Day 1 (Sunday, May 20): San Cristobal Island
Our first stop and our starting point for this trip in the Galapagos was San Cristobal Island, where we landed from our flight from Guayaquil.
(Click on each image to see the high-resolution version)
At the dock in the port city (and the capital of San Cristobal) Puerto Baquerizo Moreno, we embarked on our yacht, the M/Y Letty, and had our orientation for the trip. The island of San Cristobal is quite charming, but we had little time to linger at this time, as we would soon board a bus to the Galapaguera de Cerro Colorado, a tortoise breeding center.
San Cristobal (Puerto Baquerizo Moreno)
The Galapagos Giant Tortoises at the center are captive, so it felt more like a zoo (although some will be reintroduced into the wild). But this was our first encounter with these gentle giants.
Giant Tortoise
Giant Tortoise
I did see wildlife here though: I saw my first San Cristobal Mockingbird and my very first Darwin's Finch (this one is a Medium Ground Finch, I believe). I would see more of these birds that inspired Darwin's theory of evolution later on this trip, but this first encounter was one of the most memorable.
San Cristobal Mockingbird
Darwin's Finch (Medium Ground Finch?)
Back to Puerto Baquerizo Moreno, we lingered around the dock to admire the Galapagos Sea Lions and Sally Lightfoot Crabs.
Galapagos Sea Lion
Galapagos Sea Lion
Galapagos Sea Lion
Galapagos Sea Lion
Sally Lightfoot Crab
Sally Lightfoot Crab
We embarked on our ship and watched our very first Galapagos sunset from the deck. Our ship was about to set sail and our week-long journey in this archipelago in the middle of the Pacific Ocean would soon begin. Our hearts were filled with excitement.
Sunset
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