Santa Cruz Island
My home island by choice is Santa Cruz. Even though I was born in a different place in Ecuador, the large coastal city of Guayaquil, I chose this enchanted archipelago for many reasons. One of them is the ocean itself: being surrounded by the sea in a place where animals know nothing about fear inspired me to move to the Galápagos. And I chose Puerto Ayora as my home town because it is a lovely setting where people are kind and cheerful.
This morning we visited my town, and I loved sharing it with our guests. We saw how people live in the islands, but also we learned about the great conservation projects at the Charles Darwin Station and National Park headquarters, where we saw Galápagos giant tortoises: new hatchlings, juveniles and the adults who are part of the breeding programs.
In the afternoon, we chose from among several options. First we moved to the highlands and visited the twins, which are pit craters surrounded by special habitats for the vermillion flycatcher and several species of Darwin’s finches. Then we went to the area where tortoises live in the wild, and sighted a couple of them moving around, feeding on the grasses, and thriving on the fresher temperatures of the highlands.
Back on board, after a great meal, there was a fantastic show for us with musicians and dancers from my home town. It was a wonderful day!
My home island by choice is Santa Cruz. Even though I was born in a different place in Ecuador, the large coastal city of Guayaquil, I chose this enchanted archipelago for many reasons. One of them is the ocean itself: being surrounded by the sea in a place where animals know nothing about fear inspired me to move to the Galápagos. And I chose Puerto Ayora as my home town because it is a lovely setting where people are kind and cheerful.
This morning we visited my town, and I loved sharing it with our guests. We saw how people live in the islands, but also we learned about the great conservation projects at the Charles Darwin Station and National Park headquarters, where we saw Galápagos giant tortoises: new hatchlings, juveniles and the adults who are part of the breeding programs.
In the afternoon, we chose from among several options. First we moved to the highlands and visited the twins, which are pit craters surrounded by special habitats for the vermillion flycatcher and several species of Darwin’s finches. Then we went to the area where tortoises live in the wild, and sighted a couple of them moving around, feeding on the grasses, and thriving on the fresher temperatures of the highlands.
Back on board, after a great meal, there was a fantastic show for us with musicians and dancers from my home town. It was a wonderful day!
