Live from Silver Origin in the Galapagos July 6th to 13th (with pre and post-voyage adventures in the Amazon and Andes)

[RyanJCanada]

Tomorrow’s Chronicle:

 

 

[RyanJCanada]

On 7/9/2024 at 8:45 PM, CardowMD said:

I like others, just discovered your “live” review! I was going to go to bed about 2 hours ago, but like a good book, couldn’t put down my iPad! This is an amazing journey for your family, and your kids are very fortunate to have these opportunities to see the “other side” of the world that most will never experience.

 

Plan to hit the sack so I can get up at 530 tomorrow morning😊look forward to the next chapter.

Thanks! We’re very lucky that both kids enjoy travel… no guarantees this will last forever, but we’re making hay while the sun continues to shine. Hope you enjoy the rest of the trip report!

[RyanJCanada]

15 hours ago, liptastic said:

Thanks for another wonderful live thread. Your daily updates from the very start are a must read and excellent. This looks an amazing experience. Thanks for taking us all along. Best wishes to you and your family, Jean. 

Thanks, Jean! Glad you’re enjoying it.

[RyanJCanada]

Day 14

 

The day dawned cool and hazy on Santa Cruz this morning:

Another leisurely start this morning – we had the choice of either heading to a combined coffee experience and tortoise reserve or visiting the El Manzanillo Giant Tortoise Reserve instead. As Option B gave us both a chance to sleep in and to see more tortoises, we opted for that.

 

Breakfast was again delicious this morning. Here are some of the alternative items on the buffet:

Though I also opted to change it up this morning, and had waffles with Ecuadorian chocolate sauce, cacao nips and banana crumble:

Some interesting ships in the harbour this morning:

Along with some unexpected guests blocking the boardwalk:

Though we didn’t know it at the time, this was going to be a recurrent theme to our adventures today.

 

Santa Cruz is considerably older than many of the other islands we’ve visited – roughly 5 million years old, compared to Fernandina at 1 million years old. This is immediately evident in the lushness of the countryside, particularly in the highlands:

It wasn’t long until we were turning off down the road to El Manzanillo, though the journey would take somewhat longer than expected.

Yes, this process is as slow as it looks.

 

But the tortoise did eventually clear the path, and we made it to the reserve.

And – as promised – there were plenty of huge, beautiful Galapagos tortoises to admire:

And some ducks:

They also offered the chance to try the local sugarcane spirit – aguardiente.

I’m a huge fan of agricole rums and similar liquors, like Guaro in Costa Rica, so I picked up a bottle to take home.

 

Then it was time to head back to the ship for a while.

 

Interestingly, they seem to have buoys specifically designed to warn of tsunamis:

We then went off to the Restaurant for lunch:

My wife made herself a nice salad:

While I had the crab and shrimp ceviche:

I had the wiener schnitzel:

While my wife had the farfalle pasta:

And then both the rum baba and the meillefeuille for dessert:

There was time enough for a brief nap and some downtime before we returned to Puerto Ayora to visit the Galapagos Giant Tortoise Breeding Centre:

The tortoises are segregated by age. Once they reach the age of 5, they can be reintroduced to the wild:

But the under-twos need special care, lest they be destroyed by rats or other pests:

They need to be numered so they don’t get mixed up.

They also host saddleback tortoises. These tortoises were native to Floreana, but went extinct – thankfully, they were able to be reintroduced from samples of the breed that were found in Isabella.

 

For those curious – yes, the tortoises regularly manage to flip themselves over onto their backs. This is a daily occurrence at the centre, and there are some tortoises that repeatedly manage to flip themselves over in the same spot.

 

And then – the moment we’ve all been waiting for – adorable baby tortoises:

After, we went to visit the remains of Lonesome George. He was the last surviving Pinta Island tortoise. Despite extensive efforts, he was not able to reproduce. His death in 2012 marked the end of his species.

George represents a cautionary tale about the risks of exintction should we not take adequate care to preserve endangered species.

 

We had the chance to visit the Charles Darwin Research Station, but elected to head back to town instead. The kids had done a tremendous job paying attention to the expedition guides, but we thought it best not to push our luck – particularly when we had another target in mind.

 

Namely – ice cream:

Regular readers will know of our fondness for finding new and novel ice cream stops whenever we travel, and we didn’t want the Galapagos to be an exception. Thankfully our guide, Karla, was kind enough to recommend an ice cream shop named Kuthu to visit:

It also gave us a good excuse to travel through Puerto Ayora, which is quite a beautiful town:

There were also countless bars, shops, and restaurants. It reminded me a lot of Costa Rica when I first started visiting in the early 2000s. I’d like to come back and stay here some time.

 

But not today, because we had another stop to make – the local playground:

 

But the sky was starting to look threatening, so it was time to head back to the ship:

Back to the room, where our butler had kindly left octopus tarts as an appetizer:

Very tasty.

 

I then went to the Explorer’s Lounge to do a bit of writing and await the evening briefing on the rise of human activity in the Galapagos.

 

I ordered a Fancy Free as my evening cocktail:

Then it was time for the evening briefing. We’ll be heading to Espanola tomorrow, and the focus will be on water sports – there will be a beach trip, an open water snorkeling trip, and then the Silver Origin Plunge.

 

There are rumours that we might have the chance to snorkel with sea lions, but we don’t want to get our hopes up. But we are excited about the Plunge, particularly after having done the Polar Plunge on the Cloud in Greenland last summer. We’re hopeful that we’ll be able to go tomorrow so that we can then round out the trio with an Antarctic plunge during our cruise in March 2025.

 

Later in the afternoon, we’ll be heading to Punta Suarez for a long, challenging hike over uneven terrain – it’ll be a tall order after a long day, but with the potential to see the Galapagos giant albatross and perhaps even a close encounter with the Galapagos hawk.

 

Off to dinner at the Restaurant:

My wife and I both started with the traditional shrimp and plantain dumpling soup:

While I had the asparagus with Iberico ham as an appetizer:

My wife had the snapper:

While I had the pork sirloin, albeit with the cassava puree instead of the sweet potato:

And for dessert, the chocolate marquis:

The waters were calmer this evening, so my wife and I once again returned to our verandah to enjoy a bottle of Prosecco and bid goodbye to Santa Cruz:

[jpalbny]

Sad to see those bag tags! But, you have had quite the adventure so far. Hoping the last part of the cruise is just as good.

