Bright lights, big city

It’s just past 6 am and the sun is up and so is the moon. It’s always so beautiful to see them both at once. Yesterday, as promised by the cruising guides, a slew of tour boats entered the harbor and jockeyed for position in the small space available. Two of them, one beside us and one in front of us, anchored and reanchored a few times trying to stay clear of the yachts but not very successfully. We were a little concerned about one but after we did a mental calculation of how we’d swing with the tide we figured we’d be ok.

We did a reconnaissance lap around town on Wednesday to get the lay of the land. It’s much bigger than the last town we were in, on San Cristobal, and much more touristy but in a good way. Cute shops full of the usual souvenirs but also more upscale shops with beautiful jewelry and baskets and ceramics made by local craftsmen. The hotels are also more upscale and almost all the restaurants have menus in English as well as Spanish.

It’s still the Galapagos, though, and the wildlife is pretty much a part of every day life.20140420-061637.jpg

We continue to be impressed with the art and architecture here in the archipelago, especially after so much time in the Caribbean where building is haphazard at best and trash is everywhere. Here, there’s style to even the most rudimentary of structures and we find art everywhere we go. It’s a delight.

We happened on this ceramic garden that appears to be someone’s back yard but with a welcome sign at the entrance arch. We could have spent hours discovering every imaginative detail of the place. It’s not a bad way to spend your free time, we thought, and we remembered a house not far from ours in Pittsburgh where the owners attempted a similar mosaic facade but with much less skill and success.

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