Day 8 Back to Santa Cruz

We took a very early boat back to Santa Cruz at 6am (though we did find out that there was a later option in the afternoon with some, but not all ferry companies) the ride was much less bumpy than normal and I am happy to report that I did not get sick!

We dropped our bags off at Hotel Santa Fe and headed off to find some snacks. We had a cappuccino and cookie at Galapagos deli which was a good place for a snack, ice cream, sandwiches, and pizza. 

We then began our walk to the Charles Darwin research station and along the way our first taxi cab driver from the island pulled up in front of us and pulled out my prescription sunglasses that I thought I had lost forever. I guess that there really is no stealing on this island (I should note though that they did have red lipstick on them, which I surely don't wear, so I assume someone tried to keep them until they realized they had prescription lenses). In any case, I am so excited and relieved to be reunited with my glasses!

At the Charles Darwin Center we saw a few varieties of giant tortoises large and very, very small. This is a breeding center in addition to a research station. They also had some land iguanas that we had not seen in the wild. They were an interesting yellow color. 

On our way back to the hotel we stopped off for lunch at a place called Lo & Lo and I had a traditional fish dish with the fish baked in a plantain leaf packet. Super yummy!

After a quick rest at the hotel we walked to Tortuga bay, which is said to have one of the nicest beaches in all of South America. The walk was long and we were very tired at this point so when we finally arrived at the beach we just hung around for a bit and checked out the animals.

Our hotel (Santa Fe) was ok, but there was no hot water while we were there and in the morning there was no electricity which made it difficult to get ready. At least they gave us 20% off the price for that.

We grabbed dinner at a Japanese restaurant and we both had a sort of veggie burgers cooked on a heated volcanic rock and split a soup made from yuca, corn, and queso. An excellent dinner. 

On the way back to the hotel for the night we grabbed some ice cream --more likely gelato-- at the Galapagos deli and then went back to the hotel to pack and get ready for tomorrow.