[RyanJCanada]

Final Chronicle:

 

 

 

Swamped with getting bags (and kids) ready for tomorrow’s travel day - today’s post to follow as soon as possible.

[RyanJCanada]

Good morning, Espanaola!

 

Leisure time and snorkelling at the beach begins at 7:30 am today, but we’re planning to do both beach snorkelling and open water snorkelling in the hopes of encountering some sea lions – so we’ve decided to start later so as to avoid getting too chilled or water logged.

 

This means that we’re up at a very reasonable 7:15 am this morning. Off for another delicious breakfast, and then into our stinger suits and wetsuits for a landing on this beautiful sandy beach in the hopes of snorkelling with sea liions.

There are plenty of sea lions about, but few of them seem intent on swimming.

 

Nevertheless, we hop into the water and enjoy a brief spot of snorkelling.

 

And our perseverance is rewarded:

 

 

 

Back to the beach to lounge in the sand, warm up, and get ready to head to our open water snorkelling. Some of the Zodiacs are departing from the Origin, while others are leaving right from the beach. We leave from the beach, and are the first group to arrive at the dive site.

 

Thus begins the most incredible dive I’ve ever experienced:

 

 

There are no words for what it’s like to be swimming in the ocean like this, surrounded by playful sea lions. It was an absolutely incredible experience – perhaps the top highlight of this trip.

 

The water was again cool, and a few of us got out a bit early. But the rest of the group carried on into a cave filled with fish and sea lions alike:

But they too soon boarded the Zodiac.

 

Back to the Origin, where we took place in the ‘equatorial’ plunge – we did the polar plunge when we were in Greenland, so we were excited to carry on the tradition.

Plus, this time the crew didn’t feel the need to tie a line to my daughter so that they could haul her in like a fish if needed. (Though we completely understand why they did so last summer, given the temperature of the Arctic water.)

 

Fingers are firmly crossed that we’ll be able to complete the ‘trio’ (Arctic, Antarctic, and equatorial) when we go on our Cape-to-Cape cruise next February.

 

After we had drank the Origin out of hot chocolate, we returned to the Restaurant for a delicious lunch:

I started with the tuna and peanut ceviche:

And then went on to the salmon and French fries:

While my wife had the chicken tikka masala:

My son had fettucine Bolognese:

And for dessert, the tamarillo cheesecake and dark chocolate mousse:

I took a brief power nap, and then we went up to the bridge for a tour.

When they say ‘Restricted area’, they mean it

We learned that swells in the Galapagos are generally around 1 metre, but can get as high as 2.5 metres. The draft of the Origin is only 4.5 metres, which seems surprisingly small given the size of the vessel.

There are always two officers watching the bridge. Much of the sailing can be done automatically, and they have multiple systems for propulsion – main propulsion and maneuvering thrusters. In addition to the regular safety drills, they do large safety drills monthly – these include simulations for fire safety, medical emergencies, and so on.

 

It takes four years of merchant marine training to become a bridge officer, or even longer if they want to specialize – for example, in navigation.

 

It was really informative for the kids, and we’re really glad we did it. They don’t really advertise bridge tours but they are often available upon request.

 

We then landed on Punta Suarez for a ‘challenging’ nature walk.

There was an absolute ton of marine iguanas, plus nesting waved albatrosses:

And even a Galapagos hawk:

This was the first time our guide, Andy, had come this close to a hawk eating a fresh kill

 

The views were stunning:

And there was a natural ‘blowhole’ where water would blast up from the surf:

We spotted some of the nesting albatrosses engaged in their courtship ritual – not currently available due to technical issues, but please check back later to for when it’s reposted.

 

Even when not mating, the albatrosses continue to clack beaks – this is believed to help strengthen their bond.

 

We were there for almost two and a half hours before heading back to the ship.

 

Back to the room where we munched on snacks – a cheese plate, and chips and guac – left by our butler:

Shower and change, and then off to the Explorer’s Lounge where I had an Old Fashioned:

Then the briefing – we’d be back at San Cristoble tomorrow. There’s an early morning hike on offer, but we’re going to go with a Zodiac cruise instead. Then my wife and daughter will go snorkelling, while my son and I will try stand-up paddleboarding. There’s also a beach visit in the afternoon. Sounds like a nice, easy wind-down to a hectic trip.

 

Then off to dinner at the Restaurant:

I had the tuna carpaccio:

And my wife had the cannelloni:

Then we both had the seafood stew:

This was okay, but not as good as many of the other seafood offerings aboard the Origin.

 

Then tiramisu:

Back to the room, where the bag tags have sadly arrived:

We’re not sure of the significance of the colour, however – we’ve been blue group throughout the cruise. Does this mean we’ll be switching to green group for our departure? Confusingly, there was also a blue and yellow group during the initial transfers.

 

But that is a problem for tomorrow.

 

First and foremost – we needed to figure out a way to burn off our excess stateroom credit.

 

Solution: Moet.

We’ve also upgraded our internet, which has been particularly helpful these past few days while uploading video.

 

Off to our verandah, where we watched the moon turn a golden orange before sinking below the horizon:

Edited July 13 by RyanJCanada
Video issues

[RachelG]

Loving all your posts.  They bring back great memories; however, you missed the scamper up the rope ladder on the side of the ship which George and I and all the other passengers got to do as the hydraulics on the marina failed. You can go back and check it out on my posts from 2021.  Your kids would have loved it.  I didn’t particularly love though, but was able to do it on my own due to consistent Pilates classes.

[Ciaranaman]

Such a sad day when those departure luggage tags arrive 😢.   What a day for sea-adventures, though!  Love your videos!  Thank you for posting them!  Such playful sea lions!  I can't imagine a better way to end your trip 🦭

~Bernadette

[RyanJCanada]

Day 16

 

Good morning, San Cristobal:

Up at 7:15 am this morning, which beats the alternative – the Origin sent across Zodiacs to tour Isla Lobos at 6:30 am that morning. Not sure how that scheduling came about – did another group have a later slot booked? Was this a peace offering to the birders, who had been arriving on site later than they’d like?

