See Spot Run, See Heather Come Unhinged

When you travel, you realize that not everyone thinks the same way that you do (frankly, I hardly feel like anyone thinks the way that I do, but that’s for another introspective posting).  There are regional, municipal and certainly country-wide differences.  We all know that the Germans like things to be “just so”.  And if I could categorize and generalize a bit, the Dutch and Belgian folk seem to fall into this group too.  Those Danish and Scotsmen….well, they are “thrifty”, to use a politically acceptable word.  You head further south where the weather is warmer, and you’ve got those freewheeling Greeks and Spaniards.  Their weather allows them a bit of leeway, where if the job doesn’t get complete today, there is always tomorrow.  And then there is the middle east…..where being a woman, I don’t get to tell you what I think. 

 

We are here in Latin America.  I’m not really sure when it becomes Latin, and when it’s just South America, or Central America, but for now I’ll just call it Latin America to encompass the entire region from the US/Mexico border to the tip of Cape Horn.  And as you all know, we’re coming up on 4 ½ years being in this neck of the woods.  I must be a slow learner, or adapter, but I CANNOT SHED MY NEED FOR LOGIC, AND FOR COMPLETING TASKS IN A TIMELY MATTER WITHOUT A BUNCH OF BULLSHIT THROWN IN.   I have tried, truly I have.  Perhaps I started off with more than my fair share, but honest to god getting things done here boggles the mind.  

Yes, I am aware that everyone comes to each task with a different set of experiences behind them and driving their actions.  Yes, I know that sometimes I just want things done when, and how, I want them done, because, forgive me if I am in error here, but am I not forking over money to get something accomplished?  A man I worked with in Zambia used to get so pissed off when people would explain away ineptitude by exclaiming…”ah, but it is Africa.”  As if that is somehow an excuse.  I get it now.  

We just wanted a tank of propane filled.  The ENTIRE world uses propane to cook their meals, and heat their water.  We wanted to be able to do that too, but due to a slight bit of underfilling at our last stop, (let’s just call it thievery, shall we?!) one of our tanks had come up dry after only 6 weeks of use, where we normally could go for 2-3 months.  Now here on the most remote island in the Galapagos, and with a grounded tanker several islands to our east, we were coming up with a few shrugged shoulders and it looked like it was going to turn into a mammoth task.  I will not bore you with the blow by blow details, but suffice it to say that it took a monumental effort for me to keep from strangling a few unsuspecting Ecuadorians.  Ah, you say, but she isn’t on a schedule.  She really doesn’t need it to be done “right now”.  My reply is, “you’re damn right I’m on a schedule.  I’m on a life schedule and the clock is ticking, and the time I have left will NOT be spent getting the bullshit runaround!!!”  I’ve written about how difficult it is to get an egg on board, well multiply that exponentially by at least 1 million, and getting a 20 pound propane tank filled is harder. 

We got it done.  

Just.

I have less hair.

 

The ulcer that I’ve been working hard at eradicating after the last 10 years of my so-called life while still in Canada….yes, I can feel it growing again.  

Rant done.  

Until the next time.

Thar she blows (volcanoes, not whales)

A few days ago, we hiked another two volcanos to add to our growing list of peaks bagged.  Izalco in El Salvador with my sister, Pacaya in Guatemala with my entire family, (we think there have been one or two more but I've only had one cup of coffee so far this morning, and can't remember) and now Volcan Sierra Negra and Volcan Chico.  It was a 16 km. walk, and while it wasn't THAT long, our legs did feel it by the end.

If I add a picture, it means we did it

Meeting a great group of folks, 3 couples traveling together from Homer, Alaska, we started off on a beautiful calm morning around 8am.  The lack of clouds were what we were aiming for, as the altitude could make for enshrouded vistas, which we didn't want.  Four kilometers later, we were at the rim.

The crater is 10 kilometers across, and holds the title of being the second largest in the world, right behind Ngorogoro Crater in Tanzania.

We walked to the spot where the secondary volcano started to form, and then down the other side to Chico.

Very desolate but terribly interesting

Along the way, we got to know our walking companions and all of them were as interesting as the landscape, with one couple spending their winters traveling overland on the African continent in a retrofitted Range Rover Defender, another couple involved in Alaska's newest industry, growing peonies for the cut flower market, and all involved in one way or another in the fishing and marine research industry.  They spoke so highly of Homer that we might just give it a look for the future.

