We started our day with a Zodiac ride along between Chinese hat and Santiago Island. As soon as we got on our Zodiac and left our mother ship, we had an incredible sighting of a pod of 6 Orcas.

These incredible marine mammals came very close to our Zodiacs, offering us great chances to photograph them. We spotted among the pod, three females, two young ones and one medium size male. It was stunning to spend approximately ten minutes with these incredibly intelligent animals. The contrast among the black and white of the Orcas and the blue ocean was just perfect to photograph.  

We continued with our ride after the Orca sighting and encountered three Galapagos penguins on the lava rocks. Penguins on lava with cacti in the background? Yes, that is Galapagos! This is the third smallest penguin on the planet and the only one found on the northern hemisphere.

I expressed to our guests how lucky we were to have a black and white morning with the Orcas and penguins.  It seemed like everyone dressed formally to perform for us.

After the ride we went on a small hike along the coastline of Chinese hat, while others went snorkeling or just relaxed on the white sandy beach. While snorkeling, we spotted a large variety of fish.  There were colorful marine invertebrates and we were lucky to spot a couple of Galapagos penguins in the water.  

During the afternoon we had a dry landing on a barren lava field. It was a large open space where primary succession takes over and the fight for survival is the only way to make it for all the pioneer species.

This was just like traveling back in time, exploring the Galapagos how the islands were before they had a complex ecosystem well established on them.  

The shapes of the lava, different colored minerals which have reacted with oxygen over time and some beautiful scenery were the perfect combination for a lovely afternoon.  This special place is where Darwin spent nine days while he visited the islands in 1835.  

This was the perfect day to explore Santiago and James Island aboard the National Geographic Islander.