Floreana Island

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Geo: -1.28912, -90.4266

Today we saw flamingoes, sting rays and sea turtles. Point Cormorant in the morning and Post Office Bay in the afternoon. Went snorkelling and kayaking, and visited a barrel post office that has been in use since 1792, initially by pirates and explorers.

Today's snorkelling was pretty neat. I swam with and touched a couple of languid, feeding sea turtles, watched several penguins zooming around and had one swim past me two feet away. Also sea lions and lots of fish, including small sharks. I don't really get the point of kayaking, but was cajoled into joining Robyn in a two-person craft for an hour or so.

Tried the ship's dodgy satellite wi-fi today but it was not able to upload my blog. It'll have to wait till Guayaquil.

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Photos

Floreana Post Office
The barrel has been replaced many times over the years but the operation is the same. One puts an addressed postcard/envelope in the barrel. Someone comes along later, sifts through the dozens of letters and grabs any for delivering that are near where the person will be going. It's all person to person, hand delivery, no stamp required. Some letters are left for later picking up by friends. They simply have the addressees name and "Do not Deliver" on the envelope.

Delivery?
Examining the postcards and letters. Pascal was surprised to see a letter intended for the same suburb he comes from in Zurich - almost next door, he said. He took it to deliver on his return. There was only one letter for Brisbane, but addressed to Eagle Heights on the south side.