Highlands and Puerto Ayora

Changover day. While some of our new friends are transferring off the ship, a private tour of the Highlands is given to the couple from France and us. We go to a "ranch" where scores of giant tortoises are on their migration. They are everywhere - in the bushes, mud puddles and in the fields. The land tortoises certainly make a strange hissing sound when you get up close! Had fun playing table tennis with Franklin, one of our naturalists. We return to the boat, have lunch and them meet our new travelmates: residents of California and Arizona, a family from Italy, an extended family from Germany, Aussies, New Zealanders and several pairs of newlyweds (from Japan, Italy and New Jersey). We have a full complement of 32 onboard. We end the day at the Darwin research station.