The Final Hours and Travel

Galapagos to Quito and then Home FINAL Thoughts:

With an early luggage out at 0700 followed by breakfast we were soon headed to the Baltra Airport. This process involved a walk to the dock, panga to the Puerto Ayora Dock, board a bus, drive to north side of Santa Cruz, Water Ferry to Baltra, Bus to airport.  Yes it will be a full day of travel. The bus ride to the north side included a quick stop at a very large sink hole. 

After checking in at the airport, we had access to a lounge while  we waited for our flight. The return flight to Quito makes a 35 minute stop in Guayaquil. Then we are off to Quito. Arriving in Quito, we have another 45-60 minute bus ride to the hotel. 

Arriving at the hotel we hurry to start repacking, cleaning up and getting downstairs for our Farewell Dinner. 

During our farewell dinner we reflect on our experiences of the last several days. We enjoy a very nice buffet dinner, music, dancing, white elephant gift exchange, and an enjoyable slide show put together by our guides. 

I would be remiss in not mentioning the excellent work of our Guides. 

Tiffany - She is a stellar example of Disney caring for the guest. She is constantly on the go to make sure all is well, and making it well. She keeps the energy of the group at a high level as we went from day to day. 

Juan - Juan also made sure all went well as the days progressed. He also brought the spirit of the Amazon Alive. His heart in very much into sharing this amazing part of his country. As an ambassador to the Amazon, I dare say one would be hard pressed to find better. 

Anyone traveling with Tiffany and Juan should consider themselves very lucky. 

After dinner we said good by to those traveling home that evening. We then went back to the room and packed our bags for the journey home. We were able to get about 5 hours sleep before the alarm went off. Final packing and off to the airport. 

Our trip home will take all day from Quito to Panama City, Panama, to Houston, to Denver. As we will be arriving late into Denver, we will spend the evening before we drive home. 

Final thoughts on this Adventure By Disney Trip. It was great in many ways, and all went well. The Adventures by Disney Trips are made by the Guides, there is no doubt about this fact.   

Personally, I would have enjoyed more time on the Napo river and the Galapagos. This is my preference as I enjoy the natural world. 

Personally, I could live with a 3 star rated properties for lodging and more local foods. 

I can not see how Disney can charge such a crazy high amount for pre and post stays. Their rates are way above any rate one can find at the various properties registration web site or via an online booking site. 

The time in the Galapagos is brief and staying at one land based property prohibits one form an in-depth exploration of this amazing natural location. From my personal experience I would highly recommend a live aboard where one can experience several islands. 

Should we return to the Amazon we will be traveling on an 8 day trip on the Anakonda no doubts about it. This for me would allow more exploration of the natural world found in this ecosystem. 

I totally endorse Adventures By Disney for the demographic they target. When I plan a trip with Adventure By Disney I know what to expect. Same as when I plan a trip with National Geographic I know what to expect. So depending on what and how I wish to experience a part of the world, this will be the determining factor as to how I travel. 

Now it is time to get the passports sent off for visas for China and Nepal.  

Tortuga Bay:

Tortuga Bay:

Today we are going to Tortuga Bay. This involves a panga to a bus, to a 5K walk to a nice bay. 

We made our way on this hot humid walk on a well paved trail. Here we saw several finches, and Lava Lizards. Soon we arrived at the ocean at Playa Brava, and observed several Marine Iguanas as we made our way to Playa Mansa, also seeing Lava gulls and Lava Herons.

As we got to the beach, my camera died and I was getting an error message. UGH so I did not get many Marine Iguana pictures.  

Here we could swim and snorkel and chill on the beach. We then loaded up on a boat to be brought back to the resort. 

Lunch was a great octopus ceviche and a hamburger. 

The afternoon we headed to town to see what we can see. We went to the fish market to see the Sea Lions and Pelicans beg for goodies. 

Next we stopped at a local bar that makes a great lemonade, kinda like a slushy. Perfect for a hot day. 

We next went to the local grocery store and found some Guabaya Jam to take home.  We took a panga back to the resort. 

We changed into swim wear and enjoyed the pool. I then tested my camera after sitting in the cool room. It seemed to work fine, but as it is under warranty will be calling Canon when we get home. 

We had a group dinner and again back to the room for packing as the next day would be a full day of travel. 

A Day Cruise to Santa Fe Island

Day cruising to Santa Fe:

At 0300 we are awaken by rain falling on the roof. 

From the Finch Bay Hotel dock we take their motor yacht, about a 65 foot motor vessel to Santa Fe Island. This is a two hour journey and the seas were just a bit rough and a couple of our fellow travelers were feeling the ill de Mar. We arrived at a cove that was familiar to us as we had visited this location on our Nat Geo trip. We did see the Galapagos Hawk as we arrived.

The first order of business was the zodiac ride along the rocky shore. Here we were able to observe the Galapagos Hawk, Blue Footed Boobies, Mocking birds, and Frigate birds flying over head. Also there were sea lions basking in the sun along with Marine Iguana, and Sally Light Foot crabs. 

