Journey and settling in

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Wednesday 3rd September

Well i managed to get to the islands! After 5 flights i arrived on Baltra Island's very basic airport. After panicking about not having $100 to pay the entrance fee i managed to scrape together just enough change to pay it and i followed the crowds towards a bus that took us down to a boat for a short trip across to Santa Cruz. There I saw the first iconic image of Galapagos in the form of a sea lion sat on a buoy watching us sail past. We eventually arrived in Puerto Ayora, where i had a brief panic as no one was there to meet me. After 5 minutes of trying to ring Martin from a fellow passenger's phone a car turned up with my name written on a large piece of A4 paper waving out the window. I was so relieved and after repeating my name several times to the driver, in the hope that he'd be able to pronounce it, we headed off to find me a hotel for the night. Later on in the day i met Martin who explained to me a bit of the work that Fundar does and how they are trying to work with the local people thus helping the environment. He also gave me a stack of Galapagos books....in Spanish that i spent the next few hours trying to translate. After an exhausting journey i was very glad to head back to the hotel early and get a good nights sleep.

The next morning i went in search of a cheaper hotel room and managed to get one for $20 a night, although there is no hot water and the light is a little dodgy it is perfectly adequate and is my home for the next few nights. I am currently trying to sort out where i will be staying. I have the option of the charity's reserve and farm in the mountains but as i would be on my own up there, i am more inclined to rent a small room in Puerto Ayora. A employee of Fundar has offered a small apartment for me to rent for $200 a month which i think will be the best option. We went up to the farm where i will be working one or two days a week monitoring the veg and plants they are growing there. They use the veg for food and sell any excess and i am going to monitoring it and working alongside Hoqué who lives up there. That afternoon i had a meeting with Carlos, the director and Martin about what i will be doing over the next few weeks. The charity is working on a number of projects at the moment. From questionnaires for the children of Galapagos, looking at their lifestyles and any problems they encounter, to alternative energy projects. I have been given the role of looking for construction methods to build domestic solar panels to heat water for the islands. One of the major problems for Galapagos is the amount of diesel they are transporting to the islands as the consequences of an oil spill would be so devastating, such as that from 2001. Therefore Fundar are trying to look at the cost and effectiveness of solar panels and then the process of educating the local people of the benefits. Finally i will be helping Martin to update the Fundar website and translating important news articles in to English. This is a slight problem as my Spanish is very limited at the moment but with the use of www.dictionary.com and guesswork i'm sure it will be fine.

Today, Friday, i headed back to the Fundar offices and began the search for solar panel DIY manuals. At lunchtime i decided to head over to the Charles Darwin foundation offices in search of a volunteer sent from Friends of Galapagos NZ. While i was there i went to have a look round the tortoise reserve and had my first encounter with lonesome George. I then went down to the bio-marine offices where i was told i would find Pete and saw his spectacular view of the bay. Marine iguanas where on the floor below and sea lions were splashing around in the nearby waters. It was absolutely amazing and when i get a chance i will upload the photos and videos. Am looking forward to the weekend and having some time to explore the island more.

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