Saturday, August 16, 2014

Olivia - Galápagos - Week 5

Back from island hopping and back to work! This past week on the reserve we had 35 volunteers from all over the world. I am meeting and making connections with people from so many different countries as well as people from my own town! Last week on a absolutely tiny beach  in Santa Cruz I got stopped and asked about my hat, a Michigan football hat. It turned out that The lady who stopped me, Denise, is an academic advisor at Umich! She works in the Newnan advising center and just got back from a GIEU trip to the Amazon and was spending a few days on the islands with her family. We exchanged contact info and I am going to meet with her when I return to Ann Arbor to talk about our adventures. The saying "wherever you go, GO BLUE!" has never been more applicable!

For work we spent two days at the tortoise breeding center and continued our work on the trails. The other work days were spent on the reserve itself. A group of us spent an entire day in the garden cutting down the invasive plants that were growing around the pineapple and tomato plants that are thriving! Other people went and collected radishes, oranges, and papaya for us to enjoy at dinner! 

On Thursday a group of us took a hike into the highlands with our machetes in hand prepared to clear up the path since no one had been up there in two years! It was amazing how different the vegetation was the higher we went. There was a plant that covers most of the mountain that changes color depending on the temperature. Our boss said that the islanders call it "natures thermometer" it goes from a forest green color (in mild temperatures) to a bright red (in extreme high or low temperatures). We also visited the massive freshwater lagoon and waterfall that supply most of the tap water for the reserve.

I can't believe I am already beginning my last week here. It has been so hard to say goodbye to volunteers as they begin their journeys home. We really have become a family here and I have experienced so much with these amazing people by my side! I am feeling excited and nostalgic to begin the last week of this unforgettable once in a lifetime experience. 

My island hopping group on the top of Sierra Negra!

The last "family" dinner with all 35 volunteers!

Nothing like an evening of surfing after work!

Chao!
Olivia



1 comment:

  1. Olivia,

    I know Denise! That is awesome that you "ran into" someone from UM halfway across the world. GO BLUE! You should definitely share the link to the blog with her. If you would like me to, I could do that.

    The work that you're doing is so incredibly interesting to me. Are you assigned tasks by a supervisor? How do they prioritize your responsibilities? I'm curious about where you sleep too. A tent or a building?

    The "natures thermometer" plant sounds really cool. Do you know the scientific name? I would like to look it up. Good luck with your last week! I look forward to hearing about it.

    Best,
    Tammy

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