1/3/18
Abby, Angelique, and Elana were presenting about tourism in Ecuador, but they weren't presenting until later in the morning. So a small group of us decided to make the most of our time here by getting up early and going back to Las Grietas. It was a hot morning, but a small rain-shower relieved the heat. I didn't regret for one moment going out early. We saw mocking birds fighting to win the girl, a napping iguana, lots of finches, and a real, wild hermit crab (unlike the ones sold on the boardwalk in the summer).
After spending some time at Las Grietas, we all headed back to the hotel to pack up our luggage and listen to the presentation. We had a boat to catch to Isabela for that afternoon. The debate on this presentation ultimately came down to whether it was more important to have people visit a place of significance to see for themselves why it would be worth conserving or are people doing more damage simply by being there that it actually counters the goal of conserving it at all. I understand that people do damage by visiting, but I also think it's very important for someone to have some personal relationship with a location, making it a cause that's close to their heart. You can show me cute videos of sea lions all day long, but if I see one for myself, doing something quirky or adorable, suddenly I have a connection with that animal and place- a memory, that I'll have forever; these are the kinds of connections we need to allow people to have, because otherwise that animal or place just isn't real enough for them to have the desire to protect.
When our discussions had ended, we gathered our luggage and walked down the street to a restaurant for lunch. I had spaghetti with pumpkin soup and popcorn. Instead of crackers in soup, they use popcorn in Ecuador, which was an interesting twist. We had to eat quickly here in order to catch the boat that would be taking us to Isabela. This trend of being rushed to eat and not finishing my meals would continue throughout the rest of the trip. It eventually became a running joke between a few of us. Most of us had finished, but it was time to go. More security awaited us at the same dock where we'd been catching the water taxis from. This time, the water taxis brought us and our luggage to a larger speed boat further out in the deeper water of the inlet. This boat would take us to Isabela, which was about 2 hours away. Everyone loaded up on Dramamine before heading out into open waters.
Mostly, the Dramamine meant we all napped, but while we were awake, some dolphins jumped out of the ocean. More water taxis met us at Isabela. We were greeted by some sea lions playing on the dock there. Isabela is the largest island in the archipelago, but the least populated, at just under 2,000 occupants. The people here, like one the other populated islands, live for ecotourism. It is how they make a living and how they protect their homes. Only a very small fraction of the islands can be developed in the first place. Our guide, Paula, met us here and began our few days in Isabela with kindness and knowledge. She had only begun learning English a few months ago.
Paula took us to our hotel. We checked into Hotel Cally and got ready to go out on another adventure. There was kind of a frenzy in the lobby here because it was the only spot that had wifi. Everyone put their things in their rooms and headed back downstairs for our next adventure. We walked down the main stretch of the "town" which had sandy streets and open store-fronts, to rent bikes. I had an issue finding one short enough for me, which was pretty embarrassing. But once I did, we followed Paula down the road into a less devloped area of the town. It had more vegetation and more bugs. Paula took us to an old quarry that was filled with water. This was a favorite hang-out for Caribbean Flamingos. But recently their population has been suffering. Since people don't go to the Galapagos expecting to see flamingos, their population isn't assisted in any way. This brought up an interesting discussion: while the locals claimed no wildlife was managed here, it seemed more like selective management to us. The animals that people wanted to see were in high abundance, but the others were left to fend for themselves.
Another issue Paula spoke about here was the water desalination plant for the population of Isabela. The people here use ocean water that has been desalinated to drink, cook, and bathe. However, their filter had broken, so the people were drinking salty water. They told us it was okay to drink, but we bought water most of the time because it felt like the water couldn't be healthy or hydrating. The Ecuadorian government had promised to pay for this new filter, however, it had been over a month when we were there and the islands still didn't have the money they needed. This led us to another discussion. How could Ecuador put so much money into the conservation of the Galapagos islands but not give the people the bare minimum that they need to survive? We took our salty showers and washed our hands with the water. I never felt all the way clean though... it was a reminder of what the people were dealing with there. Everyone hoped the money would get to them soon.
After this, we headed back to the hotel to get ready for dinner. There was some free time before we met at the restaurant, so a group of us decided to go to the beach for a while. We planned on jumping in the ocean. This would be my first time in the Pacific! When we got there, the sun was going down and it had gotten much cooler. I decided to wait to take my dip in the ocean until tomorrow. However, a bunch of other people still wanted to go in, so I held their towels until they were done swimming. We explored a bit and found lots of baby iguanas in the rocks here.
Next was dinner! We ate every lunch and dinner at the same place while in Isabela. The food was fresh and tasty. As usual, soup was the appetizer. I think it was at this point that we all realized we were getting soup at every meal. We had accepted that. After dinner, we walked around the town for a while. Some people got "milkshakes" that were prepared unlike any I'd ever seen. I really liked this part of the trip. I felt very safe here, and the Galapagos in general. We were right in the middle of town, and most everyone was very nice. There were also some stray dogs on Isabela, so that night when one followed Greg and I back to the hotel, we hung out for a while to give him some pets and then we went inside.
