It Can Only Go Up from Here - May 8

The next morning we took our 4th plane ride, from the mainland to the tiny island of Baltra, which has an old air strip previously owned by the U.S. military. That flight was delayed 1.5 hrs. Upon arrival we took ourselves and our bags to a public bus, crowded with tourists and locals, which took us to a small public boat that ferried us across the water to Santa Cruz Island, which took us to another bus which went north to south to the other end of the island, to the pier where a fast water taxi took 2.5hrs to cross to Floreana Island, over quite rough water. Even though I had taken a Dramamine and stared doggedly at the horizon, I finally succumbed to the bumps. along with the stuffy heat inside the boat and sleep deprivation, lost my very delicious lunch of shrimp and wahoo into the engine well and the water at the rear of the boat. Ben was grabbing me from behind so I didn’t fall out. I was mortified, the only one who got sick, and I imagined the other folks on the trip were thinking “weak link” and planning to vote me off the islands. However, after we arrived, one Kathy said it was the worst boat ride she had ever had, and everyone else was kind and supportive. Arriving on Floreana Island, we took an open air wooden bus through lush green vegetation to the Lava Lodge, a seemingly idyllic row of wooden huts connected by a boardwalk and overlooking the waves crashing on the black lava rocks which characterize all the islands. Because of the delay, however, we arrived just as dusk was falling - no see-ums and mosquitoes were swarming, as we struggled to get indoors. Darkness fell very quickly and the one light in our cabin didn’t work, nor did the small air conditioner, due to limited electricity. At dinner I ate some delicious spinach soup but my stomach wasn’t up to any more. Our beds were very comfortable fortunately and we managed to get a little sleep in spite of the heat, humidity, and itching.