I start my adventure today with a gorgeous, sunny, bright cloudless sky. Ambient temp has to be at least 80 degrees. Today is not a day for work, but play.
Yesterday at lunch, the information that the cafeteria was open on Saturdays was reconfirmed. Sweet! I take a shower, get dressed and head to the cafeteria. It is 7:45 AM, and the door is closed. I know that they just adjusted breakfast to start at 7:30 AM on the weekdays (instead of 7 AM), and yesterday they said that they’d open on Saturday a little later than during the week. Well their idea of a little later and my idea of a little later are rather different.
While I was walking back up the path, their truck was driving down it, so breakfast will be starting soon, 8 AM I guess. I go back to my room, fire up my computador, and re-read my Monday, February 4th entry in preparation to post it on my blog either today or tomorrow.
Some of the folks from the dorm are grouping outside and they are headed to breakfast. I follow in a few minutes. In the cafeteria, there is a big TV set. During the weekdays it is turned to the news. For the weekend, there are Warner Bros. cartoons on from the 1950s and 60s translated into Spanish. Porky Pig & Daffy Duck in Spanish. Unbelievable!
I order my new regular breakfast, uno huevo duro, one hard-boiled egg which is already out of its shell(!). Of course that comes with a cup of hot milk (in which I am now putting Nescafe instant coffee), fresh juice, mixed fruit salad with a splash of yogurt and sprinkle of granola, and some bread thing; a roll, empanada, or tostada. Today we had something completely different as “bread,” some rolled up ball of meal, I think. It was difficult to decide whether I liked it or not. And because the cafeteria has several resident birds that fly about (in and out of the windows), this morning I tossed more than usual to the Yellow Warbler, named Maria, who has the most beautiful song.
After eating, I hit the Library to empty the dehumidifier. I feel guilty not doing it, so I do. And, while I’m there, I might as well long on and read my gmail. I don’t stay very long because a British woman, Frida, who has lived here for 3 years now and works for the Station, invited me to spend part of the day with her scrambling around on some volcanic rocks somewhere.
She and I will meet for 12:30 PM and do lunch on the street where all of the restaurants are. My roommate, Mari, has been telling me about this street for days now, and finally, I will get to see it, know where it is, and even eat there.
I take one more bathroom break before I head to town. And I discover quite the scene of domesticity: Dario and another woman doing their laundry by hand at the laundry basins/sink. She says that she doesn’t like the way her laundry feels afterward if she uses the washing machine. Me? I don’t know the difference. I’ll take the machine every time.
Dario and Roberto are outside my room. Dario has found a teeny gecko, and he wants a picture taken. Roberto goes and gets a camera. I get mine. I take a pic of Roberto taking a close-up pic of Dario’s arm where the gecko is pretty much happily sitting. Then I take a picture of the gecko on Dario’s arm. Both are keeper pix, I think.
At 11:15 AM, I am ready to go. I have my 4 postcards to mail if the Post Office is open. I have my baseball cap, sunscreen, bug repellant, camera, umbrella, money, wallet, water bottle, small roll of toilet paper (Hey! You never know), a mini-map of the island, and extra batteries. I feel like I am carrying everything but the kitchen sink in my backpack. I have on socks and sneakers for the first time since I arrived. They feel good to wear, but it’s almost too hot to have them on. I walk to town.
By 3 minutes of 12, I arrive at the P.O. and it is open. Yippee! Postage on one postcard is 50 cents. I bought and wrote these cards on my second day here (so much for mailing them in a timely fashion). I sit in a shaded plaza to cool off a little. That onshore breeze is the best.
The Post Office, supermarket, and the Dock are all here. I see boats and more boats. I get up and cross the street to get a better look. They number of boats in this bay is incredible. The big boats can’t come in close so they have these little boats called pangas. Pangas sit maybe 6-8 people and they ferry touristas from the big boats to the dock to disembark and see the town and the National Park and the Research Station. I take some pictures of the cliffs opposite, and the boats coming and going.
