When embarking on a journey that will take you through the rest of your lives together, of course everyone wants the special trip after the wedding to be an adventure that will create memories that will also last a lifetime. We can’t think of any better way to accomplish that than to have your Honeymoon in Ecuador and Galapagos.
Even though, after we tied the knot all those years ago, we didn’t take our honeymoon there, we think we are onto something. Because when ever people ask us what is or favorite place that we have ever been, we always answer The Galapagos Islands. And now that we think of it, many of the reasons that made it such a “bucket list” vacation for us are the same reasons that will make it such a fantastic wedding trip for any newlyweds.
We began our travels in Ecuador’s capital city, Quito, which surprised us with abundant old world charm that most certainly strikes a romantic chord. The city’s Colonial Center is perhaps the best preserved and the largest in all of the the Americas. No doubt this is why it was the first New World city to be declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO.
Walking through the Plaza de la Independencia with the one you love, surrounded by palaces, the cathedral, and the Plaza Grande Hotel, feels like stepping into the pages of a classic love story. We even found a way to enjoy the magnificent Plaza Grande Hotel without breaking our budget by visiting their Cafe Plaza Grande, a very upscale, yet moderately priced, restaurant right inside.
Quito also has the distinction of being the closest world capital city to the equator. Just a short ride out of town and you and your lover can stand in two separate hemispheres at the same time, one in the northern and the other in the southern. That is certainly a memory that will last forever, maybe even something to tell the kids… or grandchildren.
We were also totally taken in by Ecuador’s largest city, Guayaquil. Our brightest memory of the town is the vast array of colors on the houses climbing up the sides of the hills. The downtown area is known for modern skyscrapers, but also has many interesting old buildings and a gorgeous cathedral that has a surprise.
The small park in front of the church, Plaza Bolívar, is filled with iguanas, so many that it has become better known as el Parque de las Iguanas.
As wonderful as our time on mainland Ecuador had been, the most memorable part of our journey was waiting ahead when we flew to The Galapagos Islands.
The archipelago consists of over one hundred islands and smaller islets, so every adventure can be different, depending on which islands you visit. But there are several highlights that no one would want to miss.
We flew to Isla Baltra, then immediately drove across a bridge to Santa Cruz and Las Bachas Beach. In absolutely no time at all we were watching sea lions frolic, bright orange and yellow Sally Lightfoot crabs scampering across the jet black lava, and several black (to blend in with the lava) Marine Iguanas that are only found on these islands.
From there we sailed to Darwin’s Bay on Genovesa Island. Formed by the remnants of a large volcanic caldera, the entire island is a large crescent shaped bay. It is also commonly called The Bird Island, and we can certainly agree that it lives up to the nickname.
It was here that we saw our first boobies, no, not that kind, the birds, both Red-footed and Nazca. The Galapagos are truly a bird lovers paradise and we saw our share including Red-billed Tropicbirds, frigates, a Short-eared Owl (a rare sighting we were told), Darwin’s famous finch, Flightless Cormorants, Blue-footed Boobies, a Vermilion Flycatcher (an even more rare event so we hear), and our favorite, Galapagos penguins.
Who would have thought that we would see penguins at the equator? But that sort of oddity is not at all strange on these islands. There are many species that are unique to the archipelago, so they can only be seen here, such as the Galapagos Giant Tortoise. They are such an iconic animal that the islands actually take their name from them, not the other way around.
We saw them several places around the islands, but we highly recommend a visit to The Giant Tortoise Breeding Center of The Galápagos Islands on Isabela Island where you are guaranteed to see a bunch of them, from babies to gigantic, ancient adults sometimes over one hundred years old.
A couple of our other favorites were Bartolomé Island and Fernandina Island, these are the youngest and most volcanically active of the islands, which is why we were so intrigued. The landscape is like its from another world, so stark and barren. Yet there is a real beauty to it as well.
There is one more essential point we learned on our trip and we want to make sure to pass it along. Before you set out on the incredible adventure of visiting Ecuador and the Galapagos be sure that you don’t book the wrong trip!
We love free-style travel as much as anyone, but for the protection of the animals and the ecosystems of the islands, you can’t just show up and start looking around these pristine islands. You need to choose the right guides and accommodations to insure a fantastic expedition. That means that it is very important to use an experienced company like Expedition Ecuador Travel Agency.
This will insure that your amazing honeymoon adventure will truly be the trip of a lifetime.
David & Veronica, GypsyNester.com
While the ferry is free now, it wasn’t always. In the early days it was a nickel a ride, and went up to fifty cents before the fare was waved in 1997 in an election year bid for votes from Staten Islanders by Mayor Giuliani. Since then the route has been fare-free, even though it costs the city over five dollars per passenger for each crossing.
In 1905 the City of 
By the time the ship gets far enough out in the harbor for a good look at the statue, so many people are usually on that side the boat is listing. The view of the Statue of Liberty is not as close up as the tourist boats, but remember, for the price it can’t be beat.
Driving toward the rim we couldn’t help but think about what early settlers rolling across the smooth, open prairie in their covered wagons must have though when they hit the edge. “This is too easy, nothin’ to it. We’ll be in Caiforn… Holy $#*%!!!! What in the Sam Hill is this?”
Even in the fall it can still be pretty hot, so we spent most of our time driving the miles of roads that took us over the edge and down the slope of the canyon wall then in a loop along the floor.
The other took us to a stone that natives had used for grinding roots, mesquite beans, and various seeds for food.
Soon after that we encountered a good sized flock of wild turkeys. With the heat and lack of water, these were the only wildlife we saw all day, but we guess that they would have made a fine meal too.
From there we got a long distance view of the park’s most famous landmark, Lighthouse Rock, which made us feel okay about skipping the six mile trail that would have given us a close up view. With that, we felt that we had done a pretty good job seeing most of the sights.
Feldman’s Wrong Way Diner was fun, with model trains circling the ceiling, but our favorite for both the food and its unique combination had to be Pepito’s Mexican Restaurante & Auto Sales.
