Live: Nov 18 2023 Xpedition Galapagos Southern Loop

[mahdnc]

37 minutes ago, OrcaGirl said:

Are there any opportunities for actual scuba diving while on this itinerary?

Unfortunately, no. I actually asked that very question of our naturalist guide today. 
 

He told me that back in 2005, scuba diving was offered on Xpedition. Back then they had a dive master onboard and the ability to refill scuba tanks with a compressor. 
 

According to our naturalist, government regulations now require that only boats dedicated to diving can offer diving. 

[mahdnc]

The Captain (3rd from the left) and her staff having dinner at Darwin's Restaurant tonight.

 

[mahdnc]

5 hours ago, mahasamatman said:

Descriptions of the Xpedition say they will stock your minibar with alcohol and soft drinks. Since I believe single-use plastics are banned in the Galapagos, do they use cans or glass bottles?

 

Here is a photograph of what is stocked in our XS cabin refrigerator right now.

 

[mahdnc]

On 11/19/2023 at 1:15 PM, mahasamatman said:

I see a dance floor!

 

On 11/19/2023 at 6:49 PM, TBfrPH said:

Is live music being offered for dancing in the evening?

 

Our newsletter shows that there is an Expedition Dance Party scheduled for 9:15p.  When we left the dining room after dinner this evening, the dance floor was being set up.

 

[mahdnc]

Here is today's presentation for tomorrow's activities.   One thing that Cristina mentioned that is not on the slides is that a private mini-bus will be available to drive guests with mobility problems to avoid the 1 mile hike to the breeding center described on the 5th slide below.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited November 23, 2023 by mahdnc

[CPT Trips]

Who thought they were Crossing the Delaware?
 

[mahasamatman]

57 minutes ago, mahdnc said:

Our newsletter shows that there is an Expedition Dance Party scheduled for 9:15p.

 

Doesn't sound like our kind of dancing (which is ballroom). If the floor is generally empty on other nights, we always have our own music.

 

 

 

 

Edited November 23, 2023 by mahasamatman

[Beachlover1989]

Your wildlife photos are amazing! Thank you so much for taking precious time out of your vacation to share them with us!!!

[mahdnc]

Today (Thanksgiving Day) we had our full day at Santa Cruz.  The zodiacs took us to Puerto Ayora which we were allowed time on our own to visit on two different occasions that day.  There were some nice shops in town but the highlight was to see the wildlife at the open fish market located near the dock area.

 

We rode buses to get to the famous Charles Darwin Research Center, to see the breeding center for the Galapagos Tortoises.  We had lunch at El Rancho Manzanillo and an opportunity to watch a brief Ecuadorian cultural dance and then a walk to see the Galapagos Tortoises out in the wild.

 

It was fun, but it was a very long day.  Here are some photos from today.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited November 24, 2023 by mahdnc

[mahdnc]

Here is today's presentation about tomorrow's activities:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

There is a mistake in the last slide (above), Punta Suarez is listed as having a dry landing.  There is no landing as it is a zodiac ride only.

[mahasamatman]

I like the tortoises with numbers. I can just imagine them racing on a track.

[mahdnc]

On 11/22/2023 at 10:42 PM, mahasamatman said:

 

Doesn't sound like our kind of dancing (which is ballroom). If the floor is generally empty on other nights, we always have our own music.

 

 

 

 

It wasn’t ballroom dancing. We had dinner with a couple that participated in the dancing last night and was told that they music was more disco like.

[sandiego1]

Thank you so much for all the photos of the daily presentations! I now have a much better understanding of what to expect on our upcoming trip. Much appreciation for the time you are taking out of your vacation to post everything!

[mahasamatman]

11 hours ago, mahdnc said:

they music was more disco like.

 

That's what I expect when they say "dance party". I hope the floor has enough availability so we can dance to our own music.

[mahdnc]

Today was our last day of excursions which is a good thing (I am tired) and a bad thing (I wanna see more).  We decided not to sign up for kayaking to make the day a little less strenuous.

