Well we're done with the Galapagos but we're still in Ecuador in the capital city of Quito. Here are some pictures from out first couple of days of site seeing.


View from the top of a mountain overlooking the city. You take a cable car called the TeleferiQuo to get up there and then you can walk ever further towards the top. You can see that Quito is located right in the middle of the Andes Mountains.


The indigenous people of this region still live separately from everyone else, up in the mountains. Here is one of them on his horse.


Derek and cousin Alex looking over the edge of a precipice. Falling here would be a very bad idea.


A view of Cotopaxi, the largest mountain in Ecuador. It is also a very active volcano.


The Pululagua valley. This was once a huge volcano but the top was blown off during the last eruption. It is now the 5th largest volcanic crater in the world.


A real shrunken head. It is around 120 years old and was the son of the tribes chief at that time. The head hunters still shrink heads today, but are no longer allowed to do it to their enemies. Now they only do it to animals and members of their own tribe if they want to honor them.


I was the only one able to balance an egg on the head of a nail. You can do this anywhere but it is easier if you're directly on the Equator, which we were.


The Equator line. This one is actually fake though, it's around 200 meters off. Not bad though considering it was calculated before GPS or anything. We had visited the real Equator line right before this.


Llama eating some flower that had just been planted.



We had to try cui (guinea pig).


We liked it. Not enough to eat the head though.

Last Few Days in Galapagos

Yesterday afternoon I arrived in Quito!

The last week in Galapagos after the Floreana day trip we went to Isla San Cristobal. Due to the need for some serious money saving at the end of the trip we only stayed for one whole day. Although I wish we could have stayed longer we were extremely tired since just a day prior we had done the Floreana trip. Every time you go to any Island it costs you $25 each way but most painful is the two hour boat ride to every island. It seemed that as winter is coming in every boat trip we made got worse. The farther into winter the rougher the seas.

San Cristobal was beautiful. Puerto Baquerizo Moreno, the main city, was fairly developed similar to Puerto Ayora but not nearly as busy. This is probably what made it our favorite island. Some of the other islands like Isabella and Floreana were nice but were so remote it made living difficult. Meals were especially difficult because there were very few, like 2 or 3, options as far as where to eat. Puerto Ayora was the exact opposite of this but was so busy it was loud and dirtier than the other islands. Puerto Baquerizo Moreno provided a happy medium.

Our first morning in San Cristobal we chartered a taxi to take us to see the highlands. We got really lucky as the taxi driver was a local who had been born and raised on San Cristobal, so he made for a good tour guide. First, we stopped at El Progresso, a little town that used to be part of Manuel J. Cobos' plantation of the same name. Manuel J. Cobos was the islands infamous tyrant. He owned a sugar plantation, El Progresso, that made him very wealthy and gave him unchallenged power on San Cristobal. He considered himself not only the owner of the island but of his workers as well. He abused them to such an extent that they eventually rebelled against him, dragged him from the second story of his house, and murdered him. You can still see the remains of his plantation home. Still visible is the section of his house where he used to hang and torture his workers.

After El Progresso we headed farther into the highlands to see the Laguna el Junco, the only fresh water lake in the Galapagos. Found on the top of a mountain, which you have to walk up to get there, this lake is an amazing site to see. The air at that altitude is so fresh it felt great to be up there (after you recovered from the hike up the mountain. We were so high up that the altitude, combined with the wind, actually made the air a little chilly at times. While there you could also get an amazing view of the rest of the island. Overall it was one of the most beautiful places we have visited thus far. While there we also got to see a flock of Frigates for the first time. While walking around the lake we saw several volunteers working with machetes to remove the Blackberry plants that are one of the islands' most invasive species. At the same time other volunteers were planting more than 1000 Miconias, an endemic plant, for Ecuador's earth day.

In the afternoon we walked to the Center of Interpretation which is a museum that outlines the history of the Galapagos' Islands. We also snorkeled at Las Tijeretas and passed by Mann Beach which was covered in sea lions. San Cristobal has more sea lions than any other of the islands. Although this is pretty cool to see there are so many you can barely even use the beaches. The sea lions are very territorial so there are often fights between males, plus they defecate all over the beach and it stinks.

After getting back on Friday we spent the last days taking photo's of some of the older homes in Santa Cruz. Many of these are close to La Playa de los Alemanes which translates to German Beach. Here is where the islands first settlers, many of whom were German, chose to make their homes. We also went back to Las Grietas to go for a nice swim in its crystal clear water. =]

Leaving was sad. It felt like leaving home a little but we are in Quito now and it is truly a beautiful city.

