Rest before the final adventure

After 11 hours of sleep we slowly got up and headed down to the kitchen to make ourselves breakfast. We cut up fruit that we bought the previous day (white tomato looking things with purple stripes), made some instant coffee and bread with jam. We talked with a couple from S Africa who now live in Panama and a Canadian dude. The couple wouldn’t stop talking but I guess that’s what happens when you travel when you’re retired.

We headed out for a day of shopping and relaxation. The weather was perfect once again- very warm in the sun and cool in the shade. We went to San Pedro market, an indoor market with lots of food, meats, and some tourist crap. We walked around town some more and another parade was going on. I still have no idea what all the parades are for. In all we got some walking sticks for Machu Picchu tomorrow ($40 for 4), Alpaca gloves, sweater, scarves, Sacha Inchi nuts that are supposed to have a lot of good Omega fats for the hike (per the S African couple) and other excellent items. Hungry and it was only 1030, we headed back to the large market and got some soup with a huge chunk of Cordero (lamb). It was delicious and just what we wanted.

On our way back to the hostal we stopped at the Wayki tour office, the group we are touring Machu Picchu with. They showed us the map and what we can expect each day. The highest we’ll reach (Dead Woman’s Pass) is only 13.5k, not the 16k that we previously though. We almost saw another kid get hit by a car, I can image that’s a common problem down here. Back to the hostel for some cheese we found at the market, avocado, crackers, and a taste of Inca Kola (taste like cream soda/Mountain Dew)- not good. We saw outside and relaxed while we ate our nutritious lunch.

The day we pretty chill. After shopping we relaxed at the main square- Plaza del Armas. There’s no shortage of peddlers there but they don’t really bother you too much. If anything it’s only because Andy will egg them on to mess with them- good thing we wasn’t up for it today. He’s not feeling well which isn’t good since we’ll be camping outside for the next 3 nights. I’m still not over my cold but it’s not causing me too much harm. Guess I’ll finish the rest of our vino tinto and call it a night early- we have to be ready by 545am for the two plus hour bus ride to the gate to start our hike. We are so ready! Talk to you in 5 days when we’re on our way home to sunny CA!

We made it across the border to Peru!

Up at 630 to catch our flight to Cuzco after a crap night of sleep from the celebrations the night before. Thinking how small the airport was we didn’t think we would need to get there too early. Wrong. Everyone and their mother were at the airport this morning. We didn’t think we were going to make the flight and we almost didn’t. We had to run to catch the plane. If we didn’t get on this flight we weren’t getting to Machu Picchu since the border is closed via ground. The people I sat beside on the plane bought the last tickets and paid $500 each vs our $125. We checked into El Tuco Hotel, getting some clothes washed, and relaxing a bit in preparation for our big hike in a couple days. We talked to a couple at the hotel and they said it was one of the biggest efforts they’ve done. I hope they are out of shape. 26 miles in 4 days at 12k altitude- about 8 hours of hiking a day- shouldn’t be too bad.

After unloading our luggage we headed out to see the town. Someone said Cuzco is nicer than La Paz and they were right. Cuzco has less people, wider streets, nice architecture, and no one has thrown anything in my face yet. There was a parade going on (of course) so we checked it out. I’m not sure if it was a parade for Jesus or the Inca god, it can’t be for both right? I’m not sure but I saw both Jesus and the Inca god in the parade.

We walked around town for a bit, eating some street food along the way. We had pork with hot green sauce and maize (not sure if it was maize but they were huge corn kernels), and we drank some funky berry drink. The dude asked if we wanted a small and we said no. When we tasted it we understood why he thought we wanted a small. We saw checha for sale but didn’t have the guts to drink it- yet. Checha is made from women chewing on yucca root and spitting it out. The bacteria in their mouth aids in the fermentation process so it always tastes different. If it tastes bad then it’s bad luck- no shit.

We got our third parade fix and headed up a hill for a better view of the city. We stumbled upon another celebration with music and cervesas. Way better than a parade although we could still see it in the larger plaza. Andy got some cervesas and I grabbed two chairs. As I was going to sit down some ladies yelled at me for taking the chairs. Damn I wish I understood Spanish so I could argue back. Anyways, I successfully got the chairs and we enjoyed some wonderful weather and music. We sat and look over the city, watched children play and the gringos visit the area in their tour buses. I even helped some kids climb up a wall- how about that?

We made our way back to the hostal after stopping at a super market to buy so wine, real cheese, and macaroni and cheese- real American style. We’ve been jonesing for some good wine and cheese so we bought the second most expensive wine (still only $7) and blue cheese (I’m really surprised they have blue cheese here). It’s 6 and the mac and cheese is almost done. We have to go back to our room since we’re not allowed to drink in this hostal- lame. We have a full day in Cuzco tomorrow- looking forward to it!!

Hiking at 12.5K ft with 40 extra lbs

The major hail storm woke us up this morning. It was so crazy and hard, I was hoping it wouldn’t break the windows. It finally stopped around 7am, just in time for our morning walk. Yesterday we decided to walk from the north to the south end of the island. We heard it only would take 3 hours but we thought it would take less. It was beautiful out so we put on our 40 lb backpacks and headed out. Along the way we met up with a Norwegian couple. They were planning on walking to the south as well but they weren’t sure of the route. We showed them the direction, not the directions they were given of course, and the four of us headed out. They were hesitant since the dark clouds seems to be coming our way again. Andy said we were going for it and they did too.

Not only were we walking up steep hills, but we were at high altitude with huge weights on our backs. The walk wasn’t easy but it only took us two hours. Every time we walked down I hated it because I knew we’d have to walk back up. The views were beautiful, but I was concentrating on breathing and not passing out since we have a flight to catch tomorrow. As I mentioned it hailed just a few hours earlier so there was some snow on the ground. Could have fooled me- I had my jacket off since I was breathing so heavily.

At the top of the hill where we were to catch the ferry, we stopped for some much deserved pizza. Apparently this guy was a chef and now he serves organic vegetarian pizza. It might have been the most delicious food I’ve ever had (not just because I was starving). The four of us ate our pizza overlooking Lake Titicaca for the last time. We enjoyed our meal and made it down the very steep hill to hopefully catch a ferry. The ferry we wanted to catch just left, but like many countries we had money so they took the four of us and another family. Good thing because the next ferry was at 330, meaning it wouldn’t get to Copacabana until 530 and we’d miss the last bus to La Paz and in turn miss our flight the next morning. Anyways, we got to Copacabana at 130, just as a buz for La Paz was leaving. We ran and stopped it. The four of us not only stopped the bus but we got the last seats on it. How’s that for luck (again)!! We enjoyed the ride back and the Andies in the background.

Made it back to La Paz in the daylight which was good since another parade was going on. There was just a parade last Sunday, now they need another one? We couldn’t cross the street anywhere so we got a room at a hostel down from where we previously stayed. Dropped our stuff off and out for dinner. Walking through the crowd I was getting really aggravated. My last experience with a La Paz parade didn’t go too well and I wasn’t up for it again. We quickly found a tourist place to eat (since I didn’t want fried food). We made it back to the hostal with no injuries and no fights.

