Zona Cafeteria, in the western central area of Columbia

Update on motels! This sign is more specific than the Rio Secreto motel we saw in Chile- we would have understood this one with no trouble! Also, there are many more motels in Columbia than anywhere else we’ve seen in South America! A Columbian we met in Ecuador enlightened us by telling us that ALL

Popayan and More

Mmm, there are delicious cakes and pastries here in Columbia! Here’s the main square of Popayan, population 266,000. The town was founded in 1537 and was a religious, political and cultural centre as well aswell as a key stopping point between Cartagena and Quito for the Spanish, who were plundering much of the gold of

Start of Columbia

The countryside looks similar to Ecuador, but as Ken points out, the fields have hedges. No wonder it looks familiar- just like England! This is the Santuario de las Lajas ouside Ipiales, just 15 km from the Ecuador- Columbia border. It spans a wide gorge. This church was built in the early 1900’s; however, the

Saturday market in Otavalo, Ecuador

Otavalo is famous for it’s Saturday market, which takes up a huge square and spills out into the side streets. Traditionally dressed indigenous people sell many colourful fruits and vegetables as well as arts and crafts. It’s raining, and there aren’t very many tourists at this time of year though in summer there are apparently

Galapagos Islands Part 4

Here’s a Galapagos pelican. All the following photos are all from Ken’s Nikon or Sony cameras – sure beats an iPhone! The colours are much brighter for starters. and the focus is sharper. This is a swallow tailed seagull. Blue footed booby and another booby here with the nest and chicks. Swallow tailed gull bringing

Galapagos Islands Part 3

Male frigate bird with distended red gular sac to attract a mate versus another male without the sac distended sitting in its nest. Blue-footied boobies picking up one foot after the other in a kind of dance. The name apparently comes from sailors being able to just pick these birds up without them trying to

Galapagos Islands Part 2

Flightless cormorants Our captain (see Tshirt) Our cook, Victor, who is an inspiration. He is always happy and content. And he has a great voice for opera! Here’s a marine iguana for you. They let salt from saltwater dry on their heads and body to reflect the sun to regulate their body temperature. Not too

Galapagos Islands Part 1

Flying from Quito to Guayaquil on our way to the Galapagos Islands, we see this volcano. Coke label – long red line for sugar content! Our first giant land tortoises (about 4 feet long and 3 feet wide!) They are huge! and this one looks like it needs a good mouthwash. They have big markings

Quito, Capital of Ecuador

First we stop at the huge statue of La Virgen de Quito, who soars over the city from the hill El Panecillo (meaning Little Bread Loaf). According to the people of Quito, she is the only Madonna in the world with wings. Quito has a population of 1.7 million, and the total population of Ecuador

No More Satellite Tracking 😢

Sadly our inReach fell overboard on April 12th in the middle of the Pacific Ocean near one of the Galapagos Islands. We heard something fall and thought it was on the cabin floor but alas, the next morning we discovered the inReach had fallen out of our cabin window and hit the boat deck before