We are so happy to have had the opportunity to travel to Ecuador (Dec 8-18) together before the baby is born. This might have been the last adventurous last trip we take for a while!
First, we spent 3 nights in Quito, which is the capital of Ecuador and the oldest city in South America. Quito is located 9,000 feet above sea level so at times it was tough to catch your breath and being pregnant didn't help. I made sure to drink a lot of water to keep myself hydrated.
We then spent 3 nights in the Amazon jungle. This is where we met Hector, one of our favorite characters on the trip. He was our guide, a local healer, a shaman, and quite possibly part god. He told Craig and I he was able to tell if we were having a boy or girl just by waving his panther claw across my belly...the claw of a panther he killed for his "entry to manhood", but that's another story. I let him, and after about a minute he told us we were having a boy. Later in the trip he told us we would be having 9 more children, so I'm not sure how accurate this guy is, but we'll see. Overall, the Amazon was great. We went on a lot of hikes, some really early in the morning. The best part was that they always gave us a break to take a siesta right after or before lunch, which was exactly what I needed. The food in the rain forest was pretty good considering we were in the middle of nowhere. I was eating for two at this point, when it wasn't really even necessary! I'm glad I did, since the rest of the food on the trip sucked! I told all a few of the travelers that I was pregnant and word spread quickly and I suddenly had 14 grandmothers and grandfathers. We were traveling through my company, Grand Circle Travel, and the average age was about 75. Everyone took great care of me and gave Craig and I some great advice.
Next, we were off to the Galapagos Islands for 3 nights. I was a little nervous because we were staying on a 16 passenger catamaran for 3 nights and I wasn't sure how my stomach would handle the rocking. I took one of my new grandma's advice and pretended like I was getting rocked to sleep, which worked perfectly. Who can think about getting sick when you're cruising and exploring the Galapagos Islands? What almost did make me sick was the food on the ship. I wasn't sure what I was eating half the time and at this point, food is the one thing I could look forward to indulging in. I did sleep through a snorkeling trip, which was disappointing, but me and the baby needed to catch up on some sleep. At certain points I would have loved a drink and it would have helped we cope with some people on our trip. Remember, we were traveling and spending every waking moment with 14 75 year olds for 11 days. Most of our days started at 6 or 7 am and ended when I called it a night at 8 pm. I do have to give the travelers a lot of credit because they had more energy than Craig and I put together.
Overall, it was an incredible trip that came at the perfect time. It was our first trip "with" the baby, and the entire vacation was in celebration of our news. Stepping away, just the two of us (well, except for the 14 old people), was a great way to put things into perspective and absorb the fact that from this point on, things will never be the same!
First, we spent 3 nights in Quito, which is the capital of Ecuador and the oldest city in South America. Quito is located 9,000 feet above sea level so at times it was tough to catch your breath and being pregnant didn't help. I made sure to drink a lot of water to keep myself hydrated.
We then spent 3 nights in the Amazon jungle. This is where we met Hector, one of our favorite characters on the trip. He was our guide, a local healer, a shaman, and quite possibly part god. He told Craig and I he was able to tell if we were having a boy or girl just by waving his panther claw across my belly...the claw of a panther he killed for his "entry to manhood", but that's another story. I let him, and after about a minute he told us we were having a boy. Later in the trip he told us we would be having 9 more children, so I'm not sure how accurate this guy is, but we'll see. Overall, the Amazon was great. We went on a lot of hikes, some really early in the morning. The best part was that they always gave us a break to take a siesta right after or before lunch, which was exactly what I needed. The food in the rain forest was pretty good considering we were in the middle of nowhere. I was eating for two at this point, when it wasn't really even necessary! I'm glad I did, since the rest of the food on the trip sucked! I told all a few of the travelers that I was pregnant and word spread quickly and I suddenly had 14 grandmothers and grandfathers. We were traveling through my company, Grand Circle Travel, and the average age was about 75. Everyone took great care of me and gave Craig and I some great advice.
Next, we were off to the Galapagos Islands for 3 nights. I was a little nervous because we were staying on a 16 passenger catamaran for 3 nights and I wasn't sure how my stomach would handle the rocking. I took one of my new grandma's advice and pretended like I was getting rocked to sleep, which worked perfectly. Who can think about getting sick when you're cruising and exploring the Galapagos Islands? What almost did make me sick was the food on the ship. I wasn't sure what I was eating half the time and at this point, food is the one thing I could look forward to indulging in. I did sleep through a snorkeling trip, which was disappointing, but me and the baby needed to catch up on some sleep. At certain points I would have loved a drink and it would have helped we cope with some people on our trip. Remember, we were traveling and spending every waking moment with 14 75 year olds for 11 days. Most of our days started at 6 or 7 am and ended when I called it a night at 8 pm. I do have to give the travelers a lot of credit because they had more energy than Craig and I put together.
Overall, it was an incredible trip that came at the perfect time. It was our first trip "with" the baby, and the entire vacation was in celebration of our news. Stepping away, just the two of us (well, except for the 14 old people), was a great way to put things into perspective and absorb the fact that from this point on, things will never be the same!