In desperate need of a shower, I turned on the hot water not expecting much. A minute later, I saw steam coming from the bathroom. We raced for the bathroom since neither of us has had a hot shower in a month. Andy slipped and crashed on the floor- I was victorious (and it was totally worth it). Best shower ever. It’s now almost 10 and the damn parade is still going on. I’m glad I’m not out in that crowd- bad things would definitely happen. It amazing how trashed Bolivians get when celebrating Jesus.

Two Japanese and a Frenchman 6/17/11

Woke up to catch the 830 ferry to Isla Del Sol (where the sun was born and a couple gods). Copabacana is a small town on the edge of Lake Titicaca- the highest fresh water lake in the world at 12.5k ft. The town is pretty dead but we managed to find the one coffee shop; and it happened to be playing rad 80’s music videos- awesome! On the three hour ferry ride we met a Japanese couple and a French dude (Julian) who were travelling together for a bit. Andy and Julian talked politics the whole time while I enjoyed the scenery. The sun was out which was a miracle since it hailed last night. Off in the distance you could see the snow-covered Andies in the background, a beautiful site.

We decided to go to the north shore of the island since we saw a nice picture of it and it looked cool- also the people we met were going there as well. We got off the ferry and Julian found a hostel for everyone. Nothing special, but pretty awesome at $6 for the two of us. We quickly dropped off our bags and headed out for lunch and to explore. We ate at maybe one of the two places open. All of us had the Trucha (Trout) since it’s supposed to be amazing here. Eating our delicious trout two hippies played guitars for us- for money of course. Most of the non-native people in this town are Argentinian hippies.

We then walked across the beach and up the mountain. The sun was shining and the view was amazing. We headed toward the north tip of the island to check out the Incan ruins. We saw a ceremonial table and a maze of stone walls- the view of the lake was most impressive. After spending some time at the north tip so everyone could get their photos in, we headed up the hill for more spectacular views. It was getting dark so we headed back, carefully climbing down the stone mountain back the to the village.

There are not many tourists here which make this place even more special. The people we were with needed their coffee fix so Julian knocked on someone’s house asking them to boil some water for us since we had no other options. We all drank coffee on the beach and watched the sun set on Lake Titicaca. We decided it was time to get some food before the only place serving shut down. We bought some crap wine and headed to the little shack making dinner. We all had Trout again. It was delicious but I was at my limit of fried food. You know that Japanese girl I told you about who died of the Death Road a couple weeks ago? Well that was this dude’s friend! He was travelling with her for two weeks and they did the Road of Death when she flew off the side. He had to pull her body up 820 ft with rope. How crazy is it that we met him? We couldn’t believe it. He didn’t say much else and we apologized for what he had to go through.We said our goodbyes to our new travel friends since we were heading out in the morning and they had plenty of time to do whatever on their couple year-long vacation. How do people do it!!?? Before we left for Titicaca we went to a travel agency to find out about the area and what they charged. They wanted $500 for the two of us which included: transport, one night lodging, and all meals. So far we had spent $5 on transport, $6 on lodging, and $30 on meals for the both of us! Travelling is awesome, but travelling on the cheap is even better.

Only a matter of time before someone got hit by a taxi in La Paz 6/16/11

We took our time this morning getting up and making our way out of the Maya Inn Hostal. We didn’t sleep very well because people staying there were coming in at all hours in the time. We also slept in our sleeping bags because the bed and sheets were highly questionable. We got our DVD from Gravity when the guides were recording us going down the mountain. Stopping in a touring agency to see how much a two day trip was to Titicaca since we didn’t have enough time for the Salt Flats. They wanted $250/person! They are freaking nuts. We then stopped at the tourist information to find out when buses were leaving for Copacabana- hoping that there wasn’t only one at 8am each day like Lonely Planet said. Nope! Outside the cemetery it leaves every 30 min and only costs $2! Sweet! We now had a plan.

We walked back to grab out bags through the Witches Market. They have baby Llamas that are dehydrated from every stage on infancy. Not sure what that’s about, a bit disturbing.

We stopped for lunch at the same damn place that forgot to serve us our burgers the night before- only because we couldn’t find anything else to eat. The news was on about Copabamba where there were riots because of a new law that passed saying you couldn’t get a registration for your car if it was older than 7 years old. For a moment I thought it said Copacabana (where we intended to go), but it was to the east. Earlier this morning we walked by a demonstration where the police had on riot gear, blockades, and tear gas. We moved away when we heard chanting. Lots of demonstrations going on in the places we’ve been to. The Bolivia-Peru border has been shut down for some time because they are protesting a new silver mine that would pollute Lake Titicaca. Good thing we bought our flights for $125 vs the $400 they are going for now.

We grabbed our bags and headed for the cemetery to catch one of the many buses that leave for Copacabana. We didn’t think it was too far of a walk and we just ate so we decided not to catch a cab. Not only is it a huge hill, but we veered off the path which made the walk a bit harder. Good thing we were acclimated to this altitude. I was tired of having my fingers and feet tingle from the altitude sickness meds.

We finally found the cemetery and walked around the block a bit to find the bus. We paid and waited outside for the bus to leave instead of sitting inside the hot bus. While waiting, we heard a huge thud and then Andy and I saw a girl, maybe 9 years old, laying half on the side walk half on the street face down two feet in front of Andy. A taxi van knocked hit her when she was almost across the street. I immediately turned away because I didn’t want to see but then I turned right around to help her. She bounced right up, crying and walking around. I tried to get her to sit down but she wouldn’t since she was freaking out. The bus ticket guy was yelling at the taxi driver and he didn’t care. After the people got out he took off! The little girl finally found her mom and walked off only holding her him. She might not have a broken bone but she’s going to be sore tomorrow.

On the way to Copacabana we came to a stop by the water. We thought we were making a quick stop to let people off since it was the end of the road, but no, we were going to cross the water. This usually isn’t a big deal since there’s usually a bridge, but there wasn’t one. The bus drove on a freakin wooden float to cross the water with shoddy piece of wood for the bus to park on. It was pretty scary since the bus was rocking back and forth in the wind and we couldn’t open the window in case we went over into the water.

We made it to Copacabana when it was dark. It’s a small town and we just got a room (for $10) and went out for some dinner. I wasn’t up for fried food so we went to a tourist restaurant where a dude was playing the guitar. We had a four course meal and a crappy bottle of wine for only $20! Love it! Off to bed, there’s no way I’m chancing a freezing cold shower. Almost asleep we hear several loud bangs; we kept telling ourselves it’s just fireworks. Then we hear people chanting, it’s just fireworks…

Baby squirrel monkeys and zip lining the WMDR

Up at 730 which was a nice change from the 630 we were used to. Andy got up before I did and fed the Squirrel Monkey some peanuts, then later the Macaws. We got up to meet some of the workers to feed the Spectacle Bear. These bears are endangered so they are thinking of breeding it. This was one a village cub and one day it was getting unruly so someone called the animal SOS, where they get most of their animals from. To feed the bear, one girl distracted it by feeding it peanuts while two guys quickly cleaned the cage. When they were done she led the bear to its breakfast. It was slow to eat because we woke it up this morning. It stood on its hind legs to smell the newbies (us). It was as almost as tall as Andy but it claws were huge. It looked so cute I just wanted to give it a hug. The way it ate was even more adorable. He had a cement bowl full of porridge, honey on bread, and egg and cheese. He ate so slow and carefully. First he started with the cheese, pulling each one out and placing it on his arm then slowly eating it. Next he ate the bread with honey, holding it in his hands. Then he went for the egg. He wasn’t up for eating the porridge; they told us he saved it for later the previous day. We were very happy to get to see this! Only people who stay the night can see them feed the bear because they want to minimize human contact.

