It's our last day in the Galápagos. We left the boat early, for our last dry landing, to visit the San Cristóbal Interpretation Centre on Santa Cruz Island before flying back to Quito via Guayaquil. It is another scorcher today. It was unanimous that visiting the interpretation centre was a bit of an inconvenience as it was a repeat of most of what we've learned over the trip and since we were leaving we just wanted to get back to Quito. They needed us to get off the boat to get it ready for the next group. Our flight wasn't until 1:20 pm so I guess they had to do something with us. We finished going through the centre and made our way to town to get a couple of cervezas. It was after 9:00 am by now, after all, and it was just too hot & humid to walk around before flying out.

Puerto Baquerizo Moreno is the provincial capital of the Galapagos and the second largest settlement area in the islands. It has one of the islands 2 airports. It originated as a penal colony more than a hundred years ago. Now it's a sleepy town, with many dive shops, overlooking the harbor and is known for its relaxed attitude. The city is pretty and has a beautiful harbour with sea lions frolicking and boats moored.
 
The beaches near town are one of the few places where visitors are allowed to camp in the islands. There are a number of hotels and restaurants available for those not interested in camping.

The Interpretation Center's new buildings, lush gardens and sweeping ocean views are lovely but, as I said, it's the last thing we wanted to do this morning. Vic & I rushed through it and found a nice shady spot with a breeze where we could wait for the others who joined us quite quickly. The Interpretation Center has info about the geological and human history of the islands, conservation issues, ecosystems and preservation efforts.

San Cristobal bears the name of the Patron Saint of seafarers, "St. Christopher" its English name was given after the English nobleman Count Chatham. This 558-sq-km is the fifth largest in the archipelago and has the second largest population.
 
We arrived back in Quito around 6:30 and we were all just aching to have a shower and get into a comfy bed. We all decoded to order room service for dinner and call it a night. Tomorrow we'll explore Quito some more after sleeping in.