 

This morning Xpedition anchored next to Espanola Island.  This morning my wife and I did the beach walk and some snorkeling.  

 

Espanola Island is a very easy wet landing.  Our zodiac put as at a beautiful white sand beach with turquoise water.  It reminded me of Florida.  Unlike the beach at Floreana Island (Post Office), the sand here was very firm which made it easy and a pleasure to walk on.  

 

We first looked at a skeleton of a humpback whale on the beach (relocated from the rocky area it was first discovered).  Then we proceeded to walk along the beach.  The sea lions flirted with some of us.  During the walk you could see a shark swimming parallel to the beach and a sea turtle swimming in the opposite direction.  After that we went snorkeling which was great once you swam to the rock cropping.  There we saw fish, sea turtles and 2-3 small sharks swimming about.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited November 24, 2023 by mahdnc

[mahdnc]

This afternoon at Espanola Island, we went on our last excursion which was a zodiac ride along the coastline of the island.  It was pretty cloudy during the trip.

 

We saw albatross, a pair of blue footed boobies, sea turtles, marine iguana, and the ubiquitous sea lion.  I was able to get some bird-in-flight photos.

 

Again, here are some photos.

 

Time to pack.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited November 24, 2023 by mahdnc

[Ken the cruiser]

Aren’t the Galápagos Islands awesome!! Your fantastic photos have brought back so many great memories from our Southern Loop cruise 8 years ago. We can’t wait to head there in a couple of weeks!! Thank you so much for sharing them with us! 😁

[dlh015]

Bravo, bravo!!  Standing ovation!!  Thank you yet again...for sharing the blessings of your voyage...

 

[mahdnc]

Here are our instructions for tomorrow:

 

 

[Poconolady]

I see that most people in the last  zodiac shot have on long sleeves and long pants, is this for sun protection or weather?. What has the temperature been? 

[Ken the cruiser]

20 minutes ago, Poconolady said:

I see that most people in the last  zodiac shot have on long sleeves and long pants, is this for sun protection or weather?. What has the temperature been? 

According to windy.com, the weather forecast for Baltra seems quite comfortable (temperature wise) right now, and has been for the past few weeks.

 

https://www.windy.com/-0.454/-90.276

 

Edited November 26, 2023 by Ken the cruiser

[prmssk]

1 hour ago, Poconolady said:

I see that most people in the last  zodiac shot have on long sleeves and long pants, is this for sun protection or weather?. What has the temperature been? 

The week before we were in the mid to upper 70s most days.  Many wore long sleeves for sun protection, my husband included to avoid having to put on much sunscreen.  I personally wore tank tops and shorts most days but did use a lot of sunscreen.  You are at the equator so they really warned us about the strength of the sun.

[bjahil47]

Great pictures!  I have enjoyed them and your commentary!  Thank you!

[mahdnc]

2 hours ago, Poconolady said:

I see that most people in the last  zodiac shot have on long sleeves and long pants, is this for sun protection or weather?. What has the temperature been? 

It was for sun protection only. It was one of my packing mistakes as I didn’t bring a long sleeve anything. That mistake was corrected when I bought a long sleeve shirt from the Xpedition gift shop half way through the cruise. 

[WeBcruisingMN]

Hello @mahdnc David!
Just caught up on your trip report and (as always) very specific and helpful info. So glad to see & hear that you and Marcia had a stupendous cruise in the Galapagos Islands. We are on the FLORA in October 2024. Seemed so far-off when we booked it, but now only 11 months away and starting to get excited.

 

We just returned from Hawaii, where our youngest daughter Theresa married her long time Australian love, Chris. Remember they met on the dance floor of the Celebrity Solstice while sailing in Australia (April 2018) and got engaged while sailing on the Solstice in Alaska (August 2022)? It was a joyous wedding, and a fun time- uniting Theresa and Chris, and also uniting two countries & cultures. The Americans and Australians had a great time together celebrating.

 

All the best to you and your family, as you continue to enjoy cruising and enjoy life 😀🚢

Sharon

A quick pic of the happy couple at their beautiful venue on Oahu