Total chaos

We've sold the Fairfield condo! (It happened while we were away.) Now we must clear everything out by November 12. So, I sill have laundry to do, I haven't paid my bills, I'm still catching up with email, and now I am packing boxes and giving away furniture! And also dealing with a root canal.

And you want photos of all that?

Nov 2. I'm back!

And as the photos - all taken today - show, life is back to the old routine.

Missing - a photo of the tissues that were laundered with the clothes.

Brussel sprouts update

Tomorrow I'll start filling in the missing days.

Galapagos postings

are being added below in chronological order

Wed. Passage towards Isabella: South-north divide

Last night into this morning we made our longest sea passage. We were up on deck early to look for whales, without success, but saw some frigate birds and a school of dolphins.

The ship's horn blew - we were crossing the equator!

After a symbolic task, we each received a certificate from Neptune himself. It reminded me of the play we had watched on the green at Mystic Seaport when Alexis and Ethan were visiting last summer.

Tuesday PM. Santa Cruz: Co-existence

Although I missed the Darwin Research Center, I did not miss seeing the giant tortoises. We drove through the National Park area up into the highlands, passing through several micro-climate zones. The vegetation became more lush and tropical, followed by a high prairie. After lunch we

walked across a farmer's fields where tortoises were likely to be found.

And there they were! The tortoises are just "there", existing only for themselves., eating,

sleeping, walking about, bathing. They are not social creatures so did not gather in groups, and are without predators (now that they are protected from man). A natural curiosity.

The tortoises' apparent lack of purpose in life is alien to westerners in the 21st century, but here on Santa Cruz humans and tortoises coexist quite tranquilly.

Tuesday AM. Santa Cruz: Irony

As anyone who heard me talk about our upcoming trip knows, I was eagerly awaiting the opportunity to see the giant tortoises. So, the morning that the group was scheduled to visit the Darwin Research Center, I spent the time in a dentist's chair dealing with an abscessed tooth. Bummer!

From a different perspective, I was lucky that (1) the problem manifest itself

before we visited Santa Cruz, the island with the largest permanent population, (2) the ship's doctor was able to prescribe for the pain, arrange for the visit to the dentist, and accompany me there, and (3) not least, the young woman endodentist was excellent. As I said afterwards, if I lived nearby, I would certainly go to her. But she only dealt with half the problem, clearing the infection and cleaning the area mechanically. I need a root canal as soon as I get back to the States.

Mon PM. San Sebastian: Littoral comfort zone

A beach walk in the intertidal zone restored my sense of balance because I already accepted the the ocean as having its own power structure and the littoral zone acts as a buffer between the sea and land.

Red sally lightfoot crabs scurried about, and sea lions were so close I almost stepped on them.

The only strangeness was the marine iguanas, maybe a hundred of them, climbing onto rocks, flopping down in a heap, with water squirting out of their nostrils every once in a wile. Even then, I had my "wow!" moment back in Guayaquil - albeit with land iguana.

The setting and pace of the walk were familiar -- I was back in my comfort zone.