Isla Isabela

This morning we made a bee-line towards land on Isabela Island, the largest island in the Galápagos. The instructions we received last night were to wear long pants, hiking boots and a poncho. These things were not on my list of things to pack. And considering I booked these tickets about 6 months ago, a little warning would have been nice. Anyway, with everyone else in long pants, ponchos and hiking boots, I wore my blue shorts (I didn't think my skinny jeans would be appropriate for the days hike), my pink canvasToms shoes (not the winter ones) and for a poncho, I wrapped my light cotton scarf around my head and torso. We were off to see the volcanic craters and lava formations.

But to get to the top, we had to trek through 2 hours of the sloppiest, squelchiest, wettest, slipperiest mud you could imagine. (I didn't manage to get my camera or iPhone out while I was in this kind of mud. So the photos below are once I reached drier ground.) It was all uphill too, so I just had to accept the fact that I was going to fall. Well I did fall. Twice. And that was just going up the hill! Once we got to the top of the hill, there was NO view because the fog was so dense. We were all so wet from the moisture in the air and I was the only muddy one. Going down the hill was WORSE obviously. Stacked it three times and because I was trying to walk on the plants for a bit of traction, I got lots of cuts on my ankles and legs from the coarse grass and various twigs that I brushed passed/fell on top of.
I would have fallen over a lot more if Matt wasn't holding me up for the remainder of the journey down the hill. I tried to brush him off and keep my pride intact (with mud all over the bottom half of my body) but he was adamant that he helped me. I did appreciate it in the end, as it saved a few extra bruises and a little less mud. My shoes were unrecognisable in the end because of all the muddy build up and because they had lost their pinkness.

Once back on the boat, I realised how sunburnt my feet were, just from the outline of my Toms shoes and the flippers for snorkelling. I tried to rectify this by lathering half the contents of my suncream onto the burnt bits (as I knew we were heading into very strong sun later in the day). But by the time we got back onto land, my feet and ankles had doubled in size (just where I applied suncream). Great. Also, wandering around Isabela, searching for an Internet cafe was excruciating because the sun really was hotter than I have ever felt in my life. This was not helping my poor swollen feet.
But it was all worth it to speak to my hubby and best mate on Facebook and to read such positive comments about the journey I am having. -Thank you everyone for your comments, support and prayers. They are all very special to me. Sorry that there wasn't enough time to write to each of you before heading back to the group, so hopefully this post makes up for it.

The bus ride around Isabela was peaceful, with most group members having a doze. I felt that if I shut my eyes, that would be it until morning, but as it was only around 5pm, I thought it would be better to keep stimulated, at least until back on board. I took the time to listen to more Sufjan Stevens and was extremely satisfied with my music choice. So cruisy, so mellow, so relaxing (don't fall asleep, Emma!) and a great sound to have when you're in a van travelling around a South American island, looking at different types of plants, buildings (however small), store fronts, families, beaches, animals and best of all, abandoned ships in the middle of the road. I was too slow with my camera for those unfortunately. But looked so so cool. I recommend listening to Sufjan for a relaxing road trip where you just want to zone out into your own personal space.

At the end of the day, after FINALLY getting past level 23 on Candy Crush (a game I'm now hooked on, thanks Jana..), everyone was asking me if I was OK "after such a horrible day".
I was actually thinking that this was one of those amazing days, while in the thick of it, thinking, "Is this mud hike really necessary?!" Then after falling in the mud 5 times, it became an amazing experience, that I would never have had if it were my choice.
I would have NEVER chosen this cruise, had I known about all of the constant hiking. But they have been so rewarding. The workout alone is such a dread. And once you start walking, you have to be able to keep up with the rest of the group so you don't get lost. The sun is constant and there is no shade to hide from it. But when you reach the destination or when you start coming back down, there is a whole lot of reflection of how WORTH IT it all was. Even though I fell over twice on the way up, the times when I fell down on the way down, I was thinking "oh, I'm just adding to the whole experience" and "I've got a better story than everyone else here because I REALLY got into it".
I have so much to show for my day as well! Swollen feet, cuts all up my legs, clothes stained with mud, sunburnt ankles... sounds pretty terrible, but these are the things that make for better stories of travelling and adventuring. PLUS, I got to chat briefly with my husband! Not to mention, the sunset over the beach, drinking a full coconut and having an ice cold sprite from a glass bottle.. It was truly a very memorable day!