-Cristi

Videos from Floreana

First video: These are some Boobies resting on a rock off the coast of Floreana.

Second video: A sea turtle that Derek found swimming right under our boat when we got out to snorkel. I didn´t get to see it because I decided to get stung by a jellyfish instead...

Third video: Yulyka´s new dog Coco.

Isla Floreana

Yesterday I was finally able to go to Isla Floreana. I have been particularly interested in this island because of it´s amazing and mysterious history. For years its many caves and fresh water made it the perfect resting place for pirates. Later, those same caves would become the home of adventurous individuals who would come for health reasons and some to conquer land. Today the island is still home to some but not many. The national park along with the Charles Darwin foundation has also managed to almost completely eradicate the invasive species which included goats among the most destructive. It is said that their invasion began as far back as when the pirates would visit. They would come bringing animals like the goat so that they could feed on the fertile lands and be nice and fat for the pirates to eat whenever they came back. The Wittmer family is one of the most important as they settled on the island for the well being of their sick son but ended up owning a good portion of it. Margarette Wittmer who died just 9 years ago wrote an autobiography making her seem like a brave heroin. For many locals however she is known as a greedy woman who was obsessed with making the land hers and even a possible murderer. Yesterday, our tour guide told us that many think that she may have been the real culprit behind the mysterious disappearances of the Baroness Wagner (to locals the ´Nymphomaniac´) and her two lovers. The Baroness had come to Floreana to make a hotel for millionaires, something that Mrs. Wittmer would not like. According to the tour guide, Mrs. Wittmer would like her even less when her own Mr. Wittmer started to show interest in the sex crazed Baroness. The mistress of Dr. Frederich Ritter, who had arrived to the island even before the Wittmer´s, also mysteriously disappeared. Many also speculate that Mrs. Wittmer also had a hand in her disappearance.
I love these stories because they really make me think. It´s strange, when I first got here it seemed such a perfect marriage between man and nature. It seemed that the locals here all had a deep respect for nature and a responsibility to keep their islands pure. Although this is still true, I have also seen the darker side of their relationship. I have spoken to fishermen who resent the strict fishing rules that have been placed upon them. At night by the bay you could see all of the plastic that they litter the water with. Even before all of this, the only reason why the islands are even populated is because of the people that came to use the land for everything it had. Kill its wild life for its meat and oil.
Here in Santa Cruz they have already sold land to expand the city farther up land. For the growing population here in Puerto Ayora that would seem like a good thing, Yulika herself has a nice piece of land where she will eventually make her home. But these islands don´t have much fresh water, especially not Santa Cruz. Its land is made up almost entirely of volcanic rock so it is impossible to have an efficient sewage and plumbing system. So, not only is there not enough water for the growing population but its also really difficult to spread. Every morning we have no water. No way of showering, washing our hands, flushing the toilet not until after 11 am when it finally arrives. After it arrives we still don´t know how long we will have it since it is shared by three different households. If everyone is washing clothes that day we can´t expect to have it for more that a few hours. I have lived here for three weeks now. I personally interact and know many of the locals by now. I know that this is there home and I know how much they love to live here. Still, sometimes I wonder if anyone should be here at all.

Anyway, Floreana was amazing. We snorkelled with baby sea lions again and I finally got to see the caves I had read about. The videos are taking a little too long to finish loading so I will try my best to upload them before I leave today at 2pm to Isla San Cristobal where I will be until Friday morning.

Till then,

Cristi

Photo Update

Stages of a developing Galapagos turtle from inside the egg up to 3 months.

Derek and I in a turtle shell. We know this one died of natural causes because it was complete. There were some missing the bottom part meaning they were killed to be eaten. The lady who had them told me that her father, a 93 year old local from Santa Cruz, used to eat them before it became illegal.

Rock formations made within the Love Tunnels in Santa Cruz. The tunnels are part of a series of lava tubes created during the formation of the island. The lady who owned the land told us that her father first discovered the caverns in 1948 when a cow that belonged to him fell through.

A cool heart braid that Yulika´s aunt made me!

Derek going up the spiral staircase inside the lighthouse at the top of Las Peñas.

Derek standing next to a portion of the Muro de las Lagrimas on Isabella. Think of how heavy these rocks were that they caused so many deaths.

Full scale wall photograph.

Women dressed in 1900 Guayaquil clothing.

Recreated scene of 1900 Guayaquil homes along el Malecon.

Houses and restaurant in Las Peñas.

Las Peñas from below. We walked all the way up.

Missing the U.S.A.

