Vacation

Our one week vacation started on a small boat which took twenty three of us to Isabella Island. This ride took four hours and it happened to be a miserable ride. Five of us were sharing the backseat-the only place with a bit of fresh air and the view of the horizon. The rest were scattered about the floor and benches. It’s a good thing we are a close group. When we finally arrived we met up with the five politics students who were already there. We ate lunch and then the activities began.
The first day we were taken to the Galapaguera (turtle breeding station) and to see the flamingos. Isabella is one of the only islands where flamingos can be found. Most afternoons we had free to spend on the beach (white, soft, sandy beaches that went on forever) play soccer or volleyball, have music/snuggle/movie parties in the hotel.
Day two was spent walking over volcanic rock to the crater. Our guide was allergic to people and kept trying to rush us on. Several time we actually asked if we couldn’t make new friends and eventually got it out of that he wanted us to himself. After that we made a point to enjoy the hike and take our time. After lunch we went snorkeling in a little cove and saw all the nifty fish and a few seahorses.
Day three we took a water taxi out to some smaller islands. One where we found penguins and on the other we found marine iguanas galore and white tip sharks. This whole week there was a common theme of being boggled by the shear amount of animals. When we saw an animal it almost never was one but rather 7 sharks, school of fish, and harem of sea lions, 100’s of iguanas, 45+ boobies, and entire islands of birds. If I was just a tourist there is no way I would know that the majority of these animals are at risk. After the islands we jumped off the taxis and went snorkeling (this vacation was full of snorkeling, sorry for lack of variety. But every time was different for me) we saw things from Moorish idols, eels, sharks, turtles, sea lions, pencil fish, scar from the movie finding memo!
For those of you who are not aware, we are now ending one of the biggest la ninas in who knows when. This makes water extremely cold and land very dry. Two characteristics extremely opposite of the tropics. I just love my luck ;) but one of the good things is that the cold water makes the ocean very productive! More fish! More SHARKS 
None the less Isabella was amazing. It is exactly what I imagined the Galapagos to be. Warm. Two main streets. Sandy roads. Arrive by boat. Small town. Nature everywhere. long sandy beaches (where you could find cool tide pools, jelly fish, blow fish, iguanas and sea shells) clear water. If you are planning on visiting the islands this is a must see place!!!!
The night before we left Isabella the power went out throughout the whole town(a first in Isabella history). Two of my friends happened to be showering before dinner and you could hear them simultaneously yell NOOOOOO because they were both in the dark, soapy and without water. My hotel happened to be three stories with an open roof so we headed up there and enjoyed the fabulous stars. Even the two in their towels  after about twenty minutes they decided they couldn’t wait any longer and went to the grocery store to buy three bottles of water. It looked very scandalous the two of them dressed in towels walking trough crowded streets to buy water and one beer. We had to take a picture. We fell asleep that night with four twin beds pushed together, ten people huddled close, and watching toy story three on a lap top. GREAT NIGHTS <3
On the fourth day we woke up and got spoiled with another fantastic breakfast. This hotel fed us real bread and fruit. Plus warm milk for good tea and coffee. Heaven! And then we were off for a two hour boat ride to Santa Cruz (the big city of the archipelago) I made sure to take some meds before this one! This time we were split into two smaller faster boats. The drivers were playing/racing and then we stop in the middle of the ocean and the captain comes down and says ‘bano?’ a slight giggle fills the boat. We made it to Santa Cruz with just enough time to find COOKIES before boarding the cruise ships. These weren’t just any cookies. No, they were chocolate chip! Homemade! Warm! The most similar to American since the US! Big! Delicious! With happy tummies and excited minds we boarded our respective cruise ships and awaited adventure.