At 12:30, I meet Frida. She looks like she is going on a big hike; bush hat, hiking boots, backpack with 2 bottles of water, and a telescoping walking stick. Yikes! I look like I’m going for a walk in the park in comparison. She says Shall we eat? And I say Yes, lead on. We turn off of Darwin Ave. onto Baltra. 2 blocks up, we turn to the left and lo and behold! The street with all the restaurants on it! We walk the street looking at the menus posted. I see the Polish woman who has been working in the Library doing research for her book. We say hello and she is gone. How about that? I am recognizing people on the streets of Puerto Ayora! Just like a native, huh?
Frida eats occasionally at the one kiosko we choose, so I feel good about eating there. It is a fixed meal with a fixed price: $2.50. You can choose between chicken or pork. I get the chicken, she the pork. Every meal starts with soup. This one is hot, exactly the way I like soup! Our conversation ranges all over the place and we eat and talk. She gives me the lowdown on why it is important to arrive at a restaurant early (rather than late) for lunch. All of the plates are already made up and the earlier you get there, ah, the fresher the dish. Great advice!
My stomach starts to feel a little queasy; all of the hot food hit it all at once, I think. I tell her that I’m not so good, so we sit a few more minutes. I feel better, but just in case, I will use the bathroom. It is an unusual room. The door is on the level of the rest of the restaurant, and it sweeps just semicircular to open and close. As soon as you open the door, you step up to the toilet, sink and tub floor. Very strange, but it worked fine.
That done, we head out. She asks me if I like ice cream. Sure enough, I say. She points out two helado shops that are good; but this one is better, she says, because it is more hygienic. Like Whoa! I guess that I will need to be careful eating out.
During lunch she told me that we would be taking a water taxi to get where we are going. It’s called Las Grietas (The Crevices). We get on the water taxi and the only other passenger asks how long we’ve been in the Galapagos (a really good way to start up a conversation around here). Frida says that she has been coming here for the last 15 years but lives here now. She was spending a heck of a lot of money flying back and forth, she says. The guy asks the water taxi driver (should he be called a cabbie?) to drop him off at the blue boat. So this guy has sailed this gorgeous new sailboat from the Caribbean to Galapagos for the owners. Not a shabby gig, I think. The cabbie drops him at the back of the boat. I am very impressed at how the cabbies can control their boats; ease in and use reverse to just get close enough to kiss the landing. Must be their years of experience. We see a Blue-footed Booby dive into the water. My first sighting! Woohoo! When he comes up, he swoops over the boat empty-beaked. His face is very distinguishable, but did I see the blue feet? I’m not sure. They nest on the cliffs that I photographed from the dock earlier. Cool.
The boat ride costs 50 cents each and Frida pays. She says she is the one with a salary here. Fine, I let it pass. We start to walk down a pathway toward a beach, a hotel called Finch Bay, and the trail to Las Greitas. The hotel looks very, very nice. I think I will have to find out their room rates for when George arrives. Frida says maybe we would stop in for a drink on the walk back. Great idea.
We find the trail. It is very well marked and incredibly volcanic. I told her I had sneakers, and she said that hiking boots would be better, oh well. Mostly, hiking boots would be good support for your ankles, just in case you missed your footing and t-w-i-s-t. It very sunny and I have to stop and put more sunscreen on my arms.
I explain to her that my flush face may look like I am about to have a coronary, but that is how my body works. I get red-faced, but still have the endurance to go on. Frida still insists upon a sit-down break when we find some shade to sit under. As we sit, we can hear the men & boys jumping off the high ledge of the crevice into the water below. We are close.
We head on and we arrive. There are two sets of steep stairs to climb down, then scramble over some very big volcanic rocks and there is one little place to enter the water without jumping. Frida, who knew what we were going to do, has on a swimsuit. I, on the other hand, completely clueless, find a shady spot to sit and watch. The water is cold, I can tell because everyone hesitates and says Frio! Some people have brought their snorkels, a family is here with the Mom sitting and watching as her husband and two kids swim, most of the men/boys jump from various heights.
