Day 6 - Galápagos Islands

Tuesday, 19 August 2014

Breakfast at 5.45 am! This is because some of them had to leave for the airport this morning so we had to start really early. First we went to the Charles Darwin Research Centre in Porta Ayora, where we saw the Galapagos Tortoises in captivity. There are 14 species of tortoises altogether in the Galápagos Islands, 4 are extinct. There is only 1 other species of land tortoise, and they are in the Seychelles. The number of tortoises on the Galápagos Islands are declining, hence the need to breed them in captivity. The most famous tortoise is Lonesome George, he was the last surviving species of one of the 4 extinct species, and he just would not mate, hence his name. He died 2 years ago, and his species died with him. There is also another famous one called Super Diego, because he has fathered many tortoises. Females reach sexual maturity around the age of 30, and they stop growing. Males reach sexual maturity around the age of 50, and they continue to grow until they die. Adults can reach up 300 kgs, and live up to 150 years.

After this, my worst nightmare came true. The group that was flying off went off, including Sophia. We exchanged emails last night and I hope to keep in touch with her because she is really a good friend. Like minded people are hard to find. Then the people who remain in Porta Ayora, including Laura and I who will continue the cruise, were told to roam around Porta Ayora until 12.30 pm. That was another 5 hours, and the people I was stuck with were the ones I hated the most, I simply cannot talk to them. I tried. But whenever I say something, either something important or something silly (in order to get to their level), they just ignore me, or brush me off as if I can't know anything. But whenever they say something, even something like, "oh look at my bruise", everyone comments or discusses the issue. Seriously? And Laura I think is the worst. She is such a hypocrite it's not even funny. When we left the research centre, they were staring forever at a tortoise so I walked on ahead, and they were still staring and talking among themselves so I went to the loo. When I came out, they had disappeared. So I just walked and walked until I reached town, and was approaching the pier where we catch our ride back to the boat, when I saw them sitting in a restaurant. So I went there, and they asked me where I was, and I said I went to the loo and when I came out they were gone, and Laura said, "but you didn't tell us where you were going".

I had to follow these bunch of losers around for about 4 hours, and when it was 12.00 noon, they wanted to go and eat and I said I would wait for Laura near the pier. They only emerged at 1.00 pm, and when I went to them, Laura said, "but why would you wait for me?" And I was properly pissed, I didn't say goodbye to the rest, I just walked to the dinghy and I told Laura that when I said I would wait for her, I would wait for her and she said whatever. It's like everything I do is wrong, if I don't tell them where I'm going it's wrong, if I tell them where I'm going or what I'm going to do, it's also wrong. I refused to talk to Laura thereafter but being the hypocrite that she is, she talked to me as if nothing was wrong. I gave her the cold shoulder.

Lunch, then the new people came. There are 2 couples, and the rest are all single people. After lunch we went to the highlands to see the tortoises in the wild. These were much larger, and looked happier than their brethren in captivity. We also saw how the lava river of years ago made lava tunnels underground, and we walked in one for about 150 meters.

During and after dinner, I had the chance to get to know the new people, Hannah from Australia, Muriel from Canada, Florian from Austria and Du Yun from China, but who lives in New York and is a composer! How cool is that! They seem really nice, much better than the earlier group!

Oh and the two-faced Laura pissed me off further because she came and told me that they all thought Sophia slept with the captain of the boat because earlier, they had gone snorkeling together and appeared to be very close, and in the night Sophia was missing. In fact, Sophia told me this morning that she ate too much for dinner last night, was feeling sick and slept on the deck for a while. This is the kind of close minded, gossipy, bad hearted people they are.

I was actually wondering whether it was me, whether I was so bad at making friends that they all hated me. But now I know it's not me. It's them. Inferior beings who look down on others without realizing what fools they are themselves. I should never have doubted myself.