 

Regardless, it’s too early for our liking – so we finally opted to take it easy and go on a Zodiac cruise instead. And what a lovely Zodiac cruise it was:

Nothing here really new or novel compared to our previous landings, but it was lovely to just have some time to bob along in the water and watch the birds and the sea lions go about their daily life.

Fun Facts: Sea lions can hold their breath for 11 minutes, and dive to depths of up to 900 feet. Their propensity for napping appears unlimited.

“Psst… wanna buy some discounted expedition cruises?”

 

Those who did the morning hike seemed to think it was worthwhile – apparently there were lots of hatchlings to be seen. But we’re still glad we skipped it.

 

Particularly as we were due to go paddleboarding:

I was pleasantly surprised that my son would be able to take part given that the age minimum for kayaking is 16, but I can see why it would be different for paddleboarding – it was relatively straightforward for the guides to tow any paddleboarders that were struggling, and the penalty for falling was a lot lower.

We will pretend this is artfully shot, instead of the result of a crooked GoPro

 

We were originally supposed to go down one coast and back along the other, but the wind was starting to pick up so the guides decided to return along the same coast. I think that was a wise idea – we were mostly sheltered from the wind so long as we hugged the coast, but when it did pick up it could spin the paddleboards with ease.

 

The paddleboarding portion was run by an outside company, though they sent expedition staff to assist. It was really well organized, and easy to get underway. For those who preferred not to stand, they could kneel or sit instead.

 

With help from the staff, both myself and my son managed to paddle standing up for a time. It was really special.

Back to the Origin where we met up with my wife and daughter, who’d had a fantastic time snorkelling. They’d had another chance to get up-close-and-personal with the sea lions, though sadly no footage as I took my GoPro on the paddleboard trip

 

Then we went off to lunch:

I had the spicy siracha chicken sandwich, slightly mangled from having all its vegetables removed:

And for dessert, a piece of Sacher torte cake:

Both were fantastic, but the spicy chicken sandwich really stole the show.

 

I had another quick power nap, and then it was time to head down to the Explorer’s Lounge for the disembarkation briefing. The usual drill – bags outdoors before 11 pm the night before, and then we’d be disembarking by Zodiac groups with our group (Blue) going first at 7:30 am. Then we’d hop on the buses and head off to the San Cristobal airport for our flight to Guayaquil.

 

Although there had been some confusion regarding the bag tags, it turns out that the colour of the bag tag referred to the destination – in our case, Guayaquil – as opposed to the Zodiac group. This is the third time that similar colours have been used to code something, which seems a bit ridiculous – but at least we figured out the Mystery of the Green Luggage Tag.

 

It was then time to get dressed in our bathing suits and surf shirts, because we were heading off for a beach excursion.

We initially landed on a greeny-yellow sand beach:

Before taking a brief walk across to a beautiful white sand beach:

It was overcast and misting a bit, but still lovely – and the perfect activity for our kids, who were very much ready to just build and smash a series of sandcastles without having to be on their absolute best behaviour.

 

(Not that they weren’t kicking sand or anything, but you definitely could have heard them unless you were at the far side of the beach. And maybe you could have even heard them then, too – we never made it that far.)

But there was packing yet to be done, so after about an hour at the beach we took one more Zodiac ride back to the Origin and spent the next couple of hours packing up.

 

It was vital that we were ready to go on time, as we didn’t want to miss trivia:

Made all the more special by the small bathtub full of popcorn prepared by the Origin’s kitchen staff

 

For those curious, they hand out answer sheets and then ask members of the audience to select categories and points values Jeopardy-style, though everyone has the chance to answer. The sheets are then switched between groups who mark others work.

 

My son in particular was excited to take part as he loves trivia, and he did a tremendous job of answering some of the tougher questions. We didn’t win, but I’d wager that we came very close. The prize was very modest, and so it’s more about bragging rights than anything else.

 

The best team name went to the “GalapaGossip Girls”, which I agree is better than the “Tiny Tortoises” – which is what we chose.

 

We toasted the crew, and then it was time for the screening of that week’s expedition video. (To be uploaded once we return to the land of fast internet.)

 

The format was a bit different from previous cruises as there wasn’t the voiceover / narration that we’ve had before on the Cloud. But I do have to say that the footage David managed to get was absolutely stunning.

 

It was then time to head to the Restaurant for the final dinner:

I started with the mushroom croquette:

And followed that with the grilled Galapagos grouper:

While my wife had the traditional Ecuador potato pattie:

My wife and son both had the pumpkin pie for dessert:

And I opted for the chocolate pecan tart:

All accompanied with a nice bottle of Sauvignon Blanc, which got me within $3 of blowing through our cruise credit.

 

It was a fabulous meal, and we never wanted it to end. But end it did, so we went back to the room to admire San Cristobal through the mist (and the condensation on a champagne flute).

[RyanJCanada]

On 7/13/2024 at 11:49 AM, RachelG said:

Loving all your posts.  They bring back great memories; however, you missed the scamper up the rope ladder on the side of the ship which George and I and all the other passengers got to do as the hydraulics on the marina failed. You can go back and check it out on my posts from 2021.  Your kids would have loved it.  I didn’t particularly love though, but was able to do it on my own due to consistent Pilates classes.

Sounds like a great story but a terrible experience - and yes, the kids would have loved it.

[RyanJCanada]

Day 17

 

Up bright and early at 6 am to get ready for our travel day. Early, but practically civilized compared to our 4:45 am departure from La Selva.

Off to the Restaurant for a quick bite, and then back to the room to finish packing. We’d packed virtually everything the night before so it didn’t take very long.

 

We ended up in the Base Camp on Deck 3 about 45 minutes before departure, which is fine by us – it gave us some time to play cards and relax, something which has been sorely lacking during this trip.

 

It’s only now – on the verge of leaving – that we realize what we’ve missed. At no point did I ever just sit out on the deck with a cold drink and watch the world go by. I never dropped by the lounge to just listen to music and see who was at the bar. I never even used the Origin’s hot tub, for crying out loud. And – like my son – I too missed the regular trivia sessions on the other expedition ships.

