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For years my mother and I had been dreaming about the day we could travel on a small cruise among the famed Galapagos Islands in the Pacific Ocean, roughly 1,000 km from the Ecuadorian coast. After years of exotic and adventurous travel around the world, we finally decided to plan a trip to the Ecuadorian Amazon, the Galapagos Islands and stop off at Quito to immerse ourselves in Ecuadorian culture.
The adventure trip began deep in the Ecuadorian Amazon jungle. We flew to Coca, a rather small town (but considered large by Amazonian standards), and then boarded a speed-boat which would shuttle us to our eco-lodge nestled in the jungle flora. After a two-hour ride on one of the Amazon’s tributaries, we were dropped off at a small ‘landing’ where wooden 4-person canoes and local guides waited to wind us down a smaller tributary and onto a splendid black water lake that was the backdrop and the main scenic splendor of the eco-lodge that would be our home for the next four days. For those who have never seen a ‘black’ lake, it is truly a spectacular site. Sediments and high acidic values are what make lakes ‘black’ in color and transform these bodies of waters into a large sheet of mirrored glass. It is truly one of nature’s most awesome spectacles. By the way, many an anaconda and cayman live in these waters, which is why my mom and I did not opt for the afternoon swim that others were engaging in!
The Amazon jungle is absolutely dense, moist, green and amazing. My mom and I slushed around in our lodge-issued rubber boots and took in all that the Amazon had to offer. The eco-lodge was another impressive treat. It blended into the environment so the entire experience was very serene. Of course, one of the most memorable aspects of staying in the lodge was the kind service of the local staff and the FOOD…gourmet food that was never ending. Hats off to the chef!
Once we were canoed out of the Amazon, we headed to the Ecuadorian coast (Guayaquil) where we boarded a small aircraft that landed on the island of Baltra, one of the larger, inhabited islands of the Galapagos. Once picked up by our tour guide, we were taken to a lovely inn where we enjoyed a magnificent four-course lunch (sadly, the last full meal I would have in 4 days!). Several hours after our meal, we finally arrived at the small port where we boarded a motorized rubber dingy that took us to our destination…a 36-person, 3-story cruise that floated gently in the sea. Somehow, I had forgotten how incredibly sea sick I get when sailing in the ocean, especially on smaller vessels. The moment I set foot on the cruise (okay, perhaps 20 minutes after stepping foot on the deck), I became nauseous. Of course, it was no help that I was three months pregnant and suffering from ‘morning sickness’ at all hours of the day. I am embarrassed to admit that I vomited instantly (luckily, I was standing on the deck and had a chance to direct my vomit out to sea) and did not stop vomiting for 13 hours. My poor mother became nauseous as well. She says she has never suffered from sea sickness and that the sight of me vomiting non-stop while 3-months pregnant made her very nervous…which then prompted her own vomiting fest. This was how my mother and I spent one entire night vomiting in the tiny bathroom of our tiny room on the lower deck. My mother damaged a nerve while vomiting and a doctor had to be summoned to inject her with a very high dose of pain management medication. We spend four days on the small cruise without once off-boarding to step foot on the uninhabited Galapagos Islands. We did see them from afar, watching the other passengers off-load onto the crystalline waters and making their way onto the sandy beaches. I lost six pounds during those four days, and well, my mother lost a bit more than that (since we could not even keep water down while sailing from island to island). It was by far one of the most miserable travel experiences we have had, no thanks to my first trimester of pregnancy and my inability to keep down Dramamine while on the cruise. Alas, there will be other opportunities to visit the Galapagos Islands…but next time we will opt for a much larger cruise, one which fares the strong currents of the Pacific Ocean a bit better than our small 36-person cruise.
a very beautiful natural scenery, I’d love to go there
Really Galapagos is really a nice place to enjoy and to have a good time.