Santa Cruz and North Seymour Islands
The most emblematic animal of all the Galápagos species are undoubtedly the giant tortoises. This morning we headed out to find them in their natural element, the open green and lush forest located in the highlands of Santa Cruz. The verdure of the vegetation is beautiful, but the scenery became much better when we saw these ancient species grassing the elephant grass close to the main road. We all came out of the buses looking for a chance to get the best angle for the picture, and of course to simply observe their behavior.
Once satisfied with at least over ten different tortoises spread all along the road, we went after a delicious breakfast in a near by, open-air style restaurant.
The last part of our morning was dedicated to shopping, so we headed to the town of Puerto Ayora to enjoy a different pace in our trip. Shopping was not the only thing to do here, but whatever activity we did, we sure enjoyed it!Some of us decided to simply stroll along its clean streets, enjoying the contrast in colors as the trees were blooming all over town.
For the afternoon we visited the Island of North Seymour. It was overwhelming to observe all the sea birds found in this area performing their courtship displays. It was visually delightful to see the bright colors, but in some cases it was more than that, and the birds added vocal display to their performances, like in the case of the blue-footed boobies and frigate birds. The number of land iguanas found along the trail was incredible and the view included sea lions playing with the waves as they were breaking by the shoreline.
The most emblematic animal of all the Galápagos species are undoubtedly the giant tortoises. This morning we headed out to find them in their natural element, the open green and lush forest located in the highlands of Santa Cruz. The verdure of the vegetation is beautiful, but the scenery became much better when we saw these ancient species grassing the elephant grass close to the main road. We all came out of the buses looking for a chance to get the best angle for the picture, and of course to simply observe their behavior.
Once satisfied with at least over ten different tortoises spread all along the road, we went after a delicious breakfast in a near by, open-air style restaurant.
The last part of our morning was dedicated to shopping, so we headed to the town of Puerto Ayora to enjoy a different pace in our trip. Shopping was not the only thing to do here, but whatever activity we did, we sure enjoyed it!Some of us decided to simply stroll along its clean streets, enjoying the contrast in colors as the trees were blooming all over town.
For the afternoon we visited the Island of North Seymour. It was overwhelming to observe all the sea birds found in this area performing their courtship displays. It was visually delightful to see the bright colors, but in some cases it was more than that, and the birds added vocal display to their performances, like in the case of the blue-footed boobies and frigate birds. The number of land iguanas found along the trail was incredible and the view included sea lions playing with the waves as they were breaking by the shoreline.
