Off to the Galapagos Islands!

From Guayaquil, we hopped on a plane and went 700 miles west, to the Galapagos Islands. This was the part of the trip I was most looking forward to.

But first, we had to have our luggage examined by a dog. He did find one suspicious bag, but fortunately it wasn't mine.

I saw my first bird in the airport!

Then we transferred to our yacht for the next 4 days, the Yolita II. (I always wonder what happened to Yolita I...)

And first up, of course, was the muster drill. Our Road Scholar guide, Gonzalo (second from right), was a tourist on the islands.

All visitors must be guided by a certified Galapagos guide. Ours was Franklin (standing here), who was very good, although a bit wordy at times. After settling in on the yacht, we got in the little boats, and landed on nearby North Seymour Island.

And WOW, right away I say my first Blue-Footed Boobie!

And we saw lots of Sally Lightfoot Crabs.

I did not realize that the animals in the Galapagos are not afraid of humans! Here we are detouring around an iguana in the middle of the trail.

One of the many Galapagos Land Iguanas that we saw.

Even the birds do not move away when you go by. These are Great Frigatebirds. The one lone male is the one with the red throat. He's got quite a harem.

This guy wasn't doing so well. In spite of all his showing off, the object of his affection appears to be asleep...

"If you pay some attention to me -

You might end up with a cute little baby like this!"

Another Blue-Footed Boobie and her baby.



And a short video of 2 babies fighting over Mom's regurgitation!

Lots more to come, but that's it for now. What a spectacular first day here!