Genovesa Island
With all the excitement and all the expectations that a young boy graduated from the biology school in Guayaquil could have, I disembarked from a plane in Baltra, eight years ago, in 1994. It was my first trip to the Galapagos. It was sunny, and the sultry heat of the equator was intense. There was not much around but rocks, leafless trees and some cacti.
Where were all those fascinating stories about the Galapagos and the incredible flora and fauna that this famous wildlife paradise was supposed to have? Then I remembered some of Charles Darwin’s words: “...Nothing could be less inviting than the first appearance” (Darwin, Voyage of the Beagle, 1845).
Little did I know back then, that these islands would become my home for years to come, and that the famous spell that the “Enchanted Islands” cast on many sailors before would fall on me as heavily as it did on them, many years ago.
The Galapagos Islands’ primeval landscape of volcanoes and strange indigenous animals, which through eons of isolation never learned the fear of predation, are unique in the world. The tameness of the creatures is striking. Nowhere else on earth can man approach and observe animals in the wild so closely. A significant amount of the flora and fauna is endemic –that is to say, not only native but found nowhere else on earth. Consequently, for people who love wildlife, the islands are one of the worlds foremost destinations.
Today is the last visit for our guests on board of the Polaris. For each one of them, the memories of these islands would represent something different. The unparalleled natural beauty of this unique archipelago was discovered by them as the days went by, and when the day to leave this paradise finally comes, they would all look back, and would see the same view I had eight years ago. That view that simply captures one’s soul, allowing you to understand that the islands are indeed enchanted.
With all the excitement and all the expectations that a young boy graduated from the biology school in Guayaquil could have, I disembarked from a plane in Baltra, eight years ago, in 1994. It was my first trip to the Galapagos. It was sunny, and the sultry heat of the equator was intense. There was not much around but rocks, leafless trees and some cacti.
Where were all those fascinating stories about the Galapagos and the incredible flora and fauna that this famous wildlife paradise was supposed to have? Then I remembered some of Charles Darwin’s words: “...Nothing could be less inviting than the first appearance” (Darwin, Voyage of the Beagle, 1845).
Little did I know back then, that these islands would become my home for years to come, and that the famous spell that the “Enchanted Islands” cast on many sailors before would fall on me as heavily as it did on them, many years ago.
The Galapagos Islands’ primeval landscape of volcanoes and strange indigenous animals, which through eons of isolation never learned the fear of predation, are unique in the world. The tameness of the creatures is striking. Nowhere else on earth can man approach and observe animals in the wild so closely. A significant amount of the flora and fauna is endemic –that is to say, not only native but found nowhere else on earth. Consequently, for people who love wildlife, the islands are one of the worlds foremost destinations.
Today is the last visit for our guests on board of the Polaris. For each one of them, the memories of these islands would represent something different. The unparalleled natural beauty of this unique archipelago was discovered by them as the days went by, and when the day to leave this paradise finally comes, they would all look back, and would see the same view I had eight years ago. That view that simply captures one’s soul, allowing you to understand that the islands are indeed enchanted.