Frida is out of the water, air drying. We watch the jumpers. I snap picture after picture of the jumpers, then put my camera away. Then Frida says These two guys are going to jump at the same time! Indicating to me to get my camera out, but fast! I do, but it is too late. Drats! Even though I take lots of photos, intend to keep only one or two of the best ones. A double jump probably would have been a keeper, though.
The longer we stay the more people come. There are 25 persons here now, and Frida asks if I am ready to go. You bet! I am all sweaty (yes, Karen, sweaty) and ready to return to a refreshing drink. We head up and out. On the way back, I snap a pic of Frida as she turns and stands. I can’t wait to send it to her as an email attachment. The trail isn’t very long on the way back. You know how that is, it takes forever to get to a place that you’ve never been, and the return trip always seems shorter.
There is a new building that we passed on the way in that Frida had never seen before. It is a bar, and we decide to sit and have a drink here. We sit at it for maybe 10 minutes and no one comes to serve us. Actually, no one was in sight anywhere(!) It was a good break, and we head back toward the water taxi station. When we get to the beach, I walk near the shore rather than the boardwalk. I say to Frida Are these Darwin Seagulls, because everything is named Darwin this, Darwin that? She says that they are Lava Gulls. I hear their cry. It is like Bru-ha-ha-ha; a very unusual “song,” I think. I have heard these birds at the Station and wondered who had that mysterious sounding birdcall.
This time I pay for the return trip. Frida has invited me to her apartment for tea before I head home, but the skies are looking ominous, it is definitely going to rain. I tell her Thanks, I will go to the supermarket buy some things (a gallon of water and a drink), and try to make it back to the dorms before the sky opens up.
On my way back, I see that there will be a music festival in the plaza tonight. The banner says it starts at 6 PM. When I walked past the plaza this morning, Cerveza vendors were setting up by putting bottles of beer into refrigeration. Now at 4:30 PM, the food vendors are setting up their stands.
I am glad to have had my Tampico (name brand) citrus punch (orange, mandarin and lemon) to fortify me on my return trip. Of course it’s made mostly of sugared water with a citrus flavor, but it hit the spot.
Just as I am at the end of the circle at the Station, it starts to rain. I stop briefly under the Admin bldg porch to get my umbrella out. False alarm. I walk to my room and unload my backpack. Whew!
My roommate is there and asks me what I did all day. I tell her. I have just carried a gallon of water that came out of the store refrigerator through town. I am a little warm from the walk, and it is just too tempting to open the new jug and have a quenching cool drink of water. I do it, and I am refreshed. Ah…
I’m thinking about taking a shower, but there are only a few hours left of daylight, and my only Internet access is you know where. I go to the Library, log-on, read and write emails. When I am in the Library and it rains, I know this because it sounds like a 747 taking off over head. And, that’s the sound I hear. I was right about the rain, just wrong about the timing.
It’s dark and I leave the Library. Time to head into the kitchen for cereal, raisins and milk for dinner. I go to the door and it is closed, lights are off (both inside and out). Hmm. The gang is watching a video (The Pathfinder) on a computer screen. Whoops! Sorry. I turn on the outside light which gives me enough light inside to find a bowl and “make” my dinner. I watch as much of it as I can stand, finish up, and go to take a shower, for the second time today!
I start this blog entry, and read a little. Mari had to work today and she will work again tomorrow. The researcher that she volunteers for lost too many days at the beginning of the week. So they are working all weekend. Poor kid. She gets up at 4:30 AM to be in the field before sunrise. At night, she is pretty exhausted, esp. because the rest of the dorm gang goes to town late for dinner, and then has some other activity planned. She wants to be part of the group, but has this dreadful schedule (you know, for a young person).
As I lay in bed, Dario (next door) has Frank Sinatra singing “New York New York” blaring out and he is singing along with it! I smile to myself, thinking that I take a chartered bus to the Big Apple four times a year from Willimantic, and can take Metro North any other time that I want. Spoiled much? When his music quiets down, through the window I can hear the sound of the music from town over the sound of the crashing waves. I drift off…
I start my adventure today with a gorgeous, sunny, bright cloudless sky. Ambient temp has to be at least 80 degrees. Today is not a day for work, but play.