I never thought this would happen, but this has been the first week in which we have actually missed home. Not that the islands have become less beautiful or less unique, it's just that this week has been a difficult one for the progress of the project. Not that it's in trouble or anything but we haven't been able to go to either Floreana or San Cristobal yet. The ride back from Isabella was particularly brutal. With the arrival of winter, the seas around the islands are becoming rougher. The boat was tossed around like a toy and almost everyone on board was on the verge of sea sickness. Even though we didn't get sick we were bounced up and down so much we arrived very sore and took the rest of the day to recuperate. That was the first time we decided to put off the Floreana tour. We figured we would give both our bodies and the weather a little time to improve. Unfortunately, the very next day we both got a minor case of food poisoning. From what, we can't really say, but it was definitely not pleasant and made it so that we were very careful for the next two days. We had to stop eating as much as we had been, which was hard within itself, but also we obviously couldn't leave our room that much either. Mostly, I sat at home reading the sources that the Charles Darwin Foundation had given me about their successful efforts in the eradication of invasive species, while Derek glued himself to the T.V. to watch the French open. Occasionally I would read a chapter of Percy Jackson out loud too.

One morning around 6am my cell phone rang so I picked it up. It was a lady asking for Yulika. I said no sorry this is not Yulika's phone. She asked me who I was so I hung up. She called five minutes later asking for Yulika again, this time I immediately hung up. She called back immediately twice, at which point I turned the phone off. Two things about this worried me. One, how does someone from here have my telephone number and why did they think that it belonged to Yulika? Either way, it was too early to care and I went back to sleep. The following afternoon I was feeling much better so I went and spent time with Yulika and her mom while they were home on their lunch break. When I went to check on Derek he reminded me that the phone was off and that I should probably turn it on. When I did there were four text messages. Considering the only person that texts me in this Island is Yulika that's a lot. I open the first unknown number and read a horrifying message basically calling me a whore and to stay away from married men. This is never a nice thing to read especially when you have no idea why you're getting these messages. Thinking about the morning’s mysterious caller I decided to tell Yulika and her mom. They were shocked and furious, and with good reason. So her mom gets on her own cell phone and asks me for the number that had text me; the lady had called from more than one. She calls the first and is answered by the woman’s friend who apologizes saying she had just lent her phone to her friend. At the end of the conversation she very snidely suggested that Ivonne would do well to know who her daughter is dating. Considering the number was from Isabella and Yulika lives in Santa Cruz and is married the lady was promptly put in place by a very angry Ivonne. Then, Ivonne hung up and called the other phone from which the lady had called me. A man answered this time and when Ivonne explained the situation he turned out to be the tour guide that we had for the Isabella bay tour! We had given him our number so that he could try to hook us up with another tour. He apologized saying that his wife was a crazy jealous woman and that she must have thought the number was a mistress of his. She must have asked who he had given a tour to and someone probably said Ivonne Guerra's daughter Yulika since I had been referred by them to the Hostel we were staying at. All in all it was a pretty ridiculous experience. That said it did give me some insight on the culture and what it would be like to live in such a small community like the one in Isabella. Obviously the lack of extracurricular activities forces them so look for other types of entertainment.

On a lighter note, we've been getting to know Santa Cruz better. I’ve been walking around photographing my familiars and the way that people construct houses here. They use local tree bark as support columns. The houses are constructed in a very open manner which is pretty much the opposite of American homes. Often windows don’t even have glass just screen to keep the bugs out. All the roofs are made of corrugated metal. Most interesting to me is how some rooms will include one or two clear panels of roofing to allow for natural sunlight for the room during the day. The sun here is so bright that it acts even better than a ceiling light! While this is nice sometimes, it does present problems. Although all of the walls are concrete they are all connected to each other and have screened windows near the ceiling for ventilation. In the morning this could make it hard to sleep, especially because everyone starts their day around 6:30 am here.

Yesterday, as we were taking a taxi up to the post office I started up a conversation with the driver. He was a nice old man from Quito. I had started it by asking how many schools there were on Santa Cruz because I saw so many children with different uniforms. He said that there are six primaries and six secondaries. Primary here in Ecuador is like Elementary school, Secondary is both middle school and high school in one. I was really surprised by how many there were for such a small island. He then went on to tell me how when he had first arrived to live here there were only four schools period. I asked him how long ago that had been and he told me 1986. He said the big population boom came in the 90’s when people started to realize that people in the Galapagos’s got paid more, something that is still true today. This is due to the high cost of living because of import costs.

