Floreana and Isabela Islands
Our day started with an early visit to the famous Post Office Bay on Floreana Island. This place is one of the main interesting human history sites of the Galápagos Archipelago. Several guests picked up postcards that will be delivered hand to hand without stamps continuing with a very old seafarers’ tradition. Later in the morning we went to Champion Islet to enjoy water activities. Weather conditions were fantastic, the sun was shining, the ocean was very calm and the water was crystal clear. As soon as we went in the water, we were amazed by the big array of colorful and abundant fish species. Our guests soon had the first of the many highlights of the morning. A Galapagos penguin was observed swimming swiftly among us. The penguin was a real delight; it was chasing little fish without showing any concern about their astonished observers. The moments we spent with this rare flightless bird were truly magical. The moments that we spent enjoying this encounter caused many of our visitors to express that this has been their best snorkeling outing ever. Sea lions were very close to the penguin in popularity. Their acrobatic and playful underwater movements provoked laughter and joy. Sharks, rays, turtles and even an octopus were observed as well.
On our way to Isabela Island, just as we were having lunch, we received news from the bridge. A Sei whale (Balaneoptera borealis) was spotted. It was a great sighting for many who saw the whale directly from the dining room, and our officers followed its movements closely to the delight of all on deck. Along with the whale, we spotted a very unusual species, the iridescent blue hue of a sail fish! The afternoon found us anchored in front of the picturesque town called Puerto Villamil, capital of Isabela Island. In this small fishing town, there is a breeding center for giant tortoises. This center is managed by the Galápagos National Park. The main objective of this center is to incubate, raise and repatriate little tortoises to the volcanoes where they belong. We can feel nothing but admiration for the wonderful job the park is doing in order to reestablish the endangered populations of giant tortoises on Isabela Island. The day was finally over but left impressed in our minds and hearts indelible memories and feelings that we will keep forever.
Our day started with an early visit to the famous Post Office Bay on Floreana Island. This place is one of the main interesting human history sites of the Galápagos Archipelago. Several guests picked up postcards that will be delivered hand to hand without stamps continuing with a very old seafarers’ tradition. Later in the morning we went to Champion Islet to enjoy water activities. Weather conditions were fantastic, the sun was shining, the ocean was very calm and the water was crystal clear. As soon as we went in the water, we were amazed by the big array of colorful and abundant fish species. Our guests soon had the first of the many highlights of the morning. A Galapagos penguin was observed swimming swiftly among us. The penguin was a real delight; it was chasing little fish without showing any concern about their astonished observers. The moments we spent with this rare flightless bird were truly magical. The moments that we spent enjoying this encounter caused many of our visitors to express that this has been their best snorkeling outing ever. Sea lions were very close to the penguin in popularity. Their acrobatic and playful underwater movements provoked laughter and joy. Sharks, rays, turtles and even an octopus were observed as well.
On our way to Isabela Island, just as we were having lunch, we received news from the bridge. A Sei whale (Balaneoptera borealis) was spotted. It was a great sighting for many who saw the whale directly from the dining room, and our officers followed its movements closely to the delight of all on deck. Along with the whale, we spotted a very unusual species, the iridescent blue hue of a sail fish! The afternoon found us anchored in front of the picturesque town called Puerto Villamil, capital of Isabela Island. In this small fishing town, there is a breeding center for giant tortoises. This center is managed by the Galápagos National Park. The main objective of this center is to incubate, raise and repatriate little tortoises to the volcanoes where they belong. We can feel nothing but admiration for the wonderful job the park is doing in order to reestablish the endangered populations of giant tortoises on Isabela Island. The day was finally over but left impressed in our minds and hearts indelible memories and feelings that we will keep forever.