We ate breakfast with the volunteers that consisted of two slices of French toast and a piece of cheese one of the girls graciously shared with us. There were four people here from Minnesota so we went along with their tour to see the monkey area again (you can only go there with a guide). Most of the monkeys left the previous day since there were too many people and they were making so much noise. Today they played. One monkey tried to climb down a guy’s shirt. Another monkey sat on Andy, unzipped his pocket, and reached down in it looking for goods. A female monkey behind us was tethered because she is in heat. She would clap her hands really loud trying to get the other males attention. A male monkey brought a baby down on his back to visit (not his father). After the baby played for a while another monkey (not his father) took him away.

It was time for our zip lining adventure. As we were walking up the trail a Spider Monkey hitched a ride from Andy. The monkey had his tail and one arm holding onto Andy’s arm (his tail was cutting off Andy’s circulation). We walked up the trail a bit then decided it’s probably not a good idea to bring it so far from the refuge. Andy tried to get him off by putting him near a tree but he was not interested. Finally Andy got him to release and the monkey slowly walked off.

We made it to the zip line in the small town of P… Nothing here but some snack shacks and the zip lines. I was really nervous, mainly because Andy was making me nervous the previous day. We got in our harnesses, jumped in the car, and they took us to the first zip line. I felt fine about the durability of the zip line since there were steel beams going deep into cement. They used Black Diamond for the harnesses so that made me feel better too. The only thing I was concerned about was stopping. You can to pull the secondary handle down to slow at the end before you hit the padded stop. If you braked too early you wouldn’t make it to the end. The first zip line was the highest (928 ft above the basin), the second was the fastest (possibly reaching up to 60m/hr), and third was the longest (Andy took a vid); all going over three valleys. The first ride was nuts. Andy went first but that didn’t make me feel better. I was a bit scared but as I went down, but 20% of the ride down I was good and looking over the valley. What a beautiful way to see the valley.

We walked back and sat with our feet in the river for a bit. Those damn sand flies jump on your legs so fast, you have no time to put them in the water without getting bitten, but the cold water on our feet felt so good. We had our clothes lying out on the rocks in the sun from washing them earlier. It so warm and sunny getting them dry is not an issue.

We walked back to the refuge and spent more time with the animals. Walking around we saw one of the guys holding a baby Spider Monkey named Rico (all the Spider Monkeys have musician’s names). We stopped to chat and the monkey jumped on my hands! Maybe one of the most awesomest things to happen! He was so little, his hands and nails looked like a newborns. He we terrified of the larger alpha monkey that was loose so he was hiding and keeping an eye out for him. He crawled on my shoulders, on my head, all over my arms. I held him as long as possible.

We also saw a ferret-looking animal with the cutest baby bear face. They were “taking it for a walk” since it’s at the end of its month long quarantine before it’s introduced to the other animals. It was climbing the tree, going out on the branches and back. They were playing with it like a cat; letting it bite them (lightly) although it’s claws seemed much bigger.

We made our way back to the café to wait for the Gravity group to leave so we could join them. While waiting I sat outside because Rico was out there snuggling with the Coati. It was the cutest thing I’ve seen. You would never believe these two animals to be pals, much less playing and fake biting each other. Soon a Macaw walked onto my lap. I wasn’t so cool with this since its beak could take my finger off in a heartbeat. All of a sudden, another Macaw squealed and came after the one on my lap. There were 5 Macaws and there were all freaking out in my face. It was cool, no one was hurt. Then the larger Spider Monkey who Rico is terrified of came over. Rico was on this guy’s shoulder. The bigger monkey climbed up on this shoulder too and attacked little Rico! He was squealing for a good 10 seconds then they finally separated and Rico took off. Poor little guy, I hope he wasn’t hurt. I can’t stop thinking about him. All he wants is love. I should have been a vet.

We boarded the bus climbing up the World’s Most Dangerous Road with the girl who fell earlier that day doing a Superman crash (she probably broke her elbow). Going up that road was a hell of a lot more terrifying than going down since my life was in someone else’s hands. The whole way up the guide Cody kept telling us where and how people died. Just 18 days ago and Japanese girl flew over the edge and died. This road is really no joke. You will die if you’re stupid or scared. I don’t recommend for people who don’t mountain bike, much less haven’t been on a bike in a while. There were stories of a drunk taxi driver driving off the cliff with three kids after Christmas; the famous 102 people who died when a flatbed truck went over; a French girl who went over because she lost her balance standing still (that’s happened to me before); and all kinds of craziness.

We made it back to La Paz, grabbed a hostal (the first one we saw when we didn’t want to walk up the hill anymore), and went out for food. Since we had no money all we ate were two small pieces of French toast, some raisins, and a Snickers. We stopped in the first food joint we saw and ordered soup and a burger. We ate the soup and hungrily waited for that burger. We waiting a good 45 min and it never came because the dumbass never put in the order although he clearly repeated what we ordered. Apparently the world doesn’t want us to eat today. We stormed out and got a pizza togo- it was 10pm. An awesome and exhausting two days.

Kicking dirt at the devil 6/14/11

Up at 630 to meet our group for the World’s Most Dangerous Road bike ride. As we were leaving the hostal Andy almost ripped the door down with his large backpack. We walked down the Prado to a coffee shop to meet the group. Once again Andy almost ripped a door off with his backpack on. We entered the coffee shop and I turned around to hear a loud clash of his backpack with the glass door. I reminisced about the time he ripped the door panel off a Moroccan Rihad. Two ham and cheese croissants and coca teas later and we headed off.

Along the way Phil, our fearless leader, gave us some guidelines: basically “don’t ride like a fucking asshole”. He handed out the water resistant pants and jacket saying, don’t worry about the size we give to you, they were made for Bolivian midgets. I got an L and Andy got an XXXL- ha! He asked if anyone was wearing the tourist pants- baggy coolots that come in a variety of colors. No one was and he said good, I worry about those guys because they are retards. Haha. He handed out snacks and I was the only one with the veggie sandwich to which he asked, OK who thinks they are better than everyone else for eating the veggie? I was getting nervous on the bus ride to our stop because I was a bit nauseous for an unknown reason. We stopped at a parking lot near a lake to prep. We put on our pants and jacket, the orange vest over it, gloves, helmet, and goggles. We tested our full-suspension downhill Kona’s around the parking lot and I was so out of breathe it made me more nervous, hoping we didn’t have to pedal up hill at this altitude.

The group took off for the first leg of our adventure on pavement to get a feel for the bikes. It was a bit chilly at 16k ft and my fingers were starting to freeze. Andy of course was first, battling it out with another dude from the UK, and I was 5^th, behind all the other dudes who ride but the first girl. It was pretty fun downhill, no breaking and tucking to be aerodynamic. We came to a tunnel where we had to go around because a chick from France did a face plant into the wall, since then the government said no more cyclists in the tunnel. We then hopped in the bus where it drove through a construction site and to the entrance of the Death Road.