Unfortunately, it didn't sound as though they had had as amazing of a time here in the Galapagos as we have, and it just goes to show that not all traveling experiences are viewed in the same way.  What a lot of people don't have when they travel is time.  Time to research what experiences will be the most satisfying, time to discover what you are hoping to get out of each destination, and often, just the time to allow a destination to wash over you in silence, rather than in experiences.  Traveling sailors are lucky, or at least we know we are.  Aside from weather and visa issues, we have the luxury of being able to decide when and where to stay, and for how long.  We can get out of each destination what we wish to.  Ron and I have decided that given the size of the world, and where we still want to go, each destination we come to needs to be explored as if we are never going to return.  We therefor allow ourselves the time to come to know each stop as intimately as we can be as travelers and not residents. 

And with all this soul searching, we hardly noticed our aching knees when we got back to the bottom of the hill.  Ron, pass me another Advil. 

Mantas, and turtles, and penguins....oh, my!

We've been very busy these last few days.  With our buddy Ron on Mar de Luz, we continue to check off the "must-dos" here on Isabela.  We have had to break into the piggy bank tho, something we aren't really happy about due to the bank situation here.

But back to the fun bit.  After roaming around town and interviewing a few companies, we settled on Rosedelco to use for our snorkeling trip out to Los Tuneles.  A murky start to the day had us all wondering whether we had made a mistake, but the second stop of the day saw us on top of a distinctly "darth vader-like" sting ray, a MASSIVE manta ray surfacing and diving just off the boat, and turtles.  Lots and lots of 4-5 feet long turtles (no lie, not a fish story, they really were this big) which we were able to swim alongside.  For me, the highlight of this stop was a seahorse.  Other than the descriptive of "yellow", I have no other specific info.  Oh, and it was about 8" long (tall).  Very, very cool, indeed.  

Which brings me to etiquette.  Ron and I are not really "group" people.  We actually try to do things on our own as we always find that in a group, the guides are more interested in getting you to lunch so they can have a break, or they just want to hurry you along so their entire day will be finished.  So we try to NOT do the group thing.  We want to mosey, take lots of photos without random strangers cropping up for the inevitable photo bomb, and can see the stuff we want to see without intrusion.  This snorkeling trip was a challenge.  We happened to be with a few snorkelers that didn't quite know that its not so cool to kick your flippers really hard, stirring up the mucky bottom.  Or that they shouldn't get so excited that they park themselves in front of whatever it is the guides have found, or that being aware of where your flippers are, is really important to the guy behind you.  At some point I just swam away, as I'd rather have a more peaceful snorkeling experience.  The seahorse was a case in point.  In only 6 feet or so of water, the guides' admonishments of "just float, people, just float; no kicking" fell on deaf ears.  Visibility was obliterated in a matter of seconds.  I let everyone leave, hung around for the muck to settle and the water to clear so that I could have another go at seeing the one thing I really wanted to see - and this little guy didn't disappoint.  It's obviously where he/she usually hangs out, as the guide knew exactly where to take us. 

We all piled into the boat again for the last stop of the day, which was in a series of grottos all created from lava tubes when the local volcano, Sierra Negra, blew her top.  Penguins, and incredibly clear water were what awaited us.  The visibility had to have been 30-50 feet, and the most insane colour we've seen yet.  AND yet another seahorse, this time bright red.

My snorkeling checklist for the Galapagos is now complete!

We're never bored

Life has yet again, settled into a nice routine.  Ron and I, after living on a boat for 4+ years, seem to need a day of rest in between our bouts of activities.  I guess that's why it's taken us so long to get here - just recently I read a blog talking about a couple that had circumnavigated the globe, taking 5 years, and yet another rally, the World ARC, takes boats around in 15 months.  WTF?  We would NEVER be able to do this.  Must have time to "just live", surely.

With our "one day on, one day off" schedule, we can combine really fun stuff, with still continually working to improve our home.  But the fun stuff is what you really want to hear about, don't you?

Assembling the bikes once again, we headed off to see the Wall of Tears, a short, but uphill, 6 km to a former penal colony.  The Wall of Tears was imposed as a form of punishment, and I surely know that building a random lava rock wall, in the middle of nowhere, for no reason other than to break my spirit....I would be a model prisoner.  Ron's recent posting on Facebook has given rise to many quotes, coming in from all around the globe, referencing Cool Hand Luke....but even "shaking the bush, Boss, shaking the bush" has a purpose.  This wall...not so much.

