Final thoughts!

So we made it home. Rob was kind enough to give us a rides home. Now to get to the laundry,

Thoughts of the trip and Gate 1

Generally we had a great time but are totally exhausted! It would be nice to spend another day in the Galapagos and also Quito, Next time I would give Guayaquil a skip.

In the Galapagos it was disappointing not to see more of the blue footed boobies, we saw 4! We did not see a penguin! But boy did we see sharks! They are very proud how they have repopulated the giant tortoises and marine iguanas were plentiful.

The lodge we stayed at was unique as we were in tents and the food was excellent as was the service. Gabby took very good care of us, unfortunately the weather was quite cool, very humid and damp! We were in the cloud forest after all! I would have preferred more sun and closer to the beach.

The hot springs were a welcome break and I could have stayed another night just to catch-up on sleep!

Sacha Lodge in the amazon provided every comfort you could imagine. Again the food was excellent the views were outstanding. We were disappointed that it was somewhat difficult to capture animals of the jungle in a closer view for pictures. You needed an eagle eye or at least a good telescope! We had neither! Our new best friends were the rubber boots they lent along with umbrellas! Hiking, canoeing, climbing everything was done with our precious rubber boots.

The Ecuadorian people are friendly and warm. Happy to have you experience their country and culture. Quito is situated in very challenging geography. She is located high in the Andes on steep mountain sides. Canyons separate neighborhoods and you are either going up a steep hill or going down. This all makes traffic a constant consideration.
The whole country is clean. No garbage anywhere

We really enjoyed the walks and touring we did in Quito, just wished we had another day to give more time for browsing!

Our Gate 1 guide Marco did an outstanding job of introducing Ecuador to us. He is a local naturalist who has been working with tourists for more than 10 years. His knowledge of indigenous culture as well as the history of Ecuador added depth to our knowledge and understanding.Baca lagi