Yesterday at lunch, the information that the cafeteria was open on Saturdays was reconfirmed. Sweet! I take a shower, get dressed and head to the cafeteria. It is 7:45 AM, and the door is closed. I know that they just adjusted breakfast to start at 7:30 AM on the weekdays (instead of 7 AM), and yesterday they said that they’d open on Saturday a little later than during the week. Well their idea of a little later and my idea of a little later are rather different.
While I was walking back up the path, their truck was driving down it, so breakfast will be starting soon, 8 AM I guess. I go back to my room, fire up my computador, and re-read my Monday, February 4th entry in preparation to post it on my blog either today or tomorrow.
Some of the folks from the dorm are grouping outside and they are headed to breakfast. I follow in a few minutes. In the cafeteria, there is a big TV set. During the weekdays it is turned to the news. For the weekend, there are Warner Bros. cartoons on from the 1950s and 60s translated into Spanish. Porky Pig & Daffy Duck in Spanish. Unbelievable!
I order my new regular breakfast, uno huevo duro, one hard-boiled egg which is already out of its shell(!). Of course that comes with a cup of hot milk (in which I am now putting Nescafe instant coffee), fresh juice, mixed fruit salad with a splash of yogurt and sprinkle of granola, and some bread thing; a roll, empanada, or tostada. Today we had something completely different as “bread,” some rolled up ball of meal, I think. It was difficult to decide whether I liked it or not. And because the cafeteria has several resident birds that fly about (in and out of the windows), this morning I tossed more than usual to the Yellow Warbler, named Maria, who has the most beautiful song.
After eating, I hit the Library to empty the dehumidifier. I feel guilty not doing it, so I do. And, while I’m there, I might as well long on and read my gmail. I don’t stay very long because a British woman, Frida, who has lived here for 3 years now and works for the Station, invited me to spend part of the day with her scrambling around on some volcanic rocks somewhere.
She and I will meet for 12:30 PM and do lunch on the street where all of the restaurants are. My roommate, Mari, has been telling me about this street for days now, and finally, I will get to see it, know where it is, and even eat there.
I take one more bathroom break before I head to town. And I discover quite the scene of domesticity: Dario and another woman doing their laundry by hand at the laundry basins/sink. She says that she doesn’t like the way her laundry feels afterward if she uses the washing machine. Me? I don’t know the difference. I’ll take the machine every time.
Dario and Roberto are outside my room. Dario has found a teeny gecko, and he wants a picture taken. Roberto goes and gets a camera. I get mine. I take a pic of Roberto taking a close-up pic of Dario’s arm where the gecko is pretty much happily sitting. Then I take a picture of the gecko on Dario’s arm. Both are keeper pix, I think.
At 11:15 AM, I am ready to go. I have my 4 postcards to mail if the Post Office is open. I have my baseball cap, sunscreen, bug repellant, camera, umbrella, money, wallet, water bottle, small roll of toilet paper (Hey! You never know), a mini-map of the island, and extra batteries. I feel like I am carrying everything but the kitchen sink in my backpack. I have on socks and sneakers for the first time since I arrived. They feel good to wear, but it’s almost too hot to have them on. I walk to town.
By 3 minutes of 12, I arrive at the P.O. and it is open. Yippee! Postage on one postcard is 50 cents. I bought and wrote these cards on my second day here (so much for mailing them in a timely fashion). I sit in a shaded plaza to cool off a little. That onshore breeze is the best.
The Post Office, supermarket, and the Dock are all here. I see boats and more boats. I get up and cross the street to get a better look. They number of boats in this bay is incredible. The big boats can’t come in close so they have these little boats called pangas. Pangas sit maybe 6-8 people and they ferry touristas from the big boats to the dock to disembark and see the town and the National Park and the Research Station. I take some pictures of the cliffs opposite, and the boats coming and going.
