Today we arrived at Santa Cruz Island where we landed at the main pier of Puerto Ayora, its capital city. It’s a place where the curious traveler will find places like Internet cafes and bars, post offices and ice-creams shops. Our main goal though, was to reach the Charles Darwin Research Station. We started with a short bus ride to the cemetery adjacent to the tortoise center. A walk of ten minutes along the path scattered with marine iguanas and Darwin finches got us to the facilities of the center which started research in 1959. The scientists have been working on rearing baby tortoises and we had the opportunity to meet the parents. We also learned about land iguanas and the efforts to bring them back to areas like Baltra, where they had become extinct.
After the visit we had some free time in town to buy some souvenirs, which helps the local economy. The fisherman’s market was a lot fun with local sea lions, pelicans, frigates, and humans, all eager to get a fish or two. On our way to the highlands of Santa Cruz we experienced the change in vegetation from dry to ever green fields. We passed by cattle farms and coffee plantations. Then we visited a local sugar cane farm and learned about their products and tasted their 150 proof alcohol. Then we were off to a BBQ lunch which was wonderful and tasty.
In the afternoon we went to a farm with tortoises and we had the opportunity to walk among them and see them in all domestic endeavors: eating, mating, sleeping, migrating, and eating again.
This was another great day in paradise.
