27 July - Day 53: Mama - my Kindle is the BEST gift!

Keeping with status quo I woke up with no idea of a plan for today. My house mom, Petita, managed to convince her son to take me on a tour of Islet Tintoreras. Apparently she couldn't find a tour for me to join so her daugher and I had our own private boat cruise. I had previously mentioned that I am not a big fan of choppy waves, so we stayed in the calm waters and putted around.

It was absolutely gorgeous. I just can't get over the crystal clear water lapping up onto the black basalt.

On our way over to the islet we spotted two penguins - Galapagos Penguins - the only penguins to venture into the northern hemispere, but of course right now I am just a bit below the equator. The penguins were resting next to some pelicans and a blue footed booby.

I also got my first really good spotting of sea turtles. The brother boat captain let us of on Islet Tintoreras and I thought the white capped lava was bird poo, but come to find out - it's actually lichen. I was pretty impressed by this and now have even more rock photos.

Winding our way though hundreds of marine iguanas we come to a little cove with... white tipped reef sharks. Yes, the same kind on Santa Cruz, but the view here is clearer. Being the only shark that doesn't have to keep moving to breathe, these white tipped reef sharks come to rest. I was told that there was no snorkeling allowed in the cove with sharks - no worries - there's isn't enough money in the world to make me even consider getting in the water with sharks - even if they are "sleeping".

Walking on the islet was what I'd pictured the Galapagos to be. Black basalt, coral beaches, bright turquoise pools of water and of course the required sea lion pup frolicking about.

After the little boat trip I decided to find some lunch. I was warned that the fist question to ask a restaurant is "Do you have food?" and the second quesion - "What do you have?" I was told not to bother with a menu because chances are the restaurant would be out of whatever you wanted, and sure enough my first stop resulted in a strike out. I kept looking and found some ceviche. Shrimp ceviche with fried plantains! Super delicious!

I've been reading "The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo" on my kindle and I can't put it down! I stayed at lunch (yes, by myself) for over an hour and didn't feel awkard!

After lunch I headed down a nice pathway - past some salt lagoons and many birds - including pink flamingos - to the turtle breeding center.

I managed to visit a turtle breeding center on all three main islands. Each one uniquely built.

Isabella is home to 5 different species of Giant Tortoises. That's the most species on one island in the entire world. At the center they are trying to beef up the population. In the late 1700's whalers took over 200,000 turtles from the Galapagos. Since they can live without food or water for an extended period - the seamen could capture them and kill them for fresh meat when they were sailing. Also, they used the fat to burn for fuel. I guess we've always successfully raped the earth for our pleasure and comfort.

I found myself wandering aimlessly around the few streets and along the beach. My brain in wondering how I'm going to keep myself busy for three more days...

p.s. I finished "The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo" and thankfully have 50 more books at my fingertips on my kindle! Thanks Mama...