It is been a once in a lifetime trip already. But after seeing so many animals, and having no contact with local civilization, it was about time to discover that culture. The Galapagos has a political capital, which is San Cristobal. However the island we visited today is the economical capital of the islands. Santa Cruz hosts about fifty percent of our population, due to the two main headquarters of the Galapagos National Park and the Charles Darwin Research Station.
In morning we had some time to rest before enjoying the lovely breakfast onboard. After breakfast we started our excursions. The first stop in Santa Cruz is the Breeding Center for the giant tortoises, next to the Darwin Station. There is where our guests could learn a little more about the process these animals follow. Their numbers decreased drastically since the 17th century, when people discovered they can survive months or years without food and water, making them a very convenient source of meat besides fish. We found giants and babies, alone or in groups – all kinds of tortoises in captivity.
Later, there was some time for all of us to enjoy our only opportunity to see life on the islands and to shop for a good memory to take back home.
Almost before noon and lunch we had time to see some products made on the islands in the old-fashioned tradition. El Trapiche offered just that; molasses, brown sugar and rum obtained out of the sugar cane and the delicious Galapagos coffee and its process of preparation.
We did not have to come back home to enjoy lunch, because we went to a restaurant up in the highlands and later continued with more walks. To summarize the entire day, more giant tortoises were here than anywhere else and we even found them in the wild, which is the best.
So this was a beautiful day on this inhabited island, full of tortoises and people.
