Capturing the Moment

  Blue-footed booby takes flight in the Galapagos. The sites, adventures, and wildlife have been stunning here during this six day cruise of the Galapagos Islands. I can't believe it is coming to our final day already. We are going out with a bang though, with a visit to the famous Post Office Bay, zodiac tours, kayaking, snorkeling, and hiking to accomplish. If you are looking for adventure, the Galapagos can be your cup of tea. The famous barrel post office box in the Galapagos. We all left post cards in the barrel, and we took a look at ones in the barrel to see if any were located back by our homes. Quite a few people took post cards to hand deliver to their recipients back in the states. Post Office Bay, nestled within the pristine archipelago of the Galapagos Islands, is a site teeming with historical significance and natural beauty. Located on Floreana Island, this bay holds a unique tradition that dates back to the 18th century when whalers and sailors established a makeshi...

 It felt great to wake up without an alarm clock and in such a beautiful place. I meandered to the bar, pictured above, to get some computer work done while sipping the first latte offered on the trip. The view down over the lake was amazing and with everyone else in the lodge heading out for early morning game drives I felt like I had the whole place to myself.   Slowly the group started finding their way up to where I was for morning coffee and a grand breakfast buffet. After breakfast we put the finishing touches on packing and eagerly got underway for a game drive around the lake. We weren't disappointed. We had a very close encounter with a beautiful maned male lion right next to the vehicle. Crowned cranes fed near the waterhole, and we were able to find some more white rhinos for David, who missed the fighting ones on the previous game drive.    We also got a rare chance to get out of our vehicle down by the lake's edge. Lake Nakuru really gained a...

Lake Nakuru National Park   The old flooded entrance gate Sopa Nakuru Lodge View from the bar After a long morning of travel we arrived at our next destination  Lake Nakuru. After some quick paperwork at the new gate, since the old one flooded and is now partially under the lake, we sped through the forested side of the park towards the Nakuru Sopa Lodge, our base for exploring this park. The road winded way up the escarpment overlooking the lake, and perched ontop was a beautiful collection of stand-alone bungalows and a huge bar and dining area. We arrived just in time to catch the tail end of lunch. Our rooms, 27, 28, and 29 were far enough away from reception to necessitate a golf cart shuttle service, but we were up for a bit of walking. Everyone was pretty amazed once inside the rooms. The view was gorgeous from on top of the escarpment, there was fine woodwork everywhere, and the bathrooms were ludicrously large...complete with what we assumed was ...