The Galapagos Islands are an archipelago a 1000 kilometers off the coast of Ecuador. The native language is Spanish and is a very safe and clean place. All of the glass bottles that are used here are returned to a recycling plant which turns them into pavers they use to construct roads. San Cristobal Island has three large wind turbines that completely power the town. Since the Islands are lacking in fresh water, all water used for general purposes is half fresh and half salty. The drinking water comes from bottles rather then tap. The currency used is the US dollar but change is frequently given in the native Ecuadorian currency. Every transaction must be made in cash because no place on the Islands accepts credit cards, but there are a few ATMs and banks on Santa Cruz that will process them.
The Islands are home to more then 30,000 human residents. Half of the animals that are native to the Galapagos are endemic and a fifth of all the sea life in the marine reserve is endemic. When an animal is “endemic” it means that it’s species cannot be found anywhere else on the planet.
There is a common misconception that in order to see the Galapagos you must take a pre-arranged tour. In fact, it is better not to take a tour because when you are on your own you can take your time to see the area more thoroughly than what a tour with a schedule and many people would allow.
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