Iguanas, Fries and Artists

Wade’s first day as duty dean we decided to take the shuttle to the town and then walked to Parque Semenarios aka the Iguana Park. I’m not sure how many Iguanas we actually saw, but it was well over two dozen. Many were overhead in the treetops; others roamed freely around the park. Emma touched one of the iguana’s tail and Wade petted several. I, being the only one of sound mind in this trio, touched none. It was really interesting to watch the ways the iguana reacted to the people around. Some completely ignored us and others interacted. The one Wade photographed here on the seal of Ecuador would nod his head vigorously if spoken to – quite amusing! The iguana in the treetop seemed to be playing a little game called “let’s pee on the unsuspecting tourists.” Johanna, a 9 ½ year old on board had warned us not to stand under any trees, so we were spared this little ritual, but we watched quite a few others initiated into this disgusting rite of passage. We walked from the park to the Malecon 2000, the boardwalk area of Guayaquil. Completely renovated for the new millennium, this is a fantastic space. Emma played on no fewer than three playgrounds and steered a toy boat through several obstacles in a river created for this purpose. It was on the Malecon that we broke our 29 day streak. My friends, we have been virtually fast-food free since leaving Oklahoma. On this day though, M didn’t just stand for Malecon, and at 10:40 am, Emma spotted the golden arches. Yes, I ate a hamburgeresa con queso before 11:00 am. Yummy! After walking the length of the Malecon, where we saw local artists, several food vendors, and a recreated Henry Morgan Pirateship, we decided to head up to Las Pinas, a barrio that leads to a lighthouse. While the lighthouse was our original destination, we never made it there. Between Wade’s cell phone ringing and us discovering other fascinating places to stop along the way, we never crested the top of the hill. Instead, we had Emma’s portrait done in charcoal, found the newest addition our eclectic art collection, and wandered the streets of this colorful neighborhood. By 4:30pm, we’d all been zapped by the equatorial sun and opted to return to the ship.