Back in Guayaquil

Sunday, June 15

First, Happy Father's Day to all the dads out there. I flew from Isla Baltra in the Galapagos back to Guayaquil today. I can't say I was excited to leave the Galapagos, but it had to be done. I was lucky enough to spend over two weeks out there and will treasure that time for the rest of my life.

Back in Guayaquil I met up with Greg and Alice who I had met on Isla Isabella in the Galapagos. We had a few beers together and watched Ecuador take on Argentina in a World Cup qualifying match. Ecuador was up one goal until Argentina scored with less than a minute to go in injury time. It would have been a huge win for Ecuador, but they definitely showed they can compete. Liga de Quite takes on Fluminense from Brazil on June 25th in the first match of the Copa Libertadores final and an Ecuadorian team has never won the cup, so keep an eye out if you are interested in fútbol.

I booked my bus to get to Quito for tomorrow morning. Unfortunately they have no direct buses, except on Sundays, so it will be interesting. It is supposed to take 9-10 hours, so I hopefully will make it to Quito sometime tomorrow. I have no idea what kind of bus I'll be on, but is was only $9 so I'm not expecting much. I will then leave Tuesday afternoon to fly back to the states. It has been a great run for me here down in South America and couldn't have met better people.

As promised, here is a link to learn more about the Sharkwater film I saw a few days ago in the Galapagos: http://www.sharkwater.com/. I would again encourage you all to watch it if you can as it will open your eyes to the destruction we are causing to sharks and other marine animals. I would also ask you all to visit Sea Shepherd's website (http://www.seashepherd.org/) to learn how you can help protect sharks and other animals in the ocean that are vital to our existence. Watching Sharkwater and spending over two weeks in the Galapagos has changed me and I hope to contribute to the cause of saving our oceans as soon as I return to the states. And, I hope I can encourage others to do the same.