands, and we’re already talking about our next trip. From Baltra Island, we flew to Guayquil, where we then had a car waiting to take us to the coastal city of Salinas, Ecuador.