At 12:30, I meet Frida. She looks like she is going on a big hike; bush hat, hiking boots, backpack with 2 bottles of water, and a telescoping walking stick. Yikes! I look like I’m going for a walk in the park in comparison. She says Shall we eat? And I say Yes, lead on. We turn off of Darwin Ave. onto Baltra. 2 blocks up, we turn to the left and lo and behold! The street with all the restaurants on it! We walk the street looking at the menus posted. I see the Polish woman who has been working in the Library doing research for her book. We say hello and she is gone. How about that? I am recognizing people on the streets of Puerto Ayora! Just like a native, huh?
Frida eats occasionally at the one kiosko we choose, so I feel good about eating there. It is a fixed meal with a fixed price: $2.50. You can choose between chicken or pork. I get the chicken, she the pork. Every meal starts with soup. This one is hot, exactly the way I like soup! Our conversation ranges all over the place and we eat and talk. She gives me the lowdown on why it is important to arrive at a restaurant early (rather than late) for lunch. All of the plates are already made up and the earlier you get there, ah, the fresher the dish. Great advice!
My stomach starts to feel a little queasy; all of the hot food hit it all at once, I think. I tell her that I’m not so good, so we sit a few more minutes. I feel better, but just in case, I will use the bathroom. It is an unusual room. The door is on the level of the rest of the restaurant, and it sweeps just semicircular to open and close. As soon as you open the door, you step up to the toilet, sink and tub floor. Very strange, but it worked fine.
That done, we head out. She asks me if I like ice cream. Sure enough, I say. She points out two helado shops that are good; but this one is better, she says, because it is more hygienic. Like Whoa! I guess that I will need to be careful eating out.
During lunch she told me that we would be taking a water taxi to get where we are going. It’s called Las Grietas (The Crevices). We get on the water taxi and the only other passenger asks how long we’ve been in the Galapagos (a really good way to start up a conversation around here). Frida says that she has been coming here for the last 15 years but lives here now. She was spending a heck of a lot of money flying back and forth, she says. The guy asks the water taxi driver (should he be called a cabbie?) to drop him off at the blue boat. So this guy has sailed this gorgeous new sailboat from the Caribbean to Galapagos for the owners. Not a shabby gig, I think. The cabbie drops him at the back of the boat. I am very impressed at how the cabbies can control their boats; ease in and use reverse to just get close enough to kiss the landing. Must be their years of experience. We see a Blue-footed Booby dive into the water. My first sighting! Woohoo! When he comes up, he swoops over the boat empty-beaked. His face is very distinguishable, but did I see the blue feet? I’m not sure. They nest on the cliffs that I photographed from the dock earlier. Cool.
The boat ride costs 50 cents each and Frida pays. She says she is the one with a salary here. Fine, I let it pass. We start to walk down a pathway toward a beach, a hotel called Finch Bay, and the trail to Las Greitas. The hotel looks very, very nice. I think I will have to find out their room rates for when George arrives. Frida says maybe we would stop in for a drink on the walk back. Great idea.
We find the trail. It is very well marked and incredibly volcanic. I told her I had sneakers, and she said that hiking boots would be better, oh well. Mostly, hiking boots would be good support for your ankles, just in case you missed your footing and t-w-i-s-t. It very sunny and I have to stop and put more sunscreen on my arms.
I explain to her that my flush face may look like I am about to have a coronary, but that is how my body works. I get red-faced, but still have the endurance to go on. Frida still insists upon a sit-down break when we find some shade to sit under. As we sit, we can hear the men & boys jumping off the high ledge of the crevice into the water below. We are close.
We head on and we arrive. There are two sets of steep stairs to climb down, then scramble over some very big volcanic rocks and there is one little place to enter the water without jumping. Frida, who knew what we were going to do, has on a swimsuit. I, on the other hand, completely clueless, find a shady spot to sit and watch. The water is cold, I can tell because everyone hesitates and says Frio! Some people have brought their snorkels, a family is here with the Mom sitting and watching as her husband and two kids swim, most of the men/boys jump from various heights.