 

Of course, there are good reasons behind all these misses. We had excursions that we wanted to do instead, and the demands of travel writing can easily become a black hole into which many, many hours can be thrown – particularly when waiting for files to upload or download.

 

But still, we are very much looking forward to our 40 day cruise from Puerto Williams to Cape Town via Antarctica next year. There should be plenty of sea days which we can wile away in the Observation Lounge.

 

I digress. 7:30 am, and it’s time to board the Zodiacs. They have this down to a science – the passengers board, dropping our carry-on luggage at the edge of the dock. We take up position around the edge of the Zodiac, while the staff then loads the bags into the middle. Then a very brief Zodiac ride to the pier, where our bus is waiting.

 

Breaking us into two Zodiac groups means that we don’t have to wait for every bus to fill up before we depart – one bus per Zodiac group, no waiting.

 

Then off to the airport, which is about a 5 minute drive away. Bags haven’t made it yet, but are in the process of being unloaded as we arrive. 5 more minutes, and we have our bags to check – but we are so early that the check-in counter has not yet opened. 10 minutes later, and the counter opens and we are on our way.

 

Given that we are only transiting through Guayaquil on our way to Quito, we had hoped that LATAM would be able to check our bags through. No such luck.

 

We’re also irritated to find out that Silversea had put together a Quito transfer that would have gone on the same flight – so we could potentially get to our next destination a full two hours earlier than otherwise. No one had told us this flight existed until we boarded the Origin, and even then they said it was more expensive – no mention of the extra time savings.

 

No matter – we’ll figure it out. We head through customs and security, and then we’re right at the lone gate. Not much in the way of amenities here – just a single convenience store / café.

 

But there is the Magma Lounge. We don’t have access to this particular lounge via the VISA Airport Companion (our credit card’s lounge access program, which replaced Priority Pass) but they’re willing to offer 50% discounts for each of the kids. At $116 for all four of us – and with two hours to kill – it seems like a reasonable deal, so we go for it.

It’s a nice enough lounge. They have soft drinks and coffees, albeit without any espresso or cappuccinos. There are also chips and brownies, and some pre-made sandwiches. I think it’d be a far better deal if you were to visit at a point in the day when you could crack into the sparkling wine and cerveza. But that is not to be – not with the day we have ahead of us.

 

Flight update – we’ve been pushed back by 15 minutes. This leaves us with 1 hour 45 minutes to turn around in Guayaquil, which is starting to get a bit tight. But there are flights that leave later the same day if necessary – so nothing to do but cross fingers and hope at this stage.

 

Fortunately, Magma also has some fairly quick internet so I’m able to upload Day 14 before we get on the plane. It was tight. The last video uploaded as they were calling boarding group 2.

 

Onto the plane, and then up in the air. It was an early enough departure that I’m able to nap for about an hour, at which point it’s time to get ready for our descent into Guayaquil.

Half the passengers stay on board as we depart, trying not to grumble.

 

But – our bags come off quickly, and we’re soon out through departures. The very helpful Silversea representatives try to convince us to come with them, but we explain that we’ve made our own arrangements to fly to Quito. They make a note and tick some items off on their clipboard – we’d already explained as much to front desk, but apparently the memo didn’t get passed along.

 

This appears to be something of a recurrent theme with Silversea – their onboard service and pre- and post- have been great, but neither seem to be talking to one another.

 

For example, we know other guests that had a post-cruise trip to Machu Pichu who had no idea that they would be treated to a five-course meal and an excursion during their layover. They thought they’d be on their own in the Guayaquil airport the whole time.

 

Back up to the LATAM check in desk, where we’re able to use the priority check-in line to get our bags through to Quito. Security takes another 5 minutes, and then we’re at the gates.

 

Our VISA Airport Companion program has lounge access here, but we decide instead to stop at El Español for subs and sandwiches:

Photo Credit: www.tagsa.aero

Plus they had some delicious oreo mocha milkshakes:

Not a terrible trade-off, though I think we’d still rather have arrived at our destination sooner given the option.

 

Our flight to Quito leaves on time – it’s another stopover on its way back from the Galapagos, so we have to struggle to find overhead bin space.

 

LATAM’s premium economy works on a similar model as to Europe, where they simply have regular economy seats with an empty space in the middle. But it’s nice to have an empty seat where I can drop my backpack, headphones, etc.. And they feed us a modest lunch of chips and a ham and cheese sandwich:

There’s turbulence on the way back – normal this time of year – and I end up holding my daughter’s cup of coke all the way through landing into Quito. Irritating, but we make it work.

Our bags are off in record time, helped by the fact that they were both tagged as priority and the last bags onto a mostly-full flight. Indeed, we’re off so quickly that our driver hasn’t arrived quite yet.

 

Not a problem, though – we’d already confirmed our driver with Hacienda La Zuleta, so we’re able to send him a quick message via WhatsApp. He meets us a few minutes later, then dashes back to the parking lot to collect his massive orange tourism van. No worries about not having room for luggage on this leg.

 

He also asks what we’d like for dinner that evening – the options are chicken and rice ‘cake’, vegetables and rice ‘cake’, or shrimp and bacon souffle. We opt for the chicken and rice, not entirely sure what’s meant by the ‘cake’ part. Casserole, maybe? We’re not sure. But that’s part of the adventure, isn’t it?

 

We’re soon on our way:

Thankfully we bypass Quito traffic on the way to La Zuleta, though the Ecuadorian highlands has a traffic all its own. The wildfire along the way doesn’t help, either:

But mostly it’s just a beautiful, scenic drive.

Our driver Christian intersperses the journey with interesting facts, such as the leading exports of Ecuador – shrimp, bananas, roses, and cocoa beans. Tourism has been down in recent months, though apart from our time in Guayaquil we’ve had zero concerns.

 

We arrive at Hacienda La Zuleta roughly two hours later at 6:40 pm – being on the equator, the country gets roughly 12 hours of sunlight every single day so we arrive after dark. The lights paint the Hacienda with an otherworldly glow.

