This morning we awoke anchored in the incredibly picturesque Academy Bay: sparkling turquoise waters dotted with colorful sailing boats and other vessels. The most central of the islands in the archipelago, as well as the second largest, its unique location offers many different possibilities. Being the nerve center of conservation and tourism in the islands, it is here that we visit the world-renowned Charles Darwin Research Center and it's incredibly successful giant tortoise repatriation program. It also has many fascinating geological features such as pit craters and lava tunnels, lush cloud forests, a wealth of endemic land bird species and a healthy population of wild tortoises, easily found by our keen explorers.

For the SCUBA divers we have on board, there are several diving options during the week, but some of the best diving in Galapagos is to be found within just a short travelling distance from Santa Cruz, places such as North Seymour and Mosquera islets, visited today by our intrepid divers. Both places count foremost amongst their highlights, large schools of the impressive scalloped hammerhead sharks, and divers today were not disappointed, as at one point they were finning above a group of eleven full-sized sharks! Galapagos has repeatedly appeared, in recent times, amongst the top three diving destinations in the world, and though not easy, diving here is always rewarding.

As though all this excitement was not enough for one day, it ended in great style with a group of visiting local musicians and dancers, so we could add a little salsa and merengue to all the excitement: truly an unforgettable day.