Frida is out of the water, air drying. We watch the jumpers. I snap picture after picture of the jumpers, then put my camera away. Then Frida says These two guys are going to jump at the same time! Indicating to me to get my camera out, but fast! I do, but it is too late. Drats! Even though I take lots of photos, intend to keep only one or two of the best ones. A double jump probably would have been a keeper, though.
The longer we stay the more people come. There are 25 persons here now, and Frida asks if I am ready to go. You bet! I am all sweaty (yes, Karen, sweaty) and ready to return to a refreshing drink. We head up and out. On the way back, I snap a pic of Frida as she turns and stands. I can’t wait to send it to her as an email attachment. The trail isn’t very long on the way back. You know how that is, it takes forever to get to a place that you’ve never been, and the return trip always seems shorter.
There is a new building that we passed on the way in that Frida had never seen before. It is a bar, and we decide to sit and have a drink here. We sit at it for maybe 10 minutes and no one comes to serve us. Actually, no one was in sight anywhere(!) It was a good break, and we head back toward the water taxi station. When we get to the beach, I walk near the shore rather than the boardwalk. I say to Frida Are these Darwin Seagulls, because everything is named Darwin this, Darwin that? She says that they are Lava Gulls. I hear their cry. It is like Bru-ha-ha-ha; a very unusual “song,” I think. I have heard these birds at the Station and wondered who had that mysterious sounding birdcall.
This time I pay for the return trip. Frida has invited me to her apartment for tea before I head home, but the skies are looking ominous, it is definitely going to rain. I tell her Thanks, I will go to the supermarket buy some things (a gallon of water and a drink), and try to make it back to the dorms before the sky opens up.
On my way back, I see that there will be a music festival in the plaza tonight. The banner says it starts at 6 PM. When I walked past the plaza this morning, Cerveza vendors were setting up by putting bottles of beer into refrigeration. Now at 4:30 PM, the food vendors are setting up their stands.
I am glad to have had my Tampico (name brand) citrus punch (orange, mandarin and lemon) to fortify me on my return trip. Of course it’s made mostly of sugared water with a citrus flavor, but it hit the spot.
Just as I am at the end of the circle at the Station, it starts to rain. I stop briefly under the Admin bldg porch to get my umbrella out. False alarm. I walk to my room and unload my backpack. Whew!
My roommate is there and asks me what I did all day. I tell her. I have just carried a gallon of water that came out of the store refrigerator through town. I am a little warm from the walk, and it is just too tempting to open the new jug and have a quenching cool drink of water. I do it, and I am refreshed. Ah…
I’m thinking about taking a shower, but there are only a few hours left of daylight, and my only Internet access is you know where. I go to the Library, log-on, read and write emails. When I am in the Library and it rains, I know this because it sounds like a 747 taking off over head. And, that’s the sound I hear. I was right about the rain, just wrong about the timing.
It’s dark and I leave the Library. Time to head into the kitchen for cereal, raisins and milk for dinner. I go to the door and it is closed, lights are off (both inside and out). Hmm. The gang is watching a video (The Pathfinder) on a computer screen. Whoops! Sorry. I turn on the outside light which gives me enough light inside to find a bowl and “make” my dinner. I watch as much of it as I can stand, finish up, and go to take a shower, for the second time today!
I start this blog entry, and read a little. Mari had to work today and she will work again tomorrow. The researcher that she volunteers for lost too many days at the beginning of the week. So they are working all weekend. Poor kid. She gets up at 4:30 AM to be in the field before sunrise. At night, she is pretty exhausted, esp. because the rest of the dorm gang goes to town late for dinner, and then has some other activity planned. She wants to be part of the group, but has this dreadful schedule (you know, for a young person).
As I lay in bed, Dario (next door) has Frank Sinatra singing “New York New York” blaring out and he is singing along with it! I smile to myself, thinking that I take a chartered bus to the Big Apple four times a year from Willimantic, and can take Metro North any other time that I want. Spoiled much? When his music quiets down, through the window I can hear the sound of the music from town over the sound of the crashing waves. I drift off…