The Hacienda was originally built in the 17^th century, and was the hotel and working-farm of former Ecuador President Galo Plaza Lasso and his family. Activities on site include hiking, mountain biking, embroidery and – my daughter’s personal favourite – horseback riding.

 

We’re met immediately by Santiago, who will be overseeing our stay. We schedule a hike to the Condor Huasi facilities (rescue centre) for tomorrow morning, as well as a horseback ride in the afternoon. Santiago also gives us his WhatsApp contact in case we need to get in touch with him for any reason – a simple system that Silversea would do well to adopt.

 

Santiago then shows us around the Hacienda. We have two suites set aside for us – both rooms lock independently, and then there’s a third door that can lock off to create a private wing. There’s also a beautiful outdoor patio that’s shared by both suites.

Our driver takes our bags inside, and we head to the expansive dining room for dinner:

We start with a carrot cream soup. Not usually something I’d go for, but it’s seasoned to perfection:

And then the ‘cake’ arrives – a dish of cheese, rice, and chicken cooked in a beautiful porcelain pot.

Most meals at Zuleta are served family-style, particularly dinner. There are also a host of delicious cheeses on offer, all of which are made on site.

 

And our first dessert, which is a stewed apple served with fresh cream:

After, we are invited to head to the courtyard for second dessert, namely that most Ecuadorian of treats – s’mores:

Which is served alongside canelazo – a traditional Andean drink of fruit juice, cinnamon and sugar – and aguardiente, an Ecuadorian sugarcane spirit. It’s delicious.

 

We’re joined by two of the resort dogs, Mambo and Tango.

We then return to our rooms to find the beds lined with hot water bottles, and a roaring fire in the fireplace:

Our long travel day catches up to us, and we head off to sleep.

[Ciaranaman]

What a busy day!  But what a relaxing way to end it!  Hot water bottles and a fireplace?  Very nice!

~Bernadette

[RyanJCanada]

Day 18

 

Yesterday was a long day, but we’re glad to have the chance to sleep in until 7:30 am with breakfast at 8 am.

We start with fruit, yoghurt and muesli and then move on to bacon, eggs, toast, and pancakes. My wife had avocado and eggs on English muffins.

 

(I didn’t have my phone with me the first day, so you’ll need to wait til tomorrow for some breakfast photos.)

 

We then went off for a hike to the Condor Huasi (Rescue Centre), joined by Tango the Resort Dog:

There’s one dog who knows that he is a Good Boy

 

The Hacienda covers more than 5,000 acres, so there is ample room to explore.

Our route will take us up the main cobble path, and then back down past the ramp pyramids built by the Caranqui long before the Inca conquest.

But first, cows – some of the 1,200 at the Zuleta farm

And a trout farm!

We reach the Condor Huasi after about an hour’s hike, where biologist Yann Potaufeu is waiting for us. He shows us around the condor enclosure, where they have two pairs of reproductive condors – the only two in captivity – along with a 7-month-old female condor that was born at the Huasi.

The condor enclosure with the only two Ecuadorian breeding pairs in captivity

 

Though one day the Huasi hopes to be able to release newly-born condors into the wild, they are being kept in captivity to ensure conservation, and to assist with future breeding efforts – there are a mere 150 condors in Ecuador, and it takes a long time for new condors to be bred. Condors mate for life and only produce one egg every two years, so it can take a long time to breed new condors.

One of the older males, as taken from a distance – visitors aren’t allowed to get too close to the enclosure

 

And new breeding is needed. Ecuador has lost more than 22 birds over the past few years. Sometimes this is due to hunting – which is illegal in Ecuador – but mostly it’s due to the consumption of poisoned meat, which is often targeted instead at feral dog packs.

 

Unfortunately, there are limited government resources available to address the dog problem – so this ends up falling to a patchwork of non-government organizations instead, with limited results.

 

They’ve made a great deal progress with education to help counter some of the myths around condors – that they kill cows, carry off young girls, and that they represent bad omens.

After, we went inside to learn more about the condors and the spectacle bear – the only species of bear in South America. The markings on their face are as unique as fingerprints.

It’s rare to spot these bears, so we’re not holding out much hope of seeing them this visit. They are mostly herbivores and try to avoid people if possible.

 

After, we hiked down through the fields that led through the pyramids:

And the pyramid itself

 

Unfortunately, the paths here are not very well defined so we ended up having to duck under some barbed wire and crawl through some bushes before we finally found a path across the small river that separates these fields from the main cobblestone road. It cost us an extra 20 minutes, but I feel like it was still worthwhile.

 

Back to Zuleta, where we sat down for a lunch of creamy potato soup:

And crispy lime chicken:

There was dessert too, but I instead left to grab a quick power nap before we went horseback riding:

The stables at Zuleta are absolutely top-notch, and are one of the main reasons that people come from around the world to stay at this Hacienda. They even have their own breed of horse – the Zuleteño,  a unique mixture of Spanish Andalusian, Thoroughbred and American Quarter Horse.

 

My wife and daughter particularly want to go on longer trips, but they asked that we start off with a brief visit to the waterfall before committing to anything further.

 

They provided the helmets and chaps (if we wanted them), though we elected to just use the helmets. We mostly walked but there was a bit of trotting too.

 

It was a lovely trip – very scenic:

We stopped about 100 metres short of the waterfall, and carried on the rest of the way on foot.

Then back to the horses, and back to Zuleta. We took a slightly more circular route on the return trip, which allowed for a change of scenery. The trip took roughly 2 hours in total.

 

My wife and daughter scheduled a longer ride for the next day, while my son and I are going to try mountain biking – they’ll drive us up the mountain, and we’ll bike back down from there.

 

We returned to our rooms for another bit of downtime, then went to the Zuleta living room at 6 pm for a cheese tasting and drinks.

Zuleta staff is more than willing to explain the differences between the cheeses, but we were content to just eat what was set before us.

 

At 7 pm we went off to dinner. We started off with tomato soup:

And then moved on to pork in an orange sauce:

The kids opted for pasta:

There are other kid-friendly options for those so inclined, including pizza and hamburgers.

 

Dessert was sauteed bananas with fresh cream:

S’mores were again on offer, but we elected to call it an early night.