All we could see off the side of the road were clouds into the abyss. We left for the first leg of the Death Road and I could see how so many cars could go off the side. There were crosses all the way down where various people died- tourists and non-tourists. At the top there was only room for one car, the cliff on one side and a wall on the other. Every 100 meters there were small passing lanes in case you did come face to face with another car. Cars in Bolivia always drive on the right side except here. They drive on the left so cars coming down the mountain can see where their tire is near the edge. At this point of the ride there was a 600 ft drop. At one point in history they marched 5 opposition leaders over the edge and there was now a memorial. He warned us about the baby heads and how if you hit it wrong you can go down. What happened to me on this first leg? Well I didn’t go down but I almost did hitting a baby head. I was a little nervous so I was looking right in front of my tire instead of where I wanted to go. I caught myself and it set the tone for the rest of the ride.

The group would stop every so often so we could take pictures and the slow pokes in the back could catch up. Everyone in our group seemed to enjoy it, but we were constantly passing people in other groups who weren’t having such a great time. For a while we were in the clouds, not being able to see the drop but knowing it was there. At one point we passed a car that was driving up the road. People still lived in the villages here so some cars did still drive it although not to many. After the fog we hit warmer temperatures from the dramatic altitude drop we just did where there were waterfalls (San Jan waterfall) which we had to ride under. After the waterfalls we hit really hot temperatures as we entered the jungle and we had to peddle uphill some. It wasn’t bad due to the altitude, but it was hot and not being in shape didn’t help. We passed through a couple villages where kids wanted to give us a high five. Phil told us sometimes kids will hold onto your hand and not let go so no one was up for the high five. The whole way down we saw ‘Bolivian warning signs’ meaning crosses of where people have died. It was definitely a mountain bike ride, not just a tourist cruise down the mountain. I don’t recommend it for people who don’t bike due to all the baby heads and gravel and certain death.

We ended at an animal refuge (Sande? Verde) where most of the animals were free to roam. Some had to stay in cages because they are dangerous (like a bear) or weren’t used to being around people. They have lots of Spider, Squirrel, and a Howler Monkey. Dogs were roaming around along with a duck, goose, Macaws, Parrots, a Coati, turtles, and fowl. They have the stripper policy here, you can’t touch them but they can touch you. If a monkey jumps on you it’s OK, just don’t cradle them or try to hold onto them. There’s a vet and a few permanent workers, but a lot of the work with the animals is done through the volunteers here. At any time they have between 2-25 people who pay for their food to stay here and work with the animals. The minimum is two weeks but many stay for months, then go home and come back for longer. We decided to stay the night here since it was more of a refuge than a zoo, one of the nice things about not always having a place to stay. We were almost out of Bolivianos but luckily they accept USD and we had enough of it for one night.

We ate lunch with the biking group and headed to the pool where one of the monkeys just pooped. The pool was cold but I was able to get in enough to rinse the sweat and the 4 day funk on my body. They don’t have mosquitoes here but they do have sand flys which I think are worse. You can’t really hear, see, or feel them on you. They don’t itch immediately but you will feel them in 3 days. I sat outside the pool for a bit which was enough to have about 30 bites on me. You can tell you’ve been bitten from the little dot of blood underneath your skin they leave behind. I’m going to be in serious misery in a couple days. You aren’t supposed to wear DEET here because the monkey will lick it off you. I'll pay for that later.

We passed on dinner and ate the junk food we had with us since we were low on cash. After a cervesa I was so tired I wanted to hang in our cabana. Andy was all for partying with the volunteers. We lied down, I started blogging and Andy felt asleep around 830. No partying tonight.

Walking uphill at 13k ft isn't easy

Woke up fresh at 730 (slept through the 630 alarm) happy my head was feeling better. We slowly got up and put afterbite all over our legs. River flys got to us in Mindo and they just now started to itch. Andy looks like a leper on his legs. We headed down to breakfast in the hostal and had some runny peanut butter stuff and coca leave tea. We needed to find the Gravity Road of Death office since we planned to ride tomorrow and we wanted to check out the city in daylight. We headed out walking through the markets. Although there’s still trash on the ground, they did a pretty good job cleaning up the mess that was the night before. I couldn’t even smell all the urine from the dudes peeing anywhere they wanted to. We headed down to the main road (I believe the river runs under it) and could not find the office. Tired of looking, we headed for an outlook. It was hard as hell to walk up the hills, scared of what Machu Picchu would be like. The outlook was closed so we went to a nearby park for some pics. We got a few in before the guard to us it was closed too. It appears they are putting up Christmas trees- I guess they celebrate it in winter as well?

We decided to check out the rest of the city. We walked to a nice area of town which happened to be up a lot of stairs. Feeling like our hearts were going to pound out of our chests, we slowed down and took it easy. It was a beautiful day, the sun was out and it wasn’t cold. We found the outlook, took some pics of the side of the mountain with houses and a very tall mountain in the distance with a glacier on top. This city is really amazing.

Walking back, we stopped at a barber so Andy could get his long-mohawkish hair cut to be respectable. After minimal communication with the barber, showing him a couple inches on the top and no on the sides, he started working. The first thing he did was cut the sides shorter. I looked at Andy and just laughed, thinking what his hair could possibly look like when it was done. He didn’t cut it enough on the top at first so we went back over it. He also trimmed Andy’s beard and shaved his neck with a straight razor. When he was done he put straight up rubbing alcohol on his neck. Andy’s face turned so red from pain! The pain was worth it because it looked great.

We walked back through the markets getting two oranges for less than $1, white raisins, and roasted peanuts. I was tired so we headed back to the hostal and relaxed. For dinner we headed to a restaurant for some coca Mojitos Bolivianos (very good) and huge portions of soup, brie/apple croquettes, and Andy had the largest meatball with mashed potatoes. We were stuffed and tired from walking all day so we headed home. Along the way I bought some winter socks and gloves made of Llama fur for $6- bargain! We have a really busy day tomorrow biking the road of death, swimming, and ziplining.

A day of downs and ups (13k ft ups)

Arrived at 5am at the Santiago airport so we immediately found some chairs and slept until 830. It’s amazing we slept at all since the air was full blast and they kept making loud ass announcements. I got up to find some wi-fi and see what gate our flight was departing from. I found some wi-fi sitting next to one of the VIP clubs but I didn’t find our flight. At first I thought it was because the screen wasn’t big enough for the later flights, then I found two screens and saw it still wasn’t on there. Went up to LAN and they said the flight to La Paz had to go to Iquique first (in Chile). WTF? Another layover (we already had 2) that I knew nothing about? Santiago is way far south of La Paz so we were already out of the way and on a 7 hour layover, now this?

Oh but it gets better. Since the flight was going to Iquique first it was a domestic flight which meant we had to pay the fucking $140 EACH for a visa to get to the domestic terminal. We couldn’t believe it! We said hell no so we went to LAN and at first they weren’t sure (were we really the first people this happened to?) then he confirmed with his manager that yes we have to pay and we should submit our complaint to customer service. Great, I’m sure we’ll get this money back. Thanks Chile.

