Galapogas

Considering that the Galapogas trip was a last minute trip, it sure turned out to be pretty fantastic. In all of our trips, we have never seen so much wildlife. We've never seen wildlife so abundant and so casual about human visitors. The need to walk around and step over the sea lions, iguanas and birds was amazing. I would have never expected to walk within inches of wildlife.

Quito, Ecuador was an interesting city - even if I hadn't had my blackberry stolen and recovered. It is not in the developed class of many larger cities we have visited. But, it is a city that is developing rapidly.

Development on the Galapogas islands is minimal and strictly controlled. In fact, many current inhabitants are being asked to leave the islands if they are not what Ecuador has classified as natives. With only four significant towns, residential population is minimal. One city around 20,000 and the rest in the range of 4,000 to 6,000.

The geology of the islands is also amazing. We observed clear examples of the development of volcanic islands. Each island was different based upon the age of the island. In many cases, erosion allowed us to see various layers of geologic age.

In the end, this was perhaps one of our most interesting trips. It certainly wasn't relaxing - Jill and I are literally worn out. This trip can't be beat for the wildlife, nature, geology and natural history. Fabulous, wonderful, amazing and without comparison.