[RyanJCanada]

Day 19

 

 

Busy day ahead of us today – my wife and daughter are going on an extended horseback ride to the top of the nearby mountain of Cubilche, while my son and I will be mountain biking down that very same mountain. Thankfully our paths are not expected to overlap.

 

But first – breakfast:

The kids had the waffles:

While I had the French toast:

And my wife had eggs, English muffins, and avocado:

My wife and daughter headed off for their ride immediately, while my son and I had a bit more time to relax before we set off mountain biking.

 

We met up with our host, Santiago, at 10 am. He’d already gotten out mountain bikes and helmets in a range of sizes. We found ones that were a good fit, and then Santiago and the driver loaded them into the back of the pickup truck and we were off.

 

There was a stunning view of the nearby volcano, Cayambe – the third highest mountain in Ecuador:

We climbed high into the hillside, up to a point where Zuleta rents the land to companies that grow fir trees for timber:

Santiago has actually climbed Cayambe – he said that the way to do it was to ensure that the weather was good, and to wear a helmet. I expect it’s more involved than that, but I won’t be finding out anytime soon.

 

I had been concerned about the safety aspect of mountain biking, but Santiago reassured me that he would be leading us and we’d have the truck behind us acting as a safety vehicle. This should also prevent other vehicles from passing too close, though the trip was mostly on a secondary fire route – so other traffic should be minimal.

 

And with that, we were off:

 

 

 

The dirty-road portion was a lot of fun – though a bit rough and jostling to want to do it immediately afterward. The asphalt portion, however, was true bliss.

 

After, we biked through the village of Zuleta itself, driving past kids’ soccer camps and local shops and restaurants before ending up back at the farm.

 

We had time enough for another rest and a shower before my wife and daughter returned from their ride. They had gone even higher than us – up to 3,850 metres (12,500 feet) – and had taken in some truly stunning views:

Eventually, they reached Laguna Cabilche – a lagoon at the top of Cabilche:

(For comparison, 5,000 metres is considered extreme altitude where many people will experience unconsciousness if not acclimatized, and 8,000 metres is the ‘death zone’.)

 

Unsurprisingly, we’d worked up an appetite from all this.

 

We started with the quinoa soup:

The kids had the steak:

While my wife and I both had the trout:

Nap time followed, and then we joined Santiago for a tour of Zuleta:

The first recorded date of finished construction of Zuleta was from 1691. It first started out as a granary, and as a textile manufacturing location. It was founded by the Zuleta family from the Basque region of Spain.

 

The plaza was used to keep sheep, and also as a centralized location from which the Spanish controlled the local indigenous population.

 

Many Spanish traditions were adapted to include local influences – for example, the local St. John the Baptist event now includes elements of indigenous solstice celebrations.

 

The original granary is now used as storage, but there are plans to remake it as a museum.

There was an economic crisis in 1898, at which point it was sold to the Lazzo family. It has remained with the family for six generations since.

 

Leonides Plaza was the president of Ecuador from 1901 to 1905 and again from 1912 to 1916, while his son Galo Plaza was the president from 1948 to 1952. There is a wide range of history and memorabilia in the area, including a letter from President Truman:

The living room area used to house the cheese factory, but was remodelled in 1974 to provide additional living space for the family. Hacienda Zuleta wasn’t opened to the public until 1995 – but it really has been transformed into a fabulous resort, and perhaps the finest hacienda in all of Ecuador:

With some truly stunning gardens:

This is one of the original paddocks, which was previously used for dressage exhibitions. Nowadays they still use it on occasion when training young riders:

The on-site chapel was used until the 1990s, when the village chapel was built. It is still used for a year-end ceremony and for family weddings.

There is a large mass held on December 31^st in which the Virgin Mary – dressed in Ecuadorian fashion – changes her clothes for the year.

Fernando – the grandson of Galo Plaza and the general manager – has the house by the chapel. This used to be the cowkeeper’s house. Our rooms are located in the remodeled stables.

 

Zuleta employs between 120 to 140 people, including the farm and the hotel. There’s a small milking operation on site with 40 cows, while the farm has over 1,200 cows in total.

The farm produces 10,000 litres of milk a day, 25% of which is used for cheese production.

Also, it has adorable baby cows:

Back to our rooms for a bit more downtime, followed by another round of cheese and reading in the living room.

 

Then off to dinner. Carrot soup again to start, and then my wife and I had lasagna:

While the kids had pasta Bolognese, and more fruit and cream for dessert.

 

Again, we passed on s’mores – my wife and daughter have a busy morning planned, rounding up the herd. Assuming they can still move after 4 hours of horseback riding. If not, I’ll be the one trying to round up the herd. And that would be amusing, because I have no idea how to do that.

 

Who will it be? Tune in tomorrow to find out…

[liptastic]

Your adventures continue to delight on each post. What a wonderful journey you are having. Again thanks so much for taking the time to document your travels .  Jean.

[RyanJCanada]

Day 20

 

Hard to believe this is our last day here. We had that familiar feeling – that the trip had both gone by in the blink of an eye and that we’d made a lifetime worth of memories.

 

The feeling was even more intense than usual given the vast, diverse range of environments we’d visited – countryside, jungle, cities, islands, and mountains. All in a single beautiful country.

 

No doubt about it – we’re going to miss Ecuador.

 

My wife and daughter in particular, especially after they rounded up the horses earlier that morning. (There had been some doubt as to whether my wife would be up for it, but she pushed through and really enjoyed it. Likewise, I enjoyed sleeping in. Win-win.)

 

Unfortunately, her phone has been acting up and she didn’t take the GoPro – so we’ll all just have to rely on her description of dozens of horses streaming down mountain paths as both she and my daughter helped to keep the herd together, all while fighting their own horses’ instincts to join the group.

 

There are multiple herds at Zuleta, so this isn’t going to be the experience for everyone who takes part in round-up-the-herd – some may end up dealing with just a small herd of horses, instead. But experienced riders might get lucky…

 

And then – breakfast:

 

 

Then it was time for one last horseback ride up into the Andes – this time to visit the condor lookout point:

 

 

It wasn’t the easiest of rides – there was a lot of close terrain, so we had to push through all kinds of branches and thorns. But the view made it all worthwhile:

 

 

 

You can just about spot the Condor Huasi (rescue centre) in the valley below

 

After, we did a bit more packing and then it was time for lunch.