Then it gets even better. We pay, deal with the bad attitude workers (because we’re American of course and we’re hated everywhere) and head through customs. Well, we had to fill out a form and we checked we weren’t bringing anything into the country. I still had an apple in my backpack which they found- it’s an apple for Christ’s sake! The lady looked at me with a shitty face and I knew I was in for it. She got someone who spoke English and they proceeded to tell me I now had to pay a fucking $200 fine because apples are dangerous to Chileans. Now I have to pay $500 in one day just to get on a flight that I already paid for? Andy didn’t handle that very well. He backed off and I told the ladies fine, I’ll pay, let’s just get it over with because I have a domestic that’s really international flight to catch to head north which was where I originally came from. Not sure why, maybe because I was travelling with someone who has a bad temper, but she let me go. She said they don’t have quick pay down there so I could go catch my flight. Wow, being nice can get you somewhere boys and girls. Not sure why anyone would go to Iquique anyways, there’s nothing, truly nothing, here but huge sand dunes.

It gets better (no sarcasm this time). We landed in La Paz (Alto to be exact) at the highest airport in the world (13.4k ft). Planes have special tires to land here and they have to land really fast since the air is so thin. We were a bit frightened but all was OK. We didn’t have money to pay the $135 for the Bolivian visa. I knew there wasn’t an ATM before customs so this was going to be interested. The dude just shook his head and told me to go outside the airport and get cash. 20 min later I showed up, they took our money, didn’t ask for proof of hotel, photos, or bank statements- probably because they wanted to go home and we were the last ones there.

Jumped in a cab for the $7 ride to The Prado section of La Paz. Along the way the cabbie stopped so Andy could take some awesome pics of the city since La Paz is down from Alto where we landed. La Paz is built around a river (that you can’t see) so the city goes up the sides, it’s pretty amazing. Right away we were light headed and we started to get headaches so I bought some asprin. Our hostel, Cruz de los Andes, is pretty nice with murals on all the walls and a winding staircase with plants that try to grow. I of course picked the room on the 4^th floor. Do you know how hard it is to walk up 4 flights of stairs at 12k ft altitude? We were gasping for air. It was 6 so we unpacked and headed out. We walked around the Prado where all the street vendors are. We saw the electricity vendors (Andy was loves to see what they carry), clothes, fruit, flowers, hardwear, you name it. We ate some hotdogs first with ketchup, mustard, salsa and guac- yes we did, it was the only food we could find at first and there were a lot of vendors. Later we ate soup (broth with chicken) and meat and potato on a stick. There was a parade going on to celebrate Jesus. We stopped to watch it and that’s when the first jacking attempt took place. I was down from Andy and someone hit my hair/face with something sticky/icy. I didn’t realize it was meant to hit me. Then two girls started bumping into me. The first time one of them bumped me I didn’t think anything about it. The next time I looked at her in the face and grabbed my purse. That made her leave. They managed to open the front pocket of my purse, but since I’m not dumb enough to leave anything in there they were empty handed. We later left to see what else was going on.

Men were so drunk they were falling down everywhere. Sometimes their wives (dressed in traditional clothes) helped them, sometimes they were as wasted as their men. We found the after party and the music was still playing so then we had a cervesa to join them. We sat with a father and his two kids who were wasted. The boy didn’t speak any English but he could say ‘mother fucker’ without an issue. Trying to understand someone speaking Spanish while wasted and loud music playing is not easy. It didn’t matter because they asked me where we were from 5 times. The father fell down and the daughter told her brother to go take care of his. We were done with our cervesa, my headache was pounding so we left. We called it a night just in time before my migraine started. We passed out from exhaustion- what a long crazy day!

Mindo is amazing- next stop La Paz Bolivia!

Wish I had more time in Mindo- there's so much to do, it's beautiful, the weather is perfect, and the people are so friendly. Next time I'll be staying longer. Off to La Paz for the 22 hour journey. Needless to say my post tomorrow won't be interesting. I'll add more to this one tomorrow during my 7 hour layover in Santiago Chile- unless I decide to pay the $135 visa fee to visit the city.

Is that a headband or your real hair? 6/10/11

Up at 630 and ate breakfast at the hotel. I love all the fresh juices here. We walked down to the Los Ponchos Plaza where the market is and they were just setting things up. The town is beautiful so we walked up the side of the hill to get a better view. We were finally in the small town with great street food and nice people that I was hoping for. The indigenous people are dressed in their garb. It’s one of the few places where I didn’t think they were dressed in traditional clothing because they had to (unlike China). After checking out the church with the large hummingbird head on the front, we went back to the market and bought some shit. The people selling were so nice. I told Andy not to go all China on their ass- meaning don’t shake them down so much that they want to chop your head off like in China. It was easy bargaining here. They drop their price from $28 to $22 without me saying anything. Andy proposed $11 and she made this sounds like he just punched her in the gut. Then we upped it to $17 and everyone was happy. Andy bought an Alpaca sweater and a super soft blanket. I bought some necklaces and belts. We got our shopping fix in and headed for the bus station to head back to Quito.

Three rough hours later and we arrived in Quito and jumped on another bus that was passing Mindo. Good thing we got on at the station because as soon as we stop outside the station there was a swarm of people getting on the bus who had to stand for hours over the windy roads. I enjoyed the scenic ride over the mountains, and Andy played Angry Birds making himself sick by not looking out the window.

We arrived at Mindo at 4 and met up with Molly Brown- TPB sis. Their Casa Divina Lodge is amazing! Her husband Efrain built the whole place himself; it’s beautifully built and in an amazing location. The room we are staying in overlooks the trees and has a hammock. I could get used to this way of travelling! We had some delicious Chardonnay (finally!) and relaxed while we talked to Molly. Efrain later showed up and we had a wonderful dinner Molly prepared of trout and potato pancakes. Andy was starting to get sick (cold) so Molly made him a hot rum drink that was to make him sweat out the cold. I had a rum/star fruit drink that was delicious. We sat and talked for a while then the daughters came home. They had so much energy and are adorable. Divina, the oldest, came out of the bathroom and asked Andy, “is that a headband or your real hair?” Hahaha! Holy fucking shit that was funny! By this time the top of Andy’s hair was really really long, think Flock of Seagulls. Gotta love the honesty of kids. After that punch in the ego we headed off to bed so the sick one could get some sleep. Another busy day tomorrow!

Hello Otavalo

Andy got up at 6 to do some bird watching but I was in no mood after the horrible night I had. Not sure what made me sick, but I was sweating with stomach cramps all night. I might have swallowed some river water brushing my teeth or swimming. While we were packing our bags Andy noticed a fucking Tarantula in our mosquito net- not cool. Good thing I wasn’t sleeping there anymore, not that I would have been able to. It was our last day so we headed back on the boat looking for interesting wildlife along the way. Then Neiser spotted a baby Anaconda!! It was sunning itself on a fall tree by the water and his face was hidden. He didn't seem disturbed from us being near him. Neiser took Andy's camera and took a pic of his head- kind of. That was all that was missing from this trip- Anaconda check! The boat only took 1.5 hours to get back to the road taking short-cuts along the way. We hopped in the car for a ride to the Lago Agrio airport.

