The last day! We spent the whole day in Ecuador. We got up bright and early to go to the cloud forest which is located in Mindo. We made a few stops along the way back to Quito as well. For example, we saw the Mindo Butterfly Farm and a hummingbird sanctuary. This was a perfect way to end the trip. Onward back home to Indiana!

Sadly our time on the islands had to come to an end. So we spent the morning in San Cristobal with some free time. We took advantage of this to do some last minute shopping! We were able to tour the little shops in this very pretty city. Then in the afternoon we spent flying back to Quito. We enjoyed our last night with a nice dinner!

The Capital of the Galápagos Islands was next on the agenda. We saw a lot of sea lions. Sea lions are like humans here! We also had the opportunity to go snorkeling and hiking for one of the last times. We also spent the day at different centers learning about the history of the islands. At the end of the day we were able to chill with the sea lions and watch the sunset. It was a nice and relaxing day!

This day was full of adventures! We took the boat back to Santa Cruz. Where we went to the Charles Darwin Research Center! We learned more about the history of Darwin and his discoveries. We also learned more about the conservative efforts that they are making now! We saw many cool creatures here. However my favorite part was seeing “Lonesome George”! We also saw Diego, another famous tortoise. Him and his offspring are what saved his population of tortoises on Española Island. After visiting the center we went swimming in the most beautiful place. It is called Las Grietas which translates to “The Cracks”. After spending the rest of the day here we had free time to relax and enjoy the town of Santa Cruz. Our adventures will later lead us to San Cristóbal Island!

The next day we headed to Isabella Island. The first stop we made was at a tortoise breeding center. We saw how they are restoring and maintaining the populations of tortoises. After this we spent this day hiking and snorkeling! We saw so many different animals it made the day one I will never forget. Animals like flamingos, penguins, blue footed boobies, sea turtles and more! The water while snorkeling was super cold but, it was worth the shivers. I loved every moment of this day!

We started the day off in Quito. In the morning we visited the museum. This is where we saw really cool wall art in the tunnels around the museum. After spending our time there we got on a plane to get to the islands! We landed in Baltra island. We then headed to Santa Cruz. On our way to the hotel we stopped to see the Giant Tortoises! It was a really cool activity. We were able to get 2 meters close the animals! We spend our time there till the sunset. We then had dinner and headed to the hotel. As the trip gets closer to the end the more sad I become. I don’t want to leave. This is definitely a once in a lifetime experience!

On the first day of activities I had an AMAZING time! For most of the day we spent our time in “Old Quito.” After learning about the history of Ecuador we went to the Equator. I never thought I could stand in both hemispheres at the same time! However my favorite part of the day was eating empanadas and ice cream for lunch! I can’t wait to see what else this trip has to offer. This was the perfect way to start off a trip!

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