 

First a vegetarian ceviche:

 

 

Then I had the garlic pork with potato patties and heart-of-palm. Our host Santiago believes this to be one of the finest meals in all of Ecuador:

 

 

While my wife had the lamb stew:

 

 

And for dessert, a trio of sorbet – mango, blackberry and passionfruit:

 

 

It was then time to head back to our room to pack up, and await the shuttle back to Quito airport.

 

Meanwhile, however, torrential rains had hit Toronto – closing major highways and blocking the route out of the airport. Our flights appeared to be on schedule, but would we actually be able to leave the airport after returning to Canada?

 

More to follow tomorrow…

[Ciaranaman]

Fantastic last day!  Hard to believe that you went from that gorgeous weather in Ecuador, to the rainfall of the century in TO.  Hopefully it didn't cause you too many issues getting out of the airport.  We still have flooding on our property that's going to take forever to drain away!

~Bernadette

[RyanJCanada]

Day 21

 

All good things must come to an end. I just wish they didn’t end with commercial air travel.

 

This will be the longest travel day we’ve ever had with our kids, though it might not feel that way. The redeye flight we took home from Costa Rica in March 2020 – as the world unwittingly careened towards a global pandemic with our own travel plans offset by a Canadian rail strike – definitely felt like 50 pounds of travel crammed into a 10 pound bag.

 

Speaking of bags, I finally had to retire my beloved Deuter 28 – which had been with me since my wife and I took an around-the-world honeymoon in 2010, and which shows every inch of those many, many miles. But the zipper had given up the ghost, and it was more grime than canvas at this point. So it was time.

 

 

But I was able to rescue the build-your-own-Lego minifig that had unfortunately succumbed to a case of the melted cough drops:

 

 

With that done, there was no more space for time or excuses. It was time to enter the terrible Travel Vortex.

 

But – we must remind ourselves how fortunate we are to be able to travel, even if the Don Valley Parkway in Toronto has effectively been transformed into the world’s largest waterpark.

 

Source: @TORONTO_FIRE on X

 

Our driver Cristian arrived promptly at 5 pm, so it was time to once more load up his huge orange van and bid adieu to Hacienda Zuleta.

 

We’ll miss you – and your resort dogs, too

 

We’d arrived at Zuleta not knowing how much we’d be able to do – of anything, really. We thought we might have a few good meals and perhaps do a bit of hiking. Never did we imagine we’d be horseback riding and hiking and mountain biking and relaxing in front of a bonfire.

 

The perfect end to an exceptional trip.

 

We deliberately chose to leave early so as not to travel after dark. This was more due to practical reasons, but it also gave us another opportunity to enjoy Ecuador’s scenic highlights, including the Cayambe volcano:

 

 

Scenic pastures:

 

 

Terraced farms:

 

 

And those beautiful, rolling hillsides:

 

 

Though the fire we passed on our way in still smoldered on:

 

 

Darkness fell, and the lights of Quito beckoned – and before we knew it, Cristian had dropped us off at the airport roughly four hours before our flight left. Still too early to check in.

 

But we were able to find a Johnny Rockets, which was about as adventurous as we were prepared to be on our way out of Ecuador:

 

 

Source: Samuel P. on TripAdvisor

 

No images of our food, but I’m sure you can imagine the burgers, fries and milkshakes we enjoyed. It’s rated 3 stars on TripAdivsor, which sounds about right – though the server was friendly and capable, which certainly helped.

 

By the time we finished dinner, the Delta check-in gate had opened up and we were able to drop our bags. We were in Delta One again for this leg, which saved us a 30-person lineup for bag drop.

 

We were pleasantly surprised to hear that our bags would be checked through all the way to Toronto and Delta had lounge privileges at the VIP lounge here in the airport:

 

 

It’s quite a nice lounge. Maybe not quite as sleek and modern as the Delta lounge in Atlanta, but they did have a build-your-own sandwich bar:

 

 

And a pretty nice regular bar, too:

 

 

As well as a wide range of other food stations:

 

 

 

 

I ate precisely nothing, as I was still stuffed from Johnny Rockets. But I did enjoy a very nice gin and tonic served in a red wine glass. You need to present your boarding pass when you order, as I believe they limit you to two drinks. Not a bad idea considering the strength of the drinks we had.

 

10:20 pm – about time to board the plane so we went down to the gate. Unfortunately, there were very few gateside seats to be had, and Delta’s boarding schedule once again proved overly ambitious. But eventually Zone 1 was called, and we were able to get everyone in and settled well in advance of our departure time.

 

Delta One is quite nice, but their overhead bins are a bit rubbish. You’re able to get a single carry-on bag into one of the middle bins, if you’re lucky. So that means that the middle passengers are forced to put their bags into the window seating bins. But it all seemed to work out without anyone running out of space.

 

We declined the meal option, as we wanted the kids to get to sleep as soon as humanly possible. Our flight departed at 11:20 pm and arrived in Georgia at 5:25 am. Minus out the time shift, and it’s only a 5 hour flight – just enough to get a full four-hour sleep cycle if you don’t wait around for meal service.

 

Both kids were close to dosing off before the plane left the ground, and we were able to recline their seats into beds without disturbing them too much. I ordered a glass of milk with an airline bottle of Bourbon – perhaps the first time that had been ordered in Delta One, judging by the flight attendant’s confused expression – and I too was soon unconscious.

 

We touched down in Atlanta right on schedule, and thankfully the trip through US customs went quickly. We still weren’t entirely sure that our bags were checked through, so we hung around the baggage carousel for a bit just to make certain. But nothing showed up, so we went to make our connection. A staff member asked to see our transfer tags on the way out – another sign that our bags would hopefully make the connection into Toronto.

 

Not much was open in Atlanta at 5:30 in the morning. We opted to pass on the very-popular McDonald’s breakfast and instead opt for TGIFridays:

 

Source: TripAdvisor

 

TGIFridays didn’t open until 6:30, while our flight was notionally boarding at 7:10 am. But given Delta’s less-than-stellar boarding record this trip, we figured we’d have some extra time.