Fast forward a 30 min plane ride and a 2 hour bus ride and we made it to Otavalo- a cute little town north or Quito known for its crafts. We found a hotel and went to grab something to eat. We found some street vendors (score!) and ate some empanadas ($.25), Andy ate meat on a stick ($1.5), and we had a warm berry drink ($.25) and it was delicious! I slept like shit last night so I’m going to bed early. Too much to do tomorrow- time for shopping!

Falling in a swamp and big ass spiders

Woke up at 6 to go up the tower and bird watch. They finished the tower just 8 days ago so we’re lucky we can use it. It’s five stories high and above most of the trees. Neiser has a nice telescope so we were able to see a bright blue bird and lots of Tucans which Andy got some awesome pics of. We relaxed and ate breakfast around 8 to get ready for the big day. Erin and the Austrians were leaving so Andy and I were the only ones left behind.

At 10 we headed out for our day hike. The boat dropped us off and we headed deep into the jungle, just in time for the rainstorm. It was pouring hard making our trek through the jungle that much more authentic. Neiser pointed out trees that heal and cure Malaria, ants that have pinchers they can use as stitches for a week, and Bullet Ants that hurt like a bullet if they bite you and the poison will damage your lympnodes. We were also attacked by a swam of stingless bees. It doesn't matter if they can't sting you, it's still scary.

The best part of the hike was when we got to the swamp. Of course we had to cross it and Neiser had no problem. Mind you we were wearing rain boots, but they weren’t enough to protect us from what was about to happen. I went first and was doing well (I wasn’t getting muddy) until my legs got stuck and I bent over too far and a ton of mud came rushing into my boot. I got it on vid which is hilar. Andy did a heuristic jump to a tree so he didn’t get muddy- this time. The next crossing we were to balance on a fallen tree, a very narrow trunk. I used a palm branch to help me along the way although it wasn’t much help. You couldn’t put any weight on it since it wouldn’t hold. All that money my parents spent on gymnastics helped because I was able to cross. Andy however wasn’t that lucky. He put too much weight on the palm, it snapped, and he went down. He got it on vid and it’s hilar! I saw him go down and I couldn’t stop laughing that it was difficult for me to continue on the tree without falling. Both his boots filled with mud.

After the hike it was time for a cold shower to rinse off the mud and sweat, and siesta in the hammocks. Every time I would fall sleep I’d waken to a mosquito biting me. We went to the lagoon for another swim and to watch the sunset. We looked for Caimen after but weren’t able to find any. We did find a snake in a tree that Neiser got down with a branch. I stayed far away like always when snakes are involved. Back to the huts for dinner and I passed out not long after 9.

Welcome to the jungle 6/7/11

Up at 630 to catch a cab to the airport. How is it a damn city in Ecuador can have free wi-fi at the airport and we can’t get it in Silicon Valley? After a 25 min flight to Lago Agrio (yeah I know we’re roughing it) and listening to three valley girls discuss world issues (not really- and they all had matching purses and Tom’s shoes), we boarded the Land Rover for the two hour drive to the next destination. It’s amazing how much the temperature can change. Quito was a bit cool and just a 25 min flight away it’s so hot and muggy. The drive over the windy Amazon Basin roads was beautiful. We stopped to take a picture of a tall tree that’s very common in the Amazon. It had roots hanging down from it to capture all the moisture in the air. About 1.5 hours in we drove over a hill atop where we could see above all the trees- so beautiful!

We made it to Cuyabeno to eat a sandwich with fruit. We paid our $2 entrance fee and waited an hour plus for others to arrive. We got on a canoe (with a motor) for our 3 hour boat ride through the Amazon Basin down the Rio Aguarico. Along the way we saw Squirrel Monkeys, Pink Dolphins (they weren’t pink though because they were young), Vultures, and many other birds. The Captain was going through these breakoffs from the main river, if we needed to get out of The Oriente we would never know how. They dropped us off where we are staying, a little clearing with four huts that were all on stilts (so all the snakes won’t come in) and a high tower for watching birds. This place was perfect! Out in The Oriente, in the Amazon Basin, at Laguna Grande 3 hours via boat from the closest road. Just what we were looking for!

The other tourists weren’t here so we had some cervesas and relaxed. When they arrived we went swimming in the lagoon nearby trying not to think about all the creatures that are in the murky water. There were many thermoclines in the water which really surprised me. The sunset on the lagoon might have been the most beautiful sunset I’ve seen. Colors all over the sky, reflecting off the water. Before we left Neiser (the guide- totally Rambo style with camo and a machete) jumped in a tree to try to get some cell phone reception, but it didn’t work.

As soon as it was dark we headed on our night hike in the deep jungle. It was amazing! We saw Scorpion Spiders (Andy held one), Wolf Spiders (Neiser gave one a fish to eat- caught it with his hands), Leftcutter Ants, Poison Dart Frog, a Glass Frog, and the largest Cricket I’ve seen. This thing had the largest mandibles on a bug- it could do major damage. At one point we all turned off our lights to listen to the jungle and a bat flew near Andy’s face. The hike was amazing! I only felt comfortable because Rambo was guiding us.

On the boat ride back he spotted a juvenile green Boa Constrictor in the trees- very beautiful. He also found a Caiman (like a crocadile) down a tributary by seeing its glowing eye in the dark. The boat made it through the narrow water and stopped right beside it. Everything was going smoothly until it freaked out and splashed around to get away. Erin, the backpacker Kiwi, freaked out and thought it was jumping in the boat. The Austrian girl in front of her also yelled and freaked, Andy moved to the side “so he wouldn’t get wet” but I think it freaked him out too. I yelled ‘oh god!’ because I thought the boat was going to capsize. Chaos. Neiser wasn’t impressed with the female reaction because we were so close to the Caiman and it’s rare to get so close. We finally ate dinner at 830 and I was exhausted from the day of travelling and heat. Off to our hut with no electricity and a mosquito net. Very excited about our stay here!

Back to land

I got to sleep in until 630 this morning which was great since Andy was trying to wake me up since 530. We took our time getting up and eating breakfast, very nice compared to the 620 dives the last four days. It felt a little empty now that 3 people left the boat. I really enjoyed the trip with everyone on the boat- very lucky that we were diving with the Russian mafia (see the Asia travels blog). We then took the zodiac to land for the last time and checked into our flight. We walked around the town for a bit since our flight didn’t leave for a couple hours. Deciding not to buy any over-priced crap, we watched the sea lions sleep, play, and make a very unusual sound- think me waking up in the morning and grunting.

The flight back to Quito was uneventful, we hailed a cab and headed back to the Secret Garden Hostal- they have wi-fi after all and it’s not based in the spring-break area of Quito. A pizza and half a liter of shitty white wine, we headed back to the hostal to relax and prepare for the next leg of our adventure- the Amazon!!

Why won't the ground stop moving? 6/5/11

I took a Dramamine and half a sleeping pill last night. Beers and wine don’t mix with rough waves. Unfortunately, the drugs were too much and I can barely move. Oh well, time for our last dive at Cousin’s Rock. We jumped in and the water was much colder than I remember it. My lapse of memory was a good thing because I wouldn’t have been looking forward to plunging into cold water so early in the morning. The dive was chill, lots to see in the rocks. Little fishes sitting in the barnacles, many sea turtles lying on the bottom, then an awesome swim with sea lions at the end. There were five sea lions and they were all so playful, swimming in circles around us. Final count I’m up to 40 dives.

