wow

It was really hard to choose which pictures to post. There are more that I´d like to show you, but some need a little editing and the computer I´m on now doesn´t have the software. So obviously I just got back from an AMAZING trip to the Galapagos Islands. I was on a boat for 11 days with 15 passengers (including my dad), a naturalist guide, a tour leader, and the ship´s crew. I have to admit that I was a little nervous about this trip. I´ve never been on "cruise," so I didn´t know how that would work out. Also, the way it works in the Galapagos National Park is that you can´t set foot on the islands without a certified naturalist guide. Not all the islands are open to visitors and the ones that are have marked trails that you have to follow. Those of you that know me know that comfortable yaughts and guided tours are not my normal mode of travel. Well I have to tell you that I was pleasently suprised and very impressed. Our naturalist guide (Martin Loyola) was wonderful and I can´t imagine the trip without him. He was incredibly knowledgable about the animals (terrestrial and marine), plants, and geology of the Galapagos. The islands by far exceeded my expectations. It´s hard to describe just how close we could get to the wildlife. Because of the lack of predators and the constant presence of visitors, the animals aren´t afraid of people at all. It was a wildlife photographer´s dream. Here´s a list of some of the highlights from the trip:

• baby birds everywhere
• swimming with hammerhead sharks
• seeing giant tortoises in the wild
• not getting sick when everyone else on the boat did
• swimming with a pod of false killer whales
• floating in the middle of a pelican/boobie/penguin feeding frenzie
• Martin´s stories
• swimming with a flock of penguins
• always getting to the islands before all the other tourists, just after sunrise
• breaching manta rays
• stargazing at the ecuator from the top deck
• pretending to be a sea lion in the water