Okay, so I finally settled down (a bit) and I can give my review/insight in a nutshell...
Day 1 (arrival): We came in late, at least before midnight and for the first time we did not do a pre-night. I didn't think there was anything to do in Quito, which I was mistaken and found out later on. I figured we will be fine arriving late since the activity on the first day did not look hectic at all. Anyway, as we were landing, I was watching the TV monitor regarding the flight and noted the altitude to be 10,000+. When I looked out the window, we were nearly landing! I found out later on that Quito is 9200 feet above sea level. Funny thing is, I did not feel any of the alititude sensation like I did in Peru, although we went higher in Cuzco. Eduardo, one of the guides was the one who greeted us at the airport. When we got to the hotel, Rae was waiting and we had a refreshing glass of tree tomato juice and a warm towel waiting for us.
Day 2 (Quitsato): Mind-boggling! Amazing!! I've seen this landmark on a few occasions on TV and could not believe I am right there!! A stone-lined marker delineates lat 0'0'0', put your foot on one side, you are stepping on the northern hemisphere and the other on the southern hemisphere. Ancient Ecuadorians mapped latitude 0 and they got it quite accurately. It still amazes me how the ancient folks used the stars to navigate themselves. It's kinda hard for me to grasp. Anyway, the research group is currently advocating changing how the world should be viewed on a map.
We also went to Hacienda Cusin, a 300-year old establishment in Otavalo. It looks and smells old. Our room had a fireplace to heat it and a handful have electric heaters. It is cold up there!!! Each room is unique and quite spacious. There is no safe in the rooms so we carried all our papers and valuables wherever we go. I don't think theft is a big thing in the highlands but I am glad we did not lose anything. We did keep an eagle eye on our backpack.
Day 3 (Flute-making and Otavalo Market): This was fun. The Pichamba family, the home we went to who makes all these different flutes performed for us as well. It's not easy to play these flutes since they have to be blown a certain way. Some of the kids was playing it quite well near the end of the tour. We also went to the home of Jose Cotacachi who still weaves by hand. Hand-weaving is not as big as in Peru and I think the weaving quality is much better in Peru as well. They don't have local llamas and alpacas, if ever just a few and they import the wool from Peru.
The market was a great place to buy souvenirs. It is almost similar to the market in Pisac. Great bargains!!
Day 4 (Peguche Waterfall, Parque Condor and kite flying): Nice walk to the falls, we climbed up to the side of the falls and took a few photos. The guides didn't say much about the falls but I believe this was revered by the ancients before as sacred. We visited another Hacienda, called Hacienda Pinsaqui. Beautiful grounds! I wonder why Disney didn't book the tour there instead. It is marginally more expensive but not a whole lot. Anyway, we probably had our best lunch there. The meals were quite disappointing since they were serving lasagna and pasta. I am not sure if the Ecuadorian cuisine is too adventurous for the average tongue.
Parque Condor was an interesting place. I always admire people/establishments who make an effort to help wildlife. We were able to see an Andean condor up close and boy those birds are huge! There was also a bird show, well just one hawk which the caretaker would let go and come back to him by just raising his arm. Amazing vision!! Those raptors!
Kite flying was fun, if the wind was more consistent. Most of us struggled to get the kites flying. Eventually, our daughter thought of going to higher ground and got her kite flying really high! She had to bring it down only because it was time to go.
Those were what I called the 'slow' days.
Day 5-9 (Galapagos): We had to get up really early to go to the Quito airport for our flight to the islands. ABD gave us access to the VIP lounge so that was where we waited, which was very convenient and comfortable. There was a half hour flight to Guayaquil, about a half hour wait there (we stayed on the plane) and an hour and a half flight to Baltra. We boarded a zodiac to get on the ship. At first I did not know how we would do on the ship since the cabin bookings are on the lowest level. We always stay in cabins with balconies. Well, surprisingly, the cabins are quite spacious! Our cabin is on the second deck right next to the restaurant. It's not a big ship but that made it all convenient. We had our buffet lunch and got ready for our first hike.
I find this the best part of the trip! We snorkeled four times in 4 different places. On the fourth snorkel, less than half of the group went. That day was cloudy and windy but Eduardo and the guides were saying it would clear up, and it did so we went. The wet suit really helped! On the first snorkel area by Dragon Hill on Bartolomew Island, we saw white tip reef sharks and penguins. It was soooo cool!!! The second snorkel area was in Puerto Egas on Santiago Island. There we snorkelled with sea lions!!! They were all at arm's reach. The next day we snorkeled on the coast of Isabella Islands with lots of green sea turtles! They were a little skittish and will swim away once they feel you're nearby. They all came up though once everyone was out of the water and saw most of them when we did the dinghy tour.
We were anchored on the first night and there were sharks lured by the light on the ship.There were like 7 huge sharks just swimming on the side of the boat! That was the one thing we failed to take a picture or video of.
The hikes were all very interesting. The islands looked like how earth looked before civilization took place - barren and dry. At first glance, it looked dead with no life in it but it is teeming with flora and fauna once you look closely. It was great to see marine iguanas laying everywhere, a sea lion pup nursing, land iguanas, lava lizards, flightless cormorants and my all time favorite - the blue-footed ****ies. There were frigate birds everywhere and some had their red chest inflated hoping to attract a female to their nests.
Some said there was not enough down time during the cruise but we loved it! We love active trips and we want to be on the go. The naturalists and the guides were very good in briefing us about the activities the next day. There is a wake up call every 6:30 am and we meet at 7:45 am every morning. The ABD group leave the ship 15 minutes before everyone else and we also have dinner earlier than the rest of the people on the ship. They also had our snorkel geared sent to the room unlike the rest of the ship.
The water was wavy/rocky on the last night. It was quite uncomfortable and one person in the group got seasick.
We had an extra day in Quito and went on a half day tour of their old town. Very interesting and quite beautiful. It is a developing country so there are beggars everywhere. Another must-see is Teleferico. We didn't have time to do it but most of the group did that. It is 13,000 feet above sea level, so just a note.
Other notes:
The Ecuador denomination is the USD, so NO foreign transaction fee if you use your credit card! The paper bills are the same but the coins are not. The dime looks the same but it is lighter and will not work in vending machines here in the US.
As usual, ABD made a seamless, worry-free adventure. Our flight was late at night the day after the farewell dinner and the Marriott was gracious enough not to charge us an extra day.
Ecuador is the number one exporter of long stemmed roses. Eduardo managed to squeeze in a tour of a rose garden to see them from production to exportation. They are selling 25 roses for a mere $12 at the airport. We got one since we were celebrating my mom-in-law's 80th birthday. They will check the roses at the US Customs but as long as they tap it upside down and no bugs come out, you keep the roses.
The check in procedure was tedious! I think they checked our passports 4 times before we finally got to the gate. Like Peru, they do not allow any liquids on the plane even if you bought it in the airport. They go through all your carry-ons meticulously, as in go through everything. It took us a good 1 hour plus before we got to the gate.
All in all, it was a great trip! The highlands offered more than I expected and the islands were surreal. I've watched several documentaries on the Galapagos in the past, I couldn't believe I was there experiencing it!
Any questions, I'll be glad to answer them!
