Floreana, at the southern end of the archipelago, has the most interesting human history. On those hills, perfect cinder cones of an old volcanic era, pirates used to look for water and tortoises, as whalers did in the eighteen hundreds.
The first Ecuadorian colony settled on this island 168 years ago. They were 80 soldiers who had been sentenced to execution and then freed on condition that they become workers in the new settlement Devotedly the rebels and their families created a village named "Asylum of Peace." They planted lemon, orange, banana, and papaya trees, and grew various vegetables. We still eat those sweet oranges at breakfast on board the Polaris -- the best oranges in the whole world! (We buy them every Monday, from Floreana farmers.)
The colony was an idyllic place governed by General Villamil, one of the right hands of the Ecuadorian president in those days, General Flores (therefore the name Flore-ana). But in 1835, 300 convicts were sent to the island, transforming it into a true penal colony. That was the same year Darwin visited Floreana. He saw those same volcanic cones, ate the same oranges and enjoyed the company of giant tortoises.
With the degeneration of the "Asylum of Peace," Villamil resigned as governor. Some of the convicts were sent to San Cristobal Island, some went back to Ecuador; some disappeared.
There was a second attempt to colonize the island in 1870, and a third one in 1893, but both failed and ended tragically.
The nineteen hundreds are the beginning of a new episode for Floreana. A very intriguing story that involves all kinds of odd personalities, and all kinds of mysteries. If you want to read more about it, visit us same day next week... we might not have yet disappeared…
