Floreana Island
Early this morning we disembarked in one of the most historical places in Galapagos, the Post Office Bay. In this bay we witnessed a spectacular event today. A pacific green turtle was observed finishing her nest on a sand dune. Minutes later, in front of us astonished spectators, the turtle made its way to the water. Pacific green turtles dig their nests at night to avoid the heat; the one we saw today was a little bit late. We saw it at around 7:30 am and a radiant sun was starting to heat the place. With relief we watched it fleeing from the heat of the day. After this unusual sighting we went to visit the world famous Post Office barrel, located only a few yards away from the landing site.
In the past the only way to get mail from or to the islands, was using this curious mail system. Nowadays we continue with this interesting tradition and we involve our guests in it. This is a tradition that has lasted for more than three centuries! We leave messages, in our case postcards, which will be hand delivered without using stamps by passing ships. Obviously we can not deliver important or vital documents, but we send postcards simply for the fun of it. At the same time it is a peculiar way to meet new friends or share experiences with other visitors. Another newer tradition is to leave behind, close to the barrel or hanging on it, the most diverse souvenirs. These items range from awkward pieces like, luggage tags, messages in bottles, and wooden pieces with ship’s names to beautiful art objects. Last week a group of enthusiastic guests painted the pieces of wood pictured today. I promised them to leave their work in the innermost location around the barrel this week. This group of people are already part of a tradition that resists dying, an old fashioned way to deliver messages in a world that now uses the most modern and fancy devices for communication.
Early this morning we disembarked in one of the most historical places in Galapagos, the Post Office Bay. In this bay we witnessed a spectacular event today. A pacific green turtle was observed finishing her nest on a sand dune. Minutes later, in front of us astonished spectators, the turtle made its way to the water. Pacific green turtles dig their nests at night to avoid the heat; the one we saw today was a little bit late. We saw it at around 7:30 am and a radiant sun was starting to heat the place. With relief we watched it fleeing from the heat of the day. After this unusual sighting we went to visit the world famous Post Office barrel, located only a few yards away from the landing site.
In the past the only way to get mail from or to the islands, was using this curious mail system. Nowadays we continue with this interesting tradition and we involve our guests in it. This is a tradition that has lasted for more than three centuries! We leave messages, in our case postcards, which will be hand delivered without using stamps by passing ships. Obviously we can not deliver important or vital documents, but we send postcards simply for the fun of it. At the same time it is a peculiar way to meet new friends or share experiences with other visitors. Another newer tradition is to leave behind, close to the barrel or hanging on it, the most diverse souvenirs. These items range from awkward pieces like, luggage tags, messages in bottles, and wooden pieces with ship’s names to beautiful art objects. Last week a group of enthusiastic guests painted the pieces of wood pictured today. I promised them to leave their work in the innermost location around the barrel this week. This group of people are already part of a tradition that resists dying, an old fashioned way to deliver messages in a world that now uses the most modern and fancy devices for communication.