So terribly pointless

 We continued to explore, and there are a lot of little nooks and crannies to ride the bike, walk, and explore, all not costing a penny.

The obligatory cemetery shot, although a bit sad

Our first lava tunnel

Uh huh, these guys are even cooler than tortoises

Publicity shot for his portfolio

Ron making friends wherever he goes - doesn't the iguana look thrilled?

Yesterday was boogie boarding day.  Just as I'm wading in, Ron yells "SHARK!".  Whipping my head around to check to see if he was laughing, with nary a smirk to be found, I waited a bit.  When he said, "I'm sure they are friendly", I thought good enough.  We both had an excellent time, boogie boarding and body surfing, with our friends the sharks, and each brought home a fantastically painful sunburn.  Surely we have learned....Me, I also rediscovered my intense hatred of sand.  How could I have been a surfer chick for so long with this loathing?  Perhaps because now I have to clean it up when it gets on the boat!!!

Today we just swam from the boat.  We headed across the bahia here, in search of.....whatever.  The most unique thing we found were thousands of baby puffer fish.  Oh, and penguins.  Oh, and rays.  Oh, and sea lions.

Yup, livin' in the zoo.

 

Sometimes days are boring....

...and other times, not so much.

We let go of our mooring ball in Baquerizo 2 mornings ago, with a brisk 15 knot wind blowing. Perfect direction, perfect speed, everything was perfect EXCEPT for the fact that it was Friday. In the book of Sailors' Superstitions, ranking close to #1 is to never set off on a passage on a Friday. We were planning to put this to test.

Within an hour, we were blazing along at a respectable 6.5 knots, a speed which was unheard of heading south along the Pacific coast, and one that we averaged until the wind stopped altogether, around 1:30am. Our trip from Isla San Cristobal to Isla Isabela was approximately 95 miles from start to finish, so we were hoping to arrive just at daybreak the following morning. With dead air, we of course turned to the trusty engine in order to push us onwards. It was also a crew change, and I gratefully headed down below, but sleep was tough due to the fact that there seemed to be an unknown rumble coming from underneath the bed. The Captain didn't want to acknowledge it directly, but 15 minutes later, I heard the engine get turned off, and a summons to come topsides. Seems the engine was getting a bit hot, and Ron determined that a new impeller was needed in the water pump. Nothing like doing emergency repairs while underway, in the middle of the night. We might have just waited but we were only 5 miles off Isla Tortuga, a crescent-shaped island that is the mostly submerged top of a volcano. It's pretty cool, but we didn't want to get any closer, hence the repair.

An hour later we were underway again, and with no wind whatsoever, we slowly made our way into the reef and rock strewn port at Puerto Villamil on Isla Isabela.

Now this is what I always envisioned the Galapagos to be. Its much quieter and a quick wander through town showed dirt streets, and everyone on bicycles. We had heard that the islands in the west were quieter and less developed, and we've seen for ourselves that this is true.

We had been having head problems. Not too bad, just seemed like the hoses were a bit clogged as the "outgo" wasn't quite keeping up with the inflow. Another boat project....which I announced yesterday that I was tackling. I believe I saw Ron rolling his eyes in disbelief. Now in cruiser's parlance, there seems to be Blue jobs, and Pink jobs. Pink jobs are usually galley related, and keeping clothes, dishes, and boat generally clean. Blue jobs are....pretty much everything else. Ron is a bit squeamish with anything poo related, and as a woman, I certainly have my fair share of "gross" to deal with and while I wouldn't say that its my favourite job, its easier for me to do. Several hours later, with a gallon or two of sweat dispensed, I announced that the job was done, with nary a leak to be found. 3 hoses, a vent and a y-valve, clean as a whistle. Which also meant that the cleanup also included the entire bathroom - BONUS.

For the first time in a year or so, this morning I saw the sunrise. Early mornings aren't my strong suit, but the boat was bumping up against the mooring ball, and around 5:30am we were up. Not only did we see the sun come up, but we also saw our first penguins swimming around the boat. Who knew they were so fast?! Another tick in our "what did we see in Galapagos?" book.

When we find an internet signal, I'll post some photos, but for now this update is being brought to you via single sideband

Aside from the flies (of which there seem to be an unending supply of), we like it here!