Cruise With Christine Pappin: marine iguanas

Saturday, September 12, 2009

Celebrity Xpedition - Galapagos - Great Offers

Galapagos Great Offers

Celebrity Xpedition

Take advantage of these special offers on October & November Sailings

If you haven't read my articles on our Celebrity Xpedition to Galapagos last year, I suggest you do so. I am often asked what my favorite cruise vacation is and my answer is usually "the one I'm on now". If you pressure me more, I will tell you that it was our Xpedition to the Galapagos.

One hundred fifty years ago, a man wrote about his quest that took him to a place where he would discover how life evolved thousands of years ago. You have the opportunity to follow in his footsteps and discover a land that is inhabited by species that can be found nowhere else on earth.

What do you think it was like to come face to face with a Red Marine Iguana or a Giant Galapagos Tortoise? What was it like seeing one of those cute Sea Lions or Galapagos Penguins?

You don't have to guess - you can find out for youself if you take advantage of one of the following special offers that Celebrity Cruises has announced.

Celebrity Cruises Itineraries & Pricing

Captain's Club Elite members receive 10% discount on a Celebrity Xpedition to Galapagos.

Celebrity Xpedition is an all-inclusive cruise vacation. Purchase the entire land/sea package and you can forget about doing any planning of daily activities. Your only decision will become do I want medium or high intensity activity in our next Galapagos island.

Celebrity Xpedition staff greets you at the airport in Quito, Ecuador and puts you on a motor coach to your nearby hotel. You explore Quito for two days before being escorted to the airport where you board a charter flight to Baltra, the starting point of your sea portion of the vacation.

Onboard the vessel, all meals and entertainment are provided as is the case on most cruises. In addition to that, you can belly up to the bar with your newly made friends for cocktails any time you want. It is hard to spend money onboard the ship. Most things are included except for items in the gift shop or a massage from the spa attendant.

Celebrity Xpedition was just refurbished, adding some additional cabins and sprucing up the ship. I think you will truly enjoy the improvements. I can't say enough about the ship's staff and naturalists - they are the best in the industry.

Call me today before the limited space is sold out.

Friday, January 2, 2009

Galapagos - Fernandina Island (Day 7 Afternoon)

click images to enlarge

As I mentioned in a previous post, my husband and I split up for the afternoon excursions on day 7. Since I had stubbed my toe in the morning, I didn’t think I’d be able to do any extensive hiking. Here is what I missed by not doing the high intensity activity.

Arriving by Zodiac on Fernandina Island, the group was met by a curious sea lion who was walking along the concrete dock landing area. After stopping for a photo opportunity, they continued along the path where they met the first of many Marine Iguanas which populate the island. In fact, Fernandina Island has one of the largest "colonies" of iguanas in the archipelago.

The Marine Iguanas don't seem to be bothered by humans at all. Walking along the volcanic terrain several groups of iguanas were spotted "hanging out" together. The scene looked like a typical beach scene with all the natives close together sunning themselves. The iguanas also liked congregating by the poles that marked the trail. In some areas, they were looking out to sea. You have to wonder what they were thinking about as they gazed upon the group or when they simply looked out into the sea.

Good hiking shoes and a walking stick are very helpful on Fernandina Island. The terrain varies between crushed volcanic rock and very uneven volcanic rock. Despite the uneven terrain, it is not very difficult to navigate around the island.

In addition to the iguanas, which were plentiful, there were several sea lions and Flightless Comorants. Sally Lightfood and other species of Crabs could also be found along the path.

Day 7 was another fantastic day in the Galapagos. Despite my injury in the morning, both my husband and I were able to explore this very interesting island and the surrounding area.