I passed out on our journey to Santa Cruz Island while Andy watched Manta Ray’s jump out of the water. Time for our land journey to a Tortoise Ranch where we saw several huge tortoises eating and trying to move. After our tourist pics inside the old tortoise shell, we moved onto the Darwin Research Center. We ran into Marcio and Tom- it appears all the dive boat are on the same schedule. The center had some land Iguanas, very colorful and molting- I had no idea they did that. I could barely move since I still had so many drugs in me so Andy had to hold my hand so I wouldn’t fall over. I’m not sure if it was the drugs, the fact that I’ve hardly moved except for diving for a week, or that I’ve been on a boat and standing on land I feel like I’m still on a boat.

Andy tried the drought resistant tomatoes, he said they were very salty, and we tried some of the red coffee beans he found at the Tortoise Ranch. We chewed on the skin which was sweet at first then nada. We stopped for Mojitos on our way to dinner and hung with two people from our boat. We were in the town of Santa Rosa, nothing but a tourist town, not that anywhere on the Galapagos isn’t. I got out $400 from the ATM and it was all in $10’s. I was happy now that we had enough small bills to get us through, although now I have a huge wad in my pants (that’s what she said). We ate at The Rock restaurant that had internet access (not for me) so half the group jumped on so happy to be connected again. The Columbian’s shook their head in disbelief as well as I. We drank a Columbian drink, similar to a Mojito but much sweeter- yuck. We said goodbye to 3 of the others on their way for the land tour. I was so ready for bed to sleep off these drugs. One leg of the trip done- Galapagos check!

Frigate birds and 100 hammerheads- oh my! 6/4/11

Our final day diving at the Galapagos, we had three dives scheduled at Darwin before we headed back on our 20 hour bumpy journey. We got in the water at 620 and the dive was easy but uneventful. Over the morning dives here haven’t been great. The second dive was excellent. More sea turtles came up very close to us, within touching distance. Although the vis wasn’t great, we could still see 100 Hammerheads in a school swimming around! The site was quite amazing and hard to believe I was experiencing it. They took us out on the zodiacs closer to Darwin Island so we could get a better look at the birds and sea lions that were relaxing in the ocean. We could see the different colored feet of the Boobies and we got a closer glimpse of the Superior Frigate birds with their puffed out red chest.

For the third dive we decided to do something different so we dove near the cliffs of Darwin hoping to play with the sea lions we saw earlier. These sea lions had no interest in us, some swam away and others just ignored us. Not what we were hoping for. We then ventured off into the deep blue for one last chance to see the whale shark. No whale shark, but we did encounter a sea lion that was very playful. He came very close to all of us. I swam around with him a bit trying to play. Very awesome way to end the dive trip!

Diving on the famous Darwin Island 6/3/11

Got to Darwin early in the morning, about 630 and we were ready for our first dive of four today. The island is smaller than Wolf and you can see The Arch from our boat. There are three kinds of Boobies, Red Footed, Blue Footed, and Nasca (very interesting bird). We descended quickly because the current was supposed to be strong- it wasn’t a problem though. The sandy bottom illuminates the water and it’s nice to lie on without having to worry about a Scorpion Fish or Eels. The first dive we swam a lot looking for a Whale Shark. The group was swimming too fast and they eventually lost Andy and I so we did our safety stop and ascended. I was irritated but vis was crap at the end so we didn’t miss much. Many people in the group had to come up because they ran out of air, and the Columbian woman was on Patricio’s octopus again- not a safe way to dive.

On the next dive after breakfast we sat on the sandy bottom with the Garden Eels and a Sea Turtle came so close to my face I moved back. It just stared and then swam away. Then we saw TONS of Hammerheads all around us, it was incredible! Andy was playing with the camera and a Hammerhead came within 4 ft of him. Nuts! I looked up through the sun beaming in the water and saw hundreds of Gringos, Hammerheads, and Sea Turtles. On the third dive we were on the bottom again, I turned around and a freakin Galapagos shark was right behind me! It hung out for a few checking me out then then it swam off. Those things freak me out. Another turtle came very close, we could have touched it, and Andy got it on vid. The last dive after lunch I came within 7 mins of my no deco limit. At the end of the dive Dolphins came up to us. I actually played with one, swimming in a circle with it! I was so pumped! We’ve seen a lot of Dolphins at Darwin, but I couldn’t believe we were finally swimming with them. Unfortunately after the Dolphins left along came the Silkies and we decided it was time to go. They freak me out and there was a school of them. During dinner people got up and ran to see the juvenile Whale Shark by the boat. We wanted to jump in but the Silkies were following it eating the food the boat was pumping into the water. It was then time for some wine and cocktails, we passed out at 9.

Swimming in a school of hammerheads 6/2/11

Second day at Wolf Island with three dives today. Up at 545 again for the first dive at Landslide; breakfast, nap second dive at Landslide; lunch nap third dive at Elephant Rock. The first dive was great! Andy and I were staying above everyone else holding onto a rock so we could watch the sharks swim by. I saw a large (9 ft- most sharks here are 6 ft) Galapagos shark swimming straight toward us. I notified Andy and he started a video. It continued for us so we hid behind a rock. It went right up against the rock, it must have been 4 ft away with a rock in between us. It almost stopped, knowing we were on the other side; we continued to peak over the top to see if it was still there. It slowly moved and we scurried to the opposite side of the rock. It slowly left, Andy and I looked at each other in disbelief. It was fucking amazing!! Macaroon said we were too far away so we moved closer to the group although there was tons of action above us. I noticed a Scorpion Fish that just landed right behind Curtis so I made sure to tell him. I’ve never seen a Scorpion Fish move in and settle so close to someone who was moving. A huge Eagle Ray passed up and it was amazing. I’ve never seen one so large- body mass wise.

The second dive wasn’t as eventful at Landslide. We saw a Moray Eel swimming in our direction so Andy taped it. It was impressive how fluidly it moved. It then went up to another Eel, but continued on. At the end we were above a large school of Gringos and it looked like a kaleidoscope. The sun was shining through and some fish were going in different directions. Very cool.

Since that dive wasn’t as exciting, we decided to do a new dive site called Elephant Rock, it’s a small island that’s just off of Wolf. It was amazing! The island was a vertical wall in the water with a surge pushing the fish (and us) up and down a couple feet. The fish swam straight down the crevasses of the wall and up and over the flats. Schools of fish everywhere, sunlight beaming in. A sea turtle swam up to me about 5 ft away, stared at me and decided he was bored. I turned my head to the left and saw a Galapagos Shark turn the corner and stare at me, eye to eye, no more than 5 ft away. I think he was as surprised as I was to see him. Luckily he wasn’t interested and he swam away. That was very cool. To end the dive we swam out into the deep blue. Just as I was thinking how uneventful this was, all of a sudden we were in a huge school of Hammerheads. It was fucking incredible! There must have been at least 20 or so, but that’s all we could see since vis was only 20 ft or so, but I’m sure there were many more. We stayed there for 10-15 min looking at all of them around us. Some came close and I got a couple good shots. At no point was I nervous in this situation (maybe that’s not a good thing). It’s truly an unbelievable thing to be able to experience swimming with sharks in the wild. The beautiful islands, Frigate birds, perfect weather, delicious food, good people, and amazing dives has made this trip a once in a lifetime experience!

