Amber- Risen from the dead

Sorry I/we haven't written in so long, there never seems to be sufficient time or internet to write anything substantial -_-
So, let's start with the Inca trail, I guess. It was quite extreme in some places, getting up at times ranging from 3 30 to 6, climbing up steps almost half a meter in height and trying not to fall over on the slippery ground that was all to eager to let you slide off and over the edge...
We were really lucky and had pretty good weather, apart from the third day when it rained a bit and when we got to Machu Picchu the next day it was really misty , but that all cleared up in the end and we got some really good pictures. I was sick on the first night and was up from 12 till 3 30, and up agan at 5 30! The second day was the hardest day too, so it didn't help that I was doing it on a sick and empty stomach. The people we met there were amazingly nice, and we all got along really well, it was a lot harder to say goodbye to them than I would have expected after only knowing them for four days.
The trip to Manu was next, and again, the early mornings were no less regular. This seemed to be okay though, as we had very long boat journeys at some points that we could sleep on instead! The wildllife was incredible, except for the mosquitoes.. grrrr!! I had at least 54 bites on solely my legs by the end of the trip, you could see them following you around in clouds when you went for jungle hikes. I saw my favourite bird, the scarlet macaw, randomly perching on a post in a farm that had seemed to have replaced the typical excitable dog with a not-so-typical excitable wild boar that tried to jump up onto your lap and followed you around snorting in a hyperactive state of near insanity.. I tried to stay away from that boar.
We saw a giant aquatic guinea pig on the very last day- only I didn't have my glasses on and by the time I found them all I could see was a flash of capybara's behind as it disappeared into the wilderness.
We got stopped by landslides on the road, on the way back we were unsure of whether we were going to make it back that night, which was a bit of a problem for us as we had a plane to catch the next morning.. luckily for us the dirt was cleared by the time we got there :)
We only spent a day in Lima and from there it was a lot of travelling up to Trujillo, then Piura in two days time, then straight from Piura to Guayaquil where we finally ended the overnight bus rides for good. We crossed the border to Ecuador on Xanthe's birthday, although technically it had been five hours earlier, not that it mattered much. I think she had a good birthday, we managed to get a hostel with a pool which she and I spent most of the day in, then went for gargantuan ice creams that were almost a health hazard, they were so big, then went to a nice place for dinner that had really lovely food. We were going to write the blog that evening, but the taxi ride home took a little longer than expected and by the time we got back it was too late to do anything, especially as there was someone on the computer at that point. The next day we were up quite early to get to the airport for, in my opinion, the most looked forward to part of the trip- The Galapagos Isles. That's where I am now, in an internet cafe in Puerta Ayora on Santa Crúz, one of the inhabited islands in the group. We have seen so much already- Iguanas, baby sea lions that let you get within a metre of them and weren't bothered, and on occasion came to sniff your feet and swim with you on the beach, a frigate bird which has a red balloon type flap of skin on its front that expands to attract females, giant tortoises, rays, starfish, black seqa turtles, and this morning I was lucky enough to see a baby white tip shark in the water just by our boat. None of the animals here have reason to be afraid of humans, so they're very chilled about you approaching them which is absolutely unreal.
This is my favourite place so far. I wanna live here. Seriously. We have two and a half days left, and I hope they go really slowly. It's just too increible to leave behind, and I swear that someday I will be coming back.
But that's pretty much all for now, I hope everything's okay at home and y'all are enjoying the easter holidays! Write back and tell me what I'm missing ;)
Amber x