Every now and then, this trip offers me a life-affirming moment. A beautiful sunet over the Atacama desert or arriving at Machu Picchu through the sun gate. But on Galapagos, it feels like every moment gives you something unique to be cherished. From the moment I stepped of the plane, I felt a rush of excitment, giddy with undefined anticipation.
We frolicked with sea lions in crystal clear blue waters. Grinning through our snorkel masks as they flew through the water right at us, coming so close that you got a feeling they were going to crash and then diving under at the very last second. Psych! Sea lions are so cheeky. Then watching a school of black tipped reef sharks gracefully pass under us and hoped that they weren't too hungry. Heart-pounding as I looked right into its beady shark eyes. I so wanted to high five sea tutles as they blobbed by me and go 'duuuude' just like in Finding Nemo. And then trying to swim frantically to keep up with eagle rays, the birds of the sea. And when there was nothing, there was something. The turquoise water, so clear and beautiful with bursts of sunlight coming through.
And after all this, lying on the pristine beaches was exactly the R&R I needed after a tiring morning of snorkeling. Yep, life sure is hard on Galapagos.
We got close to Galapagos penguins, frigate birds with their red pouches puffed out, blue-footed boobies doing their adorable mating dance, waved albatross gracefully flying above with their large wing spans and sunbaking marine iguanas, the only diving iguanas in the world. Knowing these unique animals only exist in this one place gives you a great appreciation in spotting them. Even if its the 1000th booby you've seen. The combination of the spectacular wildlife, great boat and food, and lovely peole we met on it has made this tour the highlight of the trip and I can now say that I went to Galapagos and it was freaking amazing!
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