Neil Armstrong said that Bartolome is the closest to the moon that he's seen on earth. Well, Bartolome is the closest thing to heaven that I've seen on earth. Something about the colors and the hot sun and the physical activity just appeals to me. I love this place. The crazy thing is, we didn't do much here. Just climbed a bunch of steps. The view is awesome. There's just something in the air here. The orange sand plays off the green ocean below, and the wind kisses you in congratulations for reaching the summit. And, again, the snorkeling was perfect. Especially dipping into the cool clear water after climbing three million steps, or however many they SAY are there. There's one poor sea lion at this site who had to endure my endless diving and twirling in his face to capture his attention. That's safe to do, right? Oh, another joy was following a group of penguins straight into the line of fire. More poop.
This afternoon brought us to the island of Santiago. Santiago was a nice place to be. There was a colony of birthing sea lions. Kind of gross, but really good birth control. Neither my husband or I were interested in joining this group anytime soon.
I guess my husband fancies himself a boxer. He works with animals, so should be smarter than this, but he found himself in a dance with a female sea lion. They bucked and ducked in the surf. Husband thought he was tough. Ivan got a little nervous. But, hey, who's gonna stop a good show when they see one. It wasn't until the bull focused his attention on my "float like a butterfly" husband that husband snapped back into reality and stepped away from the wild animal.
Oh my gosh, I almost forgot the most adrenaline filled moment of our trip. Earlier on this day, way earlier, as in the sun hadn't rose, and the tiny cabin was feeling extra clauserphobic, husband and I climbed to the top deck with pillows and blanket in tow for some real sleep. About half an hour into our romantic sunrise rest, Pablo, the captain, appears, skipping the steps two at a time. We must have startled him, because he stopped short when he saw us. He tells us that whales are nearby. What?!!! Where?!! Husband and I spend the next ten minutes straining our eyes in search of a something, anything that looked whale-like. As soon as we stopped straining we looked over the deck to the left, and there was a huge eye staring back!!! Oh my gosh! The whales were SO big! Two of them jumped into the air RIGHT NEXT TO US! It took our breath away. We had the deck to ourselves for the closest sighting, but soon after Pablo made the announcement to the rest of the ship that there was a whale sighting. As the sleeping guests made their way to the top deck and the whales made their way farther into the ocean we heard gripings of, "Oh, I live in Syndey. I see whales all the time from my gym." Uh huh. I'm sure that's as cool as seeing it right next to you. Reminder: I've got to take another trip looking for more whales. I've never been so exhilerated.
The response from Adventure Life to my first inquiry was prompt and promising. I worked with Jamie Broeckel, Trip Planner, via text, email, and phone calls- always extremely responsive and thorough with information and explaining the process to arrange a private tour for me to Malaysia Borneo. Within about week, the booking was complete and I made decisions because of Jamie's great customer service , friendly manner, and overall competence on behalf of the company's travel expertise. Now I have an itinerary, additional Trip Planner Assistants, several links for vital information for traveling to Maylasia, etc. Still many details for Sept. trip, but now the heavy lifting is done and I can enjoy the rest of the anticipation and research!! Thanks Jamie- you are amazing!!!!
Susan Campo
3 days ago
The trip was not only memorable for the amount of animals we saw but also for the people and accommodations at the two camps where we stayed. Our first guide, BK, was a wealth of information about the animals, landscape and down to the plants and what they were used for. Everyday out was a learning experience with him. All the people at the camps were gracious and the food was excellent.
Our second camp in the Okavanga was just as good as the first as far as the staff, accommodations, food and animals. After our experience at the first camp we amazed that the high quality remained the same. Our guide, G, made sure we were able to enjoy every experience including a rush through the bush to witness a cheetah and an ensuing hunt that he heard over his radio.
In both camps there were enough guides out that if they saw something the other guides were informed which helped in seeing as much as possible. It was also nice that the concessions were large enough that we did not have vehicles following each other throughout the day.
Normally there is always something in a trip of this length that we think could be improved upon but this is the rare case where we cannot think of anything. From the time we left the States to when we returned it was one of the most hassle free vacations we took.
Perhaps emphasizing the use of the laundry facilities at the camps would be useful because of the luggage restrictions would be the only thing I can think of as an improvement to future clients.
Kenneth Dropek
4 days ago
Mary was so pleasant and professional. She made sure all of our questions were answered.