After the zodiac ride we did a wet landing on the beach and took some time to observe the sea lions on the beach. Then we headed out on a trail to find the Santa Fe Iguana, we were able to locate three of them sleeping in the shade. 

We returned to the boat and geared up for some snorkeling. Here we saw sea lions in the water and several fish, parrot fish, trigger fish, damsel fish, trumpet fish, and snappers. Probably a few more. 

There was one sea lion that wanted to play in the water with me, so we made a few twisty surface dives. All in all, a nice little snorkel trip. 

Back on the boat we had a lunch of fish, chicken, rice, veggies, salad, cheese and bread, with a cherry roll for dessert. All good. 

Then we made the two hour journey back to Puerto Ayora. 

Lynn and I decided to take a dip in the ocean off the beach at the hotel. We then went to the pool and watched a Heron and Lava Gulls as they joined us in the pool area. The Lava gulls tried to take some shoes and socks. 

Next was briefing for the next day, followed by dinner, and getting our gear together for a hike.  

TO DARWINS FINCHES AND BIG TORTUGAS!!!!

To Darwin's land of Turtles: 

Up at 0500, to assure we had our bags out and pack up our carry on, etc,  etc, etc. 

Checked out of the hotel and had a quick breakfast and boarded a bus to the airport. Soon we were on our way. The whole air time was about 2 hours and 15 minutes with a stop in Guayaquil. We soon landed in Baltra and boarded a bus for the short drive to the ferry which took us to Santa Cruz. We then boarded another bus and made our way to Manzanillo Ranch for lunch and to see the giant tortoise. 

Our large group has been divided into two smaller groups for our activities here on this portion of our trip. Each group has a local naturalist to act as a guide. Eduardo is the local guide assigned to our group and he is related to one of the guides we had with Nat Geo. 

After the lunch and tortoise visit we again travel by bus to the dock where we catch a small panga (water Taxi)  to our hotel’s  dock. We are staying at Finch Bay Hotel.  We find this to be a very nice property and are soon checked into our room. There is a great looking pool, bar and dining room. The rooms are well appointed and simple. Thus they are perfect. The staff is very friendly and we received a warm welcome with a cool wet towels and a cold glass of passion fruit juice. 

We have already seen Boobies, Ground Finches, Smooth Billed Ani, Whimbrel,  Giant Tortoise, Blue footed boobies, Iguana, and sea lions.  The sea lions, in true form, have found their spots on the benches at the dock, Sally Lightfoot crabs, Heron, pelican, etc etc etc Oh the Galapagos Mockingbird. 

The weather is warm again and we will be briefed this evening about the next days activities. 

Soon we had dinner, I had a chicken and plantains, while Lynn had a tuna dish, all fresh and very well presented. Dessert was a passion fruit mousse. 

Tomorrow we head over to Santa Fe Island for some wildlife viewing and snorkeling. 

A Day In Quito

In-between day in Quito:

This day started with breakfast at the JW Marriott and then we loaded onto a bus for a drive to the older section of Quito. We were dropped off at ??? plaza where we met with a local guide for a walking tour. We learned about the church and overall history of Quito. From there we walked to the Iglesia de la Compania De Jesus.  This church has an interior of leaf and was very ornate in the Baroque style. 

From the church we made our way to the Independence Plaza where we watched the changing of the guard and the President of Ecuador was present. This was a very important location in Quito, for the fresh water and it was also the start of the first expedition to the Amazon. 

For lunch we went to a colonial residence which had been converted into a hotel in 2008. The name of this property was the Grand Plaza Hotel. We dined in the ballroom where a very nice lunch was offered. The dessert was a chocolate and vanilla ice-cream with a chocolate sauce served in brass cast bowls. The cast bowls were set in another bowl. The lower bowl had water and dry ice giving it a fog effect. Nice presentation. 

After lunch we made our way to La Ronda one of the well preserved areas of the old town area. Here we were met by a young lady who assumed the identity of a young lady who lived in the area in the early 20th century. She maintained her character as she informed us of the daily life of La Ronda. 

We next visited a wood carver who specialized in wooden boxes with hidden compartments and then a small chocolate shop. Here we learned about the processing of chocolate into the product we eat today. Most of the finer chocolate here is at least 70% or better. 

We waited in the rain for our bus to arrive as it was dealing with traffic. Our next stop was one of the markets where we were given $5.00 for a White Elephant exchange to be held on the Galapagos. 

We did some bargaining and found gifts for the exchange.  I enjoyed an ear of corn from a street vendor.  The bus the took us back to the hotel where we started the packing process for the next part of our Trip to the Galapagos. Again we can leave a bag here at the JW Marriott, this is a great amenity of this trip. 

We have an early wake up, 0500, to get bags out and have breakfast and get to the airport for our flight.