Today, were supposed to go to the ministry and the library to get some old photographs of how things used to be. Tomorrow we would like to go to the Lava Tubes. Hopefully nothing else gets in our way.

Photographs later!

-Cristi

Isla Isabella

I'm back from Isla Isabella! Wednesday afternoon at 2pm we left on a two hour ferry ride to Isabella. It is the largest of the Galapagos islands but it is also one of the least populated. Before leaving, Ivonne, Yulika's mom told us she had a friend that lived there and that she would call him to arrange for our stay at his parents Hostel. I was told to ask for Don Kiko when I arrived and that's exactly what I did. Luckily he happened to be at the dock waiting for his own son to arrive so he greeted us himself and took us to his Hostel Villamil. Don Kiko was very nice and offered us two rooms, one with no air conditioning for $12 each a night and the other with AC for $15. I said that I would prefer the one with AC and asked if breakfast was included for the $15. I guess Don Kiko and his wife took pity on me thinking I thought $15 was too steep and knocked it down to $13 so that I would have money to eat breakfast. Being the frugal traveller I am this was already turning out to be a good visit. From there, our stay in Isabella only got better. It turns out our host Don Kiko was not only a nice man but a very interesting one at that. Upon some conversation I told him about my project and the interest I have in the locals and their history. The very next morning Don Kiko and his wife called me over to give me a pamphlet outlining the history of the Galapagos settlers. It was a wonderful book that went through Isabella, Floreana, Santa Cruz, San Cristobal, and Baltra. I read it once to myself and then again translating it page by page to Derek. The stories of the islands' colonization were each interesting and special in their own way. Floreanas for example even involved an evil Baroness Wagner with three lovers who was determined to exploit the island by building a hotel for millionairs. Her plans were cut short by the mysterious deaths of her and two of her lovers.

When reading about Isabella I couldn't help but notice the name of Antonio Gil the first man to establish a permanent colony on the Island. At first I couldn't decide why the name was so familiar but then I noticed Don Kiko's business card which said his real name Enrique Gil Ochoa. That afternoon, I asked his wife if he shared any relationship to the iconic figure and sure enough he did. Don Kiko turned out to be the grandson of Antonio Gil and she herself was the grandaughter of Don Pedro Jaramillo another of the important people I had seen in the pamphlet.

The island itself was amazing. Only one small town exists on the southern part of the island. It's called Puerto Villamil and is home to about 2,000 people. The rest of the island belongs to the National Park and is free of development. It is without a doubt the most pure place I've ever been to. It's beaches are pristine and there is always something to do. Don Kiko's sons are all involved in the tourism business so we got lucky yet again when we were offered two free tours. One of the inland areas and one of the bay. The inland tour showed us the local flamingos, a tortoise hatchery where we got to see a month old tortoise and 120 year old ones mating, and finally to El Muro de las Lagrimas a huge wall made of large, heavy volcanic rocks. Prisoners of the former penal colonies that existed on the island prior to 1959. As a form of penitance they were forced to build the wall. Many of them died from exhaustion or were shot for not working hard enough. Its name, The Wall of Tears, spawns from this terrible history.

During my stay I met many people and asked them about their own history with the island. Most people responded that they had lived there all their lives. Our guide for the bay tour had been born and raised on Isabella after his parents migrated from Guayaquil. He split his time between being a tour guide and working as a fisherman. I asked him about what kinds of fish he hunted and how he did it. As it turns out he was primarily a spearfisherman who hunted Bacalao, or Cod fish.Needless to say, he is Derek's new idol.

Later, walking down the beach I sat down on a little bench next to an elderly couple. As I started to talk to them I found out they have been living in Isabella for 13 years. She was Ecuadorian from Manavi and he was italian. They had lived in Quito for many years but moved to Isabella after visting on vacation and falling in love. It's a feeling Derek and I are starting to know so well. It's almost impossible not to fall in love with a place that makes you feel so close to nature. The islands inhabitants all seem extremely happy living in an existense that focuses only on the necessary. Leaving behind the superficial we deal with everyday. If there's one thing that the locals here have in common is that they all love the Galapagos and its lifestyle. Many of them are reluctant to leave the islands for fear of being corrupted or harmed by the outside world. They never refer to Ecuador or South America by name but instead as "Continent".

Isabella was a natural paradise full of wonderful people and history. We also got to see the penguins which are the second smallest in the world after the New Zealand penguins. They are according to Derek who swam close to one not as cute looking the closer you get. We also got a rare look at Golden Mantarays!

My computer finally died after four beautiful years of service =( so please excuse my late posts but understand I´m doing the best I can with what I have.

-Cristi