I'm officially not afraid of sharks anymore

We woke up at 545 to be briefed on our first dive at Wolf Island (the first of four dives today). I went to the sundeck first thing and saw thousands of birds flying around the island. Wolf Island is not large, but it’s tall with very steep sides all around it. Looking at all the birds on the island was surreal. We finally made it to Galapagos. Pumped for our first dive, although it was before breakfast, we headed for Landslide. After breakfast we did Shark Bay and The Cave (medium current). After lunch we did Shark Bay again. They were all amazing. We saw tons of hammerheads, a couple swam up less than 10 feet away during our last dive as it was eating and swimming up the rocks. There were a lot of sea turtles as well and some got very close. One swam up to me and I decided it was best for me to get out of its way. Plenty of spotted Moray Eels. When we were hanging on the rocks at The Cave, I put my head right next to one that was sleeping with its head in the rocks. I stayed for a bit admiring the large snake and decided it was best to move on before I pissed it off. We finally got to swim with the dolphins! At the end of The Cave dive, lots of them came up to us and were playing. We’ve seen tons of them at the end of each dive, but we hadn’t been in the water to see them up close. They are usually at the surface playing around once we’re in the zodiac.

I'm going to be a dive bum forever

Woke up at 530 to see the sunrise must mostly because the crew woke me up (and Andy). It’s OK, I’m on vacation and I don’t need to sleep anyway. I headed up to the sundeck and I saw a locus (grillo sp? en Español) and I though aww how cute. Then the dude pointed to the hundreds of them on the fridge and all over the deck. I was not cool with this. I tried to walk by them and then they started jumping. I was freaking a bit. Then the dude started hosing them off and they started attacking us. He stopped but I was uncomfortable with them jumping on me, and it’s not easy to get them off. They also pooped everywhere. One smacked Andy in the eye really hard. The sun had risen and it was time for me to get out of here. Back to my nice air-conditioned room for some coffee to enjoy the ride to Bartolomeu. Breakfast consisted of scrambled eggs, bread, fruit, yogurt and fresh papaya juice- we had a different fresh squeezed juice every day for breakfast!

Now it was time for the first real dive. We saw Manta Rays, Golden Rays, Sting Rays, Eagle Rays, a huge Scorpion Fish, Tripplefin Blenny’s, and two sea turtles. The group was pointing to a crab that I couldn’t see. When they swam away I stayed to try to see the crab and all of a sudden I saw a huge object moving. I thought that was the largest crab in the world! In face it was a sea turtle! It swam away and a dude from Columbia followed it in pursuit. Toward the end of the dive I was in the back like usual, I turned around and a turtle was following me. I couldn’t believe it, I just stared at it in awe. Others then noticed it and it swam away. Andy and I were the last ones standing so the DM swam around with us until I had 400 psi left, that’s when we saw the Scorpion Fish and the Sting Ray on the bottom of the ocean floor.

We got out for a bit, had fruit, then prepared for our second and last dive of the day. This was an exploration dive since the DM never went to this dive site before. We jumped in and swam down a wall. Not long into the dive we spotted 3 white tip sharks sleeping in a cave. We came up to them from behind, I had a perfect view for once. As soon as they noticed we were there they took off- Andy got it all on video. We hung around the reef for a bit waiting for them to come back. I got distracted by a Trumpetfish so I started to follow it down the wall. Then the DM rang the bell which got my attention to then notice the larger white tip shark heading straight for me. I got the hell out of the way and apparently almost knocked Andy’s reg out of his mouth. It was amazing. Two of the three sharks came and went a couple times, probably not happy we woke them up. We then left and found a huge school of barracuda. They formed a dark cloud in the water. I was surprised how slowly they moved. They were so close I could almost touch them. I also broke 1K diving minutes on this fabulous dive.

Lunch was delish. We sat on the sundeck, took naps, and headed for Wolf Island the rest of the afternoon until we reach it in the morning. It’s 140 miles and we’re going 8.6 knots. We gazes at the stars for a bit, admiring the Milky Way and all the stars we can’t normally see. Tomorrow is supposed to be even more incredible than today.

Galapagos Bound! 5/30/11

Woke up at 530 to get a taxi to the airport to go to the Galapagos! The ride was uneventful until the cabbie asked for $10. I was like no way, I’ll give you $5 or $6. He was trying to say since he was up so early he wanted $10. Not my problem you have this profession. We ended up giving him $7. They “scanned” our bags for our checkin to the Galapagos. I was surprised he didn’t care what was in our bags, after all we could have something very dangerous for the islands. We were at the airport 2 hours early because we were told it would take us a while to get through the lines, then we remembered we were in Ecuador. We ate some ham and cheese panninis, flew to Baltra (1015- hr back) with a short stop in Guayaquil. The airport consisted of a runway and a truck pulling our luggage up to an open-air building with a door. We met our guide Moncarlos and took the bus to the dock. We took the zodiac to the ship and another zodiac came over because they thought we had so much luggage that they needed help. It was just the two of us, our large backpacks and our day sacks. We are easy.

The boat, the Humboldt Explorer, is amazing. Everything is so nice, the bed is comfortable, the sundeck is nice and the floors are not old and decayed. Our room has a double bed (two twins pushed together) two large windows, and a decent sized bathroom with a window as well. Pumped!! As soon as we got on the boat we tried on our gear. The dude gave me an XL wetsuit to try on- seriously? I know I haven’t been working out but a fucking XL? Anyways I ended up not being an XL but they had to get a wetsuit from land and it ended up being blue and pink with the ends of the legs and arms cut off for us shorties. No one was going to lose me in the water. We ate lunch which consisted of pasta, and delicious creamy seafood sauce, and salad. The food was amazing, I was even more stoked! Endless free alcohol? Can I stay here forever?

We were briefed on our checkout dive and got suited up at 3. He told us vis wasn’t good but we would see some fish. We fell in from the zodiac and did our skills tests- mask flooding and regulator loss. All went well so we headed along Santa Cruz Island. The bottom of the sea floor was sand and volcano rock- no coral. Everyone saw a shark but by the time I got there, it either left or it was too murky for me to see it. We saw puffer and trigger fish, the puffers were buried in the sand- they are so cute they look like baby seals. At the end of the dive we saw a little shark. We dove for 45 min and headed back. Back on the boat all the Frigate birds were flying around, male and female, battling each other. They are not small birds and it was amazing how they were flying around the boat. We were done diving so we had some wine to relax and enjoy the scenery. We were still in the channel, in between the Santa Cruz and Baltra Islands. We toasted the crew with mango/banana margaritas. Dinner was asparagus soup, Yellowfin Tuna, and veggies. Andy and I went on the sundeck for a bit to enjoy the stars when we heard something in the water. The crew was washing dishes so fish were eating the food. Dolphins and a shark was there too. It was hard to see but someone shined a light in the water so we could make out what it was. A large pelican was hopping around too, making sure to stay away from the shark. We passed out exhausted from our first day.