After spending some time at Las Grietas, we all headed back to the hotel to pack up our luggage and listen to the presentation. We had a boat to catch to Isabela for that afternoon. The debate on this presentation ultimately came down to whether it was more important to have people visit a place of significance to see for themselves why it would be worth conserving or are people doing more damage simply by being there that it actually counters the goal of conserving it at all. I understand that people do damage by visiting, but I also think it's very important for someone to have some personal relationship with a location, making it a cause that's close to their heart. You can show me cute videos of sea lions all day long, but if I see one for myself, doing something quirky or adorable, suddenly I have a connection with that animal and place- a memory, that I'll have forever; these are the kinds of connections we need to allow people to have, because otherwise that animal or place just isn't real enough for them to have the desire to protect.
When our discussions had ended, we gathered our luggage and walked down the street to a restaurant for lunch. I had spaghetti with pumpkin soup and popcorn. Instead of crackers in soup, they use popcorn in Ecuador, which was an interesting twist. We had to eat quickly here in order to catch the boat that would be taking us to Isabela. This trend of being rushed to eat and not finishing my meals would continue throughout the rest of the trip. It eventually became a running joke between a few of us. Most of us had finished, but it was time to go. More security awaited us at the same dock where we'd been catching the water taxis from. This time, the water taxis brought us and our luggage to a larger speed boat further out in the deeper water of the inlet. This boat would take us to Isabela, which was about 2 hours away. Everyone loaded up on Dramamine before heading out into open waters.
Mostly, the Dramamine meant we all napped, but while we were awake, some dolphins jumped out of the ocean. More water taxis met us at Isabela. We were greeted by some sea lions playing on the dock there. Isabela is the largest island in the archipelago, but the least populated, at just under 2,000 occupants. The people here, like one the other populated islands, live for ecotourism. It is how they make a living and how they protect their homes. Only a very small fraction of the islands can be developed in the first place. Our guide, Paula, met us here and began our few days in Isabela with kindness and knowledge. She had only begun learning English a few months ago.
Paula took us to our hotel. We checked into Hotel Cally and got ready to go out on another adventure. There was kind of a frenzy in the lobby here because it was the only spot that had wifi. Everyone put their things in their rooms and headed back downstairs for our next adventure. We walked down the main stretch of the "town" which had sandy streets and open store-fronts, to rent bikes. I had an issue finding one short enough for me, which was pretty embarrassing. But once I did, we followed Paula down the road into a less devloped area of the town. It had more vegetation and more bugs. Paula took us to an old quarry that was filled with water. This was a favorite hang-out for Caribbean Flamingos. But recently their population has been suffering. Since people don't go to the Galapagos expecting to see flamingos, their population isn't assisted in any way. This brought up an interesting discussion: while the locals claimed no wildlife was managed here, it seemed more like selective management to us. The animals that people wanted to see were in high abundance, but the others were left to fend for themselves.
Another issue Paula spoke about here was the water desalination plant for the population of Isabela. The people here use ocean water that has been desalinated to drink, cook, and bathe. However, their filter had broken, so the people were drinking salty water. They told us it was okay to drink, but we bought water most of the time because it felt like the water couldn't be healthy or hydrating. The Ecuadorian government had promised to pay for this new filter, however, it had been over a month when we were there and the islands still didn't have the money they needed. This led us to another discussion. How could Ecuador put so much money into the conservation of the Galapagos islands but not give the people the bare minimum that they need to survive? We took our salty showers and washed our hands with the water. I never felt all the way clean though... it was a reminder of what the people were dealing with there. Everyone hoped the money would get to them soon.
After this, we headed back to the hotel to get ready for dinner. There was some free time before we met at the restaurant, so a group of us decided to go to the beach for a while. We planned on jumping in the ocean. This would be my first time in the Pacific! When we got there, the sun was going down and it had gotten much cooler. I decided to wait to take my dip in the ocean until tomorrow. However, a bunch of other people still wanted to go in, so I held their towels until they were done swimming. We explored a bit and found lots of baby iguanas in the rocks here.
Next was dinner! We ate every lunch and dinner at the same place while in Isabela. The food was fresh and tasty. As usual, soup was the appetizer. I think it was at this point that we all realized we were getting soup at every meal. We had accepted that. After dinner, we walked around the town for a while. Some people got "milkshakes" that were prepared unlike any I'd ever seen. I really liked this part of the trip. I felt very safe here, and the Galapagos in general. We were right in the middle of town, and most everyone was very nice. There were also some stray dogs on Isabela, so that night when one followed Greg and I back to the hotel, we hung out for a while to give him some pets and then we went inside.
Photo used under Creative Commons from petrr