 

Then a party of 10 arrived just when the restaurant opened – a wedding party in search of mimosas.

 

I enjoy a good party as much as anyone else, but perhaps less so at 6:30 am in an airport terminal. I also have to admit that I was concerned whether we’d actually get our food on time.

 

But the staff worked their magic and our waffles and eggs were rolling out of the kitchen at 6:55 am:

 

 

We ate quickly and headed for the gate at 7:20 am – where we waited for another 5 minutes before boarding.

 

Unfortunately, we’d been unable to get business class on the last leg of our flight -so we ended up in Comfort Plus. The seats seemed the same width as regular economy seats, but there was additional legroom. I did my best to sleep most of this flight as well, despite it only being roughly an 1 hour 45 minutes long. Every little bit helps.

 

We landed in Toronto on time, as expected – and thankfully, Google Maps was showing the roads as clear. (Or as clear as they ever get in the Greater Toronto Area.) We were pleasantly surprised to find that they had advance customs clearance systems for families – we made full use of these, and were out by baggage claim a few minutes later.

 

We were also pleased to discover that our phones actually worked – we had previously been with Bell, who considered any request for network data to be more optional than mandatory, and which had led to some serious delays during our Morocco trip. The same had happened after my trip to New York. But we’d since switched to Rogers, and the cellular data actually turned on again. So clearly switching providers was the right call.

 

(Why turn off cellular data at the network level, you might ask? Apparently this is an issue with iPhone 15s – even if data roaming is off, they occasionally send very tiny packets of data over international networks when travelling. Turning off data entirely is the only way to avoid getting hit with Canada’s predatory roaming fees (think $16 per phone per day). We use Airalo global eSIMs instead – which include voice, text, and data.)

 

I tried to log in to Park ‘n’ Fly to arrange pick-up of our vehicle – only to find out that their much-vaunted app was now down. I had no idea how that would work in terms of picking up my vehicle from their valet lot, but there was little to do at that point – simply gather up our bags and split up so my wife and kids could collect Tim Hortons and I could get our vehicle.

 

I had to sprint to catch the Park ‘n’ Fly shuttle – irritating, but better than having to wait another 15 minutes for a second shuttle. They dropped us off about 5 minutes later, and then it was just a short wait to pay for our vehicle – again, highly recommend reserving in advance to get the best rate.

 

Unfortunately I then had to wait a further 5 minutes for them to bring our car around – usually it’s waiting in the parking lot – but this gave my wife and kids the time they needed to pick up food. We’d already gotten gas on the inbound leg – another lesson learned from previous trips – so this was the last hudle between us and home.

 

Or was it? My wife sent over the location for pickup and Rogers’ data network posted the way to the correct location – only for the driver occupying the prime curbside spot to dither as they very slowly set up navigation. Why they wouldn’t do that while waiting for their passengers is beyond me, but they were eventually sent on their way.

 

I was then able to make a pit-crew worth pick-up, loading our 3 carry-on bags, 4 backpacks, 4 checked bags in under 2 minutes – and we were on our way home.

 

Thank you all so much for joining us on our journey. It’s been an incredible adventure, and we’re so glad to have you all for the ride.

 

More to follow in the weeks to come as we unpack all that we’ve experienced and learned in our time in Ecuador.

[jpalbny]

Welcome home, and glad that everything worked (fairly) smoothly! Looking forward to the epilogue when you have time.

 

PS I know what you mean about predatory international data roaming rates. Back in the day when I had Verizon, even with data turned off, the location service would frequently grab location data off the cellular network, and it would result in a surprise charge on next month's bill. TMobile ended up being our answer for that.

Edited July 20 by jpalbny

[drron29]

Another wonderful report. I will be on the look out for any further reports,

It does seem you did enjoy the galapagos. our cruise there nearly 20 years ago is still in my top 3 trips.

I did get to swim with the sea lions. it was just me with 3 young male sea lions who i tried to copy. on my 3rd attempt following them down as I began to go up one came and surfaced with me with a flipper on my back and looking straight into my eyes.

Then snorkeling in a shoal of small fish when a group of blue footed boobies decide those fish looked tasty

Having the boobies and then gannets doing their mating dance right at my feet. i was told not to move until they finished. I wasn't going to anyway.

And the sight of penguins swimming over a coral reef.magic.

 

But your last stop at zuketa was the perfect ending to a great trip.

once again thanks for having us along.

[highplanesdrifters]

What a fabulous trip.  Thanks for taking us along and all the hard work that goes in to producing it.  What an amazing gift you are giving your children. 

[RyanJCanada]

And here's the recap video from our time aboard Silver Origin:

 

 

 

All footage was taken during the week of our trip, as is typically the case with Silversea recap videos.

Edited July 27 by RyanJCanada

[RyanJCanada]

On 7/25/2024 at 8:57 AM, drron29 said:

Another wonderful report. I will be on the look out for any further reports,

It does seem you did enjoy the galapagos. our cruise there nearly 20 years ago is still in my top 3 trips.

I did get to swim with the sea lions. it was just me with 3 young male sea lions who i tried to copy. on my 3rd attempt following them down as I began to go up one came and surfaced with me with a flipper on my back and looking straight into my eyes.

Then snorkeling in a shoal of small fish when a group of blue footed boobies decide those fish looked tasty

Having the boobies and then gannets doing their mating dance right at my feet. i was told not to move until they finished. I wasn't going to anyway.

And the sight of penguins swimming over a coral reef.magic.

 

But your last stop at zuketa was the perfect ending to a great trip.

once again thanks for having us along.

Thanks very much! On the subject of future cruise reports, we almost forgot to mention the 'mystery cruise' that we booked while aboard the Origin - Tahiti to Valparaiso in October 2025, including stops in Easter Island and Robinson Crusoe Island. There are good fares available on that sailing if anyone's looking for an extended expedition cruise through the South Pacific.

[RyanJCanada]

But the next one up for us will be the 40 day from Puerto Williams to Cape Town in February 2025. 